It's out with the old and in with the new for a memorial at the American Fork Veterans Hall.

The memorial contains nearly 600 photos of veterans of World War II, in two display cases. There is a fabric backing on each, with photos, mostly supplied by families of those who served.

Last fall, veterans noticed that some of the photos had been damaged by water which had seeped into the cases. Some had become warped and yellowed and some had come unglued and fallen down inside the glass. Some were stuck to the glass.

Members of the Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 4918 put out a call for assistance. They wanted to scan or photograph again the pictures and place the copies in the frame, with the intent to keep the originals in the safe place. Some initial estimates indicated the work could cost as much as $25,000.

Enter Jeff Angel and Luis Tino.

They have volunteered their time to remove the photos, catalog them, scan them and create versions which will be put into the frames. The project is nearly complete, with most of the original photos removed, scanned and ready for placing. They anticipate having the project complete within a month, although it has taken a lot of time.

"I don't know how many hours we have into it," Angel said.

Ned Veater of the VFW complimented the two for their contributions.

"I think it is just outstanding what they have done," he said. "It is a very historical group of young men from those days. We should show respect and honor to them and make sure it (the memorial) is preserved like it should be."

Angel described the process.

"The city removed them from the walls," he said. "They removed the trim around the frames and took the glass out."

From there, the two volunteers took over.

"I have been going through and writing down the name of each veteran in the order as it is in the frame," Angel said. "I have taken the original photos out, then put them into archive quality folders, like baseball cards."

His friend, Tino, scans the photos with his computer, removing scratch marks and yellowing, fixing blemishes. He also is making more consistency than there was previously. The results are promising.

"It is a lot cleaner and fresher," Angel said.

Another change is putting new fabric as the backing for the photos.

The project has taken longer than he anticipated.

"It turned out to be a lot more involved, but it is worth it," Angel said. "I enjoy helping the community. I like to be a part of it. I like to see the old stuff preserved and saved."