How to Record a Veteran's Story: Questions, Setup and the Veterans History Project

Record one unedited interview of 45 to 90 minutes at home on a phone with a clip-on mic, after a short pre-interview, then send the original to the Library of Congress Veterans History Project (VHP) and keep copies for the family.

1. Set a date with the veteran.

2. Hold a 20-minute pre-interview on branch, dates, unit and off-limits topics.

3. Gather records: the DD Form 214, photos, letters and maps.

4. Print the VHP Field Kit forms.

5. Set up a quiet room, tripod, clip-on mic and a test.

6. Record at least 30 unedited minutes.

7. Log and copy the recording.

8. Submit to VHP and build a Persona.

For an interview, VHP needs at least 30 original, unedited minutes, the signed forms and a box sent by commercial carrier. Congress created the project in 2000 within the Library of Congress American Folklife Center, and it now holds more than 121,000 collections (Library of Congress Magazine, 2026). These rules come from the VHP Field Kit, which the Library still sends contributors to in 2026.

Send the raw file exactly as the phone saved it, because VHP does not accept edited recordings and returns collections that miss its minimums. The release forms give the Library ownership of the physical items while the copyright stays with the veteran, so read them together before interview day. A veteran who would rather write can qualify with a 20-page memoir instead; see how to write a memoir.

Ship the original recording and the signed forms in one box by commercial ground carrier, or hand-deliver them by appointment. The Field Kit lists no upload option, and the Library's 2026 guidance still says to send collections by UPS or FedEx.

1. Copy the recording to a USB flash drive or DVD-R, one veteran per drive or disc, plus copies for you and the veteran.

2. Fill in the Recording Log with the topics in order and their minute marks.

3. Check that both release forms are signed, and complete the Biographical Data Form.

4. Label photos on the back in soft pencil, list the people left to right on the Photograph Log, and scan your own copies first, because the Library keeps what you send.

5. Add a cover letter and ship by ground to Veterans History Project, Library of Congress, 101 Independence Avenue SE, Washington, DC 20540-4615, never by US Postal Service, because the Library's screening of mail can damage materials.

6. Expect a postcard within 8 to 10 weeks, and send questions to vohp@loc.gov or 1-888-371-5848.

Preparation takes one phone call and one records request. In the pre-interview, held by phone or in person as the VHP Field Kit asks, cover the branch, years, rank, unit, places served and topics to leave out, and fill in the Biographical Data Form as you go.

Then request the DD Form 214, the Certificate of Release or Discharge from Active Duty, which lists service dates, duty assignments, and awards and decorations. Most veterans and next of kin get free copies from the National Personnel Records Center through eVetRecs or Standard Form 180, but the National Archives asks you to wait 90 days before following up (National Archives, 2026), so do not hold the interview for it. Put photos, letters and maps on the table while you record, because a picture of a ship or a barracks pulls out details no written question will.

A phone on a tripod with a clip-on mic is good enough for the Library of Congress if the room is quiet and you test first. VHP wants a quiet indoor room, equipment set up in advance, and no adjusting of settings or zoom once recording starts.

1. Room. Pick a room with carpet, curtains or a couch, and turn off the TV and the dishwasher.

2. Light. Seat the veteran facing a window or lamp, never with the light behind.

3. Phone. Mount the phone sideways on a tripod at eye level, framed from mid-chest up, at 1080p.

4. Mic. Clip a lavalier mic to the shirt about a hand's width below the chin.

5. Silence. Turn on airplane mode, plug the phone in and check the free storage.

6. Test. Record 30 seconds and play it back on headphones.

7. Slate. Open with the date, the place, your name, and the veteran's full name, birth date and branch.

8. Hands off. Leave zoom and settings alone, and if you take a break, keep each file at least 30 minutes long.

9. Back up. Copy the file to a computer and a USB drive the same day.

Video is the safer choice, because MP4 and MOV are both on the VHP list and you capture the face as well as the voice. For audio only, use an app that saves WAV, and email vohp@loc.gov before sending any other format.

Ask in the order life happened, then close with a message for the grandkids. The VHP Field Kit includes the Library of Congress's own suggested questions, and our life story questions and questions to ask your dad cover the rest of a life.

Joining up

• Where did you grow up, and what did your family do for work?

• Were you drafted or did you enlist, and why that branch?

• How old were you, and what did your parents say?

• What was happening in the world, and how much did you know?

• What did you think the military would be like?

Training

• Where was basic training, and what do you remember about the first day?

• Who was your drill instructor, and what did he or she yell most?

• What was the hardest part, physically and mentally?

• What job were you trained for, and did you choose it?

• Who became your friends there, and are you still in touch?

Service

• Where were you stationed or deployed, and how did you get there?

• What was your unit, and what did a normal day look like?

• What did you eat, where did you sleep, and what did you do for fun?

• How did you keep in touch with home, and who wrote to you?

• What is the funniest thing that happened while you served?

• Which day from your service do you think about most?

Coming home

• How did you travel home, and who met you?

• How did people back home treat you?

• What was hardest about civilian life at first?

• Did you use the GI Bill for school, a home or a business?

Life after service

• What work did you do afterward, and did service shape it?

• Did you stay in touch with your unit or go to reunions?

• Did you join the Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW) or the American Legion?

• How did serving change the way you see the world?

• What do movies and books get wrong about your war?

For the grandkids

• What do you want your grandkids to know about your service?

• What advice would you give a young person thinking about enlisting?

• What should people remember about the people you served with?

• What are you proudest of from those years?

• What would you like to tell the family members who watch this later?

Let the veteran set the depth, ask about people and places before events, and never ask whether he or she killed anyone. Agree on off-limits topics in the pre-interview and repeat that promise at the start, because a veteran who trusts it talks more freely about everything else.

The US Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) National Center for PTSD says older adults may look back to reflect and that unwanted memories can return, often alongside retirement, health problems or the loss of a spouse or friends (US Department of Veterans Affairs, as of October 2026). So ask about a normal day before the worst one, allow long pauses, and stop the moment the veteran asks you to. Leave out serial numbers and other private information, as VHP requests, and finish on the grandkids or a funny story.

If the veteran, or you, is in crisis, the Veterans Crisis Line is free, confidential and open 24/7: dial 988 then press 1, or text 838255 (Veterans Crisis Line, 2026). Family members and friends can use it too, and nobody needs to be enrolled in VA care to call.

Plan about two and a half hours of your own time for a one-hour recording, and split anything past two hours into a second session.

Example: a 60-minute session plan. Copy these minute marks into the Recording Log.

Example time budget. Allow 20 minutes for the pre-interview, 15 for setup and the test, 60 for the recording, 40 for the log and copies, and 20 for packing and the FedEx or UPS drop-off. That is 2 hours and 35 minutes in all, and your only cost is ground shipping on one box.

Our verdict: do the Veterans History Project first, because it files the interview as a named veteran's collection with an online record of his or her service for the price of shipping. Then build a Persona from the same stories so the grandkids can keep asking.

The StoryCorps app is the fastest way to a first audio conversation, and our StoryCorps alternative guide covers when to go further. Remento suits families who want a book, but a book stops at the questions asked on the day, while a Persona lets the family keep asking.

The veteran builds a Persona on Afterlife.ai™ from his or her own memories, stories and voice, and chooses who can talk with the Persona. The grandkids then ask their own questions any time and hear the answers in the veteran's own voice.

1. Open the account at app.afterlife.ai or in the iPhone or Android app; a grandchild can sit beside the veteran and type.

2. Add the service stories. The free build includes 25 memories, enough for the best story from every phase.

3. Record the voice. Creating the voice and the first listen are free; see how to clone your voice.

4. Add a Persona Video. One 30-second recording makes video messages in the veteran's own face and voice, and the first one is free.

5. Choose up to 5 Trusted Contacts from the family to talk with the Persona on iPhone, Android or the web.

6. Set up Executor Lock™. The veteran names an executor, and at verified death the Persona is locked as a perfect snapshot nobody can edit, retrain or use for impersonation, so the family always meets the Persona the veteran approved.

7. Upgrade only if needed. Legacy is US$14.99 a month and Eternal US$29.99 a month; see our pricing page.

Afterlife.ai™ never recreates anyone who did not consent while alive, so the veteran builds the Persona and makes every decision while the family helps with the typing and recording. For the years beyond service, see our guide to recording your life story.

Veterans Day is Wednesday, November 11, 2026, so record the interview the weekend before (November 7 and 8) and give the day itself to the whole family.

• Map the service. Pin every base, port and deployment, and let the grandkids ask about each one.

• Start the Persona. Add the first five memories while the interview is fresh; our memory gift for Dad guide has more ideas.

• Make it a school project. VHP accepts interviewers age 15 and older, so a high schooler can run the interview.

• Library of Congress: Veterans History Project Field Kit

• National Court Reporters Association: Veterans History Project Field Kit (PDF copy)

• Library of Congress Magazine: Participate in VHP (January/February 2026)

• US Office of Personnel Management: Federal Holidays

• US Census Bureau: Veterans Day 2025 Facts for Features

• The National WWII Museum: WWII Veteran Statistics

• National Archives: Veterans' Service Records

• Wikipedia: DD Form 214

• US Department of Veterans Affairs, National Center for PTSD: Older Adults and PTSD

• Veterans Crisis Line: Get Help Now

• StoryCorps: The StoryCorps App

• Remento: Recorded Stories and Book