War and remembrance
WWII developing after 60-year wait
by Leslie Knott, Reporter

   After 60 years of waiting, William Coleman, a World War II veteran, gets to see for the first time the pictures he took in Italy during the war.
   After graduating from college in June 1942, Coleman enlisted in the Army. He was assigned to the 12th Medical Supply Depot as an optometrist. After training in North Africa with the 5th U.S. Army, he waded onto the beach at Salerno, Italy, in the fall of 1943 after the invasion.
   Traveling up through southern, central and parts of northern Italy, his unit was always 2000 yards to 15 miles from the front lines.
   While in Naples, Coleman bought a Leica 35mm rangefinder camera. While there, he also acquired a Rolleicord, a miniature Rolleiflex and a Kodak Ektra.
   Coleman kept his camera with him at all times, recording the damage of the war on Italy and the strength of the Italian people at such a hard time.
   “I took the picture as it was. I didn’t make anyone move or pose. I was interested in the people,” he said.
   Film was easy to obtain at that time, but photo paper was not. Coleman developed his negatives in Italy and filed them away to print at a later date.
   Sixty years passed as Coleman opened a practice in optometry, married, divorced, re-married and raised children.
   Coleman had to put off printing again when he suffered a stroke. Rehabilitation and speech therapy further delayed printing.
   “I felt like I was taking snapshots. Only after 60 years did I feel they looked good,” he said.
   Now at 85, William Coleman is seeing his photos for the first time. As a “student” at TCC, he is devoted to printing his work.
   In total, Coleman has about 1,000 pictures to print. So far he has printed 250, barely scraping the surface.
   “I think I don’t have bad memories. I was so happy to be photographing. I didn’t take it seriously. The only bad time I had was when officers knew I had fine cameras and wanted me to get pictures of their dates and the nurses they were courting,” he said.
   “I don’t remember the moment when I took every one of the pictures, but I remember the majority,” he said.
   Despite the excitement of having his photographs displayed, Coleman has suffered disappointment.
  Thursday morning, three of the photographs were discovered stolen from the exhibit.
  Because of the theft, the exhibit will be monitored constantly, Patricia Richards, photo instructor, said.
  “I’m broken hearted. It’s not a tragedy but that someone would do that to us … I say us because Miss Patty had a great deal to do with the show,” Coleman said.
   Italy 1943-1945 Photographs by William Coleman will be on view on NE Campus in College Hall (NCAB 1111) through Dec. 8.