335 24 26018 https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/bd34a3ed4cfc9a5488c286b2202aa459.jpg 4ee613479cef428f84b97661376c65c8 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Naval Recognition Training Slides Subject The topic of the resource Slides Military education Airplanes, Military--Recognition Warships--Recognition World War, 1939-1945 Description An account of the resource Slides developed during World War II as a training tool, for top-side battle-station personnel on board ship and for all aircraft personnel, by the US Navy. In 1942 a Recognition School was established by the Navy at Ohio State University where the method of identification was developed. In 1943 the school was taken over by the US Navy. The importance of training in visual recognition of ships and aircraft became even more evident during World War II. Mistakes resulting in costly errors and loss of life led to an increased emphasis on recognition as a vital skill. Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource United States. Navy Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived <a href="https://gvsu.lyrasistechnology.org/repositories/2/resources/477">Naval recognition slides (RHC-50)</a> Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Special Collections & University Archives. Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2017-04-04 Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource <a href="http://rightsstatements.org/page/NoC-US/1.0/?language=en">No Copyright - United States</a> Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource image/jpg Language A language of the resource eng Type The nature or genre of the resource image Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context RHC-50 Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant 1943-1953 Still Image A static visual representation. Examples include paintings, drawings, graphic designs, plans and maps. Recommended best practice is to assign the type Text to images of textual materials. Source <a href="http://gvsu.lyrasistechnology.org/repositories/2/resources/477">Naval recognition slides, RHC-50</a> Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context RHC-50_X1569 Title A name given to the resource Fresco (MiG-17) USSR fighter Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource United States. Navy Description An account of the resource Fresco (MiG-17) USSR fighter, September 1, 1954. Subject The topic of the resource United States. Navy Military education World War, 1939-1945 Slides Airplanes, Military--Recognition Russia Language A language of the resource eng Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource <a href="http://rightsstatements.org/page/NoC-US/1.0/?language=en">No Copyright - United States</a> Type The nature or genre of the resource Image Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource image/jpeg Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Naval recognition slides (RHC-50) Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1954-09-01 Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Lemmen Library and Archives https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/557f115f9f92e3ce0015f7e08afe48dc.jpg 8538acd7c4faca303ea51de653bab222 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Naval Recognition Training Slides Subject The topic of the resource Slides Military education Airplanes, Military--Recognition Warships--Recognition World War, 1939-1945 Description An account of the resource Slides developed during World War II as a training tool, for top-side battle-station personnel on board ship and for all aircraft personnel, by the US Navy. In 1942 a Recognition School was established by the Navy at Ohio State University where the method of identification was developed. In 1943 the school was taken over by the US Navy. The importance of training in visual recognition of ships and aircraft became even more evident during World War II. Mistakes resulting in costly errors and loss of life led to an increased emphasis on recognition as a vital skill. Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource United States. Navy Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived <a href="https://gvsu.lyrasistechnology.org/repositories/2/resources/477">Naval recognition slides (RHC-50)</a> Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Special Collections & University Archives. Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2017-04-04 Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource <a href="http://rightsstatements.org/page/NoC-US/1.0/?language=en">No Copyright - United States</a> Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource image/jpg Language A language of the resource eng Type The nature or genre of the resource image Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context RHC-50 Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant 1943-1953 Still Image A static visual representation. Examples include paintings, drawings, graphic designs, plans and maps. Recommended best practice is to assign the type Text to images of textual materials. Source <a href="http://gvsu.lyrasistechnology.org/repositories/2/resources/477">Naval recognition slides, RHC-50</a> Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context RHC-50_1517 Title A name given to the resource Fresco fighter Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource United States. Navy Description An account of the resource Fresco Russian fighter, September 1, 1955. Subject The topic of the resource United States. Navy Military education World War, 1939-1945 Slides Airplanes, Military--Recognition Russia Language A language of the resource eng Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource <a href="http://rightsstatements.org/page/NoC-US/1.0/?language=en">No Copyright - United States</a> Type The nature or genre of the resource Image Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource image/jpeg Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Naval recognition slides (RHC-50) Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1955-09-01 Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Lemmen Library and Archives https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/d85c7972a0d11dd16b0918716a82b8d2.jpg cc023b17ed549d741667737942816127 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Naval Recognition Training Slides Subject The topic of the resource Slides Military education Airplanes, Military--Recognition Warships--Recognition World War, 1939-1945 Description An account of the resource Slides developed during World War II as a training tool, for top-side battle-station personnel on board ship and for all aircraft personnel, by the US Navy. In 1942 a Recognition School was established by the Navy at Ohio State University where the method of identification was developed. In 1943 the school was taken over by the US Navy. The importance of training in visual recognition of ships and aircraft became even more evident during World War II. Mistakes resulting in costly errors and loss of life led to an increased emphasis on recognition as a vital skill. Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource United States. Navy Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived <a href="https://gvsu.lyrasistechnology.org/repositories/2/resources/477">Naval recognition slides (RHC-50)</a> Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Special Collections & University Archives. Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2017-04-04 Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource <a href="http://rightsstatements.org/page/NoC-US/1.0/?language=en">No Copyright - United States</a> Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource image/jpg Language A language of the resource eng Type The nature or genre of the resource image Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context RHC-50 Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant 1943-1953 Still Image A static visual representation. Examples include paintings, drawings, graphic designs, plans and maps. Recommended best practice is to assign the type Text to images of textual materials. Source <a href="http://gvsu.lyrasistechnology.org/repositories/2/resources/477">Naval recognition slides, RHC-50</a> Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context RHC-50_1513 Title A name given to the resource Fresco MIG-7 fighter Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource United States. Navy Description An account of the resource Fresco MIG-7 Russian fighter, September 1, 1954. Subject The topic of the resource United States. Navy Military education Airplanes, Military--Recognition World War, 1939-1945 Slides Russia Language A language of the resource eng Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource <a href="http://rightsstatements.org/page/NoC-US/1.0/?language=en">No Copyright - United States</a> Type The nature or genre of the resource Image Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource image/jpeg Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Naval recognition slides (RHC-50) Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1954-09-01 Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Lemmen Library and Archives https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/7a4395521c918fccbf89782f0c38cd81.jpg 4f3e8227a738a4dd36b607f7f9897cf0 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Naval Recognition Training Slides Subject The topic of the resource Slides Military education Airplanes, Military--Recognition Warships--Recognition World War, 1939-1945 Description An account of the resource Slides developed during World War II as a training tool, for top-side battle-station personnel on board ship and for all aircraft personnel, by the US Navy. In 1942 a Recognition School was established by the Navy at Ohio State University where the method of identification was developed. In 1943 the school was taken over by the US Navy. The importance of training in visual recognition of ships and aircraft became even more evident during World War II. Mistakes resulting in costly errors and loss of life led to an increased emphasis on recognition as a vital skill. Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource United States. Navy Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived <a href="https://gvsu.lyrasistechnology.org/repositories/2/resources/477">Naval recognition slides (RHC-50)</a> Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Special Collections & University Archives. Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2017-04-04 Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource <a href="http://rightsstatements.org/page/NoC-US/1.0/?language=en">No Copyright - United States</a> Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource image/jpg Language A language of the resource eng Type The nature or genre of the resource image Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context RHC-50 Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant 1943-1953 Still Image A static visual representation. Examples include paintings, drawings, graphic designs, plans and maps. Recommended best practice is to assign the type Text to images of textual materials. Source <a href="http://gvsu.lyrasistechnology.org/repositories/2/resources/477">Naval recognition slides, RHC-50</a> Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context RHC-50_1551 Title A name given to the resource Fresco MIG-7 fighter Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource United States. Navy Description An account of the resource Fresco MIG-7 Russian fighter, September 1, 1954. Subject The topic of the resource United States. Navy Military education Airplanes, Military--Recognition World War, 1939-1945 Slides Russia Language A language of the resource eng Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource <a href="http://rightsstatements.org/page/NoC-US/1.0/?language=en">No Copyright - United States</a> Type The nature or genre of the resource Image Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource image/jpeg Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Naval recognition slides (RHC-50) Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1954-09-01 Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Lemmen Library and Archives https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/f01324f498537296a120c51992b5c3de.jpg 4c074bdba84f64f48e042e774e49f2b9 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Naval Recognition Training Slides Subject The topic of the resource Slides Military education Airplanes, Military--Recognition Warships--Recognition World War, 1939-1945 Description An account of the resource Slides developed during World War II as a training tool, for top-side battle-station personnel on board ship and for all aircraft personnel, by the US Navy. In 1942 a Recognition School was established by the Navy at Ohio State University where the method of identification was developed. In 1943 the school was taken over by the US Navy. The importance of training in visual recognition of ships and aircraft became even more evident during World War II. Mistakes resulting in costly errors and loss of life led to an increased emphasis on recognition as a vital skill. Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource United States. Navy Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived <a href="https://gvsu.lyrasistechnology.org/repositories/2/resources/477">Naval recognition slides (RHC-50)</a> Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Special Collections & University Archives. Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2017-04-04 Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource <a href="http://rightsstatements.org/page/NoC-US/1.0/?language=en">No Copyright - United States</a> Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource image/jpg Language A language of the resource eng Type The nature or genre of the resource image Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context RHC-50 Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant 1943-1953 Still Image A static visual representation. Examples include paintings, drawings, graphic designs, plans and maps. Recommended best practice is to assign the type Text to images of textual materials. Source <a href="http://gvsu.lyrasistechnology.org/repositories/2/resources/477">Naval recognition slides, RHC-50</a> Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context RHC-50_1506 Title A name given to the resource Fresco Russian fighter Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource United States. Navy Description An account of the resource Fresco Russian fighter, September 1, 1955. Subject The topic of the resource United States. Navy Military education World War, 1939-1945 Slides Airplanes, Military--Recognition Russia Language A language of the resource eng Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource <a href="http://rightsstatements.org/page/NoC-US/1.0/?language=en">No Copyright - United States</a> Type The nature or genre of the resource Image Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource image/jpeg Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Naval recognition slides (RHC-50) Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1955-09-01 Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Lemmen Library and Archives https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/31b32ae1f8f2812b7ceaefaf852d78ec.jpg 312f4ffca3ed1e7b38011acd97568d27 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Summers in Saugatuck-Douglas Collection Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Grand Valley State University. Kutsche Office of Local History Description An account of the resource Collection contains images and documents digitized and collected through the project "Stories of Summer," supported by a National Endowment for the Humanities Common Heritage Grant. The collection aims to document the twin lakeshore communities of Saugatuck and Douglas, Michigan, as they transformed through the state's bustling tourism industry and acceptance of minorities. Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant 1910s-2010s Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Various Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource <a href="http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/UND/1.0/">Copyright Undetermined</a> Subject The topic of the resource Michigan Saugatuck (Mich.) Douglas (Mich.) Michigan, Lake Allegan County (Mich.) Beaches Sand dunes Outdoor recreation Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University Libraries. Allendale, Michigan Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Saugatuck-Douglas History Center Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context Stories of Summer (Common Heritage project) Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource image/jpeg application/pdf Type The nature or genre of the resource Image Text Language A language of the resource English Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2018 Still Image A static visual representation. Examples include paintings, drawings, graphic designs, plans and maps. Recommended best practice is to assign the type Text to images of textual materials. Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context DC-07_SD-Brigham-D_0079 Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Brigham, D. Title A name given to the resource Freshly plowed field at Beech-Hurst Description An account of the resource Photograph of a freshly plowed field at Beech-Hurst on Ferry Street. Subject The topic of the resource Michigan Saugatuck (Mich.) Allegan County (Mich.) Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Digital file contributed by D. Brigham as part of the Stories of Summer project. Relation A related resource Stories of Summer (project) Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource <a href="http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/UND/1.0/">Copyright Undetermined</a> Type The nature or genre of the resource Image Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource image/jpeg Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1950 Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Lemmen Library and Archives https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/49985e5e976db5fa69e06e2d87d2ec7d.jpg cc61434b98de9758f86432ebfdd231a9 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Grand Valley State University Photographs Subject The topic of the resource Aerial photographs Universities and colleges Michigan Grand Rapids (Mich.) Allendale (Mich.) Building Facilities Dormitories Students Events 1960s 1970s 1980s 1990s 2000s Description An account of the resource People, places, and events of Grand Valley State University from its founding in 1960 as a 4-year college in western Michigan. Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource News & Information Services. University Communications Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived <a href="https://gvsu.lyrasistechnology.org/repositories/2/resources/41">News &amp; Information Services. University Photographs. (GV012-01)</a> Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Special Collections & University Archives. Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2017-03-03 Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource <a href="http://rightsstatements.org/page/InC-NC/1.0/?language=en">In Copyright - Non-Commercial Use Permitted</a> Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource image/jpg Language A language of the resource eng Type The nature or genre of the resource image Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context GV012-01 Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant 1960s-2000s Still Image A static visual representation. Examples include paintings, drawings, graphic designs, plans and maps. Recommended best practice is to assign the type Text to images of textual materials. Local Subject Subject headings specific to a particular image collection 1990s Source <a href="https://gvsu.lyrasistechnology.org/repositories/2/resources/41">University photographs, GV012-01</a> Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context GV012-01_UAPhotos_000251 Title A name given to the resource Freshman orientation Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Dostie, James M. Description An account of the resource Incoming freshman at oudoor orientation Subject The topic of the resource Grand Valley State University Michigan Allendale (Mich.) Universities and colleges Students Language A language of the resource eng Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource <a href="http://rightsstatements.org/page/InC-NC/1.0/?language=en">In Copyright - Non-Commercial Use Permitted</a> Type The nature or genre of the resource Image Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource image/jpeg Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1990 Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Lemmen Library and Archives black and white photo https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/8ad8e85c1337e61ed6d6259f6f53e5d6.jpg d390e0fe30f62ee0b40febb496066040 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Faces of Grand Valley Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Grand Valley State University Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource University Communications Description An account of the resource A non-comprehensive collection of photographs of Grand Valley faculty, staff, administrators, board members, friends, and alumni. Photos collected by University Communications for use in promotion and information sharing about Grand Valley with the wider community. Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1960s - 1990s Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived GV012-03. University Communications. Vita Files Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource In Copryight Subject The topic of the resource Grand Valley State University College administrators College teachers Colleges and universities -- Faculty Michigan Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. Special Collections and University Archives Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context GV012-03 Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource image/jpeg Type The nature or genre of the resource Image Language A language of the resource eng Still Image A static visual representation. Examples include paintings, drawings, graphic designs, plans and maps. Recommended best practice is to assign the type Text to images of textual materials. Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context FreundJohn Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Grand Valley State University. University Communications Title A name given to the resource Freund, John Description An account of the resource John Freund, English Subject The topic of the resource Grand Valley State University – History College teachers Universities and colleges – Faculty Michigan Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived University Communications. Vita Files, 1968-2016 (GV012-03) Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. Special Collections and University Archives Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource In Copyright Type The nature or genre of the resource Image Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource image/jpeg Language A language of the resource eng https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/1d33728234815cc2c734f899298c67df.pdf 39905213ab501d557907b6d59801a539 PDF Text Text Michigan Philanthropy Oral History Project Johnson Center for Philanthropy Grand Valley State University Oral History Interview with David G. Frey, May 7, 2010 The Council of Michigan Foundations, Johnson Center for Philanthropy at Grand Valley State University (GVSU), and GVSU Libraries’ Special Collections & University Archives present: An oral history interview with David G. Frey, May 7, 2010. Conducted by Dr. James Smither of the History Department at GVSU. Recorded at David Frey’s office in Grand Rapids, Michigan. This interview is part of a series in the Michigan Philanthropy Oral History Project documenting the history of philanthropy in Michigan. Preferred Citation: Researchers wishing to cite this collection should use the following credit line: Oral history interview with David G. Frey, May 7, 2010. "Michigan Philanthropy Oral History Project", Johnson Center Philanthropy Archives of the Special Collection & University Archives, Grand Valley State University Libraries. James Smither (JS): Now Mr. Frey, can you begin by giving us a little bit of background on yourself, start with where and when you were born? 0:00:18 David Frey (DF): I was born January 1942 in Blodgett Hospital in Grand Rapids, Michigan. (JS): And what did your family do at that time, what was your? (DF): My father was President and Chief Executive Officer of Union Bank and Trust Company, which his father had actually started in 1918. And he had gone to the University of Michigan, graduated in the class of 1932, and actually did some graduate work, received a Graduate Degree from Rutgers University in banking, and served in the Navy during World War II, and raised four children, and lived primarily in East Grand Rapids throughout my younger years, and then moved elsewhere within the city. He also founded Foremost Insurance Company after World War II, 1952, which became the nation’s leading insurer of recreational vehicles and mobile homes, and other sorts of Oral History Interview with David Frey, May 7, 2010 1 �small boats, small yachts, motorcycles and all the related sorts of vehicles that were very popular. (JS): How many children were in the family? (DF): Four children, my sister is the oldest. Mary Caroline, she goes by Twink, and then my older brother John, and I’m the third. And my younger brother is Edward Frey, Jr. who goes by Ted. (JS): And what kind of education did you have? 0:01:42 (DF): I went off to private school, at Cranbrook School in Bloomfield, Michigan and then proceeded to the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill from which I have a A.B. in 1964 and a JurisDoctorate degree in 1967. (JS): How did you pick North Carolina as the place to go? (DF): Well, it’s an interesting story, but I was on the track team at Cranbrook School for boys, and the track coach had gone to North Carolina in the early 1940s, and we’d spend every Spring vacation, we would drive down to Chapel Hill and spend a week in the field house at the football stadium. We’d practice twice a day, and then we’d run against the Duke freshman and the North Carolina freshman and we would go up and run against some of the prep schools in Virginia, and then come back to Michigan two weeks later, or three weeks later and we would be in great shape and there would always still be two feet of snow on the ground, so were really ready for the track season. It gave us a great advantage though. My time at Chapel Hill was very persuasive and I had a great experience there. In fact, some of my children have attended the university, so we have had a great relationship with the university. (JS): Did you go straight into Law School after undergraduate? 0:02:56 (DF): I did. I was deferred through Law School during the Vietnam War, a bachelor but I signed up for the Navy in the spring of my third year of Law School, and was given a deferral through the bar exam, passed the bar exam, and proceeded to Newport, Rhode Island to get a commission in the Navy, six [correction: three or four] months later. (JS): Were you doing an Officer Candidate School there? (DF): I was. OCS in Newport, Rhode Island. (JS): Well, since you are talking to the Director of the GVSU Veteran’s History Project, I’m going to have to ask you a few questions about that. What did your training program consist of? Oral History Interview with David Frey, May 7, 2010 2 �(DF): Well, I think I reported right after Labor Day of the fall of 1967, the bar exam was in mid-August and graduated in February of 1968, commissioned as an ensign. It’s a basic training about navigation, all different, sort of the basics of what a naval officer needs to have to be qualified to be an officer. And then proceeded to San Francisco where I went to a Damage Control School for two or three months I think it was. Treasure Island is in the bay underneath the Oakland Bay Bridge, and then I was assigned to a ship in the Pacific and flew to Guam, and met my ship in Guam. (JS): Did you choose Damage Control as an area that you? (DF): I was assigned Damage Control School. Almost every newly commissioned ensign went to some sort of a school for some specific training. (JS): So you weren’t getting to pick off of a list, you were just sent somewhere? 0:04:42 (DF): I may have, it has been a number of years, but it was a good experience, I’m glad I did it. It’s very practical and useful in case there is some sort of a problem at sea, as you can imagine. So you really do have to know where to go and what to do if for some reason you have to - if the ship’s been compromised in some fashion. (JS): Had you chosen the Navy specifically? (DF): I did. (JS): And what motivated that? (DF): Well, my father was in the Navy. He had a great experience; I had an equally great experience. And I like the traditions of the Navy. I have a lot of respect for their roles in both peace time and war time. It was my only choice, my first choice, and only choice. It was the right choice for me, and I never look back except with great appreciation for my experience during the Vietnam War. (JS): What ship were you assigned to then? 0:05:37 (DF): The first ship I was assigned to was actually a research vessel. We were doing antisubmarine warfare research in the Pacific. I was only on the ship for a portion of the West Pac tour, then I went back to San Francisco, she went in the dry dock. Then I went out for the second tour, and in the middle of my second Pacific tour, I was reassigned to a staff position in Sasebo, Japan, which is a Naval Base on the west coast of the Kyushu Island, the southernmost of the three Japanese Islands, where I served as an aide and flag lieutenant to Rear Admiral A.A. Burgner, class of 1940 Naval Academy. (JS): What sort of place was Sasebo when you were there? How could you describe it? Oral History Interview with David Frey, May 7, 2010 3 �(DF): Sasebo was a very special Japanese naval base which we commandeered after World War II. The Admiral staff was embarked on a large A.R., which is a repair ship, and they alternated every, for six months out of San Diego, California. We had an Admiral staff was embarked on the flag ship, he had a staff of a dozen or two young naval officers, and some not so young, and we were responsible for all of the logistic ships of the seventh fleet as they came into the seventh fleet, and we also had the two hospital ships off of Vung Tau where soldiers and civilians were medevacked after being injured by the Viet Cong or Viet Cong’s related… (JS): The North Vietnamese. 0:07:18 (DF): Right, the North Vietnamese. We also had some repair ships up in the Mekong Delta for the swift boats. If a swift boat hit some sort of a mine in the Mekong and was compromised, it could get to a repair ship; we could turn it into a war ship relatively quickly. So we traveled a lot in country, almost every month and sometimes twice a month either to Yankee Station and/or up into the Mekong Delta, or the hospital ships down near Vung Tau. So we spent a lot of time in the war zone, never in combat per se, but a considerable amount of time in the war zone. (JS): What sort of understanding did you have at the time of what the war was about or why you were there or were you not thinking about that so much as doing your job? (DF): Well, I think that you do your job because of why you are there, and we were there to protect the political sovereignty of the South Vietnamese, as it turned out as we all know, we were unsuccessful in doing that for lots of reasons which lots of people have written about and will continue to write about for a long time. But I think it was a seminal event in the history of, certainly the twentieth century, of our history and produced some very difficult, I would say, byproducts, if you will, socially in this country. It was a very difficult situation, but I must say I was mightily impressed by the caliber of the forces that were in Vietnam and of the Seventh Fleet or wherever I went. There’s some remarkable young men, mostly men at that point in time, or in the late 1960s, however, on the hospital ships were staffed male and female and they operated around the clock. It was an incredible facility, it saved a lot of lives, and it was an amazing bunch of dedicated men and women. I was proud of them then, and I’m proud of them today. We sent the best of our American youth over, unfortunately some did not come back. (JS): Did you have much occasion to work with any of the South Vietnamese Naval personnel? 0:09:32 (DF): On a very limited basis. Most of our time, when we weren’t in country or visiting hospital ships or out on the carriers on the Seventh Fleet, or actually touring on some of the supply ships, the ARs, the AEs, the AOEs, and so on and so forth, was spent in Japan. So most of our interaction, proportionately was probably with some of the Japanese, and even that was rather modest, because we were on a US Naval Base in Japan. Oral History Interview with David Frey, May 7, 2010 4 �(JS): And actually on a ship a lot of the time. (DF): On a ship. And that’s where most staff were, although he [the Admiral] and his wife lived in Naval housing, as did most of the married members of the staff. I was single at that point, so I lived on ship board. (JS): How long did you stay in the Navy? (DF): I was in almost three and a half years, or something like that. Six months getting commission and I got out about a month or two early, early release because by the late 1960s we were starting to down-size our commitment to the South Vietnam and troops started getting early outs and we started to shrink our force and our presence in South Vietnam. So I did get out a month or two earlier than planned, which I think I got out in January, February, excuse me December of 1970. About three months early. (JS): Did you give any thought to staying in? 0:10:58 (DJ): I did. I had a great tour of duty; I had some great bosses and senior officers. I was impressed with them then and I’m just as impressed with them today. They were committed to representing their country, and they did a masterful job under very difficult circumstances. (JS): So, why did you decide then just to…? (DJ): Well, I think I was a little older than most of my contemporaries in terms that I had already received a graduate degree and was probably one rank behind some of my peers who had gone right from either the Naval Academy or undergraduate degree. So I was a little bit behind and my real passion since I was a little, young boy was to be in the banking business, which I did. (JS): Did your family want you to come back too? Was that…? (DJ): I don’t know. You will have to ask them. Both of my parents have been gone now for 20 years. I think they were glad that I did not come back immediately. Actually, I moved to New York City, and lived in New York for three or four years and worked for a bank in New York City on Park Avenue and got some training and had a lot of fun. I met a lot of my, actually, a lot of my friends from the University of North Carolina and some from Virginia and Washington Lee, some of the schools in the southeast, had already started in New York. Some didn’t go into the military for medical reasons or because of their marital status or one thing or another. So it was sort of like a reunion when you got to New York because there were all these great friends that had been there for one, two, three or four more years and starting their careers in banking, finance, investment banking. Some worked for the District Attorney’s offices in lower Manhattan. Great experience. (JS): How long did you spend in New York then? Oral History Interview with David Frey, May 7, 2010 5 �0:12:53 (DF): Three or four years. (JS): So, when did you move back to Michigan? (DF): I moved back to Grand Rapids in 1974 I believe it was, in the spring of ’74. (JS): Was that right about the same time that your parents established the Frey Foundation? (DF): It was. They didn’t include us in a lot of those discussions, but I was included in a couple discussions. Actually, in New York with the Council of Foundations which was then headquartered in New York, as I recall. But they talked about it, not frequently, but they were not secretive about it, but they were also private people and they did not share with us the scope of their philanthropy or necessarily the donees or grantees of their philanthropy. But, mostly within the city and selectively other places. And we don’t even have all of those records, and I don’t know that it would shed a lot of light on it. Because once it was permanently funded when my father passed away, we had to reestablish, or I would say establish the four of us our focus areas. What were we interested in? What were our passions? What could we agree on in terms of focus areas and try to chronicle those so that we started bring some discipline to the grantmaking process. And while you’re doing that, we also had diversification issues within my father’s estate. Some of which were easily done, others were more complicated. So, we retained Goldman Sachs to help us diversify the assets so we could get a more mature and diversified asset portfolio from which we would make our grants. (JS): As best you know, while your parents were alive, how did they run the foundation? How did they manage things? 0:14:42 (DF): I think the two of them just sat down and either proactively, in some issues I’m sure, or passively. It’s sort of an awkward word because they weren’t passive people, but when somebody comes to you for example, for a gift to the new public museum, that’s called passive grantmaking. I would chose a different term, but that’s the way that it’s generally described, and I think they did some of both. And as I said, we don’t have all the records and I’m not sure we need to. They did it quietly, they did it, I think, effectively, and they used assets of my mother’s and father’s estate that would lend themselves to their philanthropy. They did it very quietly for fifteen years until my father passed away, from 1974 to 1988. He passed away in July of 1988. So, for those fifteen years they really ran it themselves and those decisions were private decisions that they make just between the two of them. (JS): Do you have any sense as to what kinds of causes or issues they were particularly interested in? Oral History Interview with David Frey, May 7, 2010 6 �(DF): I think they have always been interested in the future of the city. I mean, they had deep roots in the city and believed passionately in the city, and believed passionately in Grand Valley State University. They were in the forefront of those who worked very hard, both in Lansing and in western Michigan to garner support for the founding of the University. So, they had some passions, the Episcopal Church was one of them, and my mother went off to prep school at Emma Willard in Troy, New York, and I think they made some gifts to her private school that she had great affection for. Most of it was within the city or within the western Michigan community. That’s where their roots are, that’s where their passion was. They believed in it, they appreciated what the city and region had done for them, and they were just sharing their good fortune with others. (JS): Now, you get to the point there when your father dies, was that in 1988 when it happens? (DF): Right. (JS): And then, this is now being thrust upon you. You talked a little bit here just a moment ago about some of the stuff that you had to deal with. How much time and energy did it require for you and your siblings to get this foundation set up? 0:17:20 (DF): It took a lot of time because we were settling the estate; we had meetings almost weekly with lawyers and accountants to deal with a myriad of issues. And so it was very time consuming and doubly so because of this foundation which required a lot more effort on the part of the four of us because of the mandatory IRS requirement that you must distribute five percent of the average assets of the previous year. So, there is a draconian penalty for not doing that, we chose to try to do that, which we did. And I have to give high credit to my sister and two brothers, they were, I was on a full time career, traveling a fair amount, and not here when I was on business activities in Detroit, Chicago, or elsewhere. So, it took a lot of time and energy. Plus, at the same time we were doing that we were having an executive search for an Executive Director. We had to have somebody that could actually do this day-to-day, and none of us, or I should say it the other way, all of us wanted to have a dedicated Executive Director, a non-family person who could really run a small office of about five or six people and manage those people every day so that we could do the things that our lives required us to do, raising families, whatever. (JS): How did you go about actually finding an Executive Director? (DF): We talked to Russ, the first phone call actually that I made was to Russ Mawby, who was then the head of the Kellogg Foundation. He gave us some names, we hired a search firm as I recollect, and gave that name to a search firm, and this was 22 years ago. We hired someone who had Kellogg Foundation connections and then we found an office. We had to find a space downtown, we wanted to be in the city, which was the focus of our parents’ passion, and get an architect to design us some offices, build it out, decorate it, and so on and so forth. This - are very time consuming and sort of all in a Oral History Interview with David Frey, May 7, 2010 7 �relatively short time frame, but at the same time dealing now with my mother’s newly diagnosed terminal illness, which just added more on top of more. So it was a very hectic, sort of stressful year or two in there. (JS): About how long did it take then to actually get to the point where you had the office set up and staffed and up and running? 0:19:55 (DF): Well, I think, I can’t recall exactly. I would say within the year I think we had a staff. And we had a lot of friends of the family who were very helpful who had some great suggestions on some staff people. We were able to find some pretty talented people who were looking for a different challenge, and you know family foundations are unique in many respects. There are three basic kinds of foundations: there are corporate foundations, family foundations, and community foundations. We are obviously one of those three, but because it is a private family foundation and has different grantmaking requirements per the IRS and different, as you can imagine, DNA issues if you will. (JS): As this got going, how did you define what the foundation was going to do? You’ve set up this foundation, what kinds of activities will it target, and how will it determine what it does? (DF): We started to work on that ourselves, we found out that we needed to get somebody, a third party, if you will, somebody who had some real family foundation insight, experience, so we found a very talented individual who helped us walk through some of that. It really does take a non-family member to be that impartial… (JS): Arbitrator? (DS): Guide to sort of help you focus in on what it is that you want to do, and it’s turned out really, extremely well, being we have five focus areas, and we all have our different within those five. We probably each have different priorities, so what might be my number one priority might be my sister’s third priority and my brother’s fifth priority. If you add them all together, there is a concentric circle where we all buy in to these five areas, and the only difference amongst the four of us is, which is your priority, and rank them. And as they say, they don’t all coincide, so what we basically do is in the fifth one, it is support philanthropy, and so it is a relatively smaller piece of our annual activity. But the other four, we all allocate the same number of grant dollars every year, even though every year we may not use that allocation because the way the grants come in aren’t always in perfect proportion to one other. So, over some reasonable period of time, it all averages out and we keep very close tabs on it so that we don’t, for any extended period of time, or at least unwittingly, over-allocate to one of the four focus areas. (JS): What are those four focus areas? (DS): Well it’s changed a little bit, but it’s women’s and children’s issues, civic issues, an all-other category, environment, we are very passionate about the environment, and the fifth is the support and embrace philanthropy and promote it where we can do so Oral History Interview with David Frey, May 7, 2010 8 �reasonably and get some outcome out of it. We do believe in outcome, so I refer to it as outcome-based philanthropy. We want a high, what I call stick figure factor, stick factor so that when you distribute funds for a specific purpose, for a grant, then it actually gets done the way the grantseeker has suggested it should or would get done. That does require a lot of front-end research, and that’s the way you need to do it. You need to front load your grantmaking process so that you err on the side of overdoing the front end a little bit so that you’ll like the outcome a lot better. And then in fact, in many cases we are able to vie some suggestions to the grantseeker as to how they might alter their thing a little bit to get a better outcome than they originally envisioned. (JS): For people who are coming in from outside of this field who are not used to this particular kind of work, when you are talking about front-loading and so forth, what does that actually involve and who is doing what, sort of… 0:24:25 (DF): Due diligence, we have staff; we have some people who specialize in the grantmaking process. They do on site visits, they take the grant application, in the case that someone is coming to us, and review it, ask the right questions, do their due diligence, interview the grantseeker, or grantseekers if it’s more than one. We do a quick but thorough study on the composition of their board, and make sure that it’s got some gender equality to it, some ethnic equality to it, or balance I should say, and that the application itself is well thought out, that the numbers, that the budget that they’ve prepared for this project, whatever it might be, is sound, defensible, and will achieve the desired result. So, it is really about asking the right questions. We try not to overdue it, but you have to have some core information upon which you, they can make a recommendation to the trustees. We meet four times a year, we do our grantmaking in the afternoon, we do our investment activity in the morning. It’s taken a while to get there. We used to try to do it over two days, but now we got it to the point where we can actually do most of it in one day, which is, you know, for people who have careers, jobs and other commitments, which we all do, time is important. So, we try to make it a time sensitive and time efficient process, but still be effective in our grantmaking, and we really do think we are effective in our grantmaking. We are very pleased with almost all of our grants’ results. Every now and then a problem arises and we can approve a grant extension because we have some rules about when you must comply with a grant and if you don’t, we are more than willing to give you an extension for six months, a year, or even eighteen months, but at some point if you don’t fulfill your original mission then the grant will be cancelled. We don’t distribute our funds, our grant if we make a grant for $100,000 or a million, we don’t write that check until you’ve raised 80% of the overall budget. So, until you get to the 80% mark, we are still holding the funds. When you get to 80%, that is a clear enough signal to us that you can have a successful program and successful support from whatever your sources of support are, that we feel comfortable then writing the check. (JS): So you generally look at what you’re doing as helping somebody who is already getting support from other places or has other resources and then you put in something on top of that. Oral History Interview with David Frey, May 7, 2010 9 �(DF): Right. We believe very strongly in partnering, and we think strong partnerships create better outcomes. It also makes the grantseeker do their homework more thoroughly and more completely. There are some who for reasons of time and other reasons would like to have their project or program supported by a relatively modest number of grantmakers. It requires less time, and so on and so forth. We would, in most cases, not all, would rather see a broader base of support where more people are buying into the thing, more people are watching the process and making sure that the outcome is as promised. And that all goes to the credibility and the integrity of the grantseeker. We want these grantseekers to be successful. We will help them be successful in a couple of different ways. One is doing our homework up front, one is not distributing our grant, if it’s approved, until they have commitments for 80% of the total budget, and then we do a follow-up at the end of each project. They are required to submit a report, asked to submit a report of the project once it’s funded and running. (JS): Now, is this set of practices, as far as you can tell, is that fairly typical of reasonable-sized foundations or do you do more of this kind of homework than a lot of family foundations do? (DF): I’m not the one to ask that question. I think you will find a range of processes. We try not to be overly burdensome to the grantseekers, but we still, there is a fine line between getting the information you need so that you can ask the right questions because it really is all about making them successful. We want them to be successful. If we do sufficient homework and request sufficient information, we can ask the right questions, make some suggestions perhaps, and have a higher probability of a successful outcome. I think everyone, there probably are some basic rules out there. We’ve sort of developed our own but I know that we all talked to other individuals involved in foundations and they all have a little bit different take on it depending on where they’re located, what their focus areas are, you know, whether it’s for operations or for capital or whatever or some combinations. Most of ours are capital related, but not all. Or, many of ours are capital related, but not all. (JS): Let’s steer the course a little bit back sort of to your own career trajectory a little bit. We have gotten you into a period of 1988, 1990, in there some place. You worked with your family to get the foundation set up and so forth. In your own career at this point, what are you doing, what position are you in at about 1990? 0:29:58 (DF): I’ve got two young sons and four step children, some are in college and some aren’t. The two young boys are ten and seven, so you know, and I’ve got a full time career. I am very busy, and enjoyably so. I like challenges and I like being a dad. I try to be a good one. So I had to fit the foundation activity in with a lot of other things. Meanwhile I was on the Board of Trustees with the Grand Rapids Community Foundation, ended up being the Chairman of that foundation, had already done my United Way thing. I was on the Board of United Way for several years. I chaired a campaign in the early 1980s so, I always had lots on my plate. I did everything I could to be a good trustee of the Frey Foundation. I didn’t have perhaps quite as much time to Oral History Interview with David Frey, May 7, 2010 10 �devote to it as some of my siblings, and I thank them for doing what needed to be done because it wouldn’t have gotten done without them. It really had to be a family to get it organized and get it up and running, and to set up the board meetings, and so on and so forth. (JS): Was the United Way the first larger scale rather charitable foundation or work that you got involved in or were you doing things before that? 0:31:25 (DF): Well, it was the first, we were sort of raised in the culture that you get engaged, if you want to have a successful community you better get engaged in the business about what’s going to make it great. The United Way is one of those things and has been for years, decades, important to our family, then and now. It was something I wanted to do, and I was asked to participate. I was asked by the campaign leadership in the early 1980s. I was happy to do it. It was a great experience, great experience. I met some incredible people. It’s a little bit of a different organization today than it was then, but you know, the world has changed. So, you know, how they allocate their funds is different now then it was then, and that’s fine. That’s the primary foundation activity that I was involved until the Frey Foundation came in seven or eight years later. I think by having done that, there are certain parts, even though that’s a community foundation as opposed to a private family foundation, there are certain principles of process and so on and so forth that were very helpful to me and providing maybe some suggestions in regards to the Frey Foundation when it was first starting. (JS): Where does the Michigan Community Foundation, or was it the Grand Rapids Community Foundation that you were involved in as well? (DF): Yes. (JS): When did you get involved with them and how did that happen? (DF): That was… (JS): Because at the United Way and then you kind of carried that over… (DF): Right, into the Grand Rapids Community Foundation. I started in the late 80s in the Grand Rapids Community Foundation. I think I chaired it in 1992 while I was still a trustee then of the Frey Foundation, so I was sort of wearing two hats at the time. That’s where I really learned some processes about investment committee activity and the committee’s structure in the Grand Rapids Community Foundation that were very helpful I think in terms of the Frey Foundation. If I misspoke myself I apologize. (JS): That’s okay. It seemed to kind of follow logically, but we wanted to make sure we had the right sequence. (DF): It actually followed sequentially. I mean, I learned a lot from the United Way too, but that’s a different sort of, you know they allocate funds in a different way, with a Oral History Interview with David Frey, May 7, 2010 11 �different process. They are very much community-based, so on and so forth. The Grand Rapids Community Foundation has some similarities to it but, you know, it’s been a phenomenal success, has had great leadership, and now, interestingly enough, we partner, we the Frey Foundation partner with the Grand Rapids Community Foundation and with Steelcase and DeVos and some of the other private foundations or corporate foundations. Once again, we find some concentric focus areas, and some non-concentric, but some very concentric which we could all sort of get involved in and make a difference. And a big difference in some cases. (JS): Now, you had mentioned early on that your parents kind of kept a lot of their own activities and priorities barred to themselves, but at the same time on a broader level, they were communicating to you the idea that you need to give back or to be involved in the community. 0:34:41 (DF): Yeah I think so. That was a dinner table conversation before they ever thought about having a private family foundation. It was just part of what makes communities great. It was imbued in us that if you want to have this great community wherever you are, that you have to be a participant. Bystanders don’t get things done. You have to roll up your sleeves and get engaged in some way or another with whatever your passions are. Whether it’s the arts, whether it’s social issues, whatever it is that drives you. Get engaged; balance it with your other priorities and with your other responsibilities to your family, your profession, so on and so forth. But there is a piece of you that you should share with the community or with your church if that is what you choose. You do have to sort of balance yourself, and I guess the people that I would consider the most successful are those people who have the balance in their lives that makes them a fuller, more complete, more well-rounded individual because they’ve done that or are doing it. (JS): Do you think that it helped you at all in terms of your own activities locally that you had seen as much of the world as you had and gone and done and as many things as you had at different places first. Do you have a perspective that might be different than if you’d stayed in Grand Rapids the whole time? (DF): I think so. A lot of people think I’ve never left. I went away for twenty years. I left to go off to private school. That was a great experience for me. It was a game changer, an absolute game changer for me. It opened my eyes, gave me a whole new vision for the world and where I could go. Then I lived in Japan for two years, lived in San Francisco for six months, then in Japan, then in New York. I lived in North Carolina for seven years. So I have lived in some, and enjoyed every place I have lived. I met some phenomenal people, and I’ve enjoyed my experiences, and I’ve encouraged my children to do the same. I think you are a more rounded person if you’ve had the opportunity and taken advantage of the opportunity to go out and see what’s out there in the world. So, my two sons, and some of the step children, we try to travel with them so that they would feel more comfortable traveling, that they would be more comfortable with different languages, different currencies, different dining habits, different cultures. It makes you appreciate what is out there. It’s a phenomenal planet, for all our woes, which there are Oral History Interview with David Frey, May 7, 2010 12 �many; there are just lots to learn and lots to experience. I think you’re a better parent, you’re a better citizen, you’re a better corporate person if that’s what you do, or a better government or whatever you are if you can have some worldly experiences. (JS): In addition to the United Way, the Grand Rapids Community Foundation and the Frey Foundation, you have also been involved in different kinds of civic organizations and things. You were with the Grand Action at some point… 0:38:00 (DF): I remain at Grand Action. We are getting on close to twenty years. Dick DeVos, John Canepa and I started in I think it was 1992 or 1993. It followed the Grand Vision Committee, which Dick DeVos chaired, so but for Grand Vision, there wouldn’t be a Grand Action. We’ve been doing it now for eighteen years plus, and it’s been a great experience. All three of us I would say are about twelve years difference in age, very different in many respects, but we are committed to the city and committed to the region. We’ve tried to help build the city and help create some energy, and we hope we’ve been successful. We’re not done yet. We’re now working on the urban market, and we think it’s got tremendous support from the general population and we’re at the early stages of trying to get some funding from a half a dozen foundations, the seed money that we can hire an architect and start getting organized. In the past, in our other three major projects, we’ve had an anonymous donor that gave us the seed money, and then subsequently down the road they would identify themselves, but at least initially they chose to be anonymous. In this case, it doesn’t lend itself to being a donor-driven or a named opportunity. I think it’s going to be very successful and very exciting, and it sort of stretches the footprint of the city to the south a little bit to Wealthy Street. We’re very excited about it; we’ve had a consultant who has been terrific. We think it’s a $27 million project, probably $30 if you add in the real estate, but we think it is going to be very exciting. (JS): A certain portion of people who may view this interview and so forth are likely to be from outside of the Grand Rapids area and west Michigan and so forth. Fill in a little bit of the background, for instance, what exactly was Grand Vision and what was it expected, intended to do, or what was the idea of it? (DF): Grand Vision was designed to explore the feasibility of a large convention center and an arena. They went about that for two years, hired Rossetti Associates, an architectural firm out of Detroit, who actually did Auburn Hills Arena, and Deloitte and Touche to do some economic [forecasting]. So, two years later they came up with the recommendation, the conclusion that yes, we could build an arena and yes, we do need an enlarged convention facility. So, some of us said well look, here is the recommendation, now who is going to do something with it? So we morphed Grand Vision into Grand Action and John Canepa, Dick and I got together and said why don’t we just take the recommendations and get going here, which we did. Initially, in hind sight, we were going to try to do the arena and convention center at once. We unbundled them, thankfully, because of the time it took. The arena went first, because we had a clean site. It was a parking lot at a sight of the former Union Station which was a train station here Oral History Interview with David Frey, May 7, 2010 13 �for a hundred years or more, and it was taken down several years ago. That was the easiest piece of real estate to deal with, and the city was a great partner, the county was a great partner, the state was [too]…it worked out well. That was the first one, and when we got that one done and open in ’96, we went to the convention center. That was a bigger project and much more complicated because it required the movement of the County Court House and the Grand Rapids Police Department to new locations. Complicated on top of that was the site, which is bounded by Michigan on the north, Lyon on the south, the river on the west, Monroe on the east, had some sub soil issues, erosion issues, which we had to shore up and it got more complicated, but we go it done. So, in exchange for a convention center, we got a new police station, we got a new courthouse, and it worked out great. (JS): And in some way, I’m someone who has lived now in this community for twenty years and has seen a lot of this happening, actually in the process of moving some of those things out, you helped to redevelop or reuse some other parts of the city. The police department went into a failed downtown mall complex, for instance and so forth. (DF): Right. There you go. You got it. 0:42:46 (JS): I, having been from the Midwest, having seen plenty of Midwestern and northeastern, west belt cities, I kind of look at Grand Rapids and look at a lot of these other places and think it’s really pretty remarkable what’s happened here. (DF): It is. We are counter-trending is what we are doing. We’ve always, our unspoken byline is let’s not let the economic woes of the state, which are substantial and they’re real, restrict our activity or our commitment to the city. We’ve been able to do this with a lot of private dollars. We got a fabulous new J.W. Marriot Hotel because of the convention center. A lot of things have resulted from it. We’ve had tremendous development south of Fulton Street because of the arena. Twenty years ago you may not have chosen to walk down that after dusk. One of the really interesting little side stories about the arena. When we built the arena, we made a promise to the Heartside neighborhood, that a lot of people who live in Heartside, unemployed, partially employed, underemployed who have various disabilities, and are medicated for some of those disabilities. So, a certain percentage of the employees at the Van Andel Arena today are hired from the Heartside neighborhood. They can walk to work; they don’t have to rely on public transportation or their own transportation. They have a job, in some cases for the first time, many of them are part time employees. But it has given these people a sense of self pride and purposefulness that they maybe have never had before. Those are the little stories that you don’t read much about. We read about Elton John and the Eagles and the great, you know Faith Hill. But, every day there’s some people that will walk to work at that arena who are doing meaningful work and taking enormous pride in themselves, and that’s just really important. (JS): Now, you are also involved with the Downtown Development Authority in Grand Rapids. Oral History Interview with David Frey, May 7, 2010 14 �(DF): No (JS): That is more of a public partner in some ways with what… 0:44:47 (DF): They have been a great partner with Grand Action. The city, the county, the DDA, the State, and even the Feds, the Federal government helped us do some, about $7 million of infrastructure for the convention center. We had to redo some, move a lot of stuff around below grade. We’ve had great partners; Governor Engler was a great partner for the convention center. We’ve just had great partners all the way. The interesting thing about Grand Action has been in that all of these three projects, the one we didn’t talk about was the Meijer Majestic Theater, the Civic Theater, fabulous restoration, very different. We’ve always, particularly in the first two, always got private sector commitments, pledges, before we went and asked the city, the county or the state to do anything. We always told them what we were doing, we were very open. So I think we had a lot of credibility when we went to Lansing, or to the county or to the city saying we have raised X millions of dollars, we’ve got pledges for X millions of dollars. Please partner with us and either donate the land or do something to help us get this thing done. We’ve been met with very welcoming yeses. (JS): You had mentioned at the beginning of the interview that you were sort of retired out of... (DF): Right. (JS): What kind of official positions or responsibilities do you hold now? 0:46:15 (DF): I was chairman and CEO of Union Bank Corp. when we merged in 1986 with NBD Bank Corp. out of Detroit. My job after that merger was to manage the western Michigan part of that corporation. Four mergers later, we are now part of J.P. Morgan Chase. I retired about five years ago, and I keep an office in the Chase building, and I have lots of activities on my… I still spend a lot of time on Grand Action, I currently am chairman of the Frey Foundation, I have done some fundraising in the past for the University of North Carolina Chapel Hill, I have a great commitment to that university. I have been active in the University of Michigan campaign that was recently completed very successfully. My wife went to Michigan, I have a couple kids who went to Michigan, my sister went to Michigan. We’ve made some wonderful grants to the University of Michigan from the Frey Foundation, both for the Ford School of Public Policy, and we recently endowed the Deanship at the Business School in honor of my father who was in the class of 1932 and a passionate Wolverine. (JS): As chairman of the Frey Foundation, what do you actually have to do? (DF): I chair the meetings, I help coordinate the agenda. Because I’m in town, my two brothers are out of town, my sister is a trustee emeritus and not as active, she has her own Oral History Interview with David Frey, May 7, 2010 15 �foundation, Nokomis Foundation which she chairs, I get involved in some things that I wouldn’t be involved in if I lived some place else and was sort of a non-resident chairman. I do a lot of things in terms of some of the grantmaking activities or the special needs that I have to get involved that normally I wouldn’t necessarily because I’m available, I’m in the city and I’m downtown. I do keep very busy; I try to take a little time off. We have a winter place, residence in Florida, and I’m back and forth every ten days or two weeks for three or four or five days. In the summer time I’m here Mondays through Wednesdays, sometimes Mondays through Fridays. I am trying to take a little bit of time to have some fun. I’m passionate about the city, and actually as we speak I’m cochairing the Capital Campaign for the new Seidman Business School with Doug DeVos. We are trying to raise $25 million of private funds for what will be a $35 to $40 million project on the west side of the river. It is going to be a stunning, a stunning building designed by Robert A.M. Stern, one of the great American architects in New York City. He is also the Dean of the Yale School of Architecture, and he did the Ford School of Public Policy in Ann Arbor. We had interviews with some terrific national firms. It’s going to be a great project. I’m still raising money for Grand Valley and trying to raise money for Grand Action when we get into the fundraising mode. These projects that we get, like Urban Market, take a considerable amount of time to get them positioned right and in some cases to get the private donor involved and so, I’m fully engaged. (JS): Yeah. Yeah. There is retirement, and there’s retirement. (DF): I’m flunking retirement. Everyday I flunk retirement. (JS): Right. You are talking about building the Seidman Business School for Grand Valley State University. Grand Valley, when it was established, was built out in the middle of a cornfield in between Holland and Muskegon and Grand Rapids in part because the land was cheap. But, over the course of the past several decades, it has built up a very substantial presence in downtown Grand Rapids. (DF): Right. (JS): It’s on the west side of the Grand River, which is opposite of where the proper downtown activity mostly is. And that’s another area, kind of like the area around the arena on the south side of downtown that has really changed a lot with that investment building in. 0:50:20 (DF): Right. It’s interesting. I had expected that with the downtown campus that we would see perhaps more development of the west side. We have seen some development, it has been very positive, but it has not been on quite the scale that I had expected. Maybe when the Business School, again I think we need some more dormitories or family housing, married housing, or whatever, just on the south side, immediately south side of Fulton Street. Maybe that will spur some more development of the other commercial activity, restaurants, other sorts of stuff. But, it has developed some, not quite to the extent that I had envisioned. Oral History Interview with David Frey, May 7, 2010 16 �(JS): But you didn’t have as much of the core downtown infrastructure right there, which you had with the arena and the convention center. You do get into residential neighborhoods or some kind of industrial districts pretty quickly. (DF): Very quickly. My grandfather was born on the corner of Straight and Douglas Street. I know the west side pretty well. In 1880, believe it or not. (JS): Alright. Now, is there any kind of advice that you might give to somebody, say, second or third generation member of the family who has a family foundation who is going to be getting involved in that, or maybe they’re facing the prospect of a changeover from the first generation, the founding generation over to them. Are there things to watch for, or prepare for that could help them as they move forward? (DF): We invite all of the next generation to our meetings and they are spread all over the country. There’s nine I think, and they can’t all attend every meeting. We have four meetings a year. Some can attend on a more regular basis, others, some have young families, some have careers that don’t permit them to attend very frequently, but we try to encourage them to so that they can see what the process is like. I encourage all of them to get engaged in some volunteer activities so they can see how volunteer organizations work, whether it’s a community foundation in the community in which they live, or something so that they develop a sense of contributing, volunteering, and start to learn about committee structure and so on and so forth. They may learn that in their day job, whatever that may be, but if they don’t, this is a great way to learn it because we should not be the sole source of their training or their experience. They will be much more effective trustees of the Frey Foundation if they’ve had experience elsewhere. I think this is certainly true of me, and I would think it would be true of others if their schedules and personal life permit it. So I encourage that greatly, but I think the biggest challenge, unless it is prescribed in the document itself by the initial grantors or donors who endow it, unless it’s in the documents the transition from one generation to another is the most challenging. Who should be? Who should not be? How do you pick who gets picked? How long should they serve? You know it’s serious stuff. There’s serious thought, and in some cases there are room for some very helpful consultants who can help you avoid some of the problems that other families have had for lack of good counsel. It can be done. The question is who and when, and for how long, and particularly if you have multiple branches, who don’t necessarily live in the same, and even if they do live in the same general community. That is the process we are in as we speak. (JS): Are there concerns about losing sort of the focus on the particular area? In this case, this was very much a kind of Grand Rapids and west Michigan-oriented foundation that your family has kind of spread itself into different parts of the country. Do you have things in place that will help to keep the focus? 0:54:42 (DF): We think, I think you’ve got to define focus a little bit, but we are in agreement that the headquarters of the foundation will remain in Grand Rapids. We do our grantmaking spread throughout western Michigan, really on the north western quadrant of the state of Oral History Interview with David Frey, May 7, 2010 17 �Michigan so far. But, we make exceptions like the University of Michigan; we actually sent a very nice grant to Detroit to help send a strong message that it’s important for this entire state that Detroit be successful. So, when they started redeveloping their riverfront, we sent a pretty significant grant to help them do that, even though it wasn’t in the total scheme of things huge, but it was an important message and a pretty good sized number. We want the office to be here. Will the grant making mix change? It could. Too early to say. But, we think we’ve got it pretty well honed right now. We partner with the Kellogg Foundation, in fact, to start the Petoskey-Harbor Springs Foundation as well as the Charlevoix Community Foundation. We have been major funders along with Kellogg to get those two foundations up and running. Since then, they’ve grown exponentially with the State gifts, inter vivos gifts, and gifts from all kinds of people who all of a sudden, who had no exposure to the world of community foundations to embracing them and advancing them in an enormously rewarding way. It’s been a real experience because neither of those counties or communities had community foundations. So, we were able to partner, and it’s been a great lesson in the benefits of the foundation. 0:56:36 (JS): One other grant that your foundation has made was to create the Frey Foundation Chair at the Johnson Center for Philanthropy at Grand Valley. (DF): Right. (JS): Can you explain a little bit what that chair is and what it’s for? (DF): Based on our experience, that we think that if we can get the right candidate, or series of candidates over some period of time, that we can bring a lot of enlightenment to the process so that family foundations, and even non-family foundations for that matter, will have a resource that they can go to when they have some of these issues that we’ve faced. We’ve resolved some of them on our own, but some we’ve asked consultants to help us with. They’ve been very helpful. We think it’s a great teaching platform. There has been a huge increase over the past fifteen years in the number of family foundations that have been created. There is a different mentality out there in the new generation of family foundations, much more demanding, much more outcome-based for their grants, and much more, you know, diligent and disciplined in their expectations of their grants. We try to do that. There’s a new generation’s even more determined to ensure the right outcome. We think Grand Valley is the right place to do it. The Johnson Center’s going to be terrific. We are hoping that somewhere along the line we will have a chair for each of the three kinds of foundations. A Professor of Corporate Foundations, a Professor of Community Foundations combined with a Professor of Family Foundations. So you will have all three legs of the stool, and you will have an absolute phenomenal resource that can compete with any other university who holds themselves up to be the preeminent source for all foundation knowledge and wisdom. I think we can respectfully challenge those institutions if we get the right candidate here and a little bit more heft, if you will, within the faculty at the Johnson Center. Oral History Interview with David Frey, May 7, 2010 18 �(JS): This is also a period now where you are getting increasing numbers of people actually getting professional training and education to actually go and work for nonprofits and for foundations and so forth. And part of what we are trying to do here is that. So you are starting to get students who are learning this and being part of this program and connected with it. There’s still not a whole lot of programs out there yet that do that, so you are in a position to promote something that is still… 0:59:14 (DF): There are a couple of universities that have carved a niche out, and I am not probably the greatest or the most knowledgeable on who’s the best of the best. But, as I said, I think with this professorship and a few other key positions created and filled, Grand Valley can respectfully challenge whoever is out there and do it I think with great integrity. Interestingly enough, for basically a regional university, this is one discipline that doesn’t require gaggles of professors and assistant professors and so on and so forth. With a relatively small number of professors, you can be a national force. You can be a national name in a niche, unlike the History Department or the English Department. There are so many great universities with great English Departments and History Departments or Math Departments that requires a lot of people, a lot of professors. This takes fewer people. You can take a regional university with a national, much like you know the Athletic Department at Grand Valley has had enormous success, a Division III school, very successful, made a real name for themselves and the university. I think the world of the Johnson Center can be equally as effective, and we are going to actually, part of the grant is to encourage and promote some symposiums on philanthropy in Grand Rapids and elsewhere, and elsewhere, but in Grand Rapids. Bringing in the best talent that we can periodically to have symposiums and conventions or whatever it is to stimulate philanthropy and to make it more effective than it already is. (JS): I think that has done a pretty good job of laying out here what your vision of things is. (DF): Right. (JS): And certainly what your own experiences have been. I would just like to thank you for taking the time to talk with me. (DF): You are welcome. One of the things that you didn’t say, the interesting thing about family foundations as opposed to the other two is, we are really not in the development business, so our staff looks a little bit different than the community foundations. (JS): You don’t have to raise money. (DF): We don’t have to raise money. Some family members may chose to give gifts while they are living or are testamentary when they pass away. Corporate foundations are even different, because some of them are funded with the stock of the corporation, and dependent on dividends, some are not. It’s a whole different world. They are very different, but the good news is in this particular part of the world, we have some overlapping and concentric focuses that allow us to do some really great stuff, and not Oral History Interview with David Frey, May 7, 2010 19 �compromise the areas where we don’t have concentric or nonconcentric focus areas. Do your own thing over here. I think we have a great camaraderie and great partnering with the foundations in central-west Michigan and it has been very rewarding, very satisfying. (JS): Thank you. (DF): You’re very welcome. Thanks for the opportunity. Edits from David Frey were incorporated into this final transcript. Oral History Interview with David Frey, May 7, 2010 20 � https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/c60617cf09e61060a765e10495ce0f14.mp4 7dde7e6f3ba1bf8c20ff7d5b3f0a3544 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Michigan Philanthropy Oral History Project Interviews Subject The topic of the resource Philanthropy and society--Personal narratives Family foundations--Michigan Charities--Michigan Description An account of the resource The Michigan Philanthropy Oral History Project (MPOHP) was initiated in 2006 as an innovative partnership between the Council of Michigan Foundations, StoryCorps, Michigan Radio and the Dorothy A. Johnson Center for Philanthropy and Nonprofit Leadership at Grand Valley State University to create an oral history of Michigan philanthropy. Additional video interviews were created by the Johnson Center for Philanthropy to add to the depth and breadth of the collection. Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived <a href="https://gvsu.lyrasistechnology.org/repositories/2/resources/516">Michigan Philanthropy Oral History Project (MPOHP) (JCPA-08). Johnson Center for Philanthropy Archives</a> Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Special Collections & University Archives Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2017-05-02 Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource <a href="http://rightsstatements.org/page/InC/1.0/?language=en">In Copyright</a> Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource Sound Text Moving Image Language A language of the resource eng Type The nature or genre of the resource audio/mp3 application/pdf video/mp4 Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context JCPA-08 Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant 2006-2008 Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Johnson Center for Philantrhopy Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource StoryCorps (Project) Oral History A resource containing historical information obtained in interviews with persons having firsthand knowledge. Source <a href="https://gvsu.lyrasistechnology.org/repositories/2/resources/516">Michigan Philanthropy Oral History Project (JCPA-08)</a> Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Frey, David, G. video interview and transcript Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Frey, David G. Description An account of the resource David Frey is chairman of the Frey Foundation, a Grand Rapids, Michigan based family foundation. He discusses his early life, education, service as an officer in the Navy during the Vietnam War, and work as chairman and CEO of Union Bank, now part of J.P. Morgan Chase. He discusses how his parents established the Frey Foundation and how they inspired their children to participate in the community. He shares how he and his siblings built the foundation and how they are involving the next generation. He discusses the foundation’s focus areas and outcome-based philanthropy. He discusses his service with the United Way and Grand Rapids Community Foundation, partnerships with other foundations, fundraising for universities, co-chairing the capital campaign for the Seidman Business School, and establishment of the Frey Foundation Chair at the Johnson Center. As one of the founders of the Grand Vision Committee, which became Grand Action, he was interested in building a convention center and arena with a promise of employing those living in the Heartside neighborhood of Grand Rapids. Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Smither, James Dorothy A. Johnson Center for Philanthropy and Nonprofit Leadership, Michigan Philanthropy Oral History Project Subject The topic of the resource Philanthropy and society Personal narratives Charities Michigan Associations, institutions, etc. Family foundations Grand Rapids (Mich.) Frey Foundation Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context JCPA-08_FreyD Language A language of the resource eng Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource <a href="http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/">In Copyright</a> Type The nature or genre of the resource Moving Image Text Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource video/mp4 application/pdf Relation A related resource Johnson Center for Philanthropy Archives Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2010-05-07 Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Lemmen Library and Archives https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/64ed064ec690551e58fce21dcd43eba8.jpg 58578c96947e4dae8fba39ed36103d81 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Faces of Grand Valley Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Grand Valley State University Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource University Communications Description An account of the resource A non-comprehensive collection of photographs of Grand Valley faculty, staff, administrators, board members, friends, and alumni. Photos collected by University Communications for use in promotion and information sharing about Grand Valley with the wider community. Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1960s - 1990s Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived GV012-03. University Communications. Vita Files Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource In Copryight Subject The topic of the resource Grand Valley State University College administrators College teachers Colleges and universities -- Faculty Michigan Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. Special Collections and University Archives Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context GV012-03 Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource image/jpeg Type The nature or genre of the resource Image Language A language of the resource eng Still Image A static visual representation. Examples include paintings, drawings, graphic designs, plans and maps. Recommended best practice is to assign the type Text to images of textual materials. Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context FreyEdwardSr Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Grand Valley State University. University Communications Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1968 Title A name given to the resource Frey, Edward Sr. Description An account of the resource Edward Frey, Sr., Board of Control 1960-1967 Subject The topic of the resource Grand Valley State University – History College administrators Michigan Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived University Communications. Vita Files, 1968-2016 (GV012-03) Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. Special Collections and University Archives Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource In Copyright Type The nature or genre of the resource Image Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource image/jpeg Language A language of the resource eng 1968s https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/74171dce63c294a5bc148d92dd183485.mp4 cf42598e88ab5fb7cc8e8dadcb799642 https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/0264e14515c4e7c062351b27bcd5d607.pdf 926a0ecd2379447020788e532719cb08 PDF Text Text Grand Valley State University Veterans History Project Oral History Interview Veteran: Tom Friar Interview Length: (1:37.24) Interviewed by James Smither Transcribed by Chloe Dingens Interviewer: We're talking today with Tom Friar of Sparta, Michigan and the interviewer is James Smither of the Grand Valley State University Veteran’s History Project. Okay, now Tom can you begin with some background on yourself and to begin with where and when were you born? I was born in 1948, in 1948, December in Grand Rapids, Michigan and lived there all my life until about 10 years ago I moved to Sparta. Interviewer: Okay what did your family do for a living when you were growing up? Well my dad, my mom and dad were divorced, and my mom worked several different odd and end jobs and there was a, we grew up with family, five kids and we just had a good time growing up in the 50s. Interviewer: Okay and did you move around a lot or? No, no we stayed there all, the whole time so… Interviewer: Okay and then where'd you go to high school? (1.26) I went to Creston High School. I didn't graduate until I got back out of the service. I had a friend that was in… I was a freshman myself with another guy and a friend of ours, an acquaintance got, was drafted went in, Vietnam and got killed and we kind of got upset about it and so we enlisted in the army. Interviewer: How old were you when you enlisted? Seventeen. �Interviewer: Okay and did you need your mother's permission to enlist or how did that work? Oh, you know I don't remember if I did or not at that time. I, if I did, she probably reluctantly signed it, but she was kind of proud, you know. I was in a lot of trouble off and on, and you know but just kids growing up drinking beer and having fun. (2.19) Interviewer: Alright, okay so then you enlisted, so when do you actually report for service then? In May of ‘67 I went down to Fort Knox, Kentucky for basic training. And… Interviewer: When you were, did you have a physical first and that kind of thing? Oh yes. Went down to Detroit, and while in line in Detroit, I enlisted so, but there were hundreds of guys they were drafted, and at that time the Marines were taking a beating, and nobody was wanted to enlist in the Marines. And I remember there's this big line and there was somebody who's counting every third man, “you’re a Marine.” And guys were going crazy and they counted me as I was in on that and I said, “no, no, no, no I enlisted.” “Okay you go over here then.” So, I got out of the Marines, that was significant at the time. Interviewer: Alright now at the physical did you, were you aware of anybody you know trying to beat the system or get themselves disqualified? (3.31) You know I really didn’t notice that, in basic training I- I saw some guys in particular one that strikes out, in the barracks and he was, he unscrewed a light bulb and broke it and started eating the glass, what the hell. And they took him out and we never saw him again so, you know. But other than you know some guys just you know, just really didn't want to be there, and just didn't do some of the stuff they were supposed to do. So, but nothing other than that light bulb things stands out. �Interviewer: Alright okay so you get… now was- was the physical particularly thorough or was it a cursory thing? I think it was mostly cursory, I, nothing special, checked your heart, checked to see if you had flat feet, I guess. You know nothing that stands out to me anyways that was you know really serious. Interviewer: Sure. So, I don't think anybody back then had a, if you could walk and talk, I think you were taken. Interviewer: Yeah there were some phases in Vietnam where- where that- that kind of happened and other times they were a little more careful. Anyways, that's why we ask, we find out. Okay so from there then how did they get you down to Fort Knox? (4.58) As I recall we took a train down from Detroit area and to Fort Knox and it was the first time I had ever been on the train so it's kind of a different, exciting and different. Got sick of it after a couple hours, but you know rocking back and forth. Interviewer: Now what kind of reception do you get at Fort Knox? Oh, we’re talking 40 some years now. I- I remember leaving the training it seems like we got on a bus and going into Fort Knox itself and then climbing off a bus probably can of like the movies you see now, you get out and there's a drill sergeant there. He’s a big black guy and I don't- I don’t think I've ever seen a bigger guy at that time than this guy, and he had his little hat on and, and he didn't take no crap. He was from the Virgin Islands, and he was a tough guy, but he was also fair. And needless to say, I've never done a push-up since I got out of basic training. I said I'll never do them again. �Interviewer: Alright, now did they have to spend some time processing you before you start the regular training and what kind of stuff did you do when you got there? I remember going through, getting a haircut I think, I don't know if that was the first thing, but everybody got that buzz cut. And then got a ton of shots and I remember different times during basic one… but in the very beginning got a couple shots and then we went through like a warehouse I guess it was, and got uniforms, underwear, and you know uniforms, boots, you know the regular stuff, and a big old duffel bag and that's about what I can remember of that. (7.09) Interviewer: Okay, did you take any tests there or had you already done testing earlier? The new aptitude tests and things like that? Seems like I took them before, but I'm not positive… and so… Interviewer: Alright now what did the training itself consists of? Well you had to learn how to a shoot a rifle, throw grenades, a lot of physical training. Every morning PT I guess it was. A lot of running, and different things. I remember going through the CS gas chamber, stuff like that, and I, you know just I guess regular training, how to, you know, drilling and you know just… Interviewer: Okay how much emphasis was there on discipline? (8.10) I think it was all on discipline, I that’s like I say, do push-ups constantly. If you even look cross eyed give me 10 or 20 or whatever it was and but I think it was like a game, you know I mean you are gonna listen to me, you're not, I'm not your mom no more, and you can't tell me to go screw off or whatever. You're gonna do it and for the most part I think �everybody did, there was a few guys, you know a few, you know and did what they wanted to do and, but I didn’t see much of that. Interviewer: Okay, now how easy or hard was it for you to adjust to life in the army? I think it was pretty hard. I think the discipline, I didn't have much discipline growing up and so I had, I struggled with that I was on KP and of course pushups and stuff and I didn't really get out of that until I got to Vietnam and that's where I kind of got my shit together. And so, but I wasn't supposed to be in the infantry either, and that was another story so, I suppose you want to know that. (9.22) Interviewer: But when you enlisted were you allowed, did you… allowed to select what your MOS would be or whatever? Yes, yes, I was supposed to be a truck driver and so that’s- that's what I was gonna be and I was asked your first choice where you want to go and I said “Germany, and then- then Vietnam.” So because I figured I had three years, maybe I'd see somewhere else pretty good too and then end up there, but that's not the way it worked out so… but at that time you know in ‘67 that's when a lot of stuff was going on so they basically, I'm assuming that most people went there. Interviewer: Yeah well, they went there and then that can also affect what specialization you get too, because if they need people in a certain area, they'll take them regardless of what they promised you. (10.18) Right, yeah. �Interviewer: Okay now you're gonna go back a year, you’re in basic training, now some people report a-a fair amount of discipline or things happening that were kind of beyond what was supposed to happen. You know, sergeant's punching people or beating them up or those kinds of things, was that going on when you went through? I didn't see any of that, for one thing as big a guy as he was, nobody messed with him, and but like you know there's some black guys that did and I remember once and I don't want to say… some of these black guys would say, you know, “crazy nigger,” or something like that and then he had the whole company there and he, and he says, “I'm gonna tell everyone of you assholes one thing right; I'm not a nigger. I'm from the Virgin Islands. You, you, and you are the niggers.” And that shut everybody up right then and there. And but, you know I never saw any race stuff when I was there. Basic training, I mean there was a- a black guy that I was, I bunked next to and he was in the National Guard, he and a couple other guys were there for the National Guard and basic. I kind of hang out, hung out with those guys a little bit. In fact, one of them, we got a pass for something I don't remember say, and I went home to Toledo, or something. I think whether you're from or Toledo for a day or two, and then came back. I guess maybe it was one of the holidays, in May/ June, I don't know. Interviewer: Yeah fourth of July maybe or something. (12.00) It could have been, yeah. But I remember I went home with, because they weren't very far from Kentucky. And then we all got on the bus and he went there and had a good time, as underage drinking, but you know I did that for a lot of time. �Interviewer: Okay, now were there very many National Guard guys training with you there that you can recall? In the company I was in I would, I want to say probably a third of them were. That's approximate I… Interviewer: Yeah, did the National Guard guys get treated any differently than the rest of you because they were there, and they were going back home again? I would, I don't think they were treated any different. I think maybe some of the guys that were US that were drafted and- and maybe some of the guys that enlisted like myself may have had some problems with it. I personally didn't because I got along good with them, I mean hell they were going through the same thing I were- I was, so. (13.05) Interviewer: Okay, now were you in good physical shape when you went in? Maybe yeah, I was in pretty good shape you know, I- I, as a kid we used to run around all the time and stuff. I was, I was in pretty good shape. Interviewer: Okay so the physical part of the training wasn't too tough? No, the only thing I had trouble was a, was a ladder thing that we had to do. I couldn’t get that down very good, but other than that you know, the running and crawling and climbing and stuff like that. Interviewer: Now a lot of people who might be watching this won't have any idea even what the ladder thing was, so can you explain what you were doing? Oh, I’m not sure what its really called. Interviewer: Were you like hanging? Were they over your head and you were moving? �Yes, it’s like it’s, it could have been a ladder. I don't know for all I know, but it's parallel bars I guess it's… Interviewer: Or monkey bars or something like that. Yeah. Interviewer: I think they get called sometimes. You get, you climb up on a couple steps up and then you gotta go across, maybe… I have no depth perception here. Maybe fifteen foot or something like that. Interviewer: Yeah, you're- you're hanging from these things and you've got to go hand over your hand, so you're hanging down you’ve got to move it, yeah. Yeah, you're swinging around, and you know if you're good at it which some guys are like a monkey, go through it. I wasn't like that. Interviewer: Alright and so while you had some discipline issues you didn't have anything that was really big or that would get you serious discipline, or anything else like that? Oh no, no. Interviewer: Alright so how long did the basic training last? (14.30) I don’t know, I think what is it? Sixteen weeks or something like that, I can’t remember. Interviewer: Well basic is normally eight and then there’s eight of advanced training after that. Okay. Interviewer: Okay, so what was your, where did you go next after Fort Knox? Well… Interviewer: Or did you stay at Fort Knox for AIT? �I actually, I had a stay; no, I was supposed to go somewhere but my orders never came in. And so I was stuck in the same company and it's actually kind of fun because what had happened there was they didn't know what to do with me because they didn't have no orders so I stayed right in the barracks and everybody was gone except one guy, he was a sergeant for the 1st Cav and he was in kinda, he had some problems, but he was in head of supply downstairs. So, they said, “Friar you're going down there,” and that's and so I worked with him for, you know I bet you I was probably still there a couple three, four weeks, and then they said, “if your orders don't come in we're going to try and get you here as permanent party.” And this guy, the sergeant from our 1st Cav. I wish I could remember his name, he was a really good guy, he treated me really good, and he lived in Elizabethville. I think it's Elizabethville, outside in Kentucky. And he’d take me there now and then and we’d drink beer and- and he said to me, he says “Tom, Tommy,” I don't know why people always call me Tommy all my life but, he said, “Tommy if I could tell you one thing if you get stuck going to Vietnam you try to get into 1st Cav.” He says, “because they- they treat you good, they got all the helicopters in the world and if they, if it's possible to get food to you, they'll get it to you.” And- and I took that, and I said, “okay.” And as it was, I ended up at 1st Cav as a sergeant too. So… (16.33) Interviewer: Okay, but the plan to just keep you there as permanent party obviously doesn't happen? No, my orders came in and then, then I was sent to Fort Dix, New Jersey and that's where AIT for a truck driver, and I took basic training- or AIT training there. And I don't �remember a whole lot of that other than driving a damn truck, and cleaning them, and this and that and… Interviewer: What kind of truck were you driving? Most of the time it was a deuce and a half, but it was up to kind of like semis too, but I didn't do too much of that, it was mostly the smaller. And Jeeps, and like- like the old ambulance trucks, and stuff like that. And met a Chinese guy there from New York, Chan was his name and he and I hung out, because I left everybody else. Nobody else that I went through basic training, they were are all two, three, four weeks ahead of me. So, and I met this kid and- and on a weekend pass he took me to New York City. Never, and he lived there and took me to where he lived, stayed at his house. And took me to Chinatown, what a, what a, what an awakening for a 17-year-old kid. (18.03) Interviewer: Yeah, you weren't in Grand Rapids anymore! No, I mean it’s like across every street somebody wants to sell you their body and it was like the proverbial; open your coat, you could buy watches… anything. God I never seen that, you know for Grand Rapids a 17-year-old kid, so that was growing up experience too. Interviewer: Alright so when you finished the- the time at Fort Dix you finished that training, have they told you where you're gonna go, or what you’re gonna do next? Yeah, they-they say, I was, had orders from Vietnam and I, they, I got a leave I think it was for I want to say 30 days, but I don't know if it was 30 days. Interviewer: 30 days was a standard length at that point at sometimes it wound up being less or whatever, but 30 days is pretty likely. �Yeah, I think that's, yeah, it's probably what it was then. Because I didn't take any other leave, a weekend pass, or a couple day pass is all, up until that time so. Interviewer: Okay 30 days, and then from home now do you head straight out to Vietnam or how does that work? Well I went from home to Seattle- Tacoma, Seattle and that's where we flew out of there, to Vietnam. I think we went via Alaska, Japan… Interviewer: Yeah that was one of the standard routes, you went out of Seattle you usually took the northern route to go that way. Okay and then where did you land in Vietnam? Cam Ranh Bay. (19.41) Interviewer: Okay and when did you arrive there? November, it was, I want to say 13- 12- 13 something like that, it was before Thanksgiving. Yeah it was right around the 12th or 13th of November. Interviewer: Okay so November of ’67. Okay, alright now what was your first impression of Vietnam when you got there? Hotter than hell. And they had a smell, a certain smell to it and I don't think I'll ever forget that smell. That, it was like the whole country. Wherever, we went, all across the country as it was a- a certain smell, I don't know what it was. And hot and muggy. Interviewer: Did you land during the day or at night? I think it was, I think it was morning. Early mid-morning or something like that. Interviewer: And you got off the plane, what do they do with you? (20.49) �Well there to it- I think we, as I recall we all got on a bus again and taxied over to a bunch of billets set up. And we were assigned a certain, you had to get up. They had like a big parade ground and everybody, certain times a day I don't, two/ three times a day you had to report there, and they'd call your name off. And tell you then, they'd say, “okay here you go on here, there, or wherever.” And at that time, I don't recall what I do exactly but somehow, I finagled my way into getting into the 1st Cav and I was at Cam Ranh Bay for I think two days. And first- first night there I pulled guard duty I still remember this. Here we're in a war zone, they give you at that time it was an m14. They gave you three bullets, I said, “what the hell are you supposed to do with three bullets?” And there's bunch of us, I don't know their names now but in this bucket we're all scared shitless, you know you don't know what the heck's going on. But three bullets, what the hell, I guess it's for me you, and, you I guess if there's a bunch of them coming but that struck me as weird. (22.19) Interviewer: Were you actually on the kind of exterior perimeter were you inside the base somewhere on guard duty? I don't remember now; I would hate to think it was on the perimeter, you know with three bullets but that's what we were assigned. Given a helmet, a flak jacket, a m14 and three bullets it seemed like. For some reason that’s… it might not even be true I don't know but that's what it seems like I remember. Interviewer: It was a big base and particularly if you were somewhere in the interior of it then… Yeah. Interviewer: They really didn't expect it to be any bullets. So… Yeah- yeah but… �Interviewer: Alright but then at some point, now but no, couple days now you get your orders and they say 1st Cav? Yep. Interviewer: Okay so now where did you get, where were they- where were they when you joined them? They were in An Khê, it's kind of Central Highlands there and I remember getting on a C… I don't know if it was a C-130 or a C-123, one of the two and flying into An Khê base, and I remember they got a, they called it monkey mountain I think it was. Big mountain had a huge- huge 1st Cav patch painted on it and that was my first, you know sight that I saw there. And then I remember there was like maybe seven-day in-country training thing that we had to do. We had a- because I was trained as a truck driver. So, I had no infantry training to speak of and so we had to rappel off this big-ass tower and oh my god I just couldn't see myself doing that. But I remember going down there and somehow ended up upside down, going down and looking upside down at the sergeant “you’re an idiot, get up there and do it right.” I climbed back up there and then I finally did it and then I was okay from that, but he looked at me from here to here, “you’re an idiot.” (24.41) Interviewer: Alright, so now in this sort of week-long training course, did- did you now fire an m16? Yeah that was my first time I fired a m16 there and in fact I never saw, after I left Cam Ranh Bay, I never saw a m14 again. And, or not, I've seen them but not had… Interviewer: Never had had to use one, yep. Okay, now what else was included in the training your rappelling, learning how to go out of helicopters I guess and then the basic weapons? �Yeah, I guess throw a couple grenades we had to do a little, kind of like a patrol I think in a, I know it was a secure area, but you're still very ya know, nervous. But that's it, pulling guard duty, you know we had to pull guard duty all the time. And I don't remember muchmuch more of the training other than that rappelling that kind of, it nailed in my head. Interviewer: Right, do you think they try to teach you anything about Vietnam, or the society, or how to behave while you're there? (25.51) Oh yeah, I remember that yeah, you yeah, they, I think that was classroom stuff. And it going through the money, I never even thought of that until you brought that up, but yeah. To treat them like respect because you're in their country and you know don't shoot their water buffaloes don't do this, and do that, and just you know treat them like you would you're a guest in your country. Okay. Interviewer: And did you get warned about VD and things like that? Oh yeah, it's funny too because An Khê … I don't know if I should even bring that up but An Khê, right outside An Khê and there's a little village of An Khê. And inside that village is like another little village it's called Sin City and it's u-shaped. And I remember it's all bars and whorehouses in it, and that's where I spent my 18th birthday. I got a day pass from our CEO and I had a great, great 18th birthday and then CEO wasn't real happy, because the, this was after my in country training. Interviewer: Right. Because the MPs brought me back, and, but it was a memorable 18th birthday. Interviewer: How long did you stay at An Khê? (27.22) �Oh well I want to say in January until January, because I'm almost positive I spent Christmas there. And I remember I was signed to this company, S4, I was in S4 the at the time and C Company, they had like a listening post or some posts outside the wire. And they got attacked and they, it's too close to take helicopters and so they- they sent four of us truck drivers, and four trucks, and C Company and I remember I was in the lead truck and there's a guy, Top Fowler he was a first sergeant in C Company he later got killed and up by Khe Sanh, but I remember him telling me, “just do as I say, if we start, if we start getting shot at,” he said “stop the truck immediately, turn it off and get your ass out of the truck.” I don't know, I'd only been in country maybe two weeks, or three weeks, or something like that. And I says, “okay.” And I… you know we got so far, and then there was some shooting going on and I'm looking around and he says, “out now” and I got my belt hooked. I had like an issued belt, hooked on a- something on the truck when I went to jump and I couldn’t get off there and he comes running around there and he “shewww” with his survival knife, he cuts it into two and I fell out and I look and then it was over. And just that quick everything was over, and I got with the other truck drivers and we're looking at these trucks. As much shooting and shit that was going on, there wasn't one bullet hole or nothing. I said, ‘this can't be that bad, those guys are bad shots.” So, all needless to say that we had fun with that. (29.27) Interviewer: Now at this point did you have, were you assigned to a, you were in a battalion but were you still a truck driver at that point? Yes, I was assigned to S4 company, I think it was S4, just the supply. �Interviewer: Okay Supply Company and is this for, is this a division, regiment, battalion level or? Company, company. Interviewer: Okay well you're a company but are you… Battalion, battalion level so and what we did is we drove the trucks and they had these mules they called these things and we would shuttle a lot, the supplies, as the supplies came in whether it be ammo or whatever and we supply go take them to different companies that needed it. And load helicopters for supply that was being sent out and stuff like that. And we also did I think there was some mail when the mail came in somebody would sort it and we'd make sure to get on the right helicopters and stuff like that. (30.30) Interviewer: Okay now what was your parent unit that you were attached to? Which battalion of the? 1st- 1st Air Cav, 1st of the 5th. Interviewer: Okay 1st Battalion, 5th Regiment then. Yes. Interviewer: Okay, alright so you’re at An Khê for a while and basically, you're doing that- that supply duty basically and driving and that kind of thing and then sometime in January you move? Where do you move? It seems like it was January. Interviewer: That- that fits the division’s chronology so where did you go? We convoy in again we, C Company was on our trucks and we convoyed. There's a huge convoy and it seems that it was Highway 1, we went all, we went up through Phu Bai, Hué, �Da Nang, we had, we are, we were going to Quang Tri. And that's where we finally ended up and on the way up there one of those villages, it's kind of strange how you go through these village, you go slow, the people and the kids are running in and out and guys were throwing C, some C- rations and/ or some candy to the kids, and I hit a little kid on a bicycle and I didn't kill him, but got kind of screwed up a little bit I guess. Broken, I don't know exactly what happened but from that time on, I finished that convoy, but from that time on I guess the army figured that I wasn't really meant out to be a truck driver. So, I thought wow I wonder what the hell is gonna happen now. And then they assigned me to an infantry out-- company and then that's when I, I was with, I was hoping I'd be with C company anyways if it, if I had to because I knew at least the first sergeant. And but I was assigned to an A Company, the 1st of the 5th, and that's where you know, and it was a good company I had, like I said I had no infantry training and fairly new to country, a couple months and eighteen. And there was a guy, Carly Gunther was his name. He's from Minnesota, nice, he's older guy but everybody was older to me then. (33.05) Interviewer: So, he could've been like 20 or something, or 22. Yeah but he was little older. He had- he had I think two kids and he kind of took me, he was a sergeant, and he took me under- under his- his arm and kinda you know because I didn't… and- and he- he helped me a lot. And- and so, I stayed with him and then you know I did a lot of liaison work between supply and stuff and a lot of radio communications and stuff like that and they kind of kept me be at- you know not, what can I say… �Interviewer: Well got you orientated basically, learned how, about how the unit works and what goes on. Right and so mostly well Friar you used to work in supply so you're gonna be our contact with that, if we need something, you're gonna get your butt on radio, so that's basically most of what I did. And but it was- it was altogether a different animal you know; I mean out there on the field. Interviewer: Okay now what were you on a base when you got up there or what kind of setup did they have? Well when we got there Quang Tri they had a, it was a beach area it's called The Wonder Beach and we had to secure that and then keep patrolling it all the time. Because the Navy was bringing these huge amphibious, I've never seen anything so big and floating and then it would go right onto the ground. Huge things, and they would bring supplies. So we had to secure that whole Wonder Beach area for quite a while we did that and that, we were there through the Tet up there in Quang Tri and I recall how what a bitch it was walking in the sand, you know ugh, you know beautiful beach but yet how it wasn’t real friendly and… (35.05) Interviewer: Now the Tet Offensive starts January 30th/ 31st not long after you've gotten up there. Did your base get attacked when that started? Or was it quiet where you were? There was… we had an air assault in a couple areas where they were but The Wonder Beach itself, I don't remember them being attacked, you know like that but in the- in the town of Quang Tri it was kind of bad. And there were, some of our companies, I don't �remember which ones, but we would have to air assault into certain areas to help out another company and this and that. And but it was- it was, wasn’t real fun- fun you know. Interviewer: Now when they were doing the air assaults were you going with them now? Yes, yeah- yeah. Interviewer: Okay and what was it like doing that for the first time or do you remember that at all? Oh I remember exactly, it's, I don't know how you really explain it, a lot of fear and- and I don't remember how many air assaults I went on with those guys but most of them were quiet LZ's you know maybe a couple now there would be hot but… Interviewer: Well when the call came to go out and do one of these things what happens? How did they organize the company to go and launch them on a mission like that? (36.41) Well I remember we'd all kind of, well we’d get our stuff, our packs, our rucksacks, and ammos issued out. Everything that you would need; grenades, everybody carried a bunch of sixty caliber, and we all carried at least one mortar round. And then we just kind of wait for the helicopters to come in, they’d come in we’d, as I recall six/ seven guys maybe get on a bird at a time and go out and do your thing. It was kind of exciting riding in the helicopters, to this day I'd love to do it again, but you know, especially under certain, different circumstances. But it was very frightening, I you know I won't say I- I ever got used to it, but I- I remember that the intensity wasn't as bad, you know in my mind that II just kind of knew what I had to do type of thing. Interviewer: Now what was the terrain like in that area that area? �That area was… there's a lot of sand all over. Not a lot of trees but kind of I would say you know kind of coastal type thing. I don't remember a whole lot there cause we didn't do a whole lot air assaults up there, it was mostly when we went up to Khe Sanh area. And there too, it wasn't a lot of air assaults, but it was a lot of walking and that was- that was like a jungle then and that was bad up in there. Interviewer: Okay do you have a sense of about how long you spent at Quang Tri? Another three months or four? (38.40) It doesn't seem… oh no I wasn't nowhere that long. I don't know maybe month and a half it seems like. Interviewer: Okay, alright. And then there was different camps. If that long, because then we went to a different, there were different base camps, think Camp Evans was one and there was- there was a- a Camp Jane, I’m not… Interviewer: Okay well you're moving around still in the area that's kind of between Quang Tri and Huế basically, kind of up in the northern coastal areas, different bases. Yeah. Interviewer: Okay, alright now did you have much information on kind of what was going on in the larger war at that point? Did you know about the fighting in Huế and that kind of thing? Or the siege of Khe Sanh? We- we had heard about it some- some. You know but not, we knew it was, you know a lot was going on all through the country. But I- I remember when we were going up there, going through Huế and it was a beautiful- beautiful old, I mean it was just like you would �see in a movie or museum, it was beautiful town. And then I know seven months- several months later I was coming back through, cause I was coming out of a hospital somewhere and- and rolled through there. And look around at the devastation of that town, I- I just heartbroken, oh my god what a historical thing just it's in rubble. But we- we hung around in there a lot, up in that, I would say between Quang Tri and Khe Sanh area until… I remember LZ Peanuts that's what I got that concussion and was during that Pegasus thing. (40.38) Interviewer: Okay can you explain what- what operation Pegasus was. What we, what I remember and what I was, remember being told was that the Marines were in Khe Sanh, they were surrounded and stuff. And we had to go in from outside and work our way to help them and never dreamt that it would be anything at all what it was. And there was one of our companies said he heard tracks. Everybody said, “we don't have no tanks up here.” “No,” this was on the radio because I was on the radio and he says, “no, this isn’t our tracks.” They heard ‘em, now I don't know if they saw ‘em or not and that was C company. That was in April I think it was when we were up in there and then May 3rd or 4th at Peanuts as well, we got hit pretty bad. We almost got overrun and that Fowler, that Sergeant Tom Fowler got- got killed there and I think it was May 3rd. (41.52) Interviewer: Okay now can you, before that this is at the LZ Peanuts was that you said or? Yes. Interviewer: Okay what, how much actual fighting was your company in before that? �Oh well it wasn’t 24/7 or anything like that, it was quite, it was off and on. And we’d be, a lot of it was pulling patrols and you’d always run into ‘em and I don't know how much it was. Interviewer: Well would they be relatively short firefight? Yes, yeah, they were maybe hour, at the most hour or something like that cause we had a pretty good air coverage you know and artillery coverage so… Interviewer: So, the enemy would find you and then it gets too dangerous for them and they go away? Well they would let the, let it be known that they were there, we lost quite a few guys though up in there then and… (42.54) Interviewer: Now when you were patrolling, would it be platoons going together or would it be a squad level or? Was almost all, minimum was platoon and you weren't very far from your other, the company. Interviewer: Right. And yeah especially up there it was never, a lot of times it was the whole company, you know. Interviewer: And when you went out, would you carry a radio or were you just carrying m16 or? Oh well for most of the time when I first got in, I was carrying a radio and then I had an M16 and a 45. And- and a ton of batteries, those batteries didn’t last real long, there were, the radio is called I think 25 or something like that. Heavier than hell and I wasn't real big �and so plus you're always carrying some 60 caliber [30 caliber ammunition for an M60 machine gun] stuff too but, yeah that's basically what a, you know. (44.01) Interviewer: Okay but you weren't having to walk point or things like that? No- no I never had, I never had, I never walked point no, I'm glad I didn't but so. Interviewer: Okay and how well do you think that the men in your company were performing at that time, could they, did they know their jobs and do them pretty well? Yeah, yeah- yeah as far as for the most part we all lived so I knew we were doing- doing our job pretty good and none of the officers or anybody bitched at us or anything. I know some people will say, “well a lot of the guys didn't- didn't follow orders.” I said, “I never saw that,” everybody, I mean they may question, “why do you want me to charge that or why do you want me to do that?” There was, but ultimately it got done but I never saw, I never saw anybody disobey an order at least not do anything. (45.05) Interviewer: Well in general will the officer’s ones where they seem to know what they were doing and gave you sensible orders rather than crazy ones? Right yeah sometimes you’d get a new lieutenant enter and I think captain now and then went through. They, I think they changed every six months or something like that and so that but a lot, they were, the second lieutenants I think there was a couple of them kind of were off-the-wall but… Interviewer: Well with that would the sergeants keep them in line, or would they do it again? Yeah, yeah because the CEO would sit down, he would, cause I was by him a lot cause being an RTO and- and he would- he would set them guys down when they first came in it �though, you know, this is, you know you don't know shit, you just do what these guys tell ya. Even if they are sergeants or even a corporal or whatever they've been here for a while you just learn from them and- and for the most part they did. Interviewer: Okay so you had good captain's? Oh yeah- yeah even when I was in S4 I had a good captain and he ended up in a, as a company leader too in the infantry so it's kind of like a rotation everybody did their thing. Interviewer: Okay now to talk about that event, LZ Peanuts when that gets attacked and you get hurt. So, what happened that night? Well it was a- a pretty good-sized base. They had, we had to secure that, we air assault into that and just kind of cleared it out. And it wasn't no big deal then and then they brought some artillery in, I think that’s 105 Howitzers, the smaller canons. Interviewer: Yeah. (46.53) There was, I don’t know, four or five of them, LZ Peanuts was shaped like a peanut I guess that's why they called it like that. And down on this side, was where the artillery was, those Howitzers were set up and we had bunkers all around. We made bunkers and we had a CP up over here. And we're getting incoming all the time; rockets and mortars, mostly rockets. And at one time I was up in the CP and I always had to unload the helicopters and- and I kind of liked it because a lot of those guys would come out and throw this stuff off and I knew ‘em, so I’d say hey to ‘em and stuff, you know. And me and another guy, another guy got stuck with me too, JT Holman, he was- he was out there with me. Then a rocket came in followed a helicopter and- and that's where I got my concussion, but I didn't go to the hospital then, I had broke my eardrum cause I couldn't hear and a little blood out of there. �And he said, “oh you'll be alright,” they just put some cotton in my ear, “you won't be able to hear for a while out of that ear,” and now I got tinnitus in that ear. But anyways a rocket after that, a rocket, this is, it's either May 3rd, May 4th or May 5th. And it was right after Top Fowler got killed, everybody was down. I was really feeling bad cause I, you know, I really liked him, he helped me, and I saw him a couple times. And I was really bad, feeling bad but a rocket came in, it caught one of the ammo dumps. Got that, and that shit was going and burning and so, what they ended up having to do is pull back. We had to evacuate that area cause we couldn't control nothing. So, everybody pulled back and I remember a lot of those artillery guys, left their- their guns and everything in the damn bunkers when they came. And we ended up gettin’, there was some, it was May 4th and some sappers got in the wires that night and they came, and a lot of ‘em came through that area where we evacuated, and the artillery had had a Jeep that they drove on this, I don't know how in the hell they got it out there, you know the area... Interviewer: Yeah. But- but that's what they went, their ammo came in, that's what they used the Jeep to go get the and bring it down to their area. That thing got blow to hell up there, pretty close about right where the- the Peanut. (49.52) Interviewer: So, basically, were you know occupying one half of the Peanut rather than the whole Peanut? I'd say yeah- yeah, I got a half a Peanut here, yeah maybe a little bit more than half. And there's a huge bomb crater I guess from two thousand pound, I don't know what it was, that was there all the time. And a lot of us, I wasn’t in that and we were getting fired on �from the bunkers that we evacuated area, and a lot of it was m16s coming at us. So, that's when a lot of guys got pissed off, you know from the artillery guys. And that was a pretty bad night, we had to get, I had to call in emergency resupply of ammo. They couldn't land so they- they had it on a sling and I remember when I was in S4 too, somebody had that and everybody back in that area filled the magazine, because you don't have time to fill magazines when you're getting that. They were filling magazines like a raped ape, you know and all those would come out and they came in, and they just drop it, get as close as they could, cause there was a lot of shit going on there, that was bad. And that damn thing that sling, I popped the smoke, and shit it was from me to the door away, 20 foot. Damn near killed me, you know it came in and then the shit just flew and so then I had to start going around and passing, I you know I- I- I was kind- kind of the gofer type and so… I was handing out ammunition to everybody and then probably I was gettin’ towards dawn. (51.48) Interviewer: Now were, was there still shooting going on that point? Oh yeah, the whole time, now the whole night, well I'll say after… probably sometime after midnight, probably two o'clock it started. We had, we went out gooks in the wire and a couple of trip flares go off, then our- our illumination we sent up illumination. Interviewer: Did the sappers get into your part of the base or they mostly on the other part of it? They got real close to us, inside the other base, yeah. And they were- they were real close, that from our, where the CP was set up, that Jeep was maybe 30, maybe 50 yards from there. And there was a bunch of them behind that and the next day there was a lot of… and there wasn't that Jeep, there wasn't a- an inch, half inch area where there wasn't holes all over from shrapnel, from bullets, and there was quite a few dead ones behind there. And �there was quite a few of them all over, but I remember just kind of piled up behind that Jeep, and I thought, oh Jesus, but that's how close they got to the CP though. In that big bunker where we were, myself, and that other guy, there's a couple of us in there, shit that was, that was real close to that and… but. (53.29) Interviewer: Okay but by dawn basically the- the fighting is over, and they left and…? Well just before dawn yeah. Interviewer: Okay and so now did you stay at that place much longer? Did they move you out after that? Oh, they moved us out after that, we lost quite a few guys that Carly he got killed that night and I was devastated and… Interviewer: Did they take you out of the field for a little while after that? Yeah, well couldn't go very far. To be truthful with you, I don't remember a whole heck of a lot out of that after- right after that, because I had that concussion thing going on andand I don't really… there's a time period from that moment until I guess we were leaving Khe Sanh area that I just kind of- there's a blank. Interviewer: Okay. (54.31) And- and then- then we kind of started working our way I think south. Interviewer: Yeah because the division was moving into the A Shau Valley which was south of there. Yeah, yeah. �Interviewer: That and along the two, the sides of it and that kind of thing. And they're setting up, there are fire bases being set up. Yep. Interviewer: And people are going down the middle of the valley and looking for things. I remember going, landing at a, from a helicopter landing at a- a fire base. It was these eight-inchers I had never been close to those eight-inchers. And those were big, shit, you tried, those things go off oh my God, the ground shock and we were there for a couple of days. And, but that almost seems like it was like a, seemed like a plateau or something. Interviewer: Well eight-inches howitzers, now there were self-propelled you'd, weren't they? I mean self-propelled guns, so they were on like tank chassis. Oh no, these were regular gun. (55.29) Interviewer: Oh, they’re just- they’re just guns, okay. Yeah. Interviewer: Cause that, those because the self-propelled ones couldn't get up into the A Shau but you could still bring, use a helicopter to bring ‘em. Yeah that's what they, yeah. Interviewer: Okay. Yeah and we had to secure that for a while and that's my first recollection after Peanuts. I don't remember a whole lot after Peanuts I don’t, I can't explain why, but it is what it is. I remember landing at an air base or a fire base where those eight-inchers were. And it was kind of out in the open, it wasn't no woods or nothing. And then one of the companies walked into a, an ambush not- not long after, maybe a day or so after that. I- I couldn't tell �you where, I know it was in the A Shau Valley because that's where we were going, but I don't remember any of the names of anything. Interviewer: Right. I find, kinda don't remember a whole lot right directly after Peanuts. (56.32) Interviewer: Okay. For some reason. Interviewer: And so, you have a vague sense, okay you're in the A Shau you're doing some of this stuff. Now for the most part were you staying on the fire bases or were you going out with the guys on patrols? I was kind of back and forth, you know mostly I was out with the guys a lot because thethe losses were- were piling up pretty bad and so, but I spent a lot of time out there with ‘em and as it was, I'd rather be out there than you know, with people that knew what the hell was going on and with guys that didn’t. But I still had some friends, you know back in the rear area too that stayed in contact with us. Especially when we'd rotate a little bit, we'd go back, I remember a couple times they would have, time there where they would have these, I would go back to a- a bigger rear area. Interviewer: So, a stand-down basically? (57.29) Kinda yeah, you'd pull perimeter guard around us, but it's a big base and, we were always told that you could have two beverages a day. It could be two beers, two pops, or a beer and a pop, but we couldn't get it out there, so they saved it for and then our sarge… our CO, when we went back to that somehow they always had these dehydrated steaks and we had a �big party. And the other company before they left, we would go back, and we’d have at least one night where we could just, you know we had those, it was like a big picnic party. Steaks and just as much beer or pop or whatever you wanted to drink, as you could drink. And these big ole’ garbage cans with ice in it, that all this rice- ice had rice, I don't know where the hell they got the ice from, but I remember those. There was a couple times we did that, that was- that was fun. (58.32) Interviewer: Now how long did this sort of pattern go on, of your kind of in that A Shau? Did you, that operation end at some point? Or did you go someplace else? Or get sick? Or something happened… Yeah. Interviewer: But- but what- what changes that pattern? I know, see that's what I- I’m not, I can't hardly think of that because from May until then the next December, I guess it was just kind of so routine that I don't really remember, just that we're in that A Shau Valley area and then, actually feel kind of like a dumbass for not remembering a lot of that stuff, but it was so routine, I don’t, I just, I don't remember a lot of it. And then I remember for one thing I was gone, I extended, and I wanted to get out of the field completely. Interviewer: Okay. And so they say if you extend you can get your choice when you come back where you want to do but I wanted to work back in the supply to S4 where I was because I still wanted to help, support the guys so. Interviewer: So, when did you decide to extend or? �(59.47) I'd say it was November or something like that. Interviewer: Because you would have been due to rotate out in November if you got there the November before. I think it was then because I was home for Christmas for of ‘68 and I remember I was home when I got orders that I made sergeant. They mailed that stuff to my home which I was kind of shocked. And but then I left right- right after Christmas apparently. I know I spent the New Year's Eve in Tacoma and that's where I went out from again. Interviewer: Now you backtrack a little bit, do you remember anything about that trip home on leave. I mean how they get you out there or if you saw any protesters in the airport or anything like that? Oh yeah- yeah well you know I left the field. I can't remember what date it was but anyway… and flew back to, in the helicopter to An Khê and we got our stuff there that's where we left all our. Interviewer: Right. Personal, that you couldn't take with right, so I got that and got some, got out of our fatigues and then some tans a dress, not the greens but the… Interviewer: Yeah. (1:01.22) Yeah khaki and then going to… I don’t know what time I came home I know the second time Bien Hoa. I might have went back to Cam Ranh Bay and flew back out of there. Interviewer: That’s quite possible. �Yeah and then came in by Fort Ord California and there was protestors all over and I didn't pay much attention to them, I didn’t give a shit. Interviewers: Did you stay in your uniform or did you change clothes? Yeah, I no, I stayed in my uniform. Interviewer: And then what was it like to go home? You’ve been in the Vietnam for a year. (1:02.02) Yeah it was weird, it was weird. We, myself, I met a guy in California he was going to somewhere. I was going, I had to go through Chicago and then catch a flight. And we were in the airport together. He had, he was 21 and so he bought a bottle you know, and we were sipping it on the plane even and from Fort Ord. I- I really don't didn't pay much attention to those guys, the protestors and stuff. And I wasn't gonna get out of my uniform. I know some guys. Second time I did but anyways. We got to Chicago and we both missed our flight, he was going onto, I don't know. Interviewer: Somewhere else. I don't remember yeah and we both miss our flight, so we had to spend a night in the Chicago Airport. Didn't have a whole lot of money, well I had a lot, but it wasn’t you know it’s; I can't remember if it was… Interviewer: Did you have military script or what? Normally they would change that for you when you leave. (1:03.04) Yeah because I, what I did is I saved all my money when I was in Vietnam, I wanted to buy a car when I got home. And so, but anyways we were Chicago I don't remember, and we had some money, but I didn't want to spend it for a hotel. �Interviewer: Right. Shit, I think the flight was like six/ seven o'clock in the morning. So, we were just sitting there and there was a bar in the- in the airport, so well let's go. I says, “I won't be able to get served but you never know.” So, we go in there and they served me, I couldn't believe it I was- I was still 18. And but then we were sitting there and we got something to eat, a hamburger and a couple of beers we were drinking and we go to pay and they were closing up and now we're just kind of killing thing and we go to pay, say, “oh no it was all paid for.” I said, “what do you mean?” Says a guy paid for it, he lost a nephew in Vietnam. And, I'm sorry. Interviewer: That's okay, but it sort of- it sort of balances the protester thing out. (1:04.24) Yeah. Interviewer: There were people who still appreciated what you were doing. Yeah. Interviewer: Okay and then when- when you got home, was it hard to connect with people? Yeah, I didn't really see a lot of the guys I used to hang around with much. I kind of had a, my mind set that I wanted to get a car. I had, back then you could buy cars pretty good, pretty cheap. So, I bought a, it was this 1967 Firebird 400, faster than a streaky shot and I paid, I had 27 hundred for, saved up cause I didn’t, there's no place to really spend the money. I did go on R&R but spent a couple hundred bucks. That was another thing in Bangkok, 18-year-old kid in Bangkok. Interviewer: Okay. �But so- so, and my brother had to cosign for $300 for it and he did. And so, I- I drove that for 20-some, 30 days whatever my leave was. And had no fear, that was in the days where you could go downtown and you just up and down the circuit, you know back and forth. (1:05.43) Interviewer: Did you get any tickets? Uh no I never got any tickets but… Interviewer: Because a car like that would kind of invite them. Yeah, I never got caught I guess is what it was. I remember racing the Corvette going down Plainfield Avenue from downtown, and are you familiar with the city? You know where Colebrook is? Where they… Interviewer: Yeah. There's a little curve there that goes up on Plainfield and I don't know if it was stupidity or just really fear didn't, you know lived through Vietnam, I mean I'm not gonna die here, but goal in mind, we were going over 100 miles an hour racing down there and I thought well my brother, my younger brother was with me I said, “well Nick you better fasten that up.” He says, “I ain't gonna stop,” and see whoever would stop would probably, you know lose the race, but he slowed down, the Corvette slowed down and I kept going. My brother was so pissed at me, you know so. But yeah, I don't know it was kind of weird I just didn't have any fear. Interviewer: Okay. (1:06.50) Yeah. �Interviewer: Now when that leave comes to an end what’s it like going back out to Vietnam again? It was hard, it was difficult, but I felt kind of good cause I had some sergeant stripes that I got pinned on there. And- and it was- it was a little bit different in a way that I got out to Tacoma and I kinda farted around there, I wanted to see the sights. There’s not much to see cause it's always raining like, at least when I was there. But not really AWOL I guess; I missed a flight leavin’ and so stayed another night. Got pretty drunk with another guy I met there, he was heading back too and so we just kinda thought, well we're, we've done this before. We can take an extra day or two and so I got back kind of late, took the next day, we got a flight out and, but it was- it was kind of hard. Flew back into Cam Ranh Bay again and of course I had orders, so I didn't have to go all through that. Next day I guess, spent the night there and then flew up to, actually didn't fly to An Khê at all, went right to Tây Ninh. (1:08.11) Interviewer: Okay now for people who don't know anything, you had been, An Khê is- is kind of in- in the middle of the country essentially, Quang Tri and all of that was up north. Way up north. Interviewer: Now where is Tây Ninh? As far as I can remember, it's over along, the Cam- Cam- Cambodia border. Interviewer: It's kind of west of Saigon. Yeah- yeah west of Saigon, I don't know it was- it was about, lower part of… Interviewer: Yeah. …of Vietnam. �Interviewer: Yeah, third tour, three tour was the general area that Saigon traveled in. Yeah, yeah and we worked out of there for quite and- and mostly though I- I did get what I was supposed to do. They did try to send me out there because as soon as I go back, they said, “we really need you out there, Tommy,” and I says, “well I'm not gonna do it.” And so things have changed quite a bit and but I ended up going back and forth a little bit and then I kinda, I was really kind of rebellious about it too and it kinda pissed me off because I didn't want to go out to the field again. And but they needed me, and I- and I still didn't want to go, because most of the guys were gone, you know a lot of guys got killed again, even in the short period that I was gone and then in deros or… (1:09.31) Interviewer: Yeah, like rotate home. Yeah, rotate home and so there wasn't a whole lot of guys out there, but I still wanted to do it. And the old CO was still there, he had a couple months to do yet, and he was the one that really wanted me out there and so he got kind of pissed at me. But you know, what are you gonna do? So, then they tried to make me go out and- and I then I- I am started bitching about it and I filed some papers and I don't remember exactly what it was to get out of, to go home period because you didn't stand by your contract with me and this and that. And that was long as it was it took forever to get out of there. So, but I- I- I stayed until May, I- I stayed my whole second tour. Interviewer: Now did you spend most of your time on fire bases then? (1:10.24) Yeah it was a fire base in Tây Ninh. It was pretty good-sized firebase. Interviewer: Was the division headquarters there or? �I want… I'm not positive if it was there it could have been at Bien Hoa, I don't know. Interviewer: You might have had a rear area in Bien Hoa anyway, but. Yeah that was a, Bien Hoa was a big area, or base. And I remember went to an R&R myself and another guy and we came back and we didn't want to go to our company yet, so we were kind of just driving around Bien Hoa. We flew back into Bien Hoa and just kind of going around and got one of the NCO clubs there and stuff. And it came out and there was a Jeep sitting there, nobody around. So, the other guy said, “let's take that Jeep.” So, we just, we were bar hoppin’ in Bien Hoa. Drunker than shit and there was a- a Filipino base there and we stopped by that. There was a bar we came out and they- they say, “you guys want to sell that Jeep?” “What?” And anyways that's a long story too and but we started… Interviewer: Well did you sell the Jeep? (1:11.39) No, we- we tried to, and we wanted to we, well I- well I don't know I- I guess I shouldn't even say that but we ended up trading that is what we ended up doing. And they gave us a ride back to our base for a bunch of beer; San Miguel beer. We got two pallets of San Miguel beer for that Jeep. And we were AWOL coming back so the CO thought, “well I got you now” and say, “yeah but what do you want us to do with all this beer?” “What beer?” “There's a, the Filipinos they brought a deuce and a half full of two pallets of beer. Well right here we got this for the company. “Where the hell?” “I don't know sir, we just found it,” you know it's- it’s here for the company. And so, nothing happened, they wanted, they were gonna give us Article 15 for being late. And earlier in my tour when we were up at Wonder Beach, you get a day off now and then and what they would do is they take a couple guys out on a Navy ship when one of those big amphibious things come in. They �drop, and three or four guys could go out and spend a day on a Navy ship. I did that one time and that was fun, I mean you’re talking about good food the Navy had, holy crap. And then another time me and another guy fell asleep on our air mattresses on a surfin’, we were body surfing and we had these air mattresses. I fell asleep and I got sunburned terrible- terrible and I get an Article 15 for that; destroying government property. Interviewer: There you go. (1:13.16) I thought holy crap because I couldn't go out to the field for a couple days ‘till the blisters and stuff went down. Interviewer: Alright so in those last month's when you're back there, I mean what were you actually doing in terms of duty? In- in Tây Ninh? Interviewer: Yeah. I was loading helicopters and stuff like that. Talking to their radio operator, they would call me and communicate there. Did all the companies not just the company I was in. Interviewer: Right. And I just kind of, you know because I was a sergeant then and I was just making stuff happen, you know getting, making sure they got their, everything that they needed and stuff and- and a lot of times too, S, guys that got wounded or something would come back and they couldn't go out in the field for a couple, for a while whatever it was, they would work in S4 too. So, we are all kind of, you know making sure those guys but mostly their company was getting, you know whatever they could. And, but I was doing it for, you know all four companies. �Interviewer: Okay. (1:14.26) And I, I think at that time somewhere in- in there, they you know there was another base go back before we went to Tây Ninh, or I went to in country R&R. Now I can't remember the base, maybe it was a pretty good-sized base. I went to in country R&R. Interviewer: Was it along the coast somewhere or was it inland? No, it was inland. The in country R&R was on a coast yes, it was at Vung Tau. Interviewer: Yep Or something like that, but I can't remember where the base camp was. It might have been somewhere like you were saying that it was somewhere in the A Shau Valley area, but I- I don’t… Interviewer: Well it wouldn’t be in, you wouldn’t- you wouldn't do R&R in the A Shau I mean. No- no but I went from there to the R&R thing and then came back to that. It was a pretty good sized base, they had a deuce and a halfs, in fact that's first time I ever shot a 50 caliber, they had a quad was it quad or…? Interviewer: Well they had quads and they had twins. Twins- twins that's what I shot was a twin [twin .50 caliber machine gun]. I always wanted to shoot one of them things and- and one night they had on these back bases they had like a mad minute so everybody that did have their weapons could go out and test them and stuff. And I traded something, I think it was a belt buckle, North Vietnamese belt buckle, to this I don't know if it was the Navy or Seabee that had the twin 50s but they had that set up there and I wanted to shoot that so I tried and hey he let me shoot it. So, I shot the shit outta that, that was fun, louder than hell. �(1:16.10) Interviewer: Alright, now you'd mentioned somewhere along that you'd gotten malaria. Yeah. Interviewer: What point did you come down with that? How far into your tour? It was there… that's one of the, between Quang Tri… Interviewer: So, it was before you went home? Yeah- yeah it was. Interviewer: So, before the leave, yeah? I'm trying to think now, because that might have been before we went to… it was, before we went up to Peanuts. It was between Wonder Beach and be, and- and when that Pegasus thing started. Somewhere in there, I'm not sure, I don't know the dates. Interviewer: Okay, did you have to go to a hospital for that? Yeah they sent me down to a hospital and I had, they put me in, packed me in ice and put me a helicopter and went straight up for quite high, and brining my temperature down, came down, a couple days, just let me back up so. (1:17.18) Interviewer: And would that recur afterward or did it? They said that you could have it and they told me too when I got out of the service that you're never gonna be able to give blood or anything because it's always there. I said, “really,” but now I- I don't know if it is true or not, I've never tried it cause I don't want to screw somebody else up. Interviewer: Right, but in the meantime, you haven't had any reoccurrences of it since then? No, no. I- I may have but it’s… �Interviewer: If you had it bad, you’d know. Yeah, oh yeah it was like kind of like the flu or something like that, yeah, but no I never had any reoccurrence of that. Interviewer: Okay now you're in the army and you're in Vietnam, it appeared when there was a lot of stuff going on at home, you'd had the King assassination, Kennedy assassination, all the rioting and stuff in ‘68. How much of that filtered over to Vietnam? Or did it affect the way anybody behaved by the time you left? (1:18.14) No- no I- I don't remember a lot of that I- I really didn't pay that much attention to it. I mean the only newspaper, well at one time my grandmother, she sent me a subscription to the Grand Rapids Press. I told her, I admit one time in a letter I wrote home I told her that I miss reading the Grand Rapids Press, so she got me a subscription. I- I just couldn't keep up, I mean I’d get these bags of paper and they’d dump ‘em out, and they’re pissed-off hauling these, Friar Jesus what are you crazy, so I had to call her and tell her to, but everybody read the paper, Grand Rapids Press, the whole company and… Interviewer: Yeah, something to read. Yeah. Interviewer: Okay. But, no, I don't remember that. I know like Kennedy got assassinated and stuff but mostly what, I was young too, I was 18, I didn't really give a crap about… Interviewer: Well I mean did the, sort of the attitude or the conduct of the black soldiers change at all over the course of time? (1:19.15) �Well I think more guys started smoking the ‘wacky tobacky’ and stuff like that. And I- I think maybe in the rear areas I- I noticed it when we’d come back in the rear areas. I noticed maybe there's a little, the blacks would hang here, or something like in… but I don't, I never saw any of that out in the field or nothin’. I never, and even in the rear area. Interviewer: It wasn't really creating any kind of larger problems that you were seeing? Not that I saw no. Interviewer: Okay, and then the- the drug use part that's another Vietnam stereotype I guess so you saw some of it on the base camps. Marijuana, not nothing else. I, in fact I tried it too when I would come back from the rear area, I never smoked out there in the field, I was always too paranoid, cripe. Even back when I was in rear area, I was like… but I don't know how that these guys would do it. But- but I never saw any of that hard stuff, everybody's talking about that. I said, shit I never, hell I never even heard of marijuana until I got over there. I didn't know what it was, and I tried it one time and I says, “holy crap,” but I, you know, never. (1:20.36) Interviewer: Yeah, and then did you ever get much of a chance to go into areas that had a large civilian population? Or were you usually kind of on bases and… The only time I did that was like in country R&R when we were coming back from somewhere, you know. Interviewer: And did you see much when you're actually in the areas that you were operating, were there civilians around? Or was it largely depopulated? Depends on where we were pulling the patrol. Sometimes, we’d go through a little village. It was pretty good-sized villages; I mean the kids would come running out trying to sell you �a Coke and stuff like that. And, but, and sometimes there was, it had to pull some guard around a, like a bridge I can't remember where the hell that bridge was but across the river, this is down by Hué I think. And kids were coming around in there so there was, you know population. And- and sometimes in a rear area they would hire some civilians to do, fill sandbags and sometimes cook, and clean, and you know certain things but… Interviewer: What sort of impression did you have of the Vietnamese people themselves at that point? I liked them; you know except for the- the bad ones. Interviewer: Yeah, the ones trying to kill you. (1:22.03) Yeah, I- I enjoyed them, I, to this day I- I- I know some Vietnamese. Guy that flew an airplane is Vietnamese officer. And I- I always, you know I didn't have any, you know problems with it, you know unless they were trying to kill me, you know then took issue with it. Interviewer: And then while you were there did you have any Vietnamese interpreters or scouts or things like that with you? Yeah- yeah, they had them. If we got a prisoner or something like that, but most of the time, we didn't have any, you know. Once in a while but we didn't have any up by Khe Sanh at all. I don't remember any interpreters up there then, but when we were down like in Wonder Beach area, there was a couple around. We would catch some guys and then they would question them and beat the- beat the hell out of them, but you know, but I don't really remember, you know too many, seeing too many interpreters at all. �Interviewer: Okay, alright now when you think about the time that you spent in Vietnam, are there other particular things that kind of stand out in your memory that you haven't brought into the story yet? (1:23.21) Such as? Interviewer: It can be, you know funny things, or unusual things, or things that just- just remind you of Vietnam, or… Well there's a lot of things that remind me of Vietnam. I think it's probably the… neatest thing I- I remember is the camaraderie that we had. I mean you just lived with these guys; I mean you were closer than close. Share canteens, and you’d share c-rations, you’d share, I mean make these c-rations, put it in a, basically in a helmet and mix all kinds of shit in there. And one guy, I went on R&R to Taiwan with him, Danny I can’t think of his last name he's from Pomona, California. And once a month his mom would send him a- a small case of Tabasco Sauce and some sardines, and he'd share ‘em and I remember it to this day I still enjoy a- a- a can of sardines with some hot sauce on them. (1:24.40) Interviewer: Alright. And sharing different, you know just cooking stuff and how do you, how you, just make do with what you got. Making c-rations which terrible tastin’, to try to come up good with stuff. Puttin’ some of the jelly that came in in certain things. Just, you know you get these hot- heat tablets and or sometimes you take the C4 out of the claymores, little ball, and hot, get some hot, you’d cook it right now. And I remember patrolling one time on the road, pulling close security there were gone through checking for mines, truck- truck drivers �there and you’d try to steal a- a fire extinguisher from the truck, and put a couple beers in a sandbag and blow that, to cool the beer down and stuff. And, or trade them, they'd give them to you, they didn’t give a crap. And I think if you're screwing around if you get in kind of in trouble or something, someone says, “oh yeah, you’re gonna do, you know, probably gonna get in trouble for that one.” I remember saying, “well what are they gonna do? Send you to Vietnam?” You know, so. Interviewer: Okay, now when you get to the end of the enlistment, now you're coming back. Do you still have time left to serve after you get home? I had 10 months to serve. Interviewer: Okay and did you have orders of that assignment before you left or did they send that to you after you got home? I think I got that at California. (1:26.16) Interviewer: Okay, alright now talk about leaving Vietnam the second time. Second time I was kind of bitter because you know you hear all that crap going on this and that, you know, and I was only 19. And- and I come back with this guy, JT Holman and that's when I- I did - I did change my clothes and to this day I regret, we had a taxi driver. We taxied from I guess Fort Ord to I don't remember but going across the bridge and we had the driver stop and I threw my medals over the… and I don't know why I did that, I guess it was… I don't know why. And I regret it ever since and I still had that stuff here on my shirt that was in my bag, but my ribbons, I guess. And I don't know why the hell I did that and- and to this day that pisses me off that I even did it, that I let these assholes get in my mind. And but exactly probably as soon as I let go of ‘em I regretted it and to this day �I- I wish I had not done that. But then I- I- I think I got my orders there and then I came home and then I got married. No, I didn't get married then, I came home I was, I went to Fort Eustis and which my wife now. We hung out, and I took a weekend pass and went home and got married and she came back down to Virginia with me. And stayed there for a while, lived off base which was pretty cool. Lived next door to a guy, and we lived in a trailer park. They guy was in the Navy, he was on a nuclear submarine, he was six months on, six months off. So, kind of worked out just before I got out, he got, he had to go for six months, but he was pretty cool guy and we did a little- little bit of traveling around when we were in Fort Eustis. And I kind of had pretty good duty, I, you know they just they didn't want to F with me, you know. And- and cause and most of the guys that were in that thing that I was in, that 5O8th, I was a, oh they made me a, what was it… CBRNCO. Interviewer: And what does that mean? (1:28.56) Chemical, biological, and radiological. Interviewer: Okay. NCO, I says “well what do I gotta do now?” “Well you gotta go take this class.” And I says, “okay,” you know ten months I gotta do, play the game. So, I went took this class and I say, “okay now your company, you're the head CBRNCO.” I said, “so what do I do?” He says, “well you gotta check all the gas masks, you gotta make some guys go through the chamber.” I said, “go through the gas chamber now?” I said, “I'm not going in that damn thing, I did that in basic.” “Well you gotta.” I said “okay, I got a good gas mask then,” and had to do that whole thing and I felt so bad. And there's this black guy, stuttered like crazy as an…in that outfit there. And whenever he got excited he couldn't- he couldn't, you �couldn't understand nothing he said, and you're supposed to say your name, rank, and serial number and he was in there and, you know I said, “okay guys take your stuff off.” And he started stuttering and stuttering and stuttering and he couldn't get it out. And I said, “get your ass out of here,” and… Interviewer: So how did that drill work anyway? What was, how does that play out? You have a bunch of recruits you bring ‘em into a room someplace, then what? (1:30.13) Yeah, they- they pop a bunch of CS in that room, it's not very big. I'd say maybe twelve by twelve or something, it's not a very big room. But it's, like CS I don't know if you ever had it, that stuff burn the shit out if you. If you got any sweat on you, it burns your cheeks and the whole thing and you're supposed to, I guess go through that thing, and… Interviewer: Now as the one who was running it do you get to keep your gas mask on? Oh yeah- yeah, I kept that, I wouldn't do it otherwise because that's, it's hard to breathe, it burns your lungs. It burns your lungs, it's- it’s not- it's not pleasant but yeah, they say you gotta do it, so you know what you're doing to other people. Interviewer: Alright, now would you go in and up to Washington or because far east, is it Petersburg or Williamsburg or? By Newport. Interviewer: Newport, by Newport okay that area, okay so that's- that’s a pretty big kind of base area. Yeah. Interviewer: For the Navy in particular. Alright and was that kind of a supply thing primarily or? I don’t know. �Interviewer: Okay. (1:31.25) All I know is the trucking company we had to make sure the trucks ran and… Interviewer: Right. But when I first got there, what was kind of cool is a- a bunch of us were in this room, we, there was a big barracks there a lot of the guys, but all those sergeants and stuff. We had, we're in a, we had rooms, our own room, well with another guy. And we watched the- the moon, landing on the moon and Armstrong’s speech and everything and that was pretty cool, I remember that, where, so where were you on this day? I remember right where I was. And- and we- we did some travel, one of the guys had a girlfriend in, up by Virginia Beach and we’d go up there now and then and his mom, we'd go out crabbin’, getting’ crabs. And she'd boil it, had big crab dinners, that was fun. Boil it in beer and stuff, it was good. Interviewer: Now did the military make any effort to encourage you to re up or? Oh yeah, yeah, they did, yeah. (1:32.32) Interviewer: What would they offer you? Another stripe, that was the big thing. And I said, “well I got three, I don't really need another one.” And- and then I asked them, I said, “can you guarantee me?” I actually considered it, but I asked, “can you guarantee me I won't go to Vietnam again?” And they said, “we can’t do that,” so I said, “nope, I'm not gonna do it then.” If I, if they would have guaranteed me that I didn't have to go there, “so well we- we, you won't have to go for a �couple years.” But shit the year- war is already ten years old, I didn’t know how long it's gonna last and so I said, “nah.” Interviewer: Okay so when do you actually get your discharge then? May 16th, 15th or 16th it’s the day before the, yeah May 16th, I went in on May 17th and got out on May 16th and… Interviewer: It’s 1970. Yup. Interviewer: And then what do you do after you're out? (1:33.30) Well I had a lot of issues; I was married, and I didn't know what the heck I was gonna do and I drank a lot. And for a long, long time I drank and drank and drank and you know, tried to make shit right but it- it don’t right. And then- and then I found God and it's kind of like a- a burden lifted off my shoulders and that was probably 15 years after I got out but I had a good jobs and I went to school and I didn't finish school, I really never finished a lot of, much of anything. Even I became a die maker and I just couldn't stay in- in a shop. I had, in 30 years, 20-some years I was at 14 different shops; I just, I don't know what the hell is wrong, I you know. But I enjoyed it, and to this day I miss not working on it, but you know and just some things that just piss me off and I just move on. Interviewer: So, what did you wind up doing then after that, once you sorted things out? I stayed in- I stayed oh I went to school for a while and then I owned a pizza place for about nine years enjoyed it, couldn't make no money and family was getting bigger. And so then I- I got a job in tool and die and I was probably about 30 I guess, 35 something like that and I stayed in that and you know I made a decent living and, but you know I had �trouble I just, I don't know, I just, I- I can't explain why but I just went from job to job but I always got a job in the tool and die trade. And I enjoyed it, always enjoyed working with my hands. Now I'm retired, still kind of dabbling in wood and I like remodeling and stuff, so… (1:35.41) Interviewer: Now to look back at the time that you spent in the service, I mean how do you think that affected you positively or negatively? I think it's positive, I think I had no direction before I went in. There was a lot of bad things that happened, but there was in the same token there was more good things that happened, I feel in my case anyway. And I- I think it really saved me I know a lot of the guys I used to hang around with, they got into drugs, one or two overdosed. You know I so, well you know, I just, I- I- I encourage anybody, I think it should be mandatory everybody spent two years in, least in the service or Peace Corps to get away before you go to college, right after, boom, do it you'll- you’ll learn. I think our country would be better off now, you'd be able to, you'd learn how to get along with other people; any color purple, pink, black, anything it's, you, it's what you should do for the country. But it was, I was happy I did, I would do it again. Interviewer: Alright, well we thank you very much for coming in and sharing a story today. Thank you, I enjoyed it. � Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Veterans History Project Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Grand Valley State University. History Department Description An account of the resource The Library of Congress established the Veterans History Project in 2001 to collect memories, accounts, and documents of U.S. war veterans from World War II and the Korean War, Vietnam War, and conflicts in the Middle East and elsewhere, and to preserve these stories for future generations. The GVSU History Department interviews are part of this work-in-progress, and may contain videos and audio recordings, transcripts and interview outlines, and related documents and photographs. Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant 1914- Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource <a href="http://rightsstatements.org/page/InC/1.0/?language=en">In Copyright</a> Subject The topic of the resource Afghan War, 2001--Personal narratives, American Iran Hostage Crisis, 1979-1981--Personal narratives, American Korean War, 1950-1953--Personal narratives, American Michigan--History, Military Oral history Persian Gulf War, 1991--Personal narratives, American United States--History, Military United States. Air Force United States. Army United States. Navy Veterans Video recordings Vietnam War, 1961-1975--Personal narratives, American World War, 1939-1945--Personal narratives, American Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Special Collections & University Archives Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Smither, James Boring, Frank Relation A related resource Veterans History Project (U.S.) Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context RHC-27 Language A language of the resource eng Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived <a href="https://gvsu.lyrasistechnology.org/repositories/2/resources/455">Veterans History Project interviews (RHC-27)</a> Oral History A resource containing historical information obtained in interviews with persons having firsthand knowledge. Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context RHC-27_FriarT1802V Title A name given to the resource Friar, Thomas (Interview transcript and video), 2015 Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2015-07-02 Description An account of the resource Tom Friar was born in December of 1948 in Grand Rapids, Michigan. Friar attended Basic Training at Fort Knox, Kentucky, and then AIT at Fort Dix, New Jersey, where he learned to become a truck driver. Friar was then deployed to Cam Ranh Bay, Vietnam, in November of 1967 with the S4 Supply Company, 1st Battalion, 5th Regiment, First Cavalry Division at An Khê. He participated in the First Cavalry Air Assaults as well as Operation Pegasus. Returning to the United States in 1969-70, he noticed the increased general hostility towards the Armed Forces in Vietnam. He briefly served as a CBR NCO training recruits at Fort Eustis, Virginia, before leaving the service in May of 1970 and eventually became a tool and die maker. Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Friar, Thomas John Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Smither, James (Interviewer) Subject The topic of the resource Vietnam War, 1961-1975--Personal narratives, American United States. Army Oral history Veterans History Project (U.S.) United States--History, Military Veterans Video recordings Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource video/mp4 application/pdf Type The nature or genre of the resource Moving Image Text Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Veterans History Project collection, RHC-27 Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource <a href="https://rightsstatements.org/page/InC/1.0/?language=en">In Copyright</a> Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University Libraries, Special Collections & University Archives, 1 Campus Drive, Allendale, MI, 49401. Relation A related resource Veterans History Project (U.S.) Language A language of the resource eng https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/1b4871bab39bed1ff19e8dcd92667d4c.pdf de67e05d102832c4c423b6723b10a6e9 PDF Text Text Friday April 4 by windoworks Good morning! Two new developments. First, Governor Whitmer (who wore a t-shirt which said: That Woman From Michigan, for her interview with Trevor Noah - don’t panic he’s recording from home) signed an executive order stating that all schools are to remain closed for the rest of the school year (I’m pretty sure we saw that coming). Second, the CDC has done an about face regarding surgical masks (cloth masks) and is now suggesting that it might be a good idea if everyone wore one when outside the house. CB and I have rather tasteful cotton ones made by a friends daughter and our neighbor AW is thinking of making some and I have ordered two so that CB and I can swap them out daily. With cotton masks you can wash and reuse them. Now I know some people will say: but you just concentrate germs on the inside. Well if you’re asymptomatic, that keeps your germs with you, and like Schroedinger’s virus - how do we know if we have the virus or not? In Michigan the Governor also requested some National Guard assistance and they are building temporary hospitals in the Detroit area and also investigating needs here in Kent County. So here in Kent County yesterday we had 125 confirmed cases and 2 deaths. If these numbers seem low its because not many people in Kent County have been tested. The population count in 2017 was 648,594. So far 460 people living in Kent County have been tested and one quarter of those are positive. It is fair to extrapolate that there may be at least 162, 149 positive cases in Kent County. In the state of Michigan yesterday, there were 10, 791 cases and 417 deaths but again, this is just a fraction of the real numbers. There are 2 drive in testing stations near us but you must have a a doctor’s authorization to get tested. I think about South Korea where they tested over 5000 people per 1 million citizens. There they have a much more accurate picture of the virus and its spread than we do here. China was touted as the best way to combat the spread but now suspicion is growing that perhaps local officials did not report accurate figures. I read a story this morning about 2 Holland America sister ships, the Zaandam and the Rotterdam. The Zaandam developed positive cases after they left South America. The Rotterdam was sailing nearby and offered to take some passengers who were virus free. At this moment they are beginning a complicated system of disembarkation geared to protect everyone involved at Fort Everglades. At first the Florida governor refused to let them land at all but this is the man who refused to put in place a stay at home order and let students hold coronavirus parties in Miami. Cases are beginning to escalate in Florida. CB and I are just so grateful that we were able to disembark form our ship at the beginning of March and get home again. It continues to be a new world of confusion and worry, but to cheer us up, Bear Hunts are popping up all over the world. �This very large bear is in Finland. Thanks AS! ��And here is another one from New Zealand. ZL saw these bears on his walk yesterday. They’re in their own sunroom. And speaking of yesterday, it was such a gorgeous, slightly warmer day that CB, Murphy Brown and I drove out to Lake Michigan to Kirk Park to walk through the woods to the dog beach. The last time we walked there last year, the beach was almost washed away. ��CB and Murphy Brown walking through the woods. There were an unusual number of trees down and a lot were sawn in to short lengths. Then we saw this: So of course we went around the gate and walked further on to this: �And of course CB and Murphy scrambled around this fence to see this: ��If you look carefully (it took me a while) you can see that the sand dune, the trees and part of the staircase to the beach has gone and what dunes are still there are extremely unstable. All access to the dog beach is now by the main beach. And now the flashback: This is 2015 at Jekyll Island off the coast of the state of Georgia. This photo is late in the afternoon as a storm was coming in. CB and I spent a week here exploring the whole area and eating unbelievable amounts of seafood - it was lovely. One night when it was dark everyone came down to this seating area and let go white paper Chinese lanterns. We stood in the dark and watched them all float up into the sky. I think you are supposed to make a wish on them. And one year at ArtPrize in October here in Grand Rapids, there was an artists events where the public were invited to come to the Grand River downtown and light one of these. I stood in the back door of the Sweet House (where I was volunteering) and watched hundreds of them floating higher and higher above Grand Rapids. Maybe we need wish balloons now. Stay safe, stay home and try to stay happy. �� Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource COVID-19 Journals Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Grand Valley State University. University Libraries Description An account of the resource This collection of journals and personal narratives was solicited from the GVSU community by archivists of the University Libraries during the events of the 2020 COVID-19 global pandemic. During this unprecedented crisis the university closed suddenly, following federal and state guidelines of social distancing to reduce the spread of the novel coronavirus. The university closed its campuses on March 12, 2020, and quickly moved students out of campus housing. Faculty swiftly transitioned to fully-online teaching for the remainder of the Winter 2020 semester, and all campus events, including commencement, were cancelled. The purpose of the COVID-19 Journaling Project was to document the individual and personal experiences of GVSU’s students, staff, faculty, and the wider community during this time of international crisis. Some project participants were university student employees who were compensated for their journaling. Other participants were granted stipends or extra credit for submitting entries to the archives. Still others participated without any compensation or credit. The University Archives remains grateful to all who submitted journals, for helping us to understand the impact of this crisis on our community. Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2020 Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived University Archives. COVID-19 Journaling Project Subject The topic of the resource Epidemics Grand Valley State University College students Personal narratives COVID-19 pandemic, 2019-2020 Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Special Collections & University Archives Text A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Examples include books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre Text. Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context COVID-19_2020-04-03_BenjaminPamela_PD-Day-23-Friday-April-4 Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Benjamin, Pamela Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2020-04-03 Title A name given to the resource Friday April 4 Description An account of the resource Daily journal entry of Pamela Benjamin, spouse of GVSU history professor, Craig Benjamin, during the COVID-19 pandemic. Originally self-published on WordPress. Subject The topic of the resource COVID-19 pandemic, 2019-2020 Epidemics Grand Valley State University Grand Rapids (Mich.) Personal narratives Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived University Archives. COVID-19 Journaling Project Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University University Libraries. Special Collections and University Archives. Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource <a href="http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/">In Copyright</a> Type The nature or genre of the resource Text Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource application/pdf Language A language of the resource eng https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/f3a9605f70f086e1a86ee822957b46cc.jpg ae69c02dcb5dd70f987b5e80c03ee221 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Faces of Grand Valley Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Grand Valley State University Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource University Communications Description An account of the resource A non-comprehensive collection of photographs of Grand Valley faculty, staff, administrators, board members, friends, and alumni. Photos collected by University Communications for use in promotion and information sharing about Grand Valley with the wider community. Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1960s - 1990s Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived GV012-03. University Communications. Vita Files Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource In Copryight Subject The topic of the resource Grand Valley State University College administrators College teachers Colleges and universities -- Faculty Michigan Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. Special Collections and University Archives Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context GV012-03 Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource image/jpeg Type The nature or genre of the resource Image Language A language of the resource eng Still Image A static visual representation. Examples include paintings, drawings, graphic designs, plans and maps. Recommended best practice is to assign the type Text to images of textual materials. Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context FridsmaKenneth Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Grand Valley State University. University Communications Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1985 Title A name given to the resource Fridsma, Kenneth Description An account of the resource Kenneth Fridsma, Financial Aid Director Subject The topic of the resource Grand Valley State University – History College administrators Michigan Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived University Communications. Vita Files, 1968-2016 (GV012-03) Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. Special Collections and University Archives Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource In Copyright Type The nature or genre of the resource Image Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource image/jpeg Language A language of the resource eng 1985s https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/9869231c950015dc80dd65eb4977947e.jpg bf016528257880901bd28a8835b20902 https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/c7b7bd49834aabfce8d6cbf722d1654f.jpg 04bc34441b7369c57b86d534e901168e Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Insel-Bücherei Series Description An account of the resource The German publishing company Insel Verlag was founded in 1899 by Anton Kippenberg in Leipzig. In its early years the firm only printed expensive, beautifully-produced volumes, until demand led to the publication of the more modest Insel-Bücherei series in 1912. Relatively inexpensive but with the same careful sense of design and typography, these smaller-format books reprinted shorter works from a variety of German, European, and world authors. The series numbers considerably more than a thousand titles and is still being issued. The Digital Collection contains the scanned covers of 140 titles held by Grand Valley State University Libraries. Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant 1904-1987 Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Seidman Rare Books Collection Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource <a href="http://rightsstatements.org/page/InC/1.0/?language=en">In Copyright</a> Subject The topic of the resource Book covers Covers (Illustration) Graphic arts Publishers and publishing Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Special Collections & University Archives Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context DC-05 Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource image/jpg Type The nature or genre of the resource Image Language A language of the resource ger Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2017-09-29 Still Image A static visual representation. Examples include paintings, drawings, graphic designs, plans and maps. Recommended best practice is to assign the type Text to images of textual materials. Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context DC-05_IB0179 Title A name given to the resource Friedrich Schlegels Fragmente Subject The topic of the resource Book covers Covers (Illustration) Graphic arts Publishers and publishing Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource <a href="http://rightsstatements.org/page/InC/1.0/?language=en">In Copyright</A> Type The nature or genre of the resource Image Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource image/jpeg Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant 1915 Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2017-09-29 Description An account of the resource Cover of Friedrich Schlegels Fragmente, by Friedrich von Schlegel, published by Insel-Verlag, 1915. Insel-Bücherei Nr. 179 Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Seidman Rare Books. Insel-Bücherei. Z315.I5 B83 no.179 Language A language of the resource de Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Lemmen Library and Archives https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/99c0035a448fc0b281381c5edbd976bb.jpg 4fa3fcfb51396d3a054e55b40f0d555b Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Robert H. Merrill photographs Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Merrill, Robert H., 1881-1955 Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1909/1950 Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Robert H. Merrill papers (RHC-222) Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource In Copyright Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context RHC-222 Description An account of the resource Photographs, negatives, and lantern slides digitized from the papers of engineer and archaeologist Robert H. Merrill. A Grand Rapids native, Merrill held an accomplished career as a civil engineer. He founded the company Spooner & Merrill, which held offices in Grand Rapids and Chicago. From 1919-1921, Merrill lived in China, working as Assistant Principal Engineer on a reconstruction of the Grand Canal - the oldest and longest canal system in the world. Merrill became fascinated by archaeology, and among other projects, he traveled to the Uxmal Pyramids in Yucatan, Mexico, with a research expedition from Tulane University. Merrill's photo collection includes images of his travels and projects, friends and family. Still Image A static visual representation. Examples include paintings, drawings, graphic designs, plans and maps. Recommended best practice is to assign the type Text to images of textual materials. Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context Merrill_FilmPacks_8_003 Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1937-04-06 Title A name given to the resource Frigidarium Stabiae Women's baths Description An account of the resource Black and white photograph of the frigidarium of the women's baths in the extinct city of Stabiae. Subject The topic of the resource Archaeology Archaeological sites Italy Stabiae (Extinct city) Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Robert H. Merrill papers (RHC-222) Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource In Copyright Type The nature or genre of the resource Image Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource image/jpg Language A language of the resource eng Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Merrill, Robert H., 1881-1955 Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Lemmen Library and Archives https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/02fef1bc38fa16343b28c9da7a3d980f.jpg 16719b453fdd5c03d64adbd6b83eae28 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Robert H. Merrill photographs Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Merrill, Robert H., 1881-1955 Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1909/1950 Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Robert H. Merrill papers (RHC-222) Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource In Copyright Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context RHC-222 Description An account of the resource Photographs, negatives, and lantern slides digitized from the papers of engineer and archaeologist Robert H. Merrill. A Grand Rapids native, Merrill held an accomplished career as a civil engineer. He founded the company Spooner & Merrill, which held offices in Grand Rapids and Chicago. From 1919-1921, Merrill lived in China, working as Assistant Principal Engineer on a reconstruction of the Grand Canal - the oldest and longest canal system in the world. Merrill became fascinated by archaeology, and among other projects, he traveled to the Uxmal Pyramids in Yucatan, Mexico, with a research expedition from Tulane University. Merrill's photo collection includes images of his travels and projects, friends and family. Still Image A static visual representation. Examples include paintings, drawings, graphic designs, plans and maps. Recommended best practice is to assign the type Text to images of textual materials. Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context Merrill_1931-3_002 Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1931 Title A name given to the resource Frijoles, Colo. Cliff dwellings from SW Description An account of the resource Black and white photograph of Cliff dwellings from southwest in Frijoles, Colorado. The cliff face is visible in the background of the image. Subject The topic of the resource Colorado Cliff-dwellings Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Robert H. Merrill papers (RHC-222) Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource In Copyright Type The nature or genre of the resource Image Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource image/jpg Language A language of the resource eng Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Merrill, Robert H., 1881-1955 Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Lemmen Library and Archives https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/e9a2247885a7c58bc8a245f7e10e0a8e.jpg f4fc04524b99d664505d104436c14b3c Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Robert H. Merrill photographs Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Merrill, Robert H., 1881-1955 Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1909/1950 Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Robert H. Merrill papers (RHC-222) Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource In Copyright Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context RHC-222 Description An account of the resource Photographs, negatives, and lantern slides digitized from the papers of engineer and archaeologist Robert H. Merrill. A Grand Rapids native, Merrill held an accomplished career as a civil engineer. He founded the company Spooner & Merrill, which held offices in Grand Rapids and Chicago. From 1919-1921, Merrill lived in China, working as Assistant Principal Engineer on a reconstruction of the Grand Canal - the oldest and longest canal system in the world. Merrill became fascinated by archaeology, and among other projects, he traveled to the Uxmal Pyramids in Yucatan, Mexico, with a research expedition from Tulane University. Merrill's photo collection includes images of his travels and projects, friends and family. Still Image A static visual representation. Examples include paintings, drawings, graphic designs, plans and maps. Recommended best practice is to assign the type Text to images of textual materials. Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context Merrill_1931-3_001 Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1931-06-30 Title A name given to the resource Frijoles, Colo. Talus House Description An account of the resource Black and white photograph of Talus House in Frijoles, Colorado. A wire fence encloses the yard in front of the house, and the side of a mountain is seen behind the house. Subject The topic of the resource Colorado Cliff-dwellings Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Robert H. Merrill papers (RHC-222) Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource In Copyright Type The nature or genre of the resource Image Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource image/jpg Language A language of the resource eng Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Merrill, Robert H., 1881-1955 Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Lemmen Library and Archives https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/b0e822d0d239c9f0785a20a90ecb52df.jpg 6a1cd645217be305179e45b0aa9f3211 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Faces of Grand Valley Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Grand Valley State University Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource University Communications Description An account of the resource A non-comprehensive collection of photographs of Grand Valley faculty, staff, administrators, board members, friends, and alumni. Photos collected by University Communications for use in promotion and information sharing about Grand Valley with the wider community. Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1960s - 1990s Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived GV012-03. University Communications. Vita Files Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource In Copryight Subject The topic of the resource Grand Valley State University College administrators College teachers Colleges and universities -- Faculty Michigan Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. Special Collections and University Archives Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context GV012-03 Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource image/jpeg Type The nature or genre of the resource Image Language A language of the resource eng Still Image A static visual representation. Examples include paintings, drawings, graphic designs, plans and maps. Recommended best practice is to assign the type Text to images of textual materials. Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context FrischDonald Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Grand Valley State University. University Communications Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1972 Title A name given to the resource Frisch, Donald Description An account of the resource Donald Frisch, Health Sciences Subject The topic of the resource Grand Valley State University – History College teachers Universities and colleges – Faculty Michigan Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived University Communications. Vita Files, 1968-2016 (GV012-03) Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. Special Collections and University Archives Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource In Copyright Type The nature or genre of the resource Image Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource image/jpeg Language A language of the resource eng 1972s https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/68cd658e9444832a25e2ed9e9090aa06.jpg ea8a30de0e27998740049ea3ca073ef0 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Naval Recognition Training Slides Subject The topic of the resource Slides Military education Airplanes, Military--Recognition Warships--Recognition World War, 1939-1945 Description An account of the resource Slides developed during World War II as a training tool, for top-side battle-station personnel on board ship and for all aircraft personnel, by the US Navy. In 1942 a Recognition School was established by the Navy at Ohio State University where the method of identification was developed. In 1943 the school was taken over by the US Navy. The importance of training in visual recognition of ships and aircraft became even more evident during World War II. Mistakes resulting in costly errors and loss of life led to an increased emphasis on recognition as a vital skill. Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource United States. Navy Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived <a href="https://gvsu.lyrasistechnology.org/repositories/2/resources/477">Naval recognition slides (RHC-50)</a> Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Special Collections & University Archives. Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2017-04-04 Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource <a href="http://rightsstatements.org/page/NoC-US/1.0/?language=en">No Copyright - United States</a> Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource image/jpg Language A language of the resource eng Type The nature or genre of the resource image Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context RHC-50 Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant 1943-1953 Still Image A static visual representation. Examples include paintings, drawings, graphic designs, plans and maps. Recommended best practice is to assign the type Text to images of textual materials. Source <a href="http://gvsu.lyrasistechnology.org/repositories/2/resources/477">Naval recognition slides, RHC-50</a> Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context RHC-50_1507 Title A name given to the resource Fritz fighter Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource United States. Navy Description An account of the resource Fritz Russian fighter, September 1, 1955. Subject The topic of the resource United States. Navy Military education World War, 1939-1945 Slides Airplanes, Military--Recognition Russia Language A language of the resource eng Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource <a href="http://rightsstatements.org/page/NoC-US/1.0/?language=en">No Copyright - United States</a> Type The nature or genre of the resource Image Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource image/jpeg Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Naval recognition slides (RHC-50) Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1955-09-01 Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Lemmen Library and Archives https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/3ac0795d7548124d03565b1149adb088.mp3 058f1d3e5cb239455bee5f7f55726e2c https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/f53ccd395529ebe27c7392fdf8122624.pdf 4f17f4b65394fe26e0117afa6c99dffa PDF Text Text From Babel to Bethlehem to Spirit and Truth From the series: A Millennial Vision Genesis 11:8; Acts 2:6 Richard A. Rhem Christ Community Church Spring Lake, Michigan January 16, 2000 Transcription of the spoken sermon I described for you last week a millennial vision of mine, the vision of a world where the great religions would live at peace with one another, mutually respecting one another, teaching each other, enhancing one another, and dedicated together to the well-being of the whole world and the whole human family. I used my favorite image of a cathedral whose respective areas have stained glass windows that relate the biblical story, but no section has the whole story. Each section has a part of the story and the common element that draws all together is the common source of light, the one Light that illumines all of the parts of the story that create the whole, and you can use that analogy for the respective religious traditions, none of which has the whole story, all of which are illumined by the one Light that enlightens us all. That particular image, I think, is justifiable on the basis of the biblical story, for that image speaks about the particular and the universal, all of the particular traditions pointing to the one universal, and I think that is true to the biblical understanding, as well. In the book of Genesis, the first eleven chapters are pre-history to Israel's history. What we refer to commonly as the Old Testament is the story of Israel. But, Israel, in telling its story, knew that it was a part of a larger story. It wasn't the whole story. It was well aware of that, and so those first eleven chapters of Genesis deal with universal themes, creation themes, the human theme, creation of the human being, and disobedience and alienation and confusion and judgment and salvation - it's all in there. After the judgment of the Flood, the rescue of Noah, there is, very interestingly, in the eighth chapter of Genesis, this covenant of God never again to destroy the earth. And that's with the whole of creation. And then in the ninth chapter we find the covenant with Noah, never again to destroy all flesh, and that covenant is with all flesh; it is a universal covenant with humankind. Israel doesn't exist yet. And then, as though to demonstrate that we human beings never would get it right, there's one more story told, the story of the Tower of Babel, a fascinating little tale about the human family, the flood survivors going to get together and build themselves a tower and create a city, a sort of a fortress over against God, as it were. They were going to do their own human thing, so God looks down and says, “Oh, that's © Grand Valley State University   �From Babel to Bethlehem to Spirit and Truth Richard A. Rhem Page 2   interesting.” God comes down and confuses their language because they had had one language and so they could pass bricks with one another and they could build a tower together, and then suddenly, they can't understand one another. But, the word for understand is shema in Hebrew, it's a word to listen or to hear, so ostensibly, that little myth perhaps explains why people are scattered over the face of the earth and why there are so many different languages but, at its deeper level, it was a story of our human community that is broken. It was a story of human beings who do not listen to one another, and when one does not listen to another, there's a breakdown of communication and then there's a breakdown of trust, and there's a breakdown of community. The story which prefaces Israel's history is a story of universal humankind marked by broken community. So, God knows that another strategy is necessary and so, in the 11th chapter of Genesis we find Abraham and Sarah, and Sarah has a barren womb because God will start over and out of barrenness will create a people and that people will be light-bearers to the nations. Israel understood its particular vocation; it believed it had the light, it believed it was in touch with God the Creator, and it believed that its light in the Torah was to be the instruction for all nations. All nations would someday flow to Mt. Zion and Israel would be the instructor. But, Israel knew it was not the whole story. It knew it was a particular amidst a universal humanity, and so its prophets dreamed of a day when one would come fully endowed with the spirit of God who would create shalom and there would be a time when they would not hurt or destroy in all God's holy mountain. You see, the biblical understanding, in this case Israel's understanding of God's intention for creation, was that it would dwell in peace and that there would be well-being and that it would be marked by community. In the Christian reading of that story it culminates in the birth of a child in Bethlehem, the child Jesus, and the parents bring the child to the temple and aged Simeon, the voice of all of Israel, takes the child in his arms and says, "Now, Lord, lettest thou thy servant depart in peace, for mine eyes have seen thy salvation which thou hast prepared beforehand for thy people, a light to lighten the Gentiles and the glory of thy people Israel." Beyond Jesus comes Pentecost and the outpouring of the Spirit of God and what is the consequence? Well, the city is full of visitors from around the ancient world and the Spirit falls on the disciples and they go out into the streets and they proclaim the story of Jesus and everyone, from the respective geographical locations and various languages, hear as though the word was spoken in their own native tongue. And Babel is reversed at Pentecost and the Spirit causes people to listen, to hear, to understand, and out of that gross community in those early chapters of the book of Acts we have that early Jesus movement marked by community in which no one had any need and all cared for the other. There was the intention of God realized. © Grand Valley State University �From Babel to Bethlehem to Spirit and Truth Richard A. Rhem Page 3   Too bad it didn't last. Too bad Pentecost got sidetracked. Too bad the church got stuck in Christology rather than in the theology of the Holy Spirit. Let me suggest, and it's a rather radical suggestion, but I do think that I can support this, that the intention as the story unfolds post-Pentecost was that God Who was Spirit would embrace the world until there be world community. What really happened? Well, this Jewish prophet, this one in whom God was visible, the embodiment of God, this Jesus, this Jesus in those early centuries, was exalted to high heaven, made to be none less than God, resulting in a rupture between that Jewish movement that gave birth to the Jesus movement, and the Christian church, and instead of community, we had one more great religious tradition. I wonder if that was not a betrayal of Jesus and Jesus' own vision. Take, for example, that conversation with the woman from Samaria at Jacob's well. Does that one impress you as God of God, Light of Light, before all world, etc, etc.? Or, is this Jesus, in all of his humanity and all of his fullness of spirit, engaging a hungry, thirsty human being, pointing her to the universal? She says at one point, "I think you're a prophet. Should we be worshiping here, we Samaritans on Mt. Gerizim where our shrine is? Or, should we worship at Jerusalem where you Jews say God is to be worshiped?" And Jesus says to her, "Lady, the hour is coming and now is when you'll not worship in Mt. Gerizim or Jerusalem, but in spirit and in truth." It seems to me that Jesus in that conversation, or the gospel writer instructing that conversation, was pointing to a universal that would transcend those particularities, that the intention of Pentecost would be that God would be worshiped in spirit beyond all tribal loyalties and religious particularities. It seems to me that the reversal of Babel at Pentecost can only be realized in global community, and that would be my vision, a millennial vision, a vision for the third millennium. As I grow older and more reflective on the religious scene which marks me more these days than once it did (once I was a busy pastor, I was building a congregation, I was working in the broader Church, I was involved in all of this institutional concern and construction and structuring and hardly had time to think about God), these days as I observe the religious scene, I'm not pleased with what I see. I see a frenzied religious activity on every hand. I know we live in Western Michigan which is saturated with churches and religion, but there are other places, Bible Belts, for instance, where this is evident. I think that what we see here is not characteristic of the whole country, but it's also not totally without duplication in other places. There is a tremendous amount of religious activity and it's a frenzied effort in many cases, it seems to me, to miss the point of Pentecost and the intention of God for the whole creation and the creation of a global and world community. There is worship as entertainment. It seems to me that it is a church in trouble trying to find out what will possibly bring people in. There's the whole © Grand Valley State University �From Babel to Bethlehem to Spirit and Truth Richard A. Rhem Page 4   therapeutic religious dimension, bringing health and healing, which is certainly a positive thing, and yet, it's not the main thing. There is the hot salvation sector calling people to repentance and faith, to deliver them from eternal condemnation. There is the emotional, charismatic community. One can go to any one of these sectors and find an intensity of activity which is religious, it is busy, it engages tremendous financial resources and a lot of human energy, and the more I look at it, the less satisfied I am with it and I wonder if it is really dealing with the longing in the heart of the Samaritan woman which is the longing in the heart of all of us who are human, which is to have our lives touched, in touch with experiencing the living God who is Spirit, that God beyond all of the trappings of our respective religions, the structures and institutions and forms, the various stories that we tell, that God Who is the Source and the Ground of all being, that God Who is eternal Spirit Who embraces the whole world. In a preacher's mind, a simmering sermon idea is like a magnet that draws filings from all over, but I didn't have to look very broadly yesterday. The religion section of the Grand Rapids Press had one article after another on God as Spirit and Truth. There was the note about the National Council of Churches that's in trouble, hoping that the Presbyterians will give them $400,000 because they have a $3.2 million debt, and the Methodists have withheld funds until they get financially responsible. Well, the National Council of Churches is a good organization. Dr. Joan Campbell went to Cuba and talked to the father of Elian Gonzalez who has the good sense to know that a child belongs with the child's parent. I know Joan Campbell; I've preached to Joan Campbell; she is a lovely woman, and the Council does a good thing, but it cannot get support anymore. Structures are just not there. And then I saw a little note about the University of Michigan Research Center that did some comparisons between 1981 and 1998 and there was a fall-off of church attendance in the country from 60% to 55%, which isn't too bad, actually. But, they said, then, that they had added a question about the meaning and purpose of life which they ask people and there had been a significant increase in the number of people who think regularly about the meaning and purpose of life. In Italy and South Korea and Australia and Germany, The Netherlands, over 10% increase in the number of people were asking spiritual questions. And then there was the Jewish Rabbi Laibl Wolf, who was in Grand Rapids last week who is from Australia but who is a Jewish mystic dealing in the old Cabala system 3500 years old, a system of meditation and contemplation which seeks to bring a balance between body and soul, and it reported that he has recently held a seminar with Fortune 500 company CEOs and also that Madonna is into Cabala. The rabbi didn't put Madonna down because he saw it as a sign of that emptiness, that hunger which is so common to our humanity, whether we're CEOs of a Fortune 500 company or Madonna or any one of us. In all the frantic religious activity, I wonder how much is offering some living water for the parched soul that cannot © Grand Valley State University �From Babel to Bethlehem to Spirit and Truth Richard A. Rhem Page 5   ever be satisfied with religious busy-ness and activity and tribalism and triumphalism and success. And then there was an article about the great religious traditions of the world that are the same at the third millennium as at the second millennium - Hinduism and Confucianism and Buddhism and Christianity and Islam and Judaism. If I could have gotten to the writer before he wrote his article, I would have told him the article could be better than it is because you could have said that it is the same as 2000 years ago, as well, because, as a matter of fact, great religious traditions arose simultaneously around the globe between 800 and 200 Before the Common Era. They all arose simultaneously, and the reason those great religious traditions arose with their significant insights is that there was a transformation of human consciousness. We call that period the First Axial Period when the human individual emerged out of that tribal sense and came to a sense of self-identity and individualism, and with the rise of that human selfconsciousness arose these great religious traditions, and they are representative of that which was happening similarly around the globe, in the human family. And then I wonder, are we at a hinge point in history now for another transformation of human consciousness to break forth? Might this period of time in which we are living be a time of the transformation of human consciousness from individualism to global consciousness? Might this not be the time to pick up Pentecost and to reverse the Babel sounds that mark the failure to listen to one another and the breakdown of trust and thus the breakdown of communication and the devastation of community? Is it not time that we look at the intention of God reflected in the scripture that the respective particularities pointing to the grand universal need to come into conversation and community? Might we have detoured off Pentecost for 2000 years when the one at the well fully intended that that particularity would be transcended as people came to worship God as Spirit and Truth? This Jew who dared speak to a Samaritan between whom there was terrible hostility, this male who dared speak to a female which was unheard of in that day and culture, this Jew who dared to say it's not in Jerusalem, not is it at Gerizim, but it is in spirit and in truth. Do you think there's hope? Is it the possibility that this vision and this dream could catch fire? Do you think that in a thousand years someone will write an article and will say that the same great traditions that there were 1000 years ago, or might someone a thousand years from now write and say, “You know, there was the breaking forth, here and there, of a larger dream, of the premonition of global community.” Well, it's a dream, but Martin Luther King, whose birthday we celebrate this week, had a dream, too. It was just a simple dream of how little black children and little white children could learn to play together and to live together, where there wouldn't be domination, prejudice, bigotry, hostility, and brokenness, but where there would be community, and that dream is far from being realized, but © Grand Valley State University �From Babel to Bethlehem to Spirit and Truth Richard A. Rhem Page 6   the dream has become a dream widespread. Isn't it time that we learn to listen in order that we might understand in order that we might live in the Shalom of God whose Spirit is beyond all of our separateness? The God who is beyond all of our partial insights, absolutized and made exclusive. Isn't it time for us all to wake up to the dream of Jesus? © Grand Valley State University � Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Richard A. Rhem Collection Description An account of the resource Text and sound recordings of the sermons, prayers, services, and articles of Richard Rhem, pastor emeritus of Christ Community Church in Spring Lake, Michigan, where he served for 37 years. Starting in the mid 1980's, Rhem began to question some of the traditional Christian dogma that he had been espousing from the pulpit. That questioning was a first step in a long and interesting spiritual journey, one that he openly shared with his congregation. His journey is important, in part because it is reflective of the questioning, the yearnings, and the gradual revision of beliefs that many persons in this part of the century have experienced and continue to experience. It is important also because of the affirming and inclusive way his questioning was done and his thinking evolved. His sermons and other written and spoken materials together document the steps in his journey as it took a turn in 1985, yet continued to revolve around the framework and liturgies of the Christian calendar. Subject The topic of the resource Clergy--Michigan Reformed Church in America Christ Community Church (Spring Lake, Mich.) Religion Interfaith worship Sermons Sound Recordings Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Rhem, Richard A. Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived <a href="https://gvsu.lyrasistechnology.org/repositories/2/resources/514">Richard A. Rhem papers (KII-01)</a> Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Special Collections & University Archives. Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Kaufman Interfaith Institute Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource <a href="http://rightsstatements.org/page/InC/1.0/?language=en">In Copyright</a> Language A language of the resource English Type The nature or genre of the resource Sound Text Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context KII-01 Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant 1981-2014 Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource audio/mp3 text/pdf Sound A resource primarily intended to be heard. Examples include a music playback file format, an audio compact disc, and recorded speech or sounds. Event Epiphany II Series A Millennial Vision Scripture Text Genesis 11:8, Acts 2:6 Location The location of the interview Christ Community Church, Spring Lake, MI Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context KII-01_RA-0-20000116 Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2000-01-16 Title A name given to the resource From Babel to Bethlehem to Spirit and Truth Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Richard A. Rhem Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource <a href="http://rightsstatements.org/page/InC/1.0/?language=en">In Copyright</a> Subject The topic of the resource Clergy--Michigan Reformed Church in America Christ Community Church (Spring Lake, Mich.) Sermons Relation A related resource Richard A. Rhem - An Archive of Sermons, Prayers, Talks and Stories: http://richardrhem.org/ Language A language of the resource eng Type The nature or genre of the resource Sound Text Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource audio/mp3 application/pdf Description An account of the resource A sermon given by Richard A. Rhem (Dick) on January 16, 2000 entitled "From Babel to Bethlehem to Spirit and Truth", as part of the series "A Millennial Vision", on the occasion of Epiphany II, at Christ Community Church, Spring Lake, MI. Scripture references: Genesis 11:8, Acts 2:6. Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Lemmen Library and Archives Consciousness Global Community Spirit https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/9d19cd5a907381b3735fee73147a6477.jpg 8ff4df439a051130341306f48d17b034 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Robert H. Merrill photographs Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Merrill, Robert H., 1881-1955 Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1909/1950 Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Robert H. Merrill papers (RHC-222) Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource In Copyright Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context RHC-222 Description An account of the resource Photographs, negatives, and lantern slides digitized from the papers of engineer and archaeologist Robert H. Merrill. A Grand Rapids native, Merrill held an accomplished career as a civil engineer. He founded the company Spooner & Merrill, which held offices in Grand Rapids and Chicago. From 1919-1921, Merrill lived in China, working as Assistant Principal Engineer on a reconstruction of the Grand Canal - the oldest and longest canal system in the world. Merrill became fascinated by archaeology, and among other projects, he traveled to the Uxmal Pyramids in Yucatan, Mexico, with a research expedition from Tulane University. Merrill's photo collection includes images of his travels and projects, friends and family. Still Image A static visual representation. Examples include paintings, drawings, graphic designs, plans and maps. Recommended best practice is to assign the type Text to images of textual materials. Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context Merrill_EastmanAlbum_3_1911-1915_88 Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1915-10-23 Title A name given to the resource From boat leaving Albany bridge Description An account of the resource Black and white photograph of Albany bridge and the shoreline along the Hudson River. Taken by Robert Merrill from a boat leaving Albany. Water damage is visible on the image, which was scanned from the negative. Subject The topic of the resource Albany (N.Y.) Bridges Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Robert H. Merrill papers (RHC-222) Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource In Copyright Type The nature or genre of the resource Image Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource image/jpg Language A language of the resource eng Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Merrill, Robert H., 1881-1955 Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Lemmen Library and Archives https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/e135833ad88e1f62206874f07b80aaf9.mp3 894f7a71026c8ff47282e675fa4ee6a6 https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/2c01c39fd02c38e6204cade9dce08527.pdf 8b5abddc36a9f754c1290e759f949c87 PDF Text Text From Feast to Fast: Honoring the Human Epiphany V Scripture: Psalm 103:1-18; Matthew 11:2-19 Text: Psalm 103:14 Richard A. Rhem Christ Community Church Spring Lake, Michigan February 10, 2002 Transcription of the spoken sermon Last week I, as I suppose many of you, watched the Super Bowl taking place in New Orleans. Because of 9-11, the game was moved back a week, consequently right into the center of Mardi Gras. And, as we have come to expect with television these days, it is a string of commercials interrupted occasionally by football. And then, even less frequently, there may be an interview of some interest, and with Mardi Gras being on in New Orleans, the capitol, and all of that in the midst of the Super Bowl celebration, one of the television journalists interviewed a local New Orleans person who talked about the celebration of Mardi Gras as he had experienced it growing up as a second or third or fourth generation New Orleans person. He made the point that it was a wonderful festival, a wonderful family time, that it was really a time for family and friends to enjoy each other and to celebrate together and he made the point that what the media camera catches about Mardi Gras is not really what it's all about. It is not, after all, he said, one big orgy. It is just a good, decent family celebration, and I'm sure that he is right, and I'm equally sure that the cameras will try to find whatever is at its naughtiest to bring us from New Orleans and the Mardi Gras celebration. But, as the interview was going on, I thought to myself, "Native of New Orleans who celebrated many Mardi Gras, I wonder if you really know the deep background of Mardi Gras." He gave no indication of knowing that place out of which it arose, or the reason for it arising, which is the fact that, in the wisdom of the ancient Church, there was a recognition that it is necessary to have a certain rhythm and balance in life, and so the Christian Year is structured such that one moves from feast to fast to feast to fast. (C. S. Lewis, in his Screwtape Letters, has the old Devil commiserating about God's wisdom and giving people that rhythm, feast to fast to feast to fast, where it is always the same, yet always new.) In the interview, I didn't see any acknowledgment of that background, really, in the ancient Church where, on the threshold for example of moving into the solemn and sobering period of Lent of forty days, license was given to have a grand party, to pull out all the stops and to celebrate. © Grand Valley State University �From Feast to Fast: Honoring the Human Richard A. Rhem Page 2 This morning we have a taste of it with some foot-tapping music and there are Paczkis, and you're invited to indulge to your heart's content, but in the real celebration of Mardi Gras, there is this full release of all that is a part of the human person, the human animal, the recognition that to honor the human is to give opportunity for the expression of the full gamut of that which constitutes us as human beings. So, Mardi Gras was a party that started out as an opportunity to let go and to release and to get it all out of your system as you moved into the somber time of Lent which was marked in the tradition of the Church by self denial, which we have come to mark more in terms of the cultivation of some added dimension of our spiritual experience, not necessarily repression or self-denial, but spiritual enrichment. Nonetheless, in the ancient practice of the Church, there was this emphasis on self-denial and prior to it, on the threshold of it, a grand party, and there was wisdom in that, because we are, after all, creatures who are composed of body and soul, soul and spirit, material ,physicality, sensuality, spirituality - all dwelling within our skin. But, of course, the Church has always also recognized the risk and has been squeamish about the expression of our humanity in such a fashion. I was reminded of this in a book I read while I was gone, Constantine's Sword, by James Carroll. You'll probably be hearing me quote this thing a time or two every week for the next ten weeks or so. It has to be one of the ten best books I've ever read. James Carroll was raised a very observant Roman Catholic. In his childhood and his adolescence, he had a very devout mother who led him on pilgrimages and exposed him to the finest and the richest of spiritual experience in the Catholic tradition, to the extent that he eventually became an ordained priest and even a member of the Jesuit Order. Eventually, James Carroll came to his own personal conviction that that was not what he was cut out for. He left the order. He is a writer, a journalist, married, with a son and a daughter. He continues, according to his own description of himself, as a faithful, if critical, Roman Catholic. The point of my story is this: the Church has always been squeamish about the expression of the human, particularly in its sensuality, its physicality, in its bodily expression, and James Carroll, wanting to bring his wife and his two children on a pilgrimage to Europe where he had grown up, where his father had been in the upper echelons of the military in Germany after the Second World War. They came eventually to St. Peter's itself, in Rome and, as they approached, the Vatican guard stopped them and would not let them enter because his little daughter, just a child, had her knees exposed, because she had a little mini-skirt on. James Carroll, who was raised in the very heart and center of the Church, deeply traditioned, priest and Jesuit, and all the rest, says in this book that he saw his little daughter humiliated at the doors of St. Peter's. Suddenly it rushed over him – everything of which he had experienced a failure of the Catholic Church, that © Grand Valley State University �From Feast to Fast: Honoring the Human Richard A. Rhem Page 3 failure being the denial of the human, that squeamishness before the full humanity and its expression. I could identify a little bit with him because I had been turned down at St. Peter's myself for wearing Bermuda shorts and, taking many people there over the years, I always warned them to bring a scarf and have their shoulders covered, and fully covered kneecaps. Nonetheless, what he experienced was a moment of insight. He credited his non-Catholic wife with being more adept at dealing with situations like this than himself. The wife took the little girl off to the side and kind of skinnied her little skirt down until it covered her knees, and then took her sweater and covered her bare midriff and they went through with flying colors. The story, of course, simply points to that which has marked so much of the Church, its moralism, its inability to deal with the flesh. Now, I started out by saying the Mardi Gras was particularly that opportunity to do that. But, on the other side of the coin, the Church has been so crimped and so cramped in the full expression of human being. When I read Carroll's narration, I was reminded of a story of my own which happened over thirty years ago down in Williamsburg, Virginia, looking at some of those old Colonial buildings and taking a tour of Williamsburg. We came to this building, a lovely building, an upstairs hall, lots of windows, nice wooden floor, and over in the corner there were some wine vats and then some chairs stacked up. The tour guide said, just matter-of-factly, that in this hall on Saturday evenings the community would gather for a dance and enjoy a glass of wine together in this space. And then, on Sunday morning, the chairs would be set up and the community would return for divine worship. As I heard that, there was an experience, a moment for me precisely like the moment for James Carroll at the door of St. Peter's. For at that advanced age of my life, wine had never touched my lips, nor had I ever danced one step or the two-step, or whatever they danced when I was growing up, out of religious and moral scruples. It wasn't just that I am clumsy, which I am, but I could not dance. It was one of the things I could not do. As I stood there that bright, summer morning in this hall flooded with light with its wine vats and its dance floor and the chairs that on Sunday were filled with worshipers, I had one of those "Aha" moments, one of those Epiphany moments when I realize that I was living a truncated existence, that there was a whole spectrum of life of which I was not a part, which was civil and decent and lovely and grand, and I had been so crimped that there was no balance in my life, no balance between Saturday night spent in an enjoyable fashion and Sunday morning spent in religious devotion. I didn't know those things could go together. And so, for me, it was also a moment of insight and I realized that there was something lacking in my own traditional experience and nurture, and frankly, in my ministry. This morning, I tell these stories simply to make the point, as we are on the threshold of another Lent, that it is in the honoring of the full spectrum of our © Grand Valley State University �From Feast to Fast: Honoring the Human Richard A. Rhem Page 4 humanity that we best honor God and best find our own human fulfillment, for we have in the Church not done a very good job of honoring that full spectrum. The Psalmist speaks so profoundly in this regard when he speaks of the love of God. Certainly there is sin and transgression, but he says, as the heavens are high above the earth, so great is God's love for those who fear him, and as far as the east is from the west, so far has God removed our transgressions from us. And then he goes on in what I think is just so profound: "For God knows our frame; God remembers we are dust." And, of course, it is a reference to the Creation story where the Creator in the midst of a garden of delight, Eden, a garden of blessing, forms the human being out of the mud, the stuff, the earth, and then breathes in the breath of life so that that mud becomes a living being or a living soul. What the Jewish people have known and maintained in terms of balance so much better than we in the Christian Church is that the whole human being is made up of that physicality and spirituality, and that both must be honored and allowed to come to expression. What happened in the New Testament, and you can take a line from Paul to Augustine to John Calvin, and you have a terrible distortion of the human being. Paul hinting at original sin. It was Augustine who formulated the doctrine of original sin, and of course, it was trumped by Calvin, as well, in the Reformation period. But, to take the Creation story which in its Jewish format is a story about the Creator creating a creature who has physicality and spirituality, who is put to a test, who fails the test, but who is tested again and fails again and tested again and fails again. There are about four falls in those early chapters of Genesis. There is not a "Fall," as though there was an original couple that ate an ancient apple that marked forever the rest of the human race. To do that to the story is to miss the story and all of its profundity. But, that's what happened in the Christian Church so that, to be human became synonymous with being sinner, and so to be human was not something to be trumpeted, but rather almost something to be ashamed of, something that needed to be screwed down and restricted and repressed and, consequently, many of us have lived with a bad conscience about that shadow side, to use Jung's term, and have lived with the denial of much of our humanity that is simply a part of being a human being with physicality and spirituality. Mardi Gras at its best was the attempt to allow people to kick over the traces and have a ball, to be just a little bit naughty, if you will, but to enjoy themselves fully, fully cognizant of the fact that they were entering into a period when they were called to more sober reflection and the pursuit of spirituality. If we would honor the image of God within us, if we would allow humanity in its wholesomeness and healthy fullness to come to expression, then we'd have to recognize that rhythm from feast to fast, from party and celebration to serious intention and disciplined spiritual experience, and to do this is to allow the fully human to come to expression. © Grand Valley State University �From Feast to Fast: Honoring the Human Richard A. Rhem Page 5 It isn't easy. I think the Psalmist, as I said, expressed it as well as it could be expressed. God made us human. Why would God condemn what God created in the human that is physical and spiritual? Jesus ran into it. John, good old John, fire and brimstone preacher looking for the end, all torn up by all of the degeneracy around him, John who had introduced Jesus now has questions. There was too much joy in Galilee for John's liking. There were stories about too much joy connected with Jesus' ministry for John's liking. He sent his disciples to ask, "Are you the one, or was I mistaken? Aren't you the real item?" And Jesus gave him a very ambiguous response. He didn't defend himself, just didn't define himself except by his deeds. He said, "Go tell John what you see - the blind see, the deaf hear, the lame are walking, the prisoners are released." And then he said a very interesting thing, "Happy is the one who is not offended in me." There have been a lot of very sincere, devout, religious people who have been offended in other religious people who have had too much fun, who have enjoyed life to the fullest. And Jesus couldn't have affirmed John more than he did, but he said, "You know what, the one who is least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than great old John." And then he said to the people, acknowledging the fact that this is not an easy thing, "I don't know what to do with you, because it is like children in the marketplace saying, 'Hey, we wanted to play weddings and you didn't want to play weddings. You didn't want to be happy. So, we said, 'Well let's play funerals,' and you said, "We don't want to be sad, either.'" He said, "I don't know what to do with you. John comes neither eating or drinking and you say he has a demon. I come eating and drinking and I'm possessed." It is not easy. Happy is the person who is not offended in another person's joy and expression of their spirituality in a celebration. It is ironic that this morning between services one of my dear old friends came up to me and said, "I got a letter from a friend of mine telling me how awful is Christ Community and how terrible are you. You wouldn't believe it." I said, "Oh, yes, I would." Happy is the person who is not offended in the joy and the celebration as we seek to give expression to the fullness of our human nature, after all, in the image of God. Lent is coming, but in the meantime, have another Paczki. References: James Carroll. Constantine’s Sword: The Church and the Jews: A History. New York: Houghton Miflin Company, 2001. © Grand Valley State University � Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Richard A. Rhem Collection Description An account of the resource Text and sound recordings of the sermons, prayers, services, and articles of Richard Rhem, pastor emeritus of Christ Community Church in Spring Lake, Michigan, where he served for 37 years. Starting in the mid 1980's, Rhem began to question some of the traditional Christian dogma that he had been espousing from the pulpit. That questioning was a first step in a long and interesting spiritual journey, one that he openly shared with his congregation. His journey is important, in part because it is reflective of the questioning, the yearnings, and the gradual revision of beliefs that many persons in this part of the century have experienced and continue to experience. It is important also because of the affirming and inclusive way his questioning was done and his thinking evolved. His sermons and other written and spoken materials together document the steps in his journey as it took a turn in 1985, yet continued to revolve around the framework and liturgies of the Christian calendar. Subject The topic of the resource Clergy--Michigan Reformed Church in America Christ Community Church (Spring Lake, Mich.) Religion Interfaith worship Sermons Sound Recordings Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Rhem, Richard A. Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived <a href="https://gvsu.lyrasistechnology.org/repositories/2/resources/514">Richard A. Rhem papers (KII-01)</a> Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Special Collections & University Archives. Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Kaufman Interfaith Institute Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource <a href="http://rightsstatements.org/page/InC/1.0/?language=en">In Copyright</a> Language A language of the resource English Type The nature or genre of the resource Sound Text Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context KII-01 Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant 1981-2014 Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource audio/mp3 text/pdf Sound A resource primarily intended to be heard. Examples include a music playback file format, an audio compact disc, and recorded speech or sounds. Event Epiphany VI Scripture Text Psalm 103:14 Location The location of the interview Christ Community Church, Spring Lake, MI References James Carroll. Constantine's Sword: The Church and the Jews: A History. Houghton Mifflin Company, 2001. Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context KII-01_RA-0-20020210 Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2002-02-10 Title A name given to the resource From Feast to Fast: Honoring the Human Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Richard A. Rhem Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource <a href="http://rightsstatements.org/page/InC/1.0/?language=en">In Copyright</a> Subject The topic of the resource Clergy--Michigan Reformed Church in America Christ Community Church (Spring Lake, Mich.) Sermons Relation A related resource Richard A. Rhem - An Archive of Sermons, Prayers, Talks and Stories: http://richardrhem.org/ Language A language of the resource eng Type The nature or genre of the resource Sound Text Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource audio/mp3 application/pdf Description An account of the resource A sermon given by Richard A. Rhem (Dick) on February 10, 2002 entitled "From Feast to Fast: Honoring the Human", on the occasion of Epiphany VI, at Christ Community Church, Spring Lake, MI. Scripture references: Psalm 103:14. Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Lemmen Library and Archives Celebration of Life Epiphany https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/f2bc2074584740741352551f0f40583d.mp3 cd922a8aa2af1f4a1fe8708882462bb5 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Richard A. Rhem Collection Description An account of the resource Text and sound recordings of the sermons, prayers, services, and articles of Richard Rhem, pastor emeritus of Christ Community Church in Spring Lake, Michigan, where he served for 37 years. Starting in the mid 1980's, Rhem began to question some of the traditional Christian dogma that he had been espousing from the pulpit. That questioning was a first step in a long and interesting spiritual journey, one that he openly shared with his congregation. His journey is important, in part because it is reflective of the questioning, the yearnings, and the gradual revision of beliefs that many persons in this part of the century have experienced and continue to experience. It is important also because of the affirming and inclusive way his questioning was done and his thinking evolved. His sermons and other written and spoken materials together document the steps in his journey as it took a turn in 1985, yet continued to revolve around the framework and liturgies of the Christian calendar. Subject The topic of the resource Clergy--Michigan Reformed Church in America Christ Community Church (Spring Lake, Mich.) Religion Interfaith worship Sermons Sound Recordings Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Rhem, Richard A. Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived <a href="https://gvsu.lyrasistechnology.org/repositories/2/resources/514">Richard A. Rhem papers (KII-01)</a> Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Special Collections & University Archives. Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Kaufman Interfaith Institute Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource <a href="http://rightsstatements.org/page/InC/1.0/?language=en">In Copyright</a> Language A language of the resource English Type The nature or genre of the resource Sound Text Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context KII-01 Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant 1981-2014 Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource audio/mp3 text/pdf Sound A resource primarily intended to be heard. Examples include a music playback file format, an audio compact disc, and recorded speech or sounds. Event Mardi Gras Sunday Scripture Text Psalm 148:1-14, Psalm 149:1-5, Luke 7:18-35 Location The location of the interview Christ Community Church, Spring Lake, MI References Gertrud Mueller Nelson, To Dance With God: Family Ritual & Community Celebration, 1986 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context KII-01_RA-0-19950226 Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1995-02-16 Title A name given to the resource From Feasting to Fasting Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Richard A. Rhem Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource <a href="http://rightsstatements.org/page/InC/1.0/?language=en">In Copyright</a> Subject The topic of the resource Clergy--Michigan Reformed Church in America Christ Community Church (Spring Lake, Mich.) Sermons Relation A related resource Richard A. Rhem - An Archive of Sermons, Prayers, Talks and Stories: http://richardrhem.org/ Language A language of the resource eng Type The nature or genre of the resource Sound Text Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource audio/mp3 application/pdf Description An account of the resource A sermon given by Richard A. Rhem (Dick) on February 16, 1995 entitled "From Feasting to Fasting", on the occasion of Mardi Gras Sunday, at Christ Community Church, Spring Lake, MI. Scripture references: Psalm 148:1-14, Psalm 149:1-5, Luke 7:18-35. Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Lemmen Library and Archives Community of Faith Liturgical Calendar Psychology https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/a10c58f6c361dd2f5527a8254ebdadb3.jpg 3edc1eddd03ac76aecd5649c1ab6b4fb Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Robert H. Merrill photographs Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Merrill, Robert H., 1881-1955 Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1909/1950 Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Robert H. Merrill papers (RHC-222) Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource In Copyright Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context RHC-222 Description An account of the resource Photographs, negatives, and lantern slides digitized from the papers of engineer and archaeologist Robert H. Merrill. A Grand Rapids native, Merrill held an accomplished career as a civil engineer. He founded the company Spooner & Merrill, which held offices in Grand Rapids and Chicago. From 1919-1921, Merrill lived in China, working as Assistant Principal Engineer on a reconstruction of the Grand Canal - the oldest and longest canal system in the world. Merrill became fascinated by archaeology, and among other projects, he traveled to the Uxmal Pyramids in Yucatan, Mexico, with a research expedition from Tulane University. Merrill's photo collection includes images of his travels and projects, friends and family. Still Image A static visual representation. Examples include paintings, drawings, graphic designs, plans and maps. Recommended best practice is to assign the type Text to images of textual materials. Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context Merrill_FilmPacks_4_004 Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1937-03-16 Title A name given to the resource From Janiculum to M. Hadrian Description An account of the resource Black and white photograph of Rome taken from the Janiculum. Subject The topic of the resource Rome (Italy) Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Robert H. Merrill papers (RHC-222) Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource In Copyright Type The nature or genre of the resource Image Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource image/jpg Language A language of the resource eng Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Merrill, Robert H., 1881-1955 Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Lemmen Library and Archives