Mark Measel enlisted in the Navy in 1980, at the age of 18. His journey as a submarine radioman in the Navy spanned multiple continents and countless countries. As a submariner, he was stationed on both coasts of the United States. Measel's service ended in 1986, at the age of 24.
In this video interview, James B. Vires discusses his time in the United States Marine Corps. In particular, Vires comments on basic training, his deployment to the Middle East, and encountering Sadaam Husein's torture chambers in Abu Ghraib Prison. He also explains his feelings of being lost after discharge, details the benefits of spending more…
Timothy Gruber details his time in the United States Army. In particular, Gruber comments on his deployments to Iraq and Kuwait, being injured and awarded a Purple Heart, as well as coming home and dealing with PTSD. He also comments on being honorably discharged because on the complications he experienced with PTSD.
Dan Gros recounts his time in the United States Army. In particular, Gros comments on his experiences during basic training, his deployment to Somalia, and his role as a Sergeant. He also discusses the good and bad that came from his service and the comforts of home that he missed most.
Dan Edwards discusses his time in the United States Air Force. In particular, he comments on his time during basic training, his deployment during the Vietnam War, and the racism he witnessed during his service. He also details the skills he picked up that help him perform well under pressure, and, explains his reluctancy to join groups like the…
Tim Anderson discusses his time in the United States Army, and his life afterwards. In particular, Anderson comments on basic training and being deployed to Iraq during Operation Desert Storm. He also discusses his education after the Army, his path to becoming a teacher, teaching high school, and his use of military styled classes.
Jason David details his time in the United States Air Force. In particular, David comments on his time in basic training, and the differences in service during the pre and post 9/11 eras. He also discusses the difficulties of staying in touch with family before technology innovations of the mid-2000s.
Christopher Rechtin details his time in the United States Army and his return to civilian life. In particular, Rechtin comments on his choice to enlist, his time during basic training, and his feelings before deployment. He also shares his experiences during his deployment to Iraq, and comments on how the war changed him. He also discusses his easy…
Keith Dinsmore discusses his time in the United States Army during the Vietnam War. In particular, he comments on his being drafted, his time in basic training, and the politics of war.
Michael Williams details his time in the United States Navy. In particular, Williams discusses his upbringing, his decision to join the Navy, his transition into basic training, and his combat experiences. He also discusses reintergation into cilvilan life and shares his advice for people who are getting ready to retire from the service.
Michael Navalta Jr. recounts his time in the United States Army. In particular, Navalta comments on his specialized education, infantry training, and pushing his limits. He also discusses his deployments, the dangers that came with them, SERE training, and the medals he was awarded.
Terry L. Spurlock discusses his time in the United States Navy. In particular, Spurlock comments on his choice to enlist in the Navy rather than be drafted into the Army. He also shares stories from his time in boot camp and his travels to the Philipines and Vietnam.
Dylyn Daughtry discusses his military service in the United States Army. In particular, Daughtry comments on his time in basic training, his deployments to Kuwait and Afghanistan, the cultural differences of the people he met, the difficulties of staying in touch with family, and entertainment during his deployments. He also discusses being injured…
Brian Sheets details his time in the United States Army. In particular, Sheets details his enlistment, his time in basic training, and his deployment to Afghanistan. He also comments on his mental health struggles during and after enlistment, while also sharing his views on the PTSD crisis that many soliders grapple with after service.
Joe Jenkins recounts his time in the United States Army. In particular, Jenkins recounts his time as a Staff Sergeant, basic training, his deployment to Iraq, his work with interpreters, and the hardships of combat. He also discussed his reentry into clivilian life, and his thoughts on people who are currently joining the military.
Crystal Benbow discusses her time in the United States Army and her reintergration back into cilvilan life. In particular, Benbow comments on her reasons for enlisting, her experiences in basic training, and her deployment to Iraq. She also explains how the G.I. Bill helped her become a nurse, and she details how her military service has helped her…
James Barnhill discusses his time in the United States Army during the Cold War. In particular, he comments on his being stationed in Germany, the things he loved about living there, the types of cars, the food he enjoyed, and the pressures of being in the Army. He also details what he believes cilivians should know about military life.
Jim Distler discusses his enlistment in the United States Marine Corps. In particular, Distler details his experiences during basic training, his reasons for enlisting, his occupation as a radio operator, and his life after the service. He also gives his opinions on the military and civilian life after enlistment.
Micheal C. Roy details his time in the United States Naval Reserves duing the Vietnam War. In particular, Roy covers his reasons for joining the Navy, being stationed on a WWII destroyer and the state the ship was in upon arriving, being an engineer on the USS Kitty Hawk, as well as being in he Gulf of Tonkin during the conflict. Roy also discusses…
Will Aubrey discusses his time in the Kentucky National Guard. In particular, Aubrey traces his journey to enlistment after a knee injury, his reasons for joining, his deployment experiences, the comforts of home he missed while deployed, and his feelings on being in country.
Martin Baumgardner recounts his time with the National Guard. In particular, Baumgardner comments on the difficulties of being away from family, his choice in the National Guard, the high expectations of his leaders, being a member of Airborne, his position as a combat engineer, and his transition back into civilian life after the service.
Matthew Hodge discusses his time in the United States Navy. He comments on his childhood, enlisting in the Military to stay out of trouble, and choosing the Navy because of family. He also discusses being stationed in Conneticut, what is was like to be a machinist on a submarine, his deployment to the Persian Gulf, and his transtion back into…
Robert Lee Quisenberry details his time in the Air Force. In particular, Quisenberry details his childhood, enlisting in the military, his training, being stationed across the world but not facing combat, his cilvilian life, and his experiences with Veteran Affairs.
Timothy J. Gaffney Jr. recounts his time in the Air National Guard. In particular, Gaffney comments on his enlistment path, basic training in Texas, and his job in fire protection. He also detilas the rigours of training continuously, the travel that came with it, as well as his reasons for re-enlisting. He also covers the effects his service has…
Michael Weir discusses his service in the United States Navy. In particular, Weir comments on continuing the family tradition of Naval service, his time in basic training, being away from his family, his positions as a corpsman and a resuce swimmer, and the cultural differences he experienced with each deployment.
SFC Rebecca E. Wood discusses her career in both the Army Reserves and National Guard. In particular, Wood details her decision to enlist at seventeen, being bullied out of joining the AIr Force, being offered a nursing position in the Navy, and her eventual decision to join the Army instead. Wood also commments on Basic Training in South Carolina,…
Jimmy Thanh Doan details his time in United States Marine Corps. In particular, Doan comments on being a first generation immigrant, his parent's reaction to his enlistment, his time in basic training, and how he developed a service oriented mindset to adapt.
Patrica Stevens recounts her time in the U.S. Navy as a Corpsman. In particular, Stevens comments on her time in basic training, her first impressions of the Naval base in Whidbey Island, Washington, and what it was like to participate in the revovery effort after the San Francisco Earthquake in 1990.
Courtney Johnson discusses her service in the Army, why she enlisted, and what is was like to be a woman in the military. She details how the drill instructors were younger than her, the lack of privacy in the barracks, her work in the chemical unit, her promotion to an Operations Officer, her being stationed in Alaska, where she struggled with…
Lester Baker discusses his childhood, and his time in the Navy. In particular, he details his responsiblities while enlisted, going to A school, and the places he was stationed.
Nicole Keller details her time in the United States Navy. In particular, she discusses her decision to enlist on a whim, her reasons for choosing the Navy, her experiences in boot camp, the countries she visited, and life on a naval vessel. She also discusses her decision to leave service for the sake of her son and her use of the GI Bill to get…
LTC Brian Sweeney recounts his impressive career in the United State Army. In particular, Sweeney comments on his Special Forces training and breaking his ankle at Ft. Benning, which led to a switch to the Infantry. He also comments on not being picked for Delta Forces, training ROTC students at University of Kentucky, and being deployed to Bosnia…
Jamie Peerce details his time in the Marine Corps. while being stationed in Panama. Peerce also comments on how the military helped him become a better police officer once he left service.
Don Rogers discusses his time in the Navy during the Vietnam War. He details his travels, his job as a naval fireman, his experiences returning home after the war, and his career at an Army Weapons Depot.
SFC Raney Wiseman details his career in the United States Army, and his varied assignments throughout his time in the service. In particular, Wiseman comments on his deployments to Iraq during Operation New Dawn, as well as his work with border control agents and other interdepartmental organzations like the State Police and ATF. He also discusses…
Andrew Mencin discusses his twenty year career in the Air Force, and his current service in the Reserves. In particular, he discusses his path to becoming a leader, the ways he helped his people prepare for deployments, the mental struggles of deployments, and his experiences with other cultures.
Caitlyn Wills discusses her twenty year career in the United States Air Force. Interniew topics include, but are not limited to, her decision to join the Air Force, how she survived basic training, working in Intelligence, being stationed in New Mexico, and her intergration back into civilian life. She also discusses her work in the private sector…
James D. Gaither Sr. details his service in the Army during the Vietnam War. In particular, Gaither discusses his experiences in basic training, his Infantry and Artillery training, his first combat experiences in Vietnam, and how casualties were handled in the war zone. He also comments on his re-entry into the civilian world after he was…
Holdbrook MacArthur details joining the military as an older recruit, the positions he held, and the challenges he faced. He also discusses being an immigrant who enlisted, his transition after being discharged, the classes you are required to take, and the path of service he took on after leaving the Armed Forces.
Angel Lewis discusses his enlistment in the Army, his thoughts on serving, his job and position while enlisted, as well as the best and worst aspects of life in the service.
Tyler Bare discusses his time in the United States Marine Corps., his training and deployment to Afghanistan, what it's like to live through combat, and how he coped with witnessing fellow Marines die in combat.
Ryan Adkins discusses his combat experiences in the Army. In particular, he details his experiences in combat, how his views of combat changed over time, and the friendships he created. Adkins also comments on the accountability they depended on, the struggles of seeing danger in every situation, the difference in gender roles in combat, and being…
Daniel Roten discusses how life struggles pushed him to enlist in the Air Force. Roten then details the friendships he created, the little things he missed from civilian life, and his memories from serving. Roten also gives his opinion on the needs of Veterans and the Veteran Affairs Department, including some of the changes that should be made.
John Barnett details his time in the United States Army. In particular, he comments on his decison to enlist, basic training, adapting to military life, and his deployments. Barnett also discusses his return to civilian life and his thoughts on Veteran benefits.
Ret. Lt. Col. Marcel T. Schmidt details his twenty-three year career in the Air Force. In particular, Lt. Col. Schmidt recalls memories of his father in Vietnam as a child, and comments on getting a masters degree before enlisting and his experiences while serving in Operations Desert Storm and Desert Shield. Schmidt also comments on staying in…
Kenneth Sterns Jr. discusses his time in the United States Army, the difficulties of basic traning, what the service taught him, and his opinions on the current military.
Captain Darcie Cunningham discusses her twenty-four year career in the Coast Guard. Interview topics include, but are not limted to, gender discrimination, sexual harrassment, and her views on how the Veterans Affairs Department handles mental illness in its veterans.
Cherise N. Haney discusses her time in the United States Air Force, her position as a MP, and what it's like to get deployed. In particular, Haney discusses being a MP for Detainee Operations, rocket attacks, being female in the military, and the gender discrimination she faced and how it impacted her place in authority. She also discusses the…
