Events

November Public Program

Our Boys, Armenian-American Veterans of World War II and the Women of the Home Front
Screening and discussion of a documentary film by Roger Hagopian and Tom Spera

Sunday, November 10, 2024
2:00 PM
Watertown Savings Bank Meeting Room
Watertown Free Public Library
123 Main Street
Watertown, MA 02472

In 2005, the 60th anniversary of the end of World War II, Tom Spera, the son of a veteran of the war, was determined to find a way to honor Armenian-American soldiers who had served their country.  He collaborated with filmmaker Roger Hagopian to produce Our Boys, which features oral histories interspersed with personal and historical photographs from the wartime period.

The interviewees that appear in the film attend the Armenian Memorial Church in Watertown and the First Armenian Church of Belmont.  These men, some barely out of high school at the time of the war, reflect on the bombing of Pearl Harbor, their induction into military service and their harrowing journeys through rough seas aboard troop transport ships.  They recount correspondence with their families back home, poignant and humorous moments and near-death experiences during combat.

Mr. Hagopian and Mr. Spera will answer questions at the conclusion of the 68-minute film.

This event is free and open to the public.  For more information, please contact Joyce at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

This program is funded by a 2024 grant from the Watertown Community Foundation.