Veterans Day at the Truman Library

Wednesday, November 11, 2026 - 11:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. CST

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11 a.m. Patriotic Performance | 1 p.m. Book Event
Harry S. Truman Presidential Library & Museum
500 West U.S. Highway 24, Independence, MO 64050

Veterans Day book event explores the lasting imprint of war on those who serve and the families who love them.

Kathy Poulsen Romero, author of Letters from Heartbreak Ridge
In conversation with Matthew Algeo, author of Harry Truman’s Excellent Adventure and When Harry Met Pablo

For more than 70 years, a tattered box tied with a lace ribbon sat tucked away in the home of Kathy Poulsen Romero’s parents. Yellowed with age, its contents remained unopened until Romero finally discovered what had been hidden inside: more than 70 carefully preserved letters her father had written to her mother while serving in the Korean War.

The letters followed a young soldier from home to the front lines, including the brutal fighting at Heartbreak Ridge. They offered a firsthand account of a war that would shape a generation, but for Romero, their significance was far more personal. In the pages of those letters, she found the story of her parents’ courtship and glimpses of a father she had never fully known.

As she read, a different side of her father began to emerge—not simply the man she remembered, but the young soldier, devoted husband, and man behind the experiences that had shaped his life. What began as the discovery of a family treasure became an extraordinary journey toward understanding her parents and the lasting imprint of war on those who serve and the families who love them.

Both the concert band and book event are included with museum admission, which is free for Truman Library Institute members. Event registration is not required.

All events listed in the calendar are free unless noted.