Don Waful Papers, 1933-2017

Summary

Creator:
Waful, Donald R.
Abstract:
Materials related to Don Waful's military service and activities at Syracuse University
Extent:
9 linear feet and 84 film reels
Language:
English
Preferred citation:

Preferred citation for this material is as follows:

Don Waful Papers,

Background

Scope and content:

Spanning 1933 to 2017, the Don Waful Papers documents Waful's experiences as a prisoner of war and veteran as well as a student and alumnus of Syracuse University. The collection is made up of four series.

The Audio and moving image recordings series contains moving image recordings often recorded by Waful himself of travel, family gatherings, Syracuse area sports events, and reunions related to his military service during World War II. Waful was involved in Syracuse University alumni activities and several of these home movies feature these events and Syracuse University football games. There are also professional films and audio recordings, mainly related to Waful's military service.

The Military service and World War II series comprises correspondence, scrapbooks, and other materials related to Waful's and his first wife's military service during World War II. There is substantial correspondence between the two of them and some letters with their families. A set of photographs, newspaper clippings, and other small items were found loose with the correspondence. These may have been items enclosed with the letters but later pulled out, and so they have been kept together, identified as "Enclosures," with the correspondence in this series. The scrapbooks chronicle her service as a nurse as well as his experience at Officer Candidate School, as a prisoner of war, and at prisoner of war camp reunions.

The Personal materials series includes correspondence related to travel, a scrapbook, diary, photographs of family members, and speeches made by Waful.

The Syracuse University series documents Waful's time both as a student and alumnus at Syracuse University, especially his involvement in alumni organizations. Included are dance cards, class notes, a wooden Syracuse University plaque, a scrapbook of Waful's attendance at sporting events, alumni association materials, and photographs of campus.

Biographical / historical:

Donald R. Waful (1916-2019) was a World War II veteran and Syracuse University alumnus. He earned a bachelor's degree from Syracuse in 1937 and a master's degree from the Maxwell School in 1939. In 1941 he enlisted in the U.S. Army and was stationed in Belfast, Northern Ireland, where he met his future first wife, Olga "Cassie" Casciolini, an army nurse. A second lieutenant in the 1st Armored Division, Waful was deployed to North Africa in 1942. Shortly after he was taken prisoner by German infantry and spent the remainder of the war as a prisoner of war in camps in Italy, Poland, and Germany. Upon his release Waful reunited with and married Casciolini in France. After returning to his hometown of Syracuse, he worked in insurance and later became president of the Syracuse Chiefs, a minor league baseball team. After his first wife died in 1998, Waful married his college sweetheart, Virginia Hofheins Blick, who died in 2010.

Waful was a dedicated alumnus of Syracuse University. He was a member of the Syracuse University Alumni Glee Club. A season ticket holder since 1945, he missed only three home football games. He died the day before he became the first alumnus to receive the University's Military/Veteran Award, an honor for a U.S. military service member or veteran alumni who has distinguished him/herself through exceptional meritorious service and achievement in the military and/or in their post-service careers.

Acquisition information:
Gift of Peter Waful in 2019 and Bianca Caiella Breed in 2021.
Processing information:

Materials were rehoused in acid-free folders and boxes. Scrapbooks were disassembled for preservation purposes.

Arrangement:

Materials are arranged alphabetically within series.

Access and use

Restrictions:

Please note that the collection is housed off-site, and advance notice is required to allow time to have the materials brought to the Reading Room on campus.

Access to audiovisual material requires advance notice to produce a use copy.

Terms of access:

Written permission must be obtained from the Syracuse University Archives and all relevant rights holders before publishing quotations, excerpts or images from any materials in this collection.

Preferred citation:

Preferred citation for this material is as follows:

Don Waful Papers,

Location of this collection:
Special Collections Research Center
Syracuse University Libraries
Bird Library, Room 600
Syracuse, NY 13244, United States
Link to repository site
Contact:
315.443.2697
scrc@syr.edu