America recently celebrated 250 years of its independence on July 4, 2026. The country that stands today as the tallest and most powerful democracy in the world has had its fair share of wars and battles. While historians and museums work to protect and preserve parts of the past that keep the present alive, a man of Indian origin is on a mission to preserve the present that may soon become history.Rishi Sharma, an Indian-origin man living in the US, has been working to preserve America’s World War II history for more than a decade. He has toured the entire country on a mission to interview all the World War II veterans and learn about their life journey as well as their role in the war.So far, the 28-year-old has been able to interview over 3,000 veterans and he is not done yet. “For the last 10 years, I’ve been on a mission to interview every single World War II veteran,” he told CBS. “And I’ve honestly spent every single day for the last 10 years doing that.”
Veterans Interview
28-year-old man has been able to interview over 3,000 veterans and he’s not done yet
Sage recently interviewed 100-year-old Marine veteran Nils Mockler of Yorktown, New York. Niles was a combat intelligence scout and his first battle was at Iwo Jima, one of the bloodiest and most inspiring battles in Marine history. “What did it mean to you to see the American flag waving?” Sage asked Nils.Niles said, “Well, I still get goosebumps on my arms when I think about how beautiful it was.”
childhood dream
Fresh out of high school, Sage was 18 when he began traveling to his Southern California neighborhood to record interviews with veterans. Over the course of a decade, he has traveled to all fifty states, including Canada, Britain, Australia, New Zealand, and France.He soon expanded his reach by mapping out the places he hoped to visit in the coming years. “The real superheroes out there are World War II vets, and I want to meet them,” Sage said in 2016.Interestingly, his passion for World War II history did not come from family tradition. His parents immigrated to the United States from India and he has no military background. But he had been interested in World War II history since high school.His project, Remember World War II, is funded by donations as Rishi talks to vets for hours, then gives the recordings to families. He does not take any salary for himself and all donations go towards the travel costs of getting the veterans on camera.He also posts conversation videos on his YouTube channel Remember WWII with Rishi Sharma, where he has 172K subscribers.
Protecting history and heritage
“The advice they give quietly steers the ship of this country,” he said.
A decade ago, when Rishi began his project, there were approximately 700,000 surviving World War II veterans worldwide. Today, only about 30,000 remain.According to him, when they are all dead, perhaps in the next decade or so, America will lose more than just old war stories. “Because they have been the moral guides of our society for a long time,” he said. “Just the advice that they quietly give steers the ship of this country.”With his mission, Sage is reminding the nation that the longevity and freedom they enjoy today are largely thanks to the veterans who sacrificed their lives for the United States.