Rob, who lives in Amsterdam, visited the Netherlands-American Cemetery at Margraten with his father-in-law in 2022. They walked to a soldier's headstone, where Rob was introduced to Louis Smith from Pennsylvania, an American soldier who died on March 30, 1945, in Germany. He then told Rob that his family had adopted his grave after the war, going on to explain that every grave in the cemetery—all 8,301 of them—had been adopted by a Dutch family.

All the soldiers in the cemetery helped liberate the Netherlands from Nazi Germany. The locals saw it as their duty to keep the stories and memories of the soldiers who saved them alive. They pay €10 for this privilege and receive a certificate of adoption with their American soldier’s name, state, and any other information known to the cemetery. The obligation is to bring fresh flowers on key dates, tell stories, say a prayer and, if they want to, connect with the soldier’s American family. 

Rob's documentary will follow adopters, focusing on two families who have forged a strong bond over the years – one from Michigan, the other from Margraten. He interviewed the families in May 2024, and was invited back to Michigan in November 2024 to meet the soldier’s family, who still live in the same house he left to join the war.

In May this year, Rob plans to follow them on their annual visit to the Netherlands, capturing their journey from Michigan to Margraten. The documentary, provisionally title The Adopted, will it be about kindness and gratitude but also the importance of history, education and storytelling in learning the lessons of war. The goal is to take the audience on a journey that unites past and present while offering the full context of this quiet, but powerful, act of kindness and gratitude.

Rob, who is writing, directing, and producing this story, is now looking for support to help cover five production days to finish the documentary. If you would like to support this amazing story you can do so here: Donate to the project 

This is not Rob’s first documentary; grieving the sudden loss of his mother, Rob wrote, produced, and directed ‘After’ a short documentary about grief. Deciding to travel back to Rutland and visit his mother's house in Egleton, Rob took a camera. He started filming, focusing on all the belongings that had been collected throughout the years. Grief is universal, and he says he wanted to make something for people who feel the world moves on too fast after someone you love dies.