My family artifact is the Croix de Guerre, which means cross of war in French. It is a bronze colored medal about an inch and a half long. It is shaped like a cross with swords going diagonally through it. It is small enough so my great grandfather, Gardner Botsfard, the person who got the medal could wear it in his jacket. That is what he did every single day in the war. The Croix de Guerre is obviously made out of metal, but there is also a little ribbon attached to it that is red with green stripes. My great-grandpa got this medal from being in World War II. He was part of a group called the Resistance, who acted like normal people, but would sell underground newspapers and were trained spies. They got important information about Germany's plans. My grandpa spoke fluent French, so he got into the Resistance, which is very rare for Americans since it was a French group. The French gave him the Croix de Guerre because of his bravery and doing an important mission. My great-grandfather did not have to help the French, but he choose to, which I think is very kind and brave. The people who have owned this medal are of course my great grandfather, my grandma, and now my mom. I hope someday the medal will be passed down to me. The medal is very important to my family because it was a very rare medal for Americans and it is a sign of bravery. Right now it is on my mom’s desk, and I hope we never lose it.

– W

Relationship:  Great-grandchild of im/migrant or more Great-grandchild of im/migrant or more