The Beser Foundation for Archival Research and Preservation

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* To deliver internship programs to teach research methodology and ways to accurately record history, providing expert historians as mentors

About the Founder:

Jerome Beser initially set out to honor his father, Jacob "The Raven" Beser, by completing the book his father was writing before his death. Jacob Beser was the only man to fly on the strike aircraft for both missions of the atomic bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Over his lifetime, starting immediately after the Nagasaki mission, Jacob collected an extensive archive of documents and media coverage to ensure the accurate details and lessons learned from the use of atomic weapons would be preserved, never forgotten, and hopefully never used again. Jerome completed the book, The Rising Sun Sets: the Complete Story of the Bombing of Nagasaki, and in the process became involved in other projects including the search for and return of soldiers and sailors still missing in action from World War II and Korea. It was then that he decided to continue and expand his efforts by bringing together a team of highly skilled individuals to create The Beser Foundation for Archival Research and Preservation. Much of his initial efforts were to encourage others to become more engaged in locating, cataloging and preserving the records of the past. The Foundation continues to locate as many of these collections as possible and provides a safe, no-cost repository of digital copies to ensure their preservation and accessibility to all. It is hoped that with the efforts of the Foundation, and the efforts of the others with similar interests, we will be able to obtain and preserve materials that accurately validate historical events from the past up to the current times. Additionally, as word of the foundation spread, another need was identified. There are still approximately 78,000 American Servicemen officially listed as missing in action from WWII. The Foundation provides resources to aid in MIA research and recovery.