Deb Fischer: “I would like to tell you a story about North Platte, NE. During World War II, this small, West Central Nebraska town was…”

“I would like to tell you a story about North Platte, NE. During World War II, this small, West Central Nebraska town was one of the most famous cities in America, and it was the epitome of homefront patriotism. From Christmas Day 1941 to April 1946, North Platte was the site of one of the many community-based canteens that offered hospitality to soldiers on their way to join the fight or on their way back home. There were nearly 120 of these canteens across the United States, mostly along railways, like the Union Pacific line that still runs through Nebraska. Of these 120 canteens, North Platte was by far the biggest. It served more than 6 million servicemembers over the 4\1/2\ years it was open. The country's second busiest canteen in Ohio served well under half that many soldiers over its lifetime. As many as 24 different troop trains, carrying up to 8,000 uniformed personnel overall, rolled through North Platte on any given day. Here is a quote from a local newspaper about what the residents of just two Nebraska towns, Merna and Anselmo, donated to the North Platte Canteen on a single day in 1944: 53 birthdays cakes, 127 fried chickens, 58 dozen homemade cookies, 32 dozen cupcakes, 73 pounds of coffee, 163 dozen eggs, 68 dozen doughnuts, 41 quarts of pickles, 3 crates of oranges, 9 pounds of ham, 160 loaves of bread, 40 popcorn balls, and 50 pounds of sandwich meat.…”