The Strange Case of Viktor Lapanja

[Fearless]

Hello all, this is my first post to this amazing forum. I am researching a friend's late father, Viktor Lapanja, who was from Slovenia (Yugoslavia still at the time) and served in the German army in the 1940's. My friend's family didn't know much about his experiences during the war years because he never felt inclined to talk about those troubling times. Now that he has passed away, they are trying to locate any kinds of records regarding his wartime service--what was his front, where was he sent, and any kind of military credentials. Any assistance/recommendations in this task would be GREATLY appreciated. Below is the only picture we have of him from around those times.

Fearless

[Eric JB]

Hi Fear,

Still strange answering to nicknames/usernames.

Have a look here:
http://dev.wehrmacht-awards.com/foru...ad.php?t=64548

Think the best way is that family will contact the WASt in Berlin Germany.

yours friendly

Eric-Jan

[MJC]

The BA and NARA maintain separate records of foreign nationals who served in the Wehrmacht and who applied for membership in the NSDAP, which was often seen as a 'loyalty' prerequisite to joining.

If you are interested in persuing thisroute, please pm me.

Good luck with your project.

[Fearless]

Many thanks for all this information! I'll be pursuing these various leads, I have a Swiss friend that speaks German so perhaps we'll make some calls...