80 years after VE Day a veteran says, 'I hope people will see the futility of it all' Army veteran Harry Miller was stationed in Germany when the Nazis surrendered. Upon hearing the news, he recalls that American troops went to sleep or shook hands. "And some just couldn't believe it." Joe Hernandez
Discovering a mom we never knew, in letters she saved from WWII soldiers My sister and I recently unearthed a forgotten box of correspondence our mom received from servicemen she'd met at Red Cross dances in Rome near the end of the war. She would have been 100 this year. Bob Mondello
Author Walter Isaacson discusses how the U.S. shaped the world after World War II NPR's Steve Inskeep speaks with author Walter Isaacson about the world America made after World War II. Steve Inskeep
Gift from the grave: Commander’s son reflects on mother leading the only all-woman unit overseas during WWII As the highest-ranking Black woman officer during WWII, Lt. Col. Charity Adams Earley served her country proudly between 1942 and 1946. She led the Six-Triple-Eight Central Postal Directory Battalion — the only all-woman, predominantly Black unit to serve overseas during WWII. Angela King
Here's the 2025 list of most endangered historic places in the U.S. This year, the annual list from the National Trust for Historic Preservation includes a mysterious castle, flooded communities in Florida and North Carolina, historic hotels and a gigantic turtle. Neda Ulaby
Ahead of the conclave, the Sistine Chapel takes center stage NPR's Scott Detrow speaks with art historian Kim Butler about the artwork that adorns the walls of the Sistine Chapel and its significance ahead of the conclave to elect the next pope. Scott Detrow
NOAA submersible robots find hand painted mural on 80-year-old shipwreck NPR's Ailsa Chang talks with Phil Hartmeyer, is a marine archaeologist at NOAA's Ocean Exploration program, about a mural discovered in the shipwreck of the USS Yorktown, which sunk during WWII. Alejandra Marquez Janse
Trump fires Biden appointees, including Doug Emhoff, from the Holocaust Museum board Critics see the terminations as an effort to politicize the Holocaust museum. The White House says Trump will appoint new board members "who are also steadfast supporters of the State of Israel." Rachel Treisman
Former NPR foreign editor recounts the fall of Saigon 50 years ago NPR's Steve Inskeep talks with Loren Jenkins, former Newsweek reporter and former NPR foreign editor, about the fall of Saigon and what many consider the end of the Vietnam War 50 years ago. Steve Inskeep
The only female unit to serve overseas in WWII gets a congressional medal 80 years on The Six Triple Eight sorted millions of pieces of wartime mail in a matter of months but weren't recognized publicly for decades. Just two of the 855 women are believed to be alive for the ceremony. Rachel Treisman
