A Change is in the Air

*Disclaimer, this blog is meant to be both educational and entertaining.  The information shared here should not be a substitute for your own research.  Additionally as new information comes to light through books and other reputable sources, facts shared here are subject to revision.  Constructive feedback is welcome as long as it is appropriate and professional*

"You must be the change you wish to see in the world."  -- Mahatma Gandhi

"If you don't like something change it.  If you can't change it, change your attitude."  -- Maya Angelou

"Change will not come if we wait for some other person or some other time.  We are the ones we've been waiting for.  We are the change that we seek."  -- Barack Obama

"Every great dream begins with a dreamer.  Always remember, you have within you the strength, the patience, and the passion to reach for the stars to change the world."  -- Harriet Tubman

"Progress is impossible without change, and those who cannot change their minds cannot change anything."  -- George Bernard Shaw

What do all these quotes have in common?  They all stress that you can't sit idly by and expect things to change on their own.  If you truly want something in your environment to change you have to find the strength inside yourself to be the one to step forward and see it happen.  

What does this have to do with re-enacting?  History is history and we can't go back and change it but the type of change I'm going to be discussing has more to do with how this history based hobby is structured and organized.  Is the hobby the same as it was 20 years ago? No, it's evolved and it has changed for the better.  It's how the hobby has stayed alive over the decades and how new people and new generations get brought into and stay in the hobby.  How did that happen though?  It didn't happen because everyone sat complacent with how things were but because re-enactors over the years decided to challenge the status quo and change what they were doing to make improvements.  It's how standards continually evolve, uniform and equipment quality improves, and units change and grow.  

When anyone starts out in the re-enacting hobby everyone follows pretty much the same process and it has been this way for years.  In fact in my very second post on this blog I outlined this process.

1. Choose your impression.

2. Join a unit.

3. Research your impression.

4. Use your fellow unit members or leadership to build a good and accurate impression for events.

But what do you do when you don't have a unit for your impression?  Or realize you're being held back from reaching your re-enacting goals because of the units available to you?  Do you accept it as is and settle for "good enough" or give up on your goals and stay in a situation that no longer gives you the satisfaction you want from this hobby?  I wouldn't settle for that in my everyday life and I don't think anyone in this hobby should have to settle for that either but that means you personally may need to step up and be that change you want.

I see so many units throughout the country made up of men who on a weekly basis are taking chances and doing new and exciting things which are having tremendously positive impacts on the growth of this hobby.  They certainly aren't content with the status quo set for them but rather want to challenge themselves to create new standards.  

But where does that leave me or other women in the hobby who feel they don't really have a unit to go to?  

When I go to events I have always done a helferin impression whether it was a Luftwaffe one or a Heer one but there's never been a dedicated unit for me or other women like me in the hobby to be a part of who do helferin impressions.  There's plenty of DRK units and many male units who have allowed me or other women to "fall in" with them or female attachments but yet this didn't quite represent the service of helferinnen in the most accurate historical manner.  I've been grateful for the hospitality of the male units but at the same time there was always a sort of disconnect between their goals and mine.  

Helferinnen had their own chain of command and their own units during the war, they may have been given an "administrative assignment" with a particular male unit but it wouldn't have been a "permanent assignment" where they would travel to various theaters with the same male unit.  If that was the case why do many in the hobby think it's correct to just have the women fall in at the rear of a male unit at events?  

From day one I was always felt I was an anomaly in this hobby for my dedication to accuracy or I heard things like "if only there were more women like you in the hobby."  And yet I stayed put, stayed with the status quo, and was afraid to challenge how things were.  Truthfully for awhile I didn't think there was another option.  Sure some other women in the hobby and I tossed around the idea of changing things to benefit us at events while we were sitting around the fire in a camp or over text messages but nothing ever was acted on.  Then one day something changed.  

In October 2015 my friend Sean made an introduction that was going to drastically change my re-enacting path over the next year and a half.  He called me up one day and said I want to introduce you to someone, I think you two will get along quite well.  She's very like-minded to you when it comes to re-enacting and she wants to start doing German, do you think you can help her out?  A few days later he introduced me to Jessica or Jess and we've been virtually inseparable ever since at major events like FIG, Virginia Beach, and D-Day Ohio.  We collaborate, share research and knowledge, and continually strive to elevate each others impressions to higher and higher levels of accuracy.  And yet it always felt to us like something was missing from our re-enacting experience.

Jess and I in our various adventures at events.

Regardless we trudged along, doing our own thing at events and executing activities that we wanted to accomplish regardless of where we fit in.  We've been a part of a number of units ever since we met but still never felt comfortable or like we fit in.  We sat along the sideline as we saw discussion after discussion happening at events or in online forums about female participation in the hobby and how difficult it can be to accommodate them at times within male units when it's not really accurate.  But still we did our own thing.  Eventually the discussions got louder and more frequent and we felt we couldn't sit idly by anymore.  

It was then, several months ago, we realized what exactly that missing piece was and that maybe, just maybe now was the time for us to pioneer something new within the hobby.  Something that the current state of the hobby wasn't offering us or other women and we made the decision that it was time to change the status quo.  We made the decision that it was time for us to blaze a new trail and establish an autonomous helferin unit.  In our vision this unit would be independent of any male unit in terms of its structure, chain of command, and participation at events.  It'd allow us to set our own standards and make our own decisions on what we were going to do as helferin.  Of course this would be no easy undertaking but we were passionate about this idea and committed ourselves to seeing this unit come to fruition to take the hobby for women like us to the next level.  The more we talked; the more our passion intensified towards the idea we could truly be a part of something great in the evolution of WW2 re-enacting.  

And so the official process to take on this new project began in February 2017 and here we stand 3 months later, after hours and hours of work and we're ready to announce to my blog audience our new unit.  

So drum roll please... we are happy and excited to present:  

Nachrichten Regiment 598

We buried ourselves in research to find a documented unit or group of Nachrichten Helferinnen des Heeres not just a geographical location they may have been assigned to.  When we finally found one it just felt like a natural fit to be the basis for our new unit.  Specifically Nachrichten Helferin Ersatz Trupp 302 was attached to the 11th Company of Heeresgruppen-Nachricht-Regiment 598 and was a unit of female auxiliary signals personnel serving within the German HQ in Italy.  It was comprised of women serving as helferin who came from all over the German Reich.  Similarly it was our goal to make this unit a national unit with members from all over the United States who wanted the same thing and just felt they didn't quite have that in their current environment.  

As we continued work on the foundation and structure of this unit we started seeing just how many other people we knew were ready and excited at this potential prospect.  Before we knew it what started as a unit of 2 like-minded women who both do helferin impressions doubled into 4 and more past that started connecting with us and it was so exciting they were from all areas of the country coming together to collaborate.  As we talked to more women we found they all had the same incomplete feeling towards their experience in the hobby and yet we all had the same desires and goals for re-enacting.  We all wanted to share our passion and dedication to the accurate representation of history but still have fun and enjoy ourselves because it is after all a hobby.  

Other members of Nachr.Rgt 598, pictured in the center with HQ staff at FIG 2017
Original Photo taken by Chris Pittman

Ultimately this all takes us to present day and why I incorporated this into my blog because I want this blog to not only talk about serious topics in the hobby but also new and exciting endeavors that can help other in the future in similar situations.  All the members of Nachr.Rgt 598 are excited to move forward with this and see where it takes us!  It's a new (sometimes terrifying) path we are going on but something that is long overdue and given more time will transform into something stellar.  I am grateful to all my readers who will support us in this endeavor and cant' wait to see many of you at our unit's first event.  The inaugural event for this unit will be D-Day Ohio in Conneaut, OH August 17th-19th.  Please come see us!  

In the meantime we'd love if you'd visit our Facebook page and give us a like!  If you are a helferin re-enactor or know of someone who might be interested in joining our unit please contact us on Facebook too!  

https://www.facebook.com/Nachr598/

What Unit is Your Boyfriend in?

*Disclaimer, this blog is meant to be both educational and entertaining.  The information shared here should not be a substitute for your own research.  Additionally as new information comes to light through books and other reputable sources, facts shared here are subject to revision.  Constructive feedback is welcome as long as it is appropriate and professional*

Today is International Women’s Day a day to honor and celebrate women worldwide and their contributions throughout history to shape the world we know and the society we live in.  As female re-enactors we represent the memories of many of these women who made sacrifices and dedicated their lives during times of hardship to support their country and society.  Because of this I felt it was time for me to write a post about a topic that nearly every woman in re-enacting has encountered at least once in their life.  My original draft for this post was vastly different and touched on a post-event review of FIG 2017 but after reflecting on the meaning behind today I changed my mind and wanted this post to focus on one thing and not be muddled by other information. 

Many of my readers may know me outside of just this blog but when I’m not re-enacting I have a B.S. in Industrial Engineering and I am currently a Quality & Operations Manager for a multi-million dollar sign manufacturing company.  I am extremely proud of my career and everything I have achieved professionally.  I am fortunate enough to work for a Woman-Owned Business and work alongside a Senior Management team that is primarily women but working in a corporate environment and a technical field I also am accustomed to working in a male dominated industry and working twice as hard to earn the respect of male colleagues or consistently getting overlooked at industry events because I’m a woman.  Truthfully this often isn’t any different in the re-enacting hobby.  Just like there is a stereotyped perception in my career about why would a woman want to be an engineer and yet it’s unheard of that she could be “on the same level” as male engineers the same perception exists among many male re-enactors in the hobby. 

Why would any normal woman spend thousands of dollars a year on uniforms and equipment for a hobby that is made up of 80% men?  Simply put because I want to, because I love history and I love the enjoyment I get when I go out to an event and recreate that part of history if even for a day.  It’s not any different than the reasons that any man in the hobby has for doing re-enacting and yet every event I get asked one specific question.

What unit is your boyfriend in?

This repeated question and stereotyped opinion that a woman wouldn’t ever join this hobby unless they were dating or married to a man who is a member of a specific unit has become so prevalent that myself and several of my friends have made memes, jokes, and even place bets on occasion at event on how many times I’ll get asked the question.  This is not to say it is a negative thing if you are a woman who has a significant other in the hobby.  Women don’t go up to men in the hobby when they first meet and ask them the question “what unit is your girlfriend in,” so why is it different when men meet women in the hobby?  Why is it outside of the norm for a woman to pursue this hobby on her own regardless of the truth if she has a significant other that does it as well or not?

The story of “What unit is your boyfriend in” for me began at Collings Foundation in 2016.  I was invited to participate in the event as a Luftnachrichten Helferin.  On Saturday afternoon of the event I was sitting in camp working on a few minor sewing projects when a few men from another unit came over to introduce themselves to me.  Since I was the only woman in a camp of 40+ men and a new face to New England events I wasn’t surprised they were slightly curious to meet the new person.  After basic introductions one of them asked the specific question, “So what unit is your boyfriend in?”  Initially I was taken aback that he could be so blunt and then responded “none of them.”  This wasn’t the answer they were expecting and they asked what I meant by that trying to find a better explanation.  I continued to explain to them I’m not dating anyone in any unit. At this point in the conversation they were completely confused and asked why I was here then.  My final response was because I enjoyed it; I love the history, and love attending re-enacting events where I can contribute to keeping this aspect of history alive.  The conversation hit an awkward pause because these men through the expressions on their face and body language conveyed a message of confusion, they weren’t sure how to talk to a woman like me or if they should now proceed to flirt with me because surely what I said wasn’t true and I must truly be there to find a boyfriend or try to have an engaging conversation.  There wasn’t really anything more they were able to come up with to talk to me about and it was after they departed the impact of their initial question really dawned on me and how deep rooted stereotypes are in this hobby still exist and the uphill battle each of us women face in breaking through that barrier as re-enactors. 

So many other women in the hobby I have met have encountered a similar situation at least once in their life.  Each of us will always face a battle to be taken seriously despite the fact we spend hours upon hours researching and thousands of dollars on our uniforms and equipment.  A great number of women in the hobby aren’t there to pose and look pretty for pictures.  It’s not easy dealing with this perception and some days you’ll feel incredibly rewarded but other days you might feel incredibly beat down.  And unfortunately no matter how hard you try to change peoples opinions some people won't ever change their mindsets.  

The most important thing is to never forget why you do this hobby, what it is you love about the hobby, or what aspect of the history you are passionate about.  I’ve been through a lot of rough patches in both my career and my various re-enacting time periods and time after time the thing that gets me through it is reminding myself about what gives me personal gratification and I what find rewarding.  Keeping your focus on this will help you overcome the repeated questions of “What unit is your boyfriend in?”

Understand you’re not alone either.  There are plenty of groups, units, and individuals that will respect and support you for who you are as a re-enactor.  You may not find one right off the bat but once you do find that group, unit, or friends that respect and support you, you’ll find that you will be afforded the opportunity to flourish even more than ever before.  I’ve been fortunate enough to find some pretty amazing friends over the years that support me 110% and in turn I give my all to support them as well so we all continue to succeed.  They’ve been there when I’ve been incredibly angry in frustration, been there when I am so upset I’m crying, and been there when I’ve been over the moon happy too.  I know they’ll always be there to support me no matter what.  If it wasn't for them I wouldn't be half the re-enactor I am today.  Additionally there are so many significant others of my friends who support and love them for their passion for the hobby and what they strive to achieve. 

Find those people at events that'll keep you smiling and laughing always!

I want to wrap up this post before it gets too lengthy.  Although this post talked about a more serious topic or situation, try not to take this hobby too seriously or personally.  Remember to keep a good sense of humor about this crazy thing we call re-enacting.  It is a hobby after all.  At the end of the day we go to events as an escape from our daily lives and as a way for us to relax and enjoy ourselves from the monotony of our regular lives and jobs.  This is exactly why I often post on social media joking about the number of times at an event I get asked the proverbial question, “what unit is your boyfriend in, “ and have even created a hashtag for those stories.  Those that know me know I take my impression seriously but always know how to joke around and relax.  The hashtag and the memes are ways that I can remind myself to laugh and have fun because as I said this is just a hobby.  We all need to remember that and accept its okay to laugh at ourselves because ultimately you know who you are as a re-enactor and what your worth is.  Don't let the opinions and preconceived notions of other hold you back from going after what you want ever.   

On a final more heartfelt note, I want to express my gratitude and thanks to those that have always supported me and my crazy drive to be the best re-enactor I could be and never have passed judgement that I couldn’t achieve my goals in the hobby because I am not a man.  So specifically Jess, Sean, Kyle, Jamie, Joe, Rosey, Brian, and Brandon… you each know what you’ve done for me over the years and how much it means to me.  Thank You!

A Uniform for All Seasons!!

*Disclaimer, this blog is meant to be both educational and entertaining.  The information shared here should not be a substitute for your own research.  Additionally as new information comes to light through books and other reputable sources, facts shared here are subject to revision.  Constructive feedback is welcome as long as it is appropriate and professional*

Happy 2017 to all my readers!!  It's been a long time since I sat down and wrote a post for all of you to read so I'll catch you all up to speed a bit.  I'm gearing up to head out in a few weeks to my second Battle of the Bulge (FIG) reenactment in Fort Indiantown Gap, PA.  This is a wonderful event put on every year by the WWII Historical Association.  The organizers put in countless hours to execute this event and make it one of the not to miss events along the East Coast.  This event deserves it's own separate post to describe it well so for now I'll leave just a few pictures below.  

Working some of the switchboards at FIG 2016

Dinners & Dirndls always make for a wonderful evening, FIG 2016

Since that last post I have spent the last several months dedicated to sewing and creating additional uniforms for my new impression.  After attending Warbirds over the Beach in Virginia Beach I decided to pursue a new impression as a Nachrichten Heflerin des Heeres.  This was a natural progression in my growth in the hobby as it allowed me to participate with a unit many of my friends were a part of.  

First off was the "Walking Out" uniform, this uniform is the basic uniform NHdH often were seen wearing in original photographs and consisted of the double breasted tunic, skirt, overseas cap, and service shirt.  For this uniform I decided to purchase from Schusters.  Schusters is a company located in Belarus, Russia that specializes in reproduction uniforms for both German and Russian military from WWI and WW2.  A note when dealing with Schuster is that you must have patience, there is a significant language barrier when communicating with them and their lead times are very long.  So don't order at the last minute for an event and get frustrated when they can't meet your deadline, the best plan is to order at least 4 months before you need the item.  Once getting past that, I have to say I was very impressed with the uniform I received.  The tailoring is fantastic since they make it according to your measurements and the quality of the wool is great too.  The wool is certainly not any of the cheap wool or polyester/wool blend you often see from the Asian manufacturers of reproduction uniforms.  The price was about mid-range for the female uniform market at just under $300 for the tunic, skirt, and hat.  I would recommend this uniform to anyone shopping for a wool walking out uniform for this impression.

A selfie but unfortunately the only photo I have in my Schusters Uniform, Rockford 2016

As I mentioned above Schusters has a very long lead time.  I originally ordered my uniform from them and planned it out so that it would arrive approximately 2 weeks before D-Day Ohio last August.  Unfortunately due to issues in Russian customs about a week prior to the event it was fairly clear that it wasn't going to arrive in time and coming to this realization was very disheartening.  In one of my crazy ideas I decided that if I wasn't going to have that as a new uniform to debut at the event I would come up with another uniform to debut.   Therefore one week before the event I undertook the challenge to pattern and reproduce the helferin Summer Uniform but not only was I going to make a single uniform I was going to make two, one for myself and one for my friend and fellow reenactor who also had her Schuster uniform delayed.  

The summer uniform was pretty straight forward in it's design as it consists of a white linen skirt with kickpleats and a white linen button up blouse.  The skirt I was able to reverse pattern from my Luftwaffe uniform skirt and the blouse was a mishmash of various pattern pieces I had for other blouses.  The uniform was quite well received and turned out beautifully.  In addition the gift of the summer uniform to my friend was a complete surprise and something she truly appreciated.  

Enjoying our lunch while trying to keep the white uniforms clean, D-Day Ohio 2016

Photo taken by Canteen Cowboy at D-Day Ohio 2016

The last uniform and possibly the most challenging uniform project I undertook this year was the Wehrmacht Helferinkorps M44 uniform.  This uniform was only issued after November 1944 once all the branches of the helferinkorps were organized under the umbrella of the Wehrmacht Helferinkorps.  Although the uniform style was basically standardized each branch still had small variations such as the color of wool, insignia, and other minor details.  The uniform consisted of a tunic, skirt, and/or pants.  In the book, Last Ride of the Valkyries, author Jim Poole does an excellent job translating the original tailors instructions on the construction of the uniforms.  

The same friend who I did the summer uniform was one that I decided to reproduce this uniform for along with one for myself.  Both her and I lamented the inconvenience when we are at field events that we didn't have a uniform with pants to wear which drove our desire to try and reproduce this uniform.  After hours of research on this uniform I felt prepared to tackle this project.  

Research & the start of notes on the pattern for the M44 uniform

In terms of patterning, I was able to drape a pattern using a reproduced Flak helferin M44 tunic and for the pants used a pair of civilian ski trousers to reverse engineer a pattern off of.  This process in itself took approximately a 6 weeks alone to finalize.  After countless revisions and mockups a final pattern was completed and ready to start on construction of the final uniforms.  

Before starting on the final uniforms, the correct materials had to be sourced.  The Heer M44 uniforms were made of a Feldgrau colored wool which is not an easily sourced color wool.  Both Hessen and At the Front sell this wool by the yard though.  I requested swatches from both of them and after receiving both swatches and comparing them I chose to proceed with the fabric from At the Front.  Hessen's was not a bad wool or an incorrect color, it was just a preference to go with At the Front.  Buttons were also sourced from At the Front and the insignia came from Bill's Militaria.  

Many late nights, long weekends, and blood, sweat, and tears went into these uniforms but I am very happy with how they turned out.  I would easily estimate that over 100 hours if not more of work went into this project.  The uniforms finally made their debut at IR134's annual December event, "Christmas in the Trenches," in Lugoff, SC.  Again this is a wonderful event that deserves it own separate post to do it justice.  Although I will say these uniforms were perfect for the event, as it wasn't only a field tactical event but occurred when South Carolina had unseasonably cold weather so warm wool pants were a welcomed comfort in the cold weather.  

Morning Appell at CIT 2016

The entire NHdH squad from IR134, CIT 2016

And now you know exactly what I've been up to for the last several months this year.  I think that my collection of helferin uniforms is nearly complete so now I'll have to look to the next project to expand my reenacting wardrobe.  And for those that are attend the Battle of the Bulge event in a few weeks, I invite any of you that are interested to attend my class I'll be teaching titled, "Include and Elevate," which is based off of the topics I discussed in my last post I wrote in May.  

Links of Interest:

Battle of the Bulge Event Link:
http://www.wwiiha.org/new/index.php

D-Day Conneaut (Ohio):
http://www.ddayohio.us/

Schusters:
http://schusters.ru/en

IR134 "Hoch und Deutschmeister":
www.IR134-HuD.com