Veterans Chronicles

Paul Evans joined the U.S. Navy as a young adult but after three years on ships he left the service. A short time later, he enlisted in the U.S. Army. Before long, he was pursuing Army Special Forces. His job as a Green Beret would take him to the Gulf War and later to Afghanistan as one of the renowned "Horse Soldiers" just weeks after 9/11.

In this edition of Veterans Chronicles, Evans tells us what valuable lessons he learned during the Gulf War that he put to good use in later conflicts. he also explains how...

H.J. Burley Smith was 12 years old when Japan attacked Pearl Harbor and the U.S. entered World War II. He followed the far closely, especially as his father served in the U.S. Merchant Marine.

Smith graduated from high school in 1946 and eventually decided to enter the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy on Long Island. By the time his years as a cadet and in training were complete, the Korean War was breaking out on the other side of the world. He was assigned to the USS Meredith Victory, which would soon be on its way to...

Leonard Ganz knew he was going to be drafted, so he studied all of the branches and enlisted in the U.S. Army. After basic and other training, he pursued Officer Candidate School. By the time he deployed to Vietnam in the summer of 1969, Ganz was also part of Military Assistance Command, which was designed to work with and support our South Vietnamese allies. 

In this edition of Veterans Chronicles, Ganz explains Military Assistance Command and what it was like for a California kid to arrive in the heat and humidity of Vietnam. He also shares what type o...

Floyd Brantley was born in Texas in 1925. He was 16 years old when the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941. Unlike many Americans, Brantley knew exactly where Pearl Harbor was. His brother was already serving in the U.S. Navy and had served there. A year later, Brantley received devastating news: his brother, Charles, had been killed in the waters off Guadalcanal. 

Not long after that, Brantley was ordered into service, became a Navy corpsman, and was deployed to the South Pacific, not far from Guadalcanal.

In this edition of Veterans Chronicles, Brantley tells us the story o...

Vince Makela enlisted in the U.S. Army while he was still in high school. After basic training, he specialized in communications and dreamed of flight school. When that dream didn't come true, Makela set his sights on another impressive goal - becoming a Green Beret.

Several years later, he found himself in one of the first American units to set foot in Afghanistan after the 9/11 terrorist attacks. Operational Detachment Alpha (ODA) 595 not only achieved amazing results, but the men also became widely known as the "Horse Soldiers."

In this edition of Veterans Chronicles, Makela takes...

Kaj Larsen did not follow the typical route to becoming a U.S. Navy SEAL. He was admitted to the U.S. Naval Academy but left after two years to focus on playing water polo at the collegiate level. A few years later he enlisted in the Navy and immediately tried to get a slot in Basic Underwater Demolition SEAL (BUD/s) training in Coronado, California. Those billets are not usually given to men who left Annapolis but Larsen managed to snag one after his lifeguarding skills made headlines. 

In this edition of Veterans Chronicles, Larsen explains his p...

Allison Black surprised her family by deciding to enlist in the U.S. Air Force after high school. She did it to be part of a mission bigger than herself. After basic training, Black spent the next several years as a Survival, Evasion, Resistance, and Escape - or SERE - instructor, teaching service members what to do if shot down, stuck behind enemy lines, or captured. 

After several years of that she became an officer in Air Force special operations and served as a navigator aboard an AC-130H gunship. Shortly after 9/11, she and her crew were deployed t...

Rudy Meekins grew up in the Outer Banks of North Carolina. Most young men from that area joined the U.S. Merchant Marine or the U.S. Coast Guard. However, Rudy initially opted for the Army National Guard but then enlisted in the U.S. Marine Corps in September 1949. He endured boot camp at Parris Island and was eventually assigned to a 105mm howitzer team.

In this edition of Veterans Chronicles, Meekins tells us how he heard the news that North Korea invaded South Korea in June 1950 and how he was on his way to the Pacific by...

Michael Gilpin had an interest aviation at a young age but had never pursued flying. He joined the Army with an option to pursue Officer Candidate School near the end of his college years. Even as he became an officer and started training, he was still in the infantry.

But soon he would switch to pilot training - specifically helicopter pilot training. He deployed to Vietnam in 1971 as a Huey pilot bringing Air Cavalry personnel in and out of combat.

In this edition of Veterans Chronicles, Col. Gilpin shares his first thoughts of Vietnam and offers...

Derek Jones was following in his father's footsteps when he pursued military service after high school. His father had been a prominent and highly respected musical leader in both the U.S. Air Force and the U.S. Marine Corps. Derek chose Air Force ROTC at Samford University in pursuit of becoming a fighter pilot. He succeeded and became an elite, Top Gun-winning pilot in the F-111. When that plane was shelved by the military, Jones started flying F-16's. But two decades into his Air Force career, Jones felt a new calling - the ministry.

In this...

Dr. Lyla Kohistany was born in Afghanistan. Her family fled to the U.S. in 1982 to escape Soviet occupation. When the USSR was forced to leave Afghanistan in 1989, her father planned to bring the family back to Afghanistan, and he had also made plans for 12-year-old Lyla that she wanted no part of. With the help of her brother and the U.S. Navy, Kohistany was able to stay in the U.S. 

She would later join the Navy out of gratitude for that help, but just months after being commissioned as a U.S. Naval officer, the U...

Esteban Valenzuela was a talented high school football player and could have continued playing in college. Instead, he joined the U.S. Marine Corps in 1966, while he was still in high school. Several months later, he was in Vietnam on a tour lasting well over a year and took part of some of the intense fighting connected with the enemy's Tet Offensive in early 1968.

In this edition of Veterans Chronicles, Valenzuela takes us into Marine Corps boot camp and how he saw the benefits of that and other training once he was in Vietnam. You'll also hear how...

James Taylor enlisted in the Army in 1956. Several years later, he successfully completed Officer Candidate School (OCS) and was commissioned as an Army officer. By 1967, he served as executive officer inside a squadron in the 1st Armored Cavalry that was headed to Vietnam. Later that year, his love and concern for his men under heavy enemy fire led to actions that would lead to him receiving the Medal of Honor.

In this edition of Veterans Chronicles, Taylor shares the life-changing lesson on leadership he learned from his high school football coach, why he joined the Army, and how...

Richard Coachys went to Indiana University on a football scholarship but also joined the Army ROTC on campus. After commissioning, he expected his early training to be followed by a deployment to Germany. But those plans were disrupted by the Vietnam War, and the young officer was soon leading his platoon on patrols and into combat.

In this edition of Veterans Chronicles, Coachys tells us about his training, his first thoughts upon arriving in Vietnam, and what those early patrols were like. He also takes us into the most intense combat from his time in Vietnam, leading his...

In our previous episode, we learned how U.S. Air Force pilot Robert Jefffrey was shot down over North Vietnam during his first mission of the war. He suffered burns and spinal injuries as the plane was hit and he ejected. Jeffrey was captured as soon as he parachuted to the ground. After that, he was interrogated, nearly executed, and repeatedly tortured. Today, we hear more of Col. Jeffrey's story, from prison life to his first breaths of freedom after more than seven years of captivity.

In this edition of Veterans Chronicles, Col. Jeffrey tells us about being...

Robert Jeffrey became fascinated with aviation at a young age after his father got a pilot's license. By the time he was preparing to graduate high school, Jeffrey knew he wanted to be a pilot and that he wanted to fly in the U.S. Air Force. He joined in 1960 and excelled in pilot training. By 1965, he was flying the F-4 earlier than most of his peers. Late that year, he deployed to Thailand to fly missions over North Vietnam. On December 20, 1965, Jeffrey flew his first mission. It would also be his last mission.

In this edition of...

Harvey C, "Barney" Barnum, Jr. arrived in Vietnam in late 1965 with 2nd Battalion, 12th Marines in the 3rd Infantry Division. In the final days of Operation Harvest Moon, Barnum served as a forward observer for H Company, 2nd Battalion, 9th Marines. On December 18, 1965, the company was ambushed by North Vietnamese forces. The company commander was mortally wounded and Barnum soon found himself commanding Marines he really didn't know.

In this edition of Veterans Chronicles, Barnum takes us through the beginning of the ambush and rescuing fallen company commander Captain Paul Gormley just moments before Gormley died in Barnum's...

Luke Focer was not sure what he wanted to do after high school but after reading many books on the military and being impressed by a teacher who had served, Focer enlisted in the U.S. Marine Corps in 2005. He would go on to serve two tours in Iraq and three in Afghanistan over the next 14 years. He also became a sniper and part of Marine Corps Special Operations (MARSOC).

In this edition of Veterans Chronicles, Focer takes us from Marine Corps boot camp at Parris Island to being an infantry point man for his squad in Iraq...

Roderick Pugh enlisted in the U.S. Army less than three months before the 9/11 terrorist attacks. Eighteen months later, he was partr of 1st Brigade 2-7 infantry from Ft. Stewart, leading the way into Iraq. He would serve two tours in Iraq, In between, he completed airborne school and became the first African American sniper in U.S. Army history.

In this edition of Veterans Chronicles, Pugh details combat during the invasion of Iraq, surviving  sandstorms and enemy mortar fire, and how the A-10 Warthogs were a huge help in the march to Baghdad. He also describes the i...

Jason Redman learned love of country and the importance of service at a young age. His grandfather was a decorated World War II veteran and his father served during the Vietnam War. Before finishing high school, Redman enlisted in the U.S. Navy with one goal in mind: becoming a U.S. Navy SEAL.

In this edition of Veterans Chronicles, Redman tells us about the unexpected health challenge he faced in boot camp before he could pursue his dream of becoming a SEAL. He then walks us through Basic Underwater Demolition/SEAL (BUD/S) training, why so many...

Dick Ramsey's family had it tough lduring the Great Depression. He quit school when he was 15 years old and started working at the Brooklyn Navy Yard as a pipefitter. After the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, he started helping to build battleships. In 1943, Ramsey joined the U.S. Navy and was assigned as coxswain on the USS Nevada.

In this edition of Veterans Chronicles, Ramsey takes us through training to the Nevada's involvement in the D-Day landings in Normandy, Iwo Jima, and Okinawa. He also reveals several very close calls while in the Pacific and reveals the immense h...

On August 26, 2021, an ISIS-K terrorist attack killed 13 American service members and wounded many others at Abbey Gate outside Kabul International Airport in Afghanistan. Scores of Afghan civilians were also killed and wounded. Nine of the American service members killed that day were U.S. Marines from G Company, 2nd Battalion, 1st Marines. Their company commander was then-Captain Geoffrey Ball.

In this edition of Veterans Chronicles, Major Ball takes us through the chaos the company found when it arrived in Afghanistan on August 19. He tells about the heroic efforts of his unit and many others to establish as much...

Mike Elmore was born in Illinois into a family with a legacy of military service. He joined the U.S. Army in 1987 with no immediate intention of pursuing special forces. But he loved the idea of a new challenge, passed selection and qualifying, and earned his Green Beret. By the time of the 9/11 Al Qaeda terrorist attacks, Elmore was part of Operational Detachment (ODA) 595, a group that would later become known as the Horse Soldiers.

In this edition of Veterans Chronicles, Elmore walks us through qualifying and explains why being mentally tough is just as important as physical...

Bob Boeke was 16 years old when the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor in December 1941. Nearly two years later, he enlisted in the U.S. Army as part of a program to help get a college education and become an officer. But the program soon closed down. After basic training, Boeke was assigned to an intelligence and reconnaissance unit within the 86th Infantry Division.

In this edition of Veterans Chronicles, Boeke tells us about intelligence and reconnaissance training, finding and removing German mines on the Normandy beaches, dealing with German mortar fire on the way to the front, and what...

Michael "Rod" Rodriguez was born into a family with a rich legacy of military service. His father and grandfather both served during wartime. Rod decided he wanted to serve after watching what the U.S. military accomplished in Operation Desert Storm.

Within months of enlisting in 1992, he was off to Somalia. A couple of years later, Rodriguez decided to pursue Army Special Forces and then became a sniper and a medic. All of that prepared him well for three deployments in Afghanistan following the 9/11 terrorist attacks.

In this edition of Veterans Chronicles, Rodriguez tells us about...

Steve Bleigh is the son and grandson of Army veterans. He joined the U.S. Army in 1986, fully expecting to be an infantryman throughout his service. When he returned to civilian life eighteen years later, Bleigh had spent 14 years in Army Special Forces and was a veteran of Afghanistan, Iraq, the Gulf War, and the conflict in Somalia.

In this edition of Veterans Chronicles, MSG Bleigh tells us about his service in the Gulf War with the 82nd Airborne Division and the lessons he learned there that helped the rest of his years in uniform. Then he talks...

Dominick Critelli was born in Italy and came to the United States as a child. He was 20 years old when the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor and launched the U.S. into World War II. Critelli became an airplane mechanic as part of the U.S. Army's 95th infantry Division. 

In this edition of Veterans Chronicles, Critelli tells us what the toughest part of basic training was for him and how his sergeant handled his complaint. He also shares what it was like arriving at Utah Beach not long after D-Day operations and the moment of engineering inspiration that t...

Russell Sattazhan was 15 years old when the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor and forced the U.S. into World War II. in 1944, he  was drafted and was placed in an infantry replacement unit. Replacements were needed so badly that training was cut short and Sattazhan's unit was sent to Europe and folded into the Army's 1st Infantry Division in January 1945. Two months later, Sattazhan's war would be over after suffering a severe wound from a German attack.

In this edition of Veterans Chronicles, Sattazhan tells us what it was like being rushed into combat, dealing with the brutal winter i...

In the early 1960's, the U.S. Army developed a new way of moving troops into and out of strategic locations. It was called Air Cavalry and operated under the theory that moving forces by helicopter was faster and more precise than driving them or having them jump out of airplanes. One of the earliest and best known Air Cavalry engagements came in the Vietnam War at Landing Zone X-Ray during the Battle of Ia Drang in November 1965.

Earnie Savage was part of Bravo company in the 1st Battalion, 7th Cavalry of the 1st Air Cavalry Division. Shortly...

Patrick Brady was born in South Dakota and he originally had no intention of serving in the military. He was recruited by several schools to play college football, but he decided to pursue the "foxy chick" from his hometown as she went to Seattle University. The school did not have a football team, but it did have mandatory ROTC. Brady hated it and even got kicked out. But he was given a second chance and did much better. 

After commissioning, Brady was stationed in Berlin, Germany, at the time the Berlin Wall went up, and he served two t...

Clarence Singleton joined the U.S. Marine Corps in 1967 while was still in high school. The valedictorian then went through boot camp at Parris Island and was eager to join the fight in Vietnam. He arrived in early 1968 and endured a major rocket attack on his first night there. He would be seriously wounded just days before his tour in Vietnam was set to end.

Several years later, he joined the New York City Fire Department and ended up responding to both terrorist attacks against the World Trade Center in 1993 and 2001.

In this edition of Veterans...

Steve Kofron's father and grandfather both served in the military. His grandfather was a U.S. Marine who fought at Iwo Jima. But Kofron had his own reasons for joining the service and the U.S. Army in particular. After a few years, he successfully completed Ranger training. But a short time later he pursued U.S. Army Special Forces and earned his Green Beret. Not long after that, the 9/11 terrorist attacks struck the United States and Operational Detachment Alpha (ODA) 595 was among the first units deployed to Afghanistan.

In this edition of Veterans Chronicles, Kofron gives us...

Bob Ingram joined the Navy after graduating high school in 1963 to give himself some direction. He was initially assigned to work in electronics, but after getting a bad case of pneumonia, Ingram was so impressed by the dedication of the Navy corpsmen, that he decided to become one. Corpsman training was long and demanding and Marine Corps aid training followed that. 

After struggling to find a good Marine unit to join, Ingram was off to Vietnam in late 1965 - attached to C Company, 1st Battalion, 7th Marine Regiment, 1st Marine Division. They saw a lot of action right f...

Nils Mockler joined the U.S. Marine Corps at the age of 17, only because they wouldn't let him join when he was 16. Upon enlisting in 1944, Mockler completed boot camp and was soon tapped as a combat intelligence scout. He also dabbled in explosives as you'll hear. After more training in Hawaii, Mockler and many other Marines left for Iwo Jima, where they would land in February 1945 and become part of one of the most vicious battles in the entire war.

In this edition of Veterans Chronicles, Mockler takes us on board his ship as the battle plans were...

Sami Steigmann was born in Romanian controlled territory in December 1939. Before he turned two years old, he was a prisoner at the Mogilev-Podolski concentration camp. He was five when the war ended, but the impact of the Holocaust on his family and his own life carry on to this day. 

In this edition of Veterans Chronicles, Steigmann, shares the horrible conditions of his father's childhood, how Romania started as a Soviet ally but then aligned with Nazi Germany, and what life was like under both.

Steigmann then explains the brutal conditions at Mogilev-Podolski and the desperate e...

Matt Smith grew up on Long Island and joined Army ROTC at the University of Delaware in 1989. Four years later, he was commissioned as an officer. Smith was working in the private sector and serving in the Army National Guard when the 9/11 terrorist attacks were perpetrated by Al Qaeda in 2001. Over the next two decades, Smith would be leading soldiers into combat during the invasion of Iraq and on two deployments in Afghanistan.

In this edition of Veterans Chronicles, Smith takes us through the rapid invasion in Iraq and how he first learned about improvised explosive devices. He...

Ed Miklavic was one of 12 children and he ended up joining the U.S. Army Air Corps in 1940 because he tagged along with his brother and a friend to the Army recruiter. But Ed was better qualified than both of them. This was before the U.S. entered World War II, and the Army didn't even have a current uniform to give Miklavcic. Nonetheless, he headed out west for training and was stationed at Pearl Harbor's Wheeler Field leading up to the Japanese attacks on December 7, 1941.

In this edition of Veterans Chronicles, Miklavcic tells us what his duties...

William Keim joined the U.S. Merchant Marine in 1943 at the age of 17. He was called to active duty when he turned 18 years old that same year. For the next two years, he served as an oilerman on Liberty Ships in both the Atlantic and the Pacific theaters, transporting critical supplies and evading constant enemy efforts to sink their ships.

In this edition of Veterans Chronicles, Keim tells all about the Liberty Ships and his role in keeping the engines running smoothly. He details the constant threat of German U-Boats in the North Atlantic, what the American vessels...

Sydney Levit was 17 years old when the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor. Like most kids his age, he was eager to serve. In 1943, Levit was drafted into the U.S. Army and he soon had the opportunity to join the airborne, training as a paratrooper and also with gliders. He became part of the 17th Airborne Division.

In this edition of Veterans Chronicles, Levit describes the rigorous training he went through as part of the airborne, including his first jump out of an airplane and learning how gliders work. He then explains how his unit spent months training in...

Ralph Gastelum grew up in Tucson, Arizona, and never experienced much of a winter before joining the U.S. Marine Corps. His first real winter would be spent in Korea in some of the most bitterly cold temperatures that American forces have ever experienced - at Chosin Reservoir in Korea.

In this edition of Veterans Chronicles, Sgt. Gastelum recalls the Inchon Landing. He also explains what urban combat was like in those early days and along the front lines in more rural areas. He also tells us how he survived at Chosin Reservoir by playing dead as the...