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First veterans meeting in RR looks into the life of Harold Amidon
The first Veterans’ History Project meeting at Esther Bone Memorial Library the afternoon of Feb. 21 was small in number, but the conversation was meaningful nonetheless. The inspiration for the meeting’s topic came from friends and family of Harold Amidon, a deceased Army sergeant.
In conversation with Rio Rancho’s Larry Ham and Amidon’s daughter Connie, the life of Amidon was examined.
“Growing up, he would tell stories about the war, but I always suspected he was leaving some things out,” Connie said.
Ham helped bring out the whole story through video documentation, which has been published with the Library of Congress and on YouTube.
Ham and Connie got together and decided to start a local chapter of the Veterans’ History Project with another project called the “Harold Amidon Media Project.”
The goal with the project in Rio Rancho is to document stories like Amidon’s.
Before he was inducted, Amidon married the love of his life in January 1942. They were happily married for 73 years. After they married, he was went into the U.S. Army in September 1942.
American Love Story is the story of Harold and Sophie Amidon, their daughter Connie, and one hundred years of American history as seen thru their eyes.
His foreign service was in North Africa and Italy during World War II, when he earned the rank of sergeant. He and his unit were given “R & R” in Italy on the Isle of Capri where he, while raised Christian, was baptized into the Catholic faith, as his wife was Catholic. He eventually returned to the U.S. on the Issac Sharpless and was honorably discharged in November 1945.
The couple moved from New Hampshire to Gloversville, where he had been offered employment in the textile industry. Connie says he was mechanically inclined and was able to fix machinery that others had been unable to, which earned him a promotion. At his job in a supervisory position, he was able to work with the local employment office to help employ others. As the mill where he worked began to experience challenges, he worked in the industry in Vermont, Massachusetts and Maine. He remained working in the textile industry for more than 30 years. He also earned a real estate broker’s license.
In 1951, the couple had Connie. Amidon served as a lector at his church and a term as president of the men’s club of her high school.
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In their 70s, they moved to Rio Rancho to be near Connie. Amidon worked for Dillard’s at Cottonwood Mall selling men’s suits, working into his 80s. When his wife began to have health issues, he decided to stop working so that he was able to dedicate his time to her care. He then stayed home with his wife and their dog Lucky. He was a caretaker for his wife until her death in 2015 at age 96.
During his years in Rio Rancho, he made friends with many people, including Ham. He remained in his own home through his 100th birthday in 2021. Mayor Gregg Hull issued a proclamation for his 100th birthday, and there was a drive-by parade celebration during the COVD-19 pandemic. People often commented on how mentally sharp he was for being 100.
“He remembered everything right up to the end,” Connie said.
In late 2021, his health declined and he sold his home and moved into a small private care home located by his daughter. He celebrated his 101st birthday with 19 friends at his favorite restaurant, Joe’s Pasta House. By late May his heath deteriorated significantly and he passed away peacefully.
Connie and Ham hope veterans will attend meetings in future so they can tell similar stories. Connie says in an age of people denying major catastrophes like the Holocaust, which her dad lived through and fought against, documentation of these stories has never been more important.
The conversation, which lasted nearly two hours, started with Amidon’s story but went into other topics as well. Ham and Connie talked about homeless veterans being at an all-time high in recent years, culture around respect for veterans and more. Future meetings will be similar, but other vets will be welcome to share their stories.
Next month, the project will be at Loma Colorado Main Library.
To watch the full video documentation of Amidon’s story, visit the YouTube channel.
