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Grand Valley State University
Veterans History Project
Todd Herrick
(32:59)
(00:35) Army Reserve
•
•
•
•
•
Todd was born on January 19, 1971 and enlisted in the Army Reserve in 1989
He started as a Private E-1 training in Jackson, SC
He was promoted to Sergeant First Class E-7
Todd got his Masters Degree at the University of Notre Dame and then became a
commissioned officer
He took command of the 855th Quartermaster Company in August of 2002
(1:15) Training
•
•
•
•
•
•
Todd went to basic officer training in Virginia
He was the detachment commander of an oil platoon
He took over the quartermaster position after that
They were mobilized January 23, 2003 and began their MOS training
Many men trained in marksmanship, survival skill, communications, and first-aid
It was different and unique being in command; Todd felt more comfortable and confident
(3:20) Iraq
• The Army had initially prepared to enter the country through Turkey, but Turkey’s
government had changed their mind
• The Army re-routed their operation to go through Kuwait, but the country had not been
equipped for that amount of land traffic
• They spent a lot of time on the road and Todd spent much time keeping track of supplies
• He made many good friends, especially with the platoon leaders, but had to also keep a
professional distance from the younger soldiers
• The base camp was not yet well developed and communication was difficult, but it was
running very smoothly after one year
(8:15) Similarities between Desert Storm and Operation Iraqi Freedom
• Both conflicts were different in the way that that civilian population interacted with the
soldiers, the landscape and architecture did not change much
• The second time Todd went much farther into Iraq and saw a lot more of the country
• He had lots more responsibilities and freedom of movement
• Memories from his second time seem to be much more vivid
�(10:33) Conditions in Iraq
• Many of the civilians were living in poor conditions that we would consider uncivilized
• The breaking down of vehicles was always scary, even during the day
• They were never lacking in fuel, water or food, but did not always have the best
equipment
(13:40) Desert Storm
• Desert Storm started with Desert Shield, which was a long logistical build up within
Saudi Arabia
• Todd was in college waiting for his reserve company to be mobilized
• He got a call while home on Christmas break asking if he would join a different company
in Tennessee that was short on men
• Todd volunteered to join the 346th MP Detachment, leaving the 478th Engineering
Battalion
• The transfer was hard for Todd because he was inexperienced and naïve
• He became a supply sergeant and had to learn his duties very quickly
(19:20) Beginning of Desert Storm
• There had been disputes regarding the oil reserves near Kuwait, Iraq, and Saudi Arabia
• Iraq had annexed Kuwait and there was much anxiety that they would move on South
into Saudi Arabia
• US troops entered into Saudi Arabia on August 10, 1990 and continued to build up for 7
months
• The UN demanded that Iraq recognize the sovereignty of Kuwait and later authorized
other organizations and states to use military force against Iraq
• Iraq was out of Kuwait by January, with the operation barely lasting one month
• Todd had arrived in Iraq at midnight and it was well over one hundred degrees and was
later attacked within a few hours after arriving
• He had been the youngest soldier in his group and therefore had the default assignment of
driving and maintaining the vehicles
(25:10) Closing of Desert Storm
• Todd had been working with the support unit of the 800 MP Brigade, processing
prisoners
• The prisoners were later sent back to Iraq or left in the hands of the Saudi government
and they no longer had much to do in the area
• Todd had arrived in the area on January 27th and was already out by May
• Upon arrival in the US, there was much excitement, euphoria, and patriotism
• On the way home, the airline gave them everything and anything they wanted to eat and
drink
�•
His parents threw him a big party and he had a great time
(30:15) Reflection
• Todd had been in the Army Reserve for 19 years and would soon be retiring
• Looking back, he would not change a thing regarding his military experience
• He has had great success, together with huge losses
�
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
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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/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Herrick, Todd (Interview outline and video), 2008
Creator
An entity primarily responsible for making the resource
Herrick, Todd
Description
An account of the resource
Todd Herrick was born on January 19, 1971 and joined the Army Reserve in 1989. He served in transportation and military police units, and went on active duty and served in Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and Iraq during the Gulf War of 1991 and again during the Iraq war in 2003.
Contributor
An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource
Herrick, Taryn (Interviewer)
Publisher
An entity responsible for making the resource available
Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Special Collections & University Archives
Subject
The topic of the resource
Oral history
Veterans History Project (U.S.)
United States--History, Military
Michigan--History, Military
Veterans
United States. Army Reserve
Persian Gulf War, 1991--Personal narratives, American
Iraq War, 2003-2011--Personal narratives, American
Video recordings
Language
A language of the resource
eng
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
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Moving Image
Text
Relation
A related resource
Veterans History Project (U.S.)
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
2008-05-24
Identifier
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HerrickT
Source
A related resource from which the described resource is derived
<a href="https://gvsu.lyrasistechnology.org/repositories/2/resources/455">Veterans History Project Collection, (RHC-27)</a>
Format
The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource
application/pdf
video/mp4
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https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/1954856bd4028a6df1c980f1e57c97de.pdf
fa3868b783ddc30c9d07ff330a63dddf
PDF Text
Text
Grand Valley State University
Veterans' History Project
Darin Jousma
Yugoslav Wars & War on Terror
9 minutes 1 second
(00:00:13) Early Life
-Lived with his parents before enlisting in the Army
-Had a part-time job when he was in high school
(00:00:32) Enlisting in the Army & Training
-Enlisted in the Army in the summer of 1997 after graduating from high school
-Joined the infantry because he liked the idea of being an infantryman
-Training was extremely rough
-Never experienced treatment like that before
(00:01:22) Stationed in Bosnia
-Deployed to Bosnia as part of a peacekeeping force in 1998
-Inspected weapons bunkers and made sure the Serbs were not moving weapons
-No combat
-Remembers going to confiscate weapons from a group of Serbian troops
-The Serbs pulled their weapons and pointed them at the American troops
-American troops radioed in two Apache helicopters to circle the area
-Show of force against the Serbs to show they were no longer in charge
-Serbs dropped their weapons and walked away
(00:03:13) Downtime in the Army
-Read a lot of books
-Played a lot of video games
-Played cards with friends
(00:03:26) Friends in the Army
-Made lifelong friends in the Army
-Drives across the country just to see them
(00:03:45) Contact with Home
-When he was at the barracks in Germany he had access to telephones
-Spent a lot of money on phone cards and calling-collect
-Now, he has Skype and voice chat virtually anywhere in the world
(00:04:27) Stationed in Kuwait
-Got to Kuwait just before Thanksgiving 2004
-Celebrated Thanksgiving and Christmas 2004 in Kuwait
-Wasn't too difficult
-Didn't like being away from home for his birthday though
-Had his birthday in Kuwait shortly before being sent home
(00:05:21) Skills in the Army
-Learned a lot about IT in the Army
-Proved useful in the civilian world
(00:06:02) Current Service Pt. 1
-As of the interview, Darin is in the Michigan National Guard
(00:06:11) Coming Home
-Returning from a deployment is one of the best moments of your life
-Strange to return to a world with hot showers and flushing toilets
�-One thing he missed about deployments was being around and working with close friends
(00:07:13) Stationed at Fort Riley
-Spent a couple years at Fort Riley, Kansas
-Assigned to the 2nd of the 78th Armor
-Most likely 2nd Battalion
-Served as the unit commander's driver
-Fantastic job
-First job he had in the Army where he had a lot of control over his daily schedule
-Mingled with high-ranking officers and saw the command process
(00:08:16) Current Service Pt. 2
-Currently a 2nd lieutenant in the Michigan National Guard
-Will be promoted to 1st lieutenant one month from the interview's date
�
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_JousmaD1843V
Title
A name given to the resource
Jousma, Darin Richard (Interview outline), 2015
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
2015-02-11
Description
An account of the resource
Darin Jousma enlisted in the Army in the summer of 1997 after graduating from high school. He served in Bosnia in 1998 as part of a peacekeeping force helping with the confiscation of weapons and stopping Serbian forces from moving weaponry and ordnance around the country. He was stationed in Kuwait in 2004. He spent a few years at Fort Riley, Kansas with the 2nd Battalion, 78th Armored Regimant and worked as a commander's driver. As of the time of the interview he is in the Michigan National Guard with the rank of 2nd lieutenant and expects to be promoted to 1st lieutenant.
Creator
An entity primarily responsible for making the resource
Jousma, Darin Richard
Contributor
An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource
Jousma, Josh (Interviewer)
Subject
The topic of the resource
Oral history
Veterans History Project (U.S.)
United States--History, Military
Michigan--History, Military
Veterans
Iraq War, 2003-2011--Personal narratives, American
United States. Army
Source
A related resource from which the described resource is derived
<a href="https://gvsu.lyrasistechnology.org/repositories/2/resources/455">Veterans History Project collection, (RHC-27)</a>
Rights
Information about rights held in and over the resource
<a href="http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/">In Copyright</a>
Relation
A related resource
Veterans History Project (U.S.)
Publisher
An entity responsible for making the resource available
Grand Valley State University Libraries. Allendale, Michigan
Language
A language of the resource
eng
Type
The nature or genre of the resource
Text
Format
The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource
application/pdf
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https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/bfd1bbc46c7ae8634ec2279f9aefbbb3.mp4
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PDF Text
Text
Grand Valley State University
Veteran’s History Project
Iraq War
John Kangas Interview
Total Time: 1:13:07
Background
(00:17) Raised in Cedar Springs, MI
o Born in 1981
(00:30) His mom stays at home, and dad works at GM
(00:38) Graduated in 2000
o Became a father shortly after graduating
o Worked, and got laid off
o Was unemployed when 9/11 happened
o Lived with his parents at the time, saw it happen on the news
(1:41) Says that enlisting didn’t have much to do with 9/11, the biggest reason was that
he was unemployed
o Remembers selling coupon books door to door
(2:02) Initially went to the Air Force, but they turned him down because he had a child
(2:18) Went over to the Army
(2:30) Went to recruiting office, took practice test, then to Lansing
o Very high pressure situation
(3:15) According to his test, there were jobs that he qualified for, but half of them were
filled
o Had to pick from 4 choices
o He picked radar
(3:40) Mentions that there is a lot of lying that went on in the recruitment process
(4:20) Radar was considered a combat arms job
o The guy who told him about the job was a career NCO
�
(4:44) Mr. Kangas went on a delayed entry program, lasted two weeks
Training
(5:12) Went to Ft. Sill, Oklahoma, for training
(5:20) As soon as they got there, 2 AM, went to bed
o Remembers reading and writing on the bunk
(5:53) Said the facilities dated to before Vietnam, except for the training sites
(6:20) During the first weeks, his experience depended on knowledge of the military and
regulations, said most of them didn’t know much
o Didn’t understand why they cleaned the barracks at 3 AM in the dark until he got
out and understood the regulations
o It was because the drill sergeants didn’t want to get caught
(7:23) A lot of emphasis on physical training
o Ran 6-8 miles a day, but they were told they only ran 3 miles
o Said he wasn’t in great shape when he got there
o Basic training got him into very good shape
(8:15) Basic training lasted 6 weeks
(8:23) People couldn’t “wash out”, but sometimes people were kicked out
o Those who were trying to figure out how to get out failed, because there was no
way out
(9:22) In his unit, the drill sergeants kept them at the same pace the entire time, even at
graduation and afterwards
o They found out their drill sergeants weren’t getting down time because of 9/11
(10:10) Drill sergeants kicked everyone out after graduation; Mr. Kangas said this was
illegal
(10:30) Went to AIT, got actual job title here
o Stayed at Sill
(11:07) About 4 others he trained with in basic who went over to AIT with him
(11:15) This was where he learned about his job and physical training every morning
�
(11:27) At this level, drill sergeants treated them better
(12:00) In AIT, he learned mobile radar, all on trucks
o About 9 weeks
o A big part of the training was learning how to set up
(13:08) Talks about fire guard duty
o When everyone else is sleeping, someone had to stay up, and they rotated
Overseas
(13:46) Got shipped to Germany after training
(14:00) Sent over in October, 2002 to Bamberg
(14:20) “Joined the fold” on arrival, assigned to a unit
(14:28) Assigned to Unit 1/33, 1st Battalion, 33rd Field Artillery
(14:53) When he first showed up, half of his unit was gone because of rotations
(15:30) Said they were training for Kosovo
(15:57) Used radar to specifically identify mortar positions, looking for aircraft, etc.
(16:11) Spent a year in Germany
(16:22) Woke up, worked out, did radar run times
o If radar wasn’t run, it would break down
o If there wasn’t anything happening, someone would create something for them
to do
o Talks about putting up tents
(17:02) Got weekends and government holidays off
o German holidays would count depending on the sergeant’s opinion
o Drank a lot during his time off
o Tried to fight for his wife and child to come over to Germany, but it was hard to
do
(18:05) Said there was an MWR, had big screen TV, maybe some video games
(18:32) When he first got to Germany, all of the equipment they used was from Vietnam
o They had tape decks, other equipment from the 80’s
�o He heard that Germany was the last to get newer technology
(20:06) Found out he was going to Iraq 8 months into his first assignment
(20:37) When the Iraq conflict first started, they couldn’t go anywhere at first because
the Germans were angry and protesting
o Couldn’t go out to drink
o Mostly locked down
o Watched CNN just as much as civilians
(21:54) Mentions that in Iraq, they stayed in one spot, protecting the bases
(22:27) Mr. Kangas feels that they should have spent more time showing them how to
use the radar because that was the main focus
o There was some training though
(23:05) Went to Iraq in 2004 during winter
o About February
(23:40) First they went to Kuwait, did some training and learned more about what
they’d be doing in Iraq
(24:04) They took all of their equipment and convoyed to their destination
o 4 day drive through Iraq
(24:17) In the first month, they were at Balad, Anaconda Air Force Base
(24:44) Mr. Kangas said the drive there was “brutal,” no sleep
o He was driving, and they picked up hitch hikers
(25:20) Says that if their vehicle looked impervious, the enemies would understand it to
be impervious
(26:20) Remembers that IED strikes would back things up and make driving across the
country even longer
o Convoys delayed by a half an hour, etc
o Emphasis put on keeping track of convoys
(27:11) At Balad, there weren’t enough radar units
o Needed 6, they only had 4
(28:06) Went to a small base in Iraq that was about 30 miles north of the previous one
�o Got mortared every day
o It was in the middle of a town, so it was hard to point the radar specifically
(29:05) There were other parts of the 1st infantry division there
(29:22) At that point, they were just defending themselves
o Pointed radar and sent infantry over to handle it
(29:50) Stayed there for about 2 months and moved to another base which was
between Balad and Fallujah
o They lived in an old hanger
o Cleaned it up
o Easier place to operate than before
o Two different types of radars, Mr. Kangas was on the smaller one
o The big radar was large enough to jam the radars at Anaconda
o At the same time, the enemy was making the same adjustments
o “Cat and mouse”
(32:06) Talked about civilian populations
o Stayed “hunkered down”
(33:17) Stayed in the 3rd place most of his deployment
(33:54) His total time in Iraq was a year
(34:09) Wasn’t really sure how long he’d be staying
o When they got there, their sister unit was replaced by the 1st Cavalry
o They went home, got off the plane and back on
o They also thought they may not be there a whole year
(35:10) All of the 1st infantry division went at the same time
o His battalion was split up because of their job
o His group was called a battery, set up just like a field artillery unit
(36:12) 6 guys in his radar unit
(36:36) There were ups and downs in their morale
o Going into the war, they were told it would end soon, told to prepare for only
being in 6 months
�o After they got out, 15 month deployments started happening
(37:16) Says his section was lucky to have no casualties, but a lot of close calls
(37:44) He did see damaging effects of battle; mentions that wounded people from the
insurgency came in and out
o Talked about scandals, heard screams
o Saw casualties, but nobody in his unit got hurt
(38:31) Reaction to getting mortared became 2nd nature because it happened so often
o One officer was skittish
(39:17) Said there was nothing else to do but accept the reality of being attacked
(39:38) Used to be random targets
(41:53) After he finished a year, 3 day process to Germany
o At the time, they took a military flight right back to Germany as opposed to
staying in Kuwait or a couple of weeks
(43:00) Mr. Kangas had 6-8 months left on his enlistment
o Spent the rest of his time in Germany
(43:20) He said the Germans weren’t very happy to see them
o But their economy depended on them
(44:31) Learned very little German because most of the time he was training
o Everyone on the base knew English
(45:01) At the end of his enlistment, they tried to get him to reenlist
o Told him he would get recalled
o High pressure situation
o The impression he got was that they told him he would fail
o They offered him a choice of duty station, enlistment bonus, and a guarantee for
the next rank
o Mr. Kangas felt this wasn’t right
(46:40) He was a specialist E4; corporal
(47:00) When one first enlists, it’s an 8 year commitment
o 4 years active, 4 years inactive
�o At any point within that time frame, he could get called back
(47:34) Got back to US in October 2005
o Was on unemployment for 6 months
o Got to spend time with wife and daughter
o Got to travel around the country a bit
o Worked at Costco
o Eventually worked at a dial-up internet company, then to Comcast
o Tech support at Comcast
(48:19) After working at Comcast for about a year, he got a letter with orders
o Had to call a number and set up plane tickets
(49:18) Sent to Ft. Benning, Georgia, for two weeks
o Didn’t know where he was going after that
o Spent the first week in civilian clothes; there was a lot of drinking
o In-processing, medical stuff
o There were people there who’d been seriously injured and they were trying to
push them through
o Lots of retirees came back
o Also Vietnam vets
o He said that older people were trying to get back in with the promise of more
money, and the younger people were trying to get out
(51:31) It was supposed to be a refresher in basic training, but Mr. Kangas didn’t feel
that it was
o AIT training was the same thing; also spent time drinking
o Nobody knew what was going on
o At Ft. Sill, he knew he would be supporting Operation Iraqi Freedom, but didn’t
know the capacity of it
o The last two days there, got orders, sent to Ft. Hood, Texas
(52:54) Said that nobody knew who they were at Ft. Hood
o At airport for 4 hours
�o Medical units who were rotating out picked them up; they didn’t know what to
do with them
o (53:44) Did nothing for two weeks but watch movies
o Was attached to the Wyoming National Guard
o Unit was 1st in the 15th Fires Brigade
(54:20) They went through an interview process for a job
o Found out they would be driving trucks from Kuwait to Iraq
o Had nothing to do what they’d previously done in the military
(55:40) At Ft. Hood, they went through a crash course of what it meant to be in the
Army
o 4 months of deployment in Ft. Hood
o Went back to Iraq
(57:19) Stayed in Kuwait first, like the first time
(57:51) Went back to Iraq on July 4th, 2009
o Same situation as before, except less attacks
o Never fired his weapon once during this time
o Drove 4-8 hours from Kuwait to Iraq back and forth
o 7-8 months of this
o (59:17) They drove out at night; there wasn’t really a strict schedule
o On a night time schedule
(1:01:05) When he got recalled, there were a lot of women in his unit (none the first
time)
(1:01:40) Said that work was done effectively, but worried that if something happened,
he may not be able to trust the guy next to him
(1:03:00) More than a quarter of his unit was made of returning veterans
o They stuck together
(1:03:35) Said there wasn’t any problems in his unit with women, but heard about a lot
of rape that happened in other units
o Because of this, there were sexual harassment briefs
�
(1:05:30) Said it was combative between his unit and the National Guard unit
(1:06:26) Saw that stress was getting to others in the recall unit even though it was a
lower combat situation
o Stress was 10x higher
o Some people were so angry about being recalled; stuck the entire year
(1:07:00) He said after the first time they lightly talked about PTSD, but not much
because they saw it as a sign of weakness
o Talked about a guy who needed help, addicted to sleeping pills, said he needed
help himself, ended up dying in Iraq on a motorcycle
o On the 2nd deployment, the mentality that PTSD was weakness had changed
(1:08:25) Said that basic training was made easier the second time
o They were trying to mitigate suicides
(1:09:15) Mr. Kangas bought his own plane ticket home after he was done
Going Home
(1:09:54) When they got back to Ft. Hood, it was a race to leave
(1:10:03) Got back home in late March or early April of 2010
(1:10:12) Worked for a few months, laid off, was on unemployment
(1:10:19) Had plans to go back to school
(1:10:31) Said that he learned to be punctual, other positive effects, but something
negative is alcoholism
o Knows many people who served that drink a lot
(1:11:24) When they got back to Germany, drug use was high among military members
o Meth and ecstasy available
(1:12:26) He says the stress of his job was unique; sometimes sat in the box for days at a
time by his self waiting for something to happen
o Complete boredom to absolute fear in a second
(1:12:56) Says that he would do it all over again
�
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
KangasJ1115V
Title
A name given to the resource
Kangas, John (Interview outline and video), 2011
Creator
An entity primarily responsible for making the resource
Kangas, John
Description
An account of the resource
John Kangas was born in Cedar Springs, Michigan in 1981. After graduating high school he was unemployed for awhile before enlisting in the army in 2001. He received his training at Ft. Sill. He worked the radar, assigned to 1st Battalion, 33rd Field Artillery. Mr. Kangas spent almost a year in Germany before going to Iraq. He worked on three different bases in or near Balad and Fallujah while staying in Iraq for a year. He then spent more time in Germany before going home. He was recalled into the military in 2009 and served in Iraq for another 7-8 months driving a truck back and forth from Kuwait to Iraq.
Contributor
An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource
Smither, James
Kentwood Historic Preservation Commission (Kentwood, Mich.)
WKTV
WKTV (Wyoming, Mich.)
Publisher
An entity responsible for making the resource available
Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Special Collections & University Archives
Subject
The topic of the resource
Oral history
Veterans History Project (U.S.)
United States--History, Military
Michigan--History, Military
Veterans
Video recordings
United States. Army
Iraq War, 2003-2011--Personal narratives, American
Language
A language of the resource
eng
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
Moving Image
Text
Relation
A related resource
Veterans History Project (U.S.)
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
2011-06-09
Source
A related resource from which the described resource is derived
<a href="https://gvsu.lyrasistechnology.org/repositories/2/resources/455">Veterans History Project Collection, (RHC-27)</a>
Format
The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource
application/pdf
video/mp4
-
https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/b2779b2581d3e16c8cb95feb8e962f56.mp4
2eccd7fd2151ccb6e355f57fea74a68b
https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/0a0b6eb0dc2ae8d5bb6ee7d916a943ab.pdf
ed1dd17d86d116398872f25ae509733d
PDF Text
Text
Grand Valley State University
Veterans History Project Interview
Name of War: Iraq
Interviewee: Joshua Karr
Length of Interview: 01:02:30
Background
He was born in 1979 in Grand Rapids, Michigan.
His family grew up in Wyoming, but by the time he was born they lived in Marne, where
he grew up.
His dad is a Master Electrician. His mom worked at the Post Office.
He started high school at Kenowa, but his parents decided to home school him for the last
three years of his high school.
He finished school in 1998.
After school, he went out and got himself a couple jobs. He was a cook at 2 or 3 different
restaurants in the following 3 or 4 years.
When the 9/11 attacks happened he was actually sleeping. He had an apartment with his
brother, who had woken him up to watch the T.V.
At first he didn’t know why he got up to see a plane hit a building, but then he saw the
second one get hit. And then someone hit the pentagon, and he knew it was war.
He would speak to his recruiter 2 months later and months after that he was in boot camp.
He had considered joining the military before. When he was 18, he spoke to a recruiter,
but decided that it wasn’t for him at the time.
He had checked in with the Navy when he was 18 because they had sent him some junk
mail saying that his test scores had qualified him for the nuclear program.
When he did decide to sign up for the military, he just decided it was his turn to go to
war. He figured that every generation has to serve and it was his turn.
His dad was the only man from his immediate family who did not go into the military.
He was going to but his wife said that he couldn’t because he had kids.
Two of his brothers were Navy; one of them was a lifer. He had another brother who was
a Marine.
After he decided to join, he had to go through some pre-screening at the recruiter’s office.
They checked for height and weight requirements, criminal record and other basic things.
There would be further criminal screening and ongoing physical tests after that.
He would go to boot camp at Great Lakes, in Chicago.
Great Lakes (4:30)
When he got there, it was the only Navy basic training camp left. They wanted to
centralize because they felt too spread out having three different locations.
There were about 10 groups of 80 men each who would be graduating every Friday.
The training that he got was 8-10 weeks long.
�
The men in his group were from all over the country, a couple from a different part of the
world. They were mostly between 18 and 20. One guy was 17½ because his parents
signed a release to get him in early. He doesn’t think there was anyone in his division
who was older than he was.
They were close enough in age that they didn’t feel so different from each other.
The basic training program didn’t allow anyone to feel differently from one another
either.
During his training he would have some classroom time, but it was difficult to stay awake
during that because they also had a sleep deprivation program as well.
No one would sleep more than 3 hours on any given night all through basic training.
There was a lot of physical training. He remembers a lot of marching, but they didn’t
run. He said that they were made to run everywhere in summer, but he was there in
winter.
Some of the guys who were below average had to run everywhere anyway.
Because of the training style, he would still have to run every day in boot camp.
The main emphasis of the camp was discipline and order.
They wanted the men there to learn the nautical terms, learn how to wear uniforms, etc.
but the main thing they had to learn was to shut up and follow orders.
Adjusting to the lifestyle varied among the men of his group. Some of them would never
figure it out.
They actually have a reverse training transfer to keep you in boot camp indefinitely. One
guy was there for 9 months and petitioned to get a promotion. You were supposed to be
promoted to E2 after 9 months.
Some guys there lived for it and it was much easier for them.
One of the drill instructors he had who was kind of scary. He would not speak until it
was time to discipline someone. Another one threw a lot of tantrums and was more lively
than frightening. There was one who was just like one of the guys.
He figured that was just the way things worked out, to have different kinds of drill
instructors. In retrospect, he thinks it may have been that way on purpose to keep things
balanced.
Once he is done with boot camp, he went to Machinist School, which was also in Great
Lakes. (8:34)
He had to wait 3 days to have the bus take them basically across the street.
This training was more academic. There was probably 15-20 guys to a class.
It was the basics of mechanical works, including what things were called to how they
worked.
He would get a little bit of everything from electrical to plumbing.
All the instructors were military Machinist Mates, except for one of his classes was an
engineer.
All of them were NCO’s mostly E6’s, a couple were E5’s.
There were different phases of liberty. The one he was in allowed him to roam freely,
but he had to be in his uniform if he was coming or going from base.
There was not much to do around there, mostly he and his friends would take the train up
and down the Lake Michigan coast and hit different cities along the way. Kenosha was
probably where they spent the most time.
�
After this portion of his training was done, he got 2 weeks of home leave to go see his
family before shipping out.
He would go to San Diego, where he served aboard the USS Constellation for about a
year.
Active Duty (11:45)
The Pacific
The “Conny” was a huge aircraft carrier, about three football fields long on top. It was
tall, about 8 decks and 11 levels.
It took about 3,000 men to actually run the boat and another 2-3,000 to man the aircraft
on there.
The enlisted men slept in rooms filled with racks. He measured his once, it was 1½ x 2 x
6 feet long. 18 cubic feet was pretty standard for each person.
If you were taller than that your feet get crunched up and you don’t sleep as well as some
of the smaller guys.
There were two main mess decks for food. You basically stood in line until you got your
food. Standing in line was probably one of the most important parts of his training, at
least he thinks.
He had never actually seen the ocean before he joined the Navy.
When they had first gone out to sea, he had expected there to be some sort of sea sickness
but there wasn’t. The carrier was just too big to be unbalanced. He could feel them go
under way, but there was no rocking of any sort.
He was in the fire room side of the main space, which made him a boiler operator. Since
he was brand new, he was a messenger. He went around and took readings of the
equipment and reported them to the guy who was actually supposed to take the readings
so he could sign the log.
He would run to whatever shop he needed to visit because that’s what messengers did.
He did that for about 7 months.
There was always something new happening, so it was never too boring.
They had really pushed for different hours of guard time. At first it was 6 hours of guard
time and 6 hours of down time. Most of them spent their down time sleeping because it
was so hot.
Eventually they got down to 4 and 8 and he managed to qualify for an upper level man.
This job was a lot more interesting than his last one because he got to control the valves
that controlled the boiler feed water.
The boiler was a 1200 PI Foster boiler, which burned diesel fuel.
The keel was laid in 1968 and the boilers were original equipment. It took a lot to keep
them maintained. Almost every time they shut it down there was something they had to
fix.
The control systems were newer. The original watch team would have needed 50 men to
operate it. They were down to about 12 men.
So having about 5,000 men on the ship was more efficient than they were before. This
allowed for more airplanes to be on the ship.
�
When he was based in San Diego, they were never in port there for more than a couple of
weeks.
They were getting ready to deploy so they were out at sea a lot testing equipment.
Most of the little trials they did lasted anywhere from 1-3 weeks, but some of them went
longer.
At some point, they did circles around Hawaii.
They would also go through the China Sea. They would stop by Hong Kong and
Singapore.
They would also go into the Persian Gulf. But when they got him to the base, he had to
go home.
So when they got to the base, they got him on a plane and finished going around the
world from there back to Grand Rapids.
He would fly back from Grand Rapids and got back on the ship when the war was
officially declared in Iraq.
They all knew it was time for the war and the only reason that they watched the news was
to find out if they had declared war yet.
While they were headed across the Pacific and into the Gulf, they mostly worked and
slept. There were a lot of jokes going on to try and keep the place lively.
Mostly they just worked and slept.
When they flew him out they used both military and civilian airplanes. He was not in
uniform because they were so close to war.
Once they found out the war was official, everyone was very happy.
They had kept the boat going, but it was pointless. All they did was drive it around in
circles. Now, they had what they finally signed up to do. (22:10)
Watching the news didn’t really help anyway, because they did not know what was really
going on. They didn’t see the things that he saw.
One time he saw a goat floating in the water, dead and bloated. Mostly though, he saw
valves and gauges.
There were ships all over when they got to the Arabian Sea. He saw ships from Canada,
Australia, Britain, and many more from all over.
They did manage to get into port at Bahrein and when they got there, they were told that
there was a curse that if you did not go and see the tree of life, which was a tree growing
out in the desert, that you were doomed to go back 7 times. He’s been there 6 times and
has never seen the tree.
He spent about 4 months in that tour in the Gulf.
From there they would go to Australia. By the time they had arrived there, they would be
the third aircraft carrier to dock. They would land in Perth.
The Australian people were happy that the soldiers were there to help boost their
economy, but they were kind of sick of soldiers by the time that his ship arrived there.
During his time at sea, he would get a chance to go on land and visit at the places his ship
stopped. As a junior enlisted, his liberty time was around 8 or 9 when the sun when
down before he had to be back aboard the ship.
In the friendlier countries, he was allowed to stay out all night. So when he got to
Australia, he got off the ship and got a hotel room. He slept for about 18 hours because
there was nothing there to wake him up.
�
In Hong Kong, the civilians did not really notice them. He and his buddy got lost and
tried to get directions from this older white man, but he didn’t understand them.
His buddy would also lose his ATM card while in Hong Kong as well. He put it in an
ATM machine and he didn’t know if it was because you were supposed to put the
numbers in a different order or what, but they heard the shredder going in the machine
and he lost his card.
They finally found an office building and walked in. He felt like he had asked it 100
times, “Does anybody here speak English?” and this little guy popped up and was very
excited, saying that he spoke English. He was very happy to help them out.
After they left Australia, they reported into Hawaii, Pear Harbor, and stayed there for a
couple of days.
It was fun. He remembers a couple of older guys talking about the exchange rate there,
but he didn’t believe them. Turns out you did have to exchange. It was very expensive
as almost everything was twice as much as the dollar bills that they had.
From there they went back to San Diego.
They would decommission the Constellation when they got back.
The crew would spend a lot of time gutting the ship and trying to put it back in its
original condition. They were not going to scrap it, but they were basically mothballing
it. This would take a couple of months.
He stayed on the ship as long as he would let him. He did not want to stay in a barracks.
The Atlantic (29:00)
When they were done with the ship, they could decide what they wanted to do next.
While he was on the phone with his detailer, someone told him to go to Air Conditioning
and Refrigeration School. So he did. And from there he would head to the east coast.
He would go to Air Conditioning and Refrigeration School, around the Norfolk area for
about 10 weeks.
That was mostly classroom education with a little bit of laboratory. They knew that there
was no point in really giving them a lot of hands-on experience because he would either
be put on a new boat, which wouldn’t really need maintenance, or he would be put on an
older one, where he would learn on the job.
When he was in Port, it was mostly like a 9-5 job, but it was 6-4, so he got a lot of time
off.
The people there didn’t have a lot of opinion on the military as they were so used to it
being right there in town. It wasn’t like a small town where there was a lot of support for
soldiers, but they did not hate them either.
He would be assigned to the USS Enterprise. It would be around the same time as the
Constellation, so a bit older.
This ship would be nuclear powered.
He had to operate and maintain huge air conditioning units on the ship. One of them
weighed 300 tons!
He would also have to maintain refrigeration units as well, weighing about 5 tons.
He would also have to maintain all of the peripheral units as well, like the ice makers and
the water pipes.
�
It was a lot of work keeping them maintained because it was all old equipment.
They had plenty of men to keep things running. There was more work sometimes more
than others, but they had a pretty good maintenance system. However, some things just
can’t be prevented.
The nastiest job he had as a repairman was when he had to climb into the mud drum on
the Constellation. It was gross.
On both of the ships he had to work in the bilge. There are a lot of leaks and it is really
gross down there.
His work ranges from repairing pipes to replacing motors, to getting them repainted.
When he finished the schooling, he would have to fly out to meet the Enterprise, which
had already gone out to sea.
After landing near a port, they took a private ex-military ship out to the Enterprise. When
they got close enough they took a Puma to the carrier.
When they got there, there was an induct orientation. They had a two-week course that
went over everything. They covered racial sensitivity to where places are located on the
ship.
About 10% of the crew was female and they had all the same jobs as the men did.
The atmosphere on the ship was uniform based. It didn’t matter your color or your
gender, it depended on what uniform you wore. (39:30)
Khaki enlisted are E7-E9, there are kind of elite and a group all of their own. Their job is
mostly paperwork and office work. They didn’t really do anything anymore.
To get to E7 was around 15 years, so many of these are career people. Most of them
stayed in about 30 years.
When there was time off you could go to the movie. He went to a bar in downtown
Norfolk.
When you are at sea, there was closed circuit T.V. on board. Sometimes, Hollywood
stars would come on their ships and promote their movies. They would get to watch
them before anybody else.
Ben Affleck came out with his movie Paycheck. The movie was awful.
Drew Carey came out once, some baseball player as well.
Sometimes they would get time to use the email or the phone. The phone was almost
impossible to get through, but the emailing was a little more convenient. There times
when they shut down the computers so no one could use them. When they turn them
back on, there was usually a line of people waiting to use them.
He likes the snail mail, aka the postal service mail. Part of it was because his mom
worked for the post office. Another thing was because it would almost a guarantee that
you would get something. There would be times when some would accidentally get
knocked overboard and your care packages were not always in good condition.
He wrote home a lot. When he say something was really neat to him he would write
home.
He doesn’t know about mail, but all electronic communication is subject to monitoring
and termination if necessary.
When he was on the Enterprise they went to the Persian Gulf. There was a port there
near Dubai where they would get off and look around. They called it “the sandbox”. It
�
was just a piece of land the military bought or borrowed or something and built a huge
wall around it.
Sometimes if it was safe enough they could take a cab out to Dubai.
He was over there on the Enterprise from 2004-2006. They would travel to a couple of
different places in that time.
They once went to England and it happened to be the 4th of July. That was a really bad
idea. There were a lot of fights and they ran out of handcuffs so a security officer had to
come back and grab a bunch of zip-ties.
A lot of the fights started in pubs and the Americans would celebrate and the British
would not really care about it.
When they got back under way he did get to talk to some of the guys who were in the
fights. The fights were mostly American Pride vs. the British Pride.
He would also go through the Suez Canal, but he didn’t go topside. Instead he had to
watch a machine that wasn’t running. He thought it was really stupid.
But some of the guys who were topside said if they had rock they could throw to one side
and hit Africa and throw to the other side to hit Europe.
Egypt had a bunch of tanks parked up on the ridge there in case any of the passing ships
started something. (50:00)
He remembers when they went to Seattle. It took about 3 weeks to get there, mostly
because Navy ships don’t travel in straight lines. But he remembers pulling into the port
and he smelled the pine trees and he just wanted off the ship. He wanted trees instead of
people.
You get tired of people eventually when on a ship.
He would mostly hang out with the guys he worked with. When he was in Norfolk he
kept to himself.
When his time was up, he considered staying on, but he really didn’t want it.
Advancement exams were part of it. He would advance quickly at first, but eventually he
got passed over for E5 promotion.
So when it was time for him to get out they tempted him with E5 promotion, but he felt
they had missed their chance for that.
He felt that he served his time.
He had no idea what he wanted to do when he got back.
He had GI bill eligibility and he thought he would go to school eventually, but what he
really wanted was to relax and get some “any Joe” job, which he did. He would work at
a liquor store for a while.
He loved it, but he didn’t know why.
January of 2006 was when he went out.
Post Duty (54:55)
When he got out, he was actually home, on terminal leave. He kind of had mixed feelings
about that because he was still in, but he wasn’t. It was just weird.
He would go to college as Grand Rapids Community College.
With an Associates Degree, he thought he would have a higher paid job.
�
He thought the experience he got on the ship would help him get a job, but that didn’t
help either.
When he met with the heating and cooling guys, they didn’t want to retrain him from
what he saw on the ship to what he would see in homes.
From his experience in the Navy, he would always remember going around the world
twice. Even before he learned to drive.
He also got to serve his country in a time of need.
He also feels that he has some pretty awesome bragging rights for where he’s been and
what he’s done.
One time, he looked up the word veteran in the dictionary, just to see what it said, and it
is synonymous with the word “old”. So he feels old.
He thinks everyone should do it. In fact, if everyone did join, then they could probably
shorten the enlistment time from 4 years to 2 years. Mostly though, he thinks that if
everyone served, this country would be a bit stronger.
When they were on the Enterprise, they found videos on the ship. They don’t know who
made them or when, but they watched them. One was about a man who found a bra on
the ship and took it to the incinerator room and burned it. He thought it was a pretty
funny movie.
He would see some of the natives in Bahrein were burning the US flag. It was a little
unsettling.
There was also a time where he heard a man shouting a prayer and they didn’t know what
to do. It was strange.
Before he got off at any of the places, he had to learn about some of the things that you
did or did not do when at that specific city. For example, giving an Arab the “thumbs up”
is like giving us the middle finger.
�
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
KarrJ
Title
A name given to the resource
Karr, Joshua (Interview outline and video), 2011
Creator
An entity primarily responsible for making the resource
Karr, Joshua
Description
An account of the resource
Joshua Karr served in the US Navy from 2002-2006, during the war with Iraq. The first half of his enlistment would be spent in the Pacific on the USS Constellation, which was sent to the Persian Gulf when the Iraq War started. He worked primarily in the engine room. When the Constellation was decommissioned, he transferred to the Enterprise, which was based at Norfolk and cruised in the Atlantic.
Contributor
An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource
Smither, James (Interviewer)
WKTV (Wyoming, Mich.)
Kentwood Historic Preservation Commission (Kentwood, Mich.)
WKTV
Publisher
An entity responsible for making the resource available
Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Special Collections & University Archives
Subject
The topic of the resource
Oral history
Veterans History Project (U.S.)
United States--History, Military
Michigan--History, Military
Veterans
Video recordings
Iraq War, 2003-2011--Personal narratives, American
United States. Navy
Language
A language of the resource
eng
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
Moving Image
Text
Relation
A related resource
Veterans History Project (U.S.)
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
2011-01-06
Source
A related resource from which the described resource is derived
<a href="https://gvsu.lyrasistechnology.org/repositories/2/resources/455">Veterans History Project Collection, (RHC-27)</a>
Format
The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource
application/pdf
video/mp4
-
https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/017aef057036015a8b2787d4cb382766.m4v
55dda55bba157bcc4cab33b5607b0c8b
https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/a59f921b0f416a6fc41ee05b67c4840f.pdf
a2fc6be29f40011a22244e339c2551fc
PDF Text
Text
Grand Valley State University
Veterans’ History Project
Ryan Klingeman
Iraq War
59 minutes 58 seconds
(00:00:10) Early Life
-Born in Grand Rapids, Michigan, on November 2, 1981
-When he was three years old his family moved to Allendale, Michigan
-Grew up there and attended Allendale High School
-Father worked for Steelcase
-Mother drove a school bus for Allendale public schools
-Graduated from high school in 2000
-Attended Grand Valley State University on a scholarship
-Attended for two years
(00:01:04) September 11th Attacks & Enlisting in the Marines
-After the September 11th attacks he decided to enlist in the Marines
-Remembers being at class when people started telling him to turn on the news
-Watched the events of that day unfold
-Less than a year after the attacks he decided to enlist in the Marines
-What was Saddam Hussein capable of doing if terrorists could do so much damage?
-Felt he should do his part to protect the country and stop enemies of the country
-Grandfathers had served in World War II, and great-grandfathers in earlier conflicts
-A lot of his friends had enlisted in the other branches, so he decided to join the Marines
-Different than his friends and saw it as more of a challenge
-Two weeks after enlisting he was considered ready for basic training
-Most recruits take months to prepare
-Being in good physical shape and having some college education sped up the process
-Did various physical tests and aptitude tests
-Went to Lansing, Michigan to take the Armed Services Vocational Aptitude Battery
(00:03:54) Boot Camp
-Sent to Marine Corps Recruit Depot, San Diego, for boot camp
-When he landed at the airport he could see the obstacle course and facilities at the base
-Placed on a bus and told to keep his head down
-Arrived at night
-Drill instructor came on board, screaming orders to get off the bus and stand at attention
-Issued gear, had his head shaved, and went through processing
-Did paperwork for hours
-First experience with stress and sleep deprivation
-Assigned to a squad bay for three days
-Cleaning and waiting for more recruits to form a training platoon
-Boot camp started with Phase 1
-It was difficult
-Remembers the drill instructor saying something funny and he laughed
-Drill instructor shoved him onto a footlocker and he realized they could hit him
-Had no difficulty with the physical training
-Learned that all he to do was follow orders and do what the drill instructors said
-Recruits were punished as individuals, then punished as a group for mistakes
�-Teaching them that mistakes in combat would affect the entire unit
-Boot camp lasted 13 weeks, split into three four-week phases
-Phase 1: Basics of being a Marine, learning discipline, and receiving martial arts training
-Phase 2: Extensive bayonet training
-Phase 3: Go to Camp Pendleton for rifle training
-Had a half-hour on Sundays for relaxation
-At night, the recruits had to sleep with their rifles
-Told when to sleep and when to wake up
-Went through “the Crucible”
-Three days of marching with a full pack and three, meager meals a day
-Teaching you to endure the hunger, pain, and exhaustion of being in combat
-Had 110 recruits in his training platoon
-Some of those men washed out due to the stress of basic training
-Some of the recruits tried to escape
-Some men added to the platoon because they had been held back
-Graduated with fewer recruits than what they started with
-Did his basic training in the summer of 2003
-Post-invasion of Iraq
-Emphasis on preparing for war
(00:13:54) School of Infantry
-Got ten days of leave after graduating from boot camp
-Parents came out to California to see him graduate from boot camp
-Returned to Michigan for his leave
-Went to Camp Pendleton, California, for the School of Infantry
-Assigned to be a 03/11 Bravo (rifleman)
-It was very difficult
-Did a lot of classroom work
-Learned about different weapons
-Took land navigation courses
-Carried 200-pound backpacks
-Gained 20 pounds of muscle
-Went on escape & evasion courses
-Learning how to avoid being captured if stuck behind enemy lines
-Went through mock villages
-Similar to rural Iraqi and Afghan villages
-Did gas training
-Hit with CS gas (tear gas) and putting on gas masks
-Fears that terrorists or insurgents might use chemical weapons
-Learned about house-house searches
-Platoon sergeant training him had served in Afghanistan
-Gave good advice
-School of Infantry lasted two months
-He was eligible for Recon Training, but swimming didn’t appeal to him
(00:18:28) Stationed in Michigan
-He had joined the Marine Reserves
-Upon completion of training he joined the 1st Battalion, 24th Marines in Saginaw, Michigan
-More training and more classroom work
-Majority of battalion had been deployed to guard bases along the Kuwaiti border
-Spent most of his time exercising and cleaning the base
�-Learned about different forms of radio communication
-Given a housing allowance, but he stayed with a friend in Saginaw
-Stayed at Saginaw for three months, and after one month the battalion returned
-Sent to Poland for training with international forces
-Stormed beaches on the Baltic Sea in World War II-vintage amphibious vehicles
-Germans were disciplined
-Majority of Russian soldiers were conscripts and acted like it
-Woefully under-trained and didn’t want to be there
-Stayed there four or five weeks
-Stayed at an Air Force base
-First time out of the United States
-Experienced a lot of different people and different cultures
-After the training in Poland he returned to Saginaw
(00:23:18) Pre-Deployment Preparation
-He had planned on re-enrolling in college, but there was a deployment rumor
-The deployment didn’t happen
-He went full-time for the Reserves
-Went on field exercises and worked on the base
-In mid-2005 they received deployment orders
-Went on longer field exercises
-Went out to California in early 2006 for extensive training
-Did assault courses, had live-fire mortars and live-fire machine guns
-Trained at Camp Pendleton
-Went to 29 Palms for a large, combined forces exericse
-Did patrols in mock villages with other branches of the armed forces
-He looked forward to being deployed
-Older than a lot of the other Marines
-Being in 29 Palms exposed him to the desert environment
(00:27:10) Deployment
-Given a week of leave to say good bye to his family
-Father was proud, but mother was worried
-He had gotten married and was able to see the birth of his daughter
-Went back to 29 Palms for four or five more weeks of training
-It was beneficial
-Went through mock villages
-Had soldiers act as combatants and simulated rounds (similar to paintballs)
-Paid a lot of attention to the news coming out of Iraq and Afghanistan
-News shifted from being positive to being negative
-Reports of civilian deaths, war crimes, and the torture of prisoners
-Flew from the United States to Germany to Kuwait on a commercial airliner
-Stayed in Kuwait for two days
(00:30:42) Arrival in Iraq
-Flown up to Al-Taqaddum Air Base (TQ) in Iraq on a C-130
-Located in Al-Anbar Province
-Made a combat landing
-A spiraling descent toward the runway to avoid antiaircraft fire
-Spent a night there
-It was a large base with a Taco Bell and indoor plumbing
-Sent to Camp Baharia near the city of Fallujah
�-Took a convoy to the forward operating base (FOB) at an abandoned train station north of Fallujah
-Started the transition process to take over from the previous unit
-Shown the perimeter, shown weak points, and informed about the situation
-Attacks were getting progressively worse due to the Muslim holiday of Ramadan
-More attacks
-Insurgents attacked during transitions because units were vulnerable
-Upon arrival at the FOB they took mortar fire and a suicide car hit the base
-The suicide attack killed some Marines that were slated to go home
(00:33:49) Operating in Fallujah
-Getting to know the area and making contact with the civilians
-Went on patrols and went to houses to make sure the people had military-issued ID cards
-The civilians were friendly
-Learned that the overly friendly people were hiding something
-Within a few weeks they started encountering improvised-explosive devices (IEDs) and snipers
-Had a good intelligence group that gathered information for raids
-Made raids every other night to capture high value insurgents
-Worked closely with local officials, the Iraqi police, and the Iraqi Army
-Intelligence group worked with sheiks to get information about insurgent activity
-Most of the Iraqis hated the insurgents, but didn’t want to risk retaliation from them
-They wanted to give information to the Americans, but feared the insurgents
-Able to call home and rest at Camp Baharia
-Used abandoned buildings as outposts in the city
-Stayed there for three or four days with nine or ten men
-Watching routes with high IED activity and supply routes
-Went on combat patrols
-Mix of hunting for high value targets and looking for insurgents
-Didn’t get a lot of sleep during those patrols
-Did patrols in vehicles and on foot
-Kept it random so the insurgents couldn’t establish a pattern
-He preferred foot patrols
-Able to move faster and get out of situations easier
-Realized that a presence alone wouldn’t suffice
-The Iraqis wanted to see results from the presence
-Civilians could get compensated for damaged property
-Spent his nine-month tour in that area
(00:42:02) Enemy Presence in Fallujah
-At first, they were attacked quite a bit
-Once they started doing raids and engaging the insurgents the attacks decreased
-There were two types of raids: hard and soft
-Soft raid meant going in quietly (for example, going roof to roof to get into a house)
-A hard raid usually meant kicking down a door or blowing up a wall to get into a house
-During raids they had a fire team go up on a nearby roof to provide cover for the raid party
-Civilians liked what the Marines were doing
-Invited them in for tea and exuded hospitality
-Civilians hated the insurgents because of things like beheading prisoners and abusing children
-Started to notice large groups of civilians feeding information to the intelligence groups
(00:45:45) On Base & On Outpost
-The base was small, roughly the size of a football field
-Didn’t have much down time
�-Only had four hours a day to clean rifle, do laundry, and catch some sleep
-On outposts they slept in shifts
-On outposts the insurgents hit hard with RPGs and assaults
-Used the RPG as a distraction then hit the other side with small-arms fire
-The abandoned houses they used as outposts had belonged to wealthy Iraqis
-Had walls around property
-Sat up on the roof with thermal scopes
-Able to stop insurgents before they crossed the perimeter
(00:48:25) Casualties
-Most casualties came from IEDs and snipers
-Command kept them informed about the men wounded or killed
-Battalion numbered at about 900 to 1,000 Marines
-23 were killed during that tour
-90 to 120 were wounded during that tour
(00:49:32) Weapons
-He carried a Benelli shotgun during raids with a lock-busting round
-Carried an M-16 rifle with an M203 under-barrel grenade launcher for patrols
-Sometimes carried an M249 SAW (Squad Automatic Weapon); a light machine gun
(00:50:26) IEDs, Snipers, & Protection
-Friend got wounded by an IED nine days after the battalion arrived
-Insurgents used three, 155mm artillery rounds bound together as an IED
-When they got stronger armor on vehicles, the insurgents made stronger bombs
-Used smokescreens to avoid snipers
-Used Humvees and 7-ton trucks as personnel carriers
-The trucks took IED blasts better than Humvees
(00:51:45) End of Tour & Coming Home
-He was still in Iraq when Saddam Hussein was executed on December 30, 2006
-The Iraqi people celebrated, but the insurgents used it as an opportunity to attack
-Left Iraq in April 2007
-Returned to the United States and got 30 days of leave
-Rapid transition from being in a combat zone to being in civilian society
-Strange to be sitting in his living room with his wife and nine-month old daughter
-Allowed to decompress for a few days in California before going home
(00:53:56) Training Exercise in Haiti
-Opportunity came up to train Haitian soldiers on raid tactics and drug enforcement
-Did urban assault exercises
-The Haitians were poorly-equipped, violent, and not friendly like the Europeans and Russians
-Stayed there for five weeks
(00:55:00) End of Service Pt. 1
-He found a civilian job and decided to become a member of the inactive Reserve for rest of enlistment
-Wife was against him reenlisting anyway
(00:55:26) Contact with Home
-He had access to a satellite phone to call home
-Didn’t like to call much because it upset his wife
-There were a few times when the base got attacked while he was on the phone
-Used email a few times
-Mostly wrote regular letters to stay in touch with his family
-Wrote a letter every day
�(00:56:37) Readjusting to Civilian Life & End of Service Pt. 2
-Being in crowds scared him for a while (Insurgents used crowds of civilians as human shield)
-Had his wife drive for a while after he came home (Insurgents hid IEDs on roadsides)
-Didn’t go out in public that much after he came home
-Worked as a supervisor for a distribution company until 2015
-Returned to Grand Valley State University on the GI Bill
-Studying to be a high school history teacher
-He is in his senior year at Grand Valley (as of the interview)
-Went on inactive reserve in 2009 and was discharged in 2011
(00:58:40) Reflections on Service
-Taught him leadership skills
-Instilled in him a strong work ethic
-Learned a lot and met a lot of different people
-Difficult to reconnect with friends that didn’t serve in the military
-Bonds with other friends that served in the other branches
�
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
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RHC-27
Language
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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
KlingemanR1953V
Title
A name given to the resource
Klingeman, Ryan A (Interview outline and video), 2016
Description
An account of the resource
Ryan Klingeman was born on November 2, 1981, in Grand Rapids, Michigan. In 2002 he enlisted in the Marine Corps Reserve, and in summer 2003 he went to boot camp at Marine Corps Recruit Depot, San Diego, California. He volunteered to be a rifleman and went to the School of Infantry at Camp Pendleton, California. Upon completion of training he joined the 1st Battalion 24th Marines in Saginaw, Michigan and went to Poland for a multinational training exercise. In mid-2005 the unit received orders to deploy to Iraq. They trained at Camp Pendleton and 29 Palms before deploying to Iraq in 2006. Ryan and the rest of his unit was stationed at Camp Baharia near Fallujah, Iraq, and they operated out of a forward operating base north of the city. He spent his nine-month tour in Fallujah. He went on patrols, conducted raids to capture insurgents, and stood watch at outposts in the city. They left Iraq in April 2007 and returned to Michigan. He participated in a joint-training exercise with the Haitians before going inactive reserve in 2009, and in 2011 he was discharged from the Marines.
Creator
An entity primarily responsible for making the resource
Klingeman, Ryan
Contributor
An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource
Smither, James (Interviewer)
Subject
The topic of the resource
Oral history
Veterans History Project (U.S.)
United States--History, Military
Veterans
Video recordings
Iraq War, 2003-2011--Personal narratives, American
United States. Marine Corps
Source
A related resource from which the described resource is derived
<a href="http://gvsu.lyrasistechnology.org/repositories/2/resources/455">Veterans History Project Collection, (RHC-27)</a>
Type
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Moving Image
Text
Rights
Information about rights held in and over the resource
<a href="http://rightsstatements.org/page/InC/1.0/?language=en">In Copyright</a>
Relation
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Veterans History Project (U.S.)
Publisher
An entity responsible for making the resource available
Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Special Collections & University Archives
Date
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2016-09-23
Format
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application/pdf
video/mp4
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https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/28b1253af5b40e0b27dccb1de5fb9a1c.m4v
0c643db7e2974fbda9019d16b2cf352c
https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/8d7b9bdcf93f5eaed72d536b6920365a.pdf
eca6290744b281e5bdae9616bdfc0760
PDF Text
Text
Grand Valley State University
Veterans' History Project
Tim Lamphere
Cold War, Gulf War, & Iraq War
27 minutes 35 seconds
(00:00:08) Early Life
-Born on February 14, 1967
-Attended Ionia High School in Ionia, Michigan
-Lived in a small town named Muir in Ionia County
(00:01:02) Enlisting in the Army
-Enlisted in the Army after he graduated from high school
-Chose the Army because he knew he could get specialized training in the Army
(00:01:32) Training Pt. 1
-Basic training came as a culture shock after growing up in a rural, Michigan town
-Different people and different treatment than he was used to
(00:02:00) Iraq War
-He was still in the Army when the Iraq War began in March 2003
-First time in Iraq he served at Camp Anaconda (Balad Air Base)
-Logistical supply hub
-30,000 to 40,000 American troops
-Base of operations for missions in the area
-On another deployment he was stationed at Al-Mahmoudiyah
-Rural town south of Baghdad
-Last tour in Iraq was at Camp Liberty
-Approximately 40,000 troops stationed there
(00:03:14) Duty in the Army
-Started as an infantryman
-Attended and completed Ranger School
-Spent three years with a Ranger battalion out of Hunter Army Airfield, Georgia
-Transferred to the 82nd Airborne Division as a Ranger
-Served with them for 11 years
(00:04:04) Panama & the Gulf War
-Fought in Operation Just Cause in Panama
-Invasion of Panama in late 1989 to depose Manuel Noriega
-Fought in the Gulf War (August 1990-February 1991)
(00:04:17) Combat Experiences Pt. 1
-One of his most memorable combat experiences was getting wounded in Iraq
-Most shocking combat experience happened in Ramadi, Iraq
-Went through a doorway and an enemy soldier fired at him
-His rifle jammed and he charged the combatant, tackling and suppressing him
-Initially afraid, but once you go into combat you have to react without fear
-A lot of realistic training and good leaders prepared him for combat
(00:06:19) Process to Become a Ranger
-Start out with Army basic training
-Complete Advanced Individual Training as an infantryman
-Signed up for and completed Airborne (paratrooper) School
-Upon completion of Airborne School he was interviewed by Ranger recruiters
�-Did the Ranger Induction Program
-Three week program
-Proving your mental and physical skills
-Courses, scenarios, and field exercises
-All forms of training were difficult at times
-Being deprived of things you're used to having
-Even in basic training you're not on your own schedule
-Adapted after a first few weeks
(00:08:30) Reflections on Service Pt. 1
-Army provided him with structure he may not have had without it
-Allowed him to become more mature and have focus
(00:08:58) Length of Deployments
-Operation Just Cause (Panama) lasted 30 days for him
-Gulf War lasted seven and a half months with 30 days of actual combat
-First tour in Iraq lasted one year
-Second tour in Iraq lasted seven months
-Supposed to be a year, but he got wounded
-Third tour in Iraq lasted 11 months
(00:09:49) Conditions in Iraq
-Gulf War prepared him for his tours in Iraq
-Introduced him to Arabic culture and the Middle Eastern environment
-Heat was unpleasant, but adaptable
-Had to constantly stay hydrated to replenish water lost from sweat
(00:10:53) Contact with Family
-Periodically communicated with his family while on deployments
-Always in a leadership position which limited his time available to communicate with home
-Army provided soldiers with good means to communicate with family
-Contacted home once a week, or at least a few times a month
-Sometimes it was better not to tell family everything
-Would worry them too much if they knew as much as he could tell them
(00:11:40) Friendships in the Army
-Being a leader meant he couldn't make friends as much as lower ranking soldiers
-Had a responsibility to be impartial and functional as a leader
(00:12:19) Downtime
-Most soldiers spent their downtime playing sports
-Football and soccer were popular choices for the men
-Had to play soccer on hard, rocky fields
-Usually kicked rocks more than the actual soccer ball
-Able to celebrate holidays if they weren't on a mission
-Remembers making sure they celebrated one holiday on one tour
-Did it to boost the morale of younger soldiers on their first deployment
-If they weren't on a mission they still didn't have downtime
-Spent the days doing training and recovery
-Preparing equipment for future missions
-Cleaning and maintaining weapons, vehicles, and equipment
-If you weren't busy with training and recovery you got extra sleep
-Extremely difficult to find time to sleep
-Had to spend most of his time preparing for missions
-Usually got four hours of sleep each night
�(00:15:50) Combat Experiences Pt. 2
-Combat operations varied depending on circumstances
-A routine patrol or an escort mission could turn into a combat situation
-If a convoy got attacked they would have to engage the enemy
-Usually lasted 30 minutes to an hour
-If they encountered Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs) that took more time
-Had to call in Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD) technicians to deal with the IED
-The more time they spent in an area the more likely they would get attacked
-Remembers being awake for three days on one mission
-Most combat situations were close quarters combat
-Had only one experience with hand-hand combat
-Enemy was usually 50 to 100 yards away
(00:18:20) Reflections on Service Pt. 2
-Army helped develop his core values as a person
-Courage, honor, duty, loyalty, respect and integrity
-Molded his approach to situations
(00:19:00) Casualties in Iraq
-Took casualties at the start of the Iraq War
-Had fellow soldiers die in his arms
-Survived the total destruction of vehicles where he was the sole survivor
-Struggled a little with civilian life after experiencing combat and death
-Long deployments, combat, and death made him emotionally numb
(00:20:25) Coming Home Pt. 1
-Always happy to see his family when he came home
-Slept a lot when he came home
-Spent the months between deployments trying to enjoy himself
(00:20:51) Reflections on Service Pt. 3
-If he served again he would pursue a higher rank
-Had promotion opportunities and he didn't pursue them
-Enjoyed working with smaller units as a result of having a lower rank
-More focus on the soldiers under your command
(00:21:39) End of Service Pt. 1
-Retired from the Army after 26 years
-Periodically reaches out to friends he made in the Army
-Not as much as he thought he would have
-Life as a civilian has improved
-Amazed by how easy it is to get a job if you have experience in the Army
(00:23:00) Coming Home Pt. 2
-Had a good experience being welcomed home by the community
-It takes a while to decompress after seeing combat
-Each day is better than the last
-After a few months he felt more like a civilian again
(00:23:55) Veterans' Organizations
-Does a little work with the American Legion
-Helping veterans get compensation and medical care through the American Legion
(00:24:11) End of Service Pt. 2
-Body was getting too old for service
-Wanted to retire of his own accord rather than be forcibly retired for health reasons
�(00:24:36) Awards & Commendations
-Received two Bronze Stars with Valor ('V') devices
-Means being awarded a Bronze Star for valor as opposed to merit in a combat zone
-Received a Purple Heart for getting wounded in Iraq
-Received various Army commendations
-One Bronze Star was awarded for his actions in Ramadi
-Sometimes feels guilty for receiving a Bronze Star
-Just doing his job
-Took over in the absence of his commander and directed flight guard over Ramadi
(00:25:55) Opinion of Government
-Feels that Congressional policy doesn't always reflect reality
-Policy limits what soldiers can/cannot do in combat
-Unrealistic because enemy doesn't abide by the Rules of Engagement
(00:26:50) Reflections on Service Pt. 4
-Would do it again
-Wanted to be a soldier since he was a child
-Service in the Army worked out like he thought it would
-Army treated him well
-Paid for his college and allowed him to have an early retirement
�
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
LamphereT1844V
Title
A name given to the resource
Lamphere, Timothy Patrick (Interview outline and video), 2014
Description
An account of the resource
Tim Lamphere was born on February 14, 1967 and grew up in Muir, Michigan. He enlisted in the Army after graduating from the high school (c. 1985). He went through basic training, advanced infantry training, Airborne School, and Ranger School. He served in Panama during Operation Just Cause, in Iraq during the Gulf War, and did three tours in Iraq during the Iraq War. On his first tour he served at Camp Anaconda, on his second tour he served at Al-Mahmoudiyah and was wounded, and his third tour was at Camp Liberty. For 11 years he served as a Ranger attached to the 82nd Airborne Division. After 26 years he retired from the Army (c. 2011).
Creator
An entity primarily responsible for making the resource
Lamphere, Timothy Patrick
Contributor
An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource
Canine, Vicente (Interviewer)
Subject
The topic of the resource
Oral history
Veterans History Project (U.S.)
United States--History, Military
Veterans
Video recordings
Iraq War, 2003-2011--Personal narratives, American
United States. Army
Source
A related resource from which the described resource is derived
<a href="http://gvsu.lyrasistechnology.org/repositories/2/resources/455">Veterans History Project Collection, (RHC-27)</a>
Type
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Moving Image
Text
Rights
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<a href="http://rightsstatements.org/page/InC/1.0/?language=en">In Copyright</a>
Relation
A related resource
Veterans History Project (U.S.)
Publisher
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Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Special Collections & University Archives
Date
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2014-11-07
Format
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application/pdf
video/mp4
-
https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/151840e44d1671f9daffd1027c331e90.mp4
2b76a3366b318f529aea169e9eaa4af8
https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/85b3396f660c913336e6471368847c95.pdf
904f1e6e053ab74550a1dc12af1e2d52
PDF Text
Text
Grand Valley State University
Veteran’s History Project
Iraq War
Justin Marshall
Interview Length: (00:26:11:00)
Life before the Army (00:00:09:00)
Before joining the military, Marshall was in his last semester of college (00:00:15:00)
o He figured this would be the best time for him to join because he did not have any
other commitments, such as a wife or kids. (00:00:25:00)
Marshall has a history of military personnel in his own family. (00:00:37:00)
o His father and both his grandfathers were in the army. The grandfathers served in
WWII: One in Southeast Asia and one in Europe. (00:00:39:00)
Marshall grew up in New Jersey. (00:00:49:00)
o While he was in middle school, his family moved to Vermont. (00:00:52:00)
o The family moved to Michigan sometime later, where Marshall finished high
school and attended Kettering University. (00:00:55:00)
When he confronted his parents about joining the military, Marshall’s father was very
excited while his mother was not. (00:01:07:00)
Marshall joined because he wanted to do something for his country and he was out of
shape. (00:01:40:00)
o Additionally, in regards to controversy over the war in Iraq, he never wanted to
make “uninformed statements” about why or why not Americans should be
fighting in this war. (00:02:22:00).
o “I joined to know a little bit more about myself” (00:02:41:00)
o “I wanted to be humbled.” (00:04:10:00)
Early Military Experience (00:04:15:00)
In January of 2004, Marshall enlisted in the United States Army. (00:04:20:00)
On July 27th, 2004, Marshall went to basic training. (00:04:30:00)
o This was a 9- week long program. (00:04:33:00)
Basic training is “just like you see in the movies”. (00:04:42:00)
o Marshall believes that the purpose of this program is “training you as a basic
soldier”, just as the title suggests. (00:05:00:00)
After basic training, Marshall went to Officer Candidate School which lasted for 14
weeks. (00:05:11:00)
o At OCS, “they teach you more about being a leader”. (00:05:20:00)
o At OCS your communication is limited as it was in basic training. He was able to
make 5-10 minute phone calls and use e-mail a few times a week. (00:06:02:00)
After OCS, Marshall went to Airborne School which lasted for 3 weeks. This was located
in Georgia. (00:06:35:00)
After Airborne School, Marshall attended an Infantry Officer Basics Course.
(00:06:52:00)
o This taught infantry tactics and extended leadership training. (00:07:01:00)
After IOBC, Marshall attended Mechanized Vehicles Course. (00:07:10:00)
o Here, he learned how to work certain military utility vehicles. He needed this
knowledge to become a platoon leader. (00:07:25:00)
�
The final course in which Marshall was enrolled was “Ranger School”, which lasted over
60 days. (00:07:40:00)
o The program consisted of 3 “phases” which were each about 21 days long. Each
featured a different kind of terrain that students would have to work in.
(00:07:48:00)
o He felt a particular pressure to complete this course because his father had been
an army ranger. (00:08:31:00)
He completed Ranger School in January of 2006. (00:09:10:00)
First Deployment (00:09:11:00)
Marshall joined his unit- First Battalion 6th infantry- in March of 2006. (00:09:12:00)
When Marshall joined the unit, they had already been deployed to Iraq and were waiting
in Kuwait for further instruction. (00:09:54:00)
o After a month in Baumholder Germany, Marshall joined the unit in Kuwait after a
1- week “train-up”. (00:09:58:00)
Marshall became a platoon leader on May 1st, 2006 as soon as he arrived in Kuwait with
his unit. (00:10:09:00)
o After remaining in Kuwait for 1 month, the unit was called to Iraq. (00:11:05:00)
The unit arrived in the city of Ramadi, Iraq. (00:11:12:00)
o Ramadi was a “hot spot” at the time of Marshall’s units’ arrival. Al Qaeda had
been recruiting people in the Southwest region of the city. (00:11:52:00)
Marshall remained in Ramadi for 6 months. (00:12:03:00)
o “I had bullets shot at me”. (00:12:10:00)
o Marshall’s unit also encountered roadside bombs. (00:12:15:00)
o Nobody in his platoon was killed, but one man was shot. Thanks to a “very well
trained medic”, the man’s life was saved. (00:12:20:00)
o However, two men were killed: one that was in Marshall’s company and another
that had previously been in his company and transferred to another. (00:12:42:00)
Second Deployment (00:13:00:00)
After Ramadi, Marshall’s unit was transferred to Baumholder, Germany. (00:13:02:00)
o They did another “train- up” for Iraq while there. (00:13:10:00)
After another short period in Germany, Marshall and the others were transferred to Sadr
City, Iraq. (00:13:17:00)
o “Sadr City was the urban slum in Baghdad”. (00:13:25:00)
o This city was only made to fit about 1 million people; however there was about 3
million there when Marshall arrived. (00:13:47:00)
o The Mahdi Army had been shooting rockets inside the “green zone”, or
“International Zone of Baghdad”. Marshall’s unit was put in charge of
constructing a blockade wall for the Green Zone. As a result, the opposition
issued a cease fire and rockets were no longer being launched at the protected
region. (00:14:03:00)
o After the construction of the wall, Marshall’s unit devoted effort to rebuilding the
slums of Sadr City. (00:14:34:00)
Other Military Experiences (00:15:20:00)
During his first deployment, Marshall and the other men that accompanied him did not
have a great amount of provisions.
�
o They had to build their own shelter from an abandoned house in Ramadi because
the outpost had not yet been constructed when they arrived. (00:15:22:00)
o The men used abandoned sleeping pads that Iraqi soldiers had left behind, which
were infested with fleas. (00:16:40:00)
o Marshall and the others used outhouses and wooden shower stalls. (00:17:05:00)
“During the second deployment, living conditions were good”. (00:17:48:00)
o The men were able to sleep in bunk beds. (00:17:51:00)
o After a month of being there, “trailer stalls” were delivered. These units included
bathrooms and showers. (00:17:58:00)
o Supplies came in fast enough to permit the men to eat hot meals every day, but
“every third meal was the same”. (00:18:55:00)
In terms of the civilians, “I’m not really sure how they felt about us”. (00:19:56:00)
o Marshall believes that the threatening appearance of the United States army
caused locals to be non-receptive. (00:19:58:00)
o He doesn’t think the military presence did much good due to the tension between
the army and the Iraqi people. (00:20:10:00)
o The hostile disposition of those in the United States army because “the enemy”
often hid amongst the civilians, disguised as such. Therefore, Marshall and the
others had to keep their guard up even when it came to common folk.
(00:20:35:00)
During the second deployment, “the civilians were not receptive” because the military
presence in the Shia community caused conflict amongst the civilians. (00:20:50:00)
o Once the U.S. soldiers began to help rebuild Sadr City, the tension diminished as
many people were being freed of extortion by the Mahdi Army, community
structures were being built, and public services were improved. (00:21:14:00)
One of Marshall’s favorite Army memories was playing whiffle ball on Thanksgiving.
(00:23:00:00)
Marshall handled many different weapons and always carried an M4 Carbine Rifle.
(00:23:30:00)
o He was also trained on M16 rifles, M240 Bravos, MK 19 Grenade Launchers
M249 Squad Automatic Weapons (SAW), and the weapons on the Bradley
Fighting Vehicle. (00:23:37:00)
Marshall earned the Bronze Star Medal for planning an assault. He administered the
helicopter route for the soldiers involved. (00:24:22:00)
Because he was an officer, Marshall was expected to use communication facilities less
than other lower ranked soldiers. Therefore he did not talk to his family and friends back
home very often. (00:25:30:00)
�
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
MarshallJ1219V
Title
A name given to the resource
Marshall, Justin (Interview outline and video), 2010
Creator
An entity primarily responsible for making the resource
Marshall, Justin
Description
An account of the resource
Justin Marshall was born in in New Jersey and later moved to Michigan with his family where he finished high school. Marshall decided to enlist in the United States Army in during his last semester of college at Kettering University. In 2004, he was sent to basic training, after which he took a number of extra courses including Officer Candidate School, Airborne School, a mechanized vehicle course, and Ranger School. In March of 2006, Marshall joined the First Battalion, 6th Infantry Regiment, as a platoon leader, and later became a captain and company commander. On the first of his two deployments, he was sent to Ramadi, Iraq, which was a "Hot Spot" for Al-Qaeda recruitment. His second deployment was to the Sadr City area of Baghdad, Iraq, where Marshall and his comrades helped rebuild the struggling community and eliminate extortion by the Mahdi Army.
Contributor
An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource
Wisdom, Victoria (Interviewer)
Murphy, Sydney (Interviewer)
Publisher
An entity responsible for making the resource available
Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Special Collections & University Archives
Subject
The topic of the resource
Oral history
Veterans History Project (U.S.)
United States--History, Military
Michigan--History, Military
Veterans
Video recordings
Iraq War, 2003-2011--Personal narratives, American
United States. Army
Language
A language of the resource
eng
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
Moving Image
Text
Relation
A related resource
Veterans History Project (U.S.)
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
2010-11-13
Source
A related resource from which the described resource is derived
<a href="https://gvsu.lyrasistechnology.org/repositories/2/resources/455">Veterans History Project Collection, (RHC-27)</a>
Format
The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource
application/pdf
video/mp4
-
https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/05c6067547228cd12240f16cc52cdf63.mp4
98892ad0a07fc538da6015098b0538b0
https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/8d66ee7e4161921240873a1a2d5c2bb0.pdf
291163b57ba72c89251fc39f7acc9b85
PDF Text
Text
Grand Valley State University
Veterans History Project Interview
Vietnam & Afghanistan & Iraq
Baltazar Martinez
Total Time – (02:11:52)
Introduction / Basic Training – (00:00:11)
Baltazar Martinez was born in Plainview, Texas on August 8th, 1952; he lived there for about
eight years until his family moved to Bovina, Texas (00:01:03)
His father was a farmer and his mother stayed at home to work on the fields (00:01:42)
◦ Baltazar was one of the last people drafted by the draft board in 1972 (00:03:16)
◦ He is the oldest in his family and has a younger brother and and two younger sisters
(00:06:00)
◦ Baltazar was planning on going to college to play football and used that as motivation to
keep up his grades (00:07:33)
◦ A couple colleges offered him football scholarships but he ended up receiving a draft notice
and his mother took it especially hard (00:08:54)
▪ Baltazar headed to Amarillo, Texas for a physical and other check ups and eventually
wound up in the Army (00:12:00)
▪ He went to Ft. Ord in California for basic training (00:13:28)
Baltazar was brought up in a very structured family and thanks his parents for that as
it helped him get used to the way of the Army (00:14:34)
Baltazar got sent off to become a 19 Delta (Cavalry Scout) (00:17:25)
A lot of the basic skills of the Army came natural for him; his father taught him how
to shoot a rifle- everything Baltazar did in Basic Training is what he wanted to do
(00:19:53)
Four to five weeks after he arrived at Basic Training, he was congratulated by the 1st
sergeant on being of the last people to be drafted (00:22:01)
Baltazar didn't know what a 19 Delta was when it was announced that's where he
was going to be; he finally learned that he was going to be at reconnaissance school
(00:23:37)
All of his drill instructors had combat experience and his 1st sergeant had served in
Korea (00:25:27)
◦ Baltazar left Ft. Ord for Ft. Carson in Colorado to be a cavalry scout (00:26:57)
▪ He learned how to set up ambushes, explosives, booby-traps, among other
things; he already knew how to work with a map and compass (00:29:13)
▪ The training at Ft. Carson took eight weeks; from there, Baltazar got orders
to go to Vietnam (00:32:01)
▪ After Advanced Infantry Training (AIT), he earned leave to go home for
about a week; he then reported to Travis Air Force Base (AFB) and flew
from there (00:32:48)
Vietnam (00:32:29)
He jokes that his time in Vietnam was so short that he just showed up, saw the land, and was
turned around to be sent back home at the end of 1972 (00:33:00)
They flew from Anchorage, Alaska to Japan and then Japan to Saigon; he was only there for a
�couple of days (00:33:54)
Back to the United States (00:33:57)
He was then assigned to the 1st of the 10th Cavalry at Carson (00:34:20)
◦ Baltazar mentions that the military is constantly training people and that's part of the
everyday routine- a lot of weapons training (00:36:29)
◦ He liked the training because he was never bored- he was constantly doing something
(00:37:19)
◦ Baltazar describes a situation when he was on a vehicle one time that was on fire and his
sergeant told him to keep driving; eventually the situation was diffused but quite nerveracking (00:40:29)
◦ He spent about two years with the 1st of the 10th Cavalry before he got his orders that sent
him to Korea (00:41:43)
Korea (00:43:30)
Baltazar was with the 1st of the 72nd Armor and was attached to combat support (00:43:41)
He was still a Cavalry Scout but was attached to his assigned unit; he spent 13 months there
(00:44:43)
◦ After Baltazar became the rank of E5, he was told that he needed to go to NCO school and
was sent there because of his character (00:46:33)
◦ He was getting ready for an inspection when North Koreans entered into the “No Mans
Land”; gunfire was exchanged but nothing major happened (00:49:27)
◦ Baltazar says he learned to always be prepared because you never know what's going to
happen- you must have flexibility (00:49:40)
▪ With about three weeks left in his 13 month tour, Baltazar explained a story about a US
chopper getting some bullet holes from North Koreans near the exhaust (00:53:55)
His parents let him make his own decisions once Baltazar turned 18 but said they
would always give him advice for whatever he chose to do (00:55:18)
Baltazar then enlisted for another three years with the Army (00:56:09)
He and his unit provided gifts for a local orphanage while in Korea (00:58:09)
◦ Other than providing for the orphanage, Baltazar didn't really have much other
communication with the local population but remembered a few words he
learned while he was there (00:59:44)
◦ Baltazar mentions another story about a time when locals got on to a restricted
area in their mortar range and how one of his NCO's chased them off (01:03:15)
◦ The weather in Korea was brutally cold but not a lot of snow (01:04:28)
◦ Sometimes the locals seemed to know more than the soldiers about alerts and
things like that as one certain local would set up shop for the soldiers because
she had heard about an alert before they did (01:07:43)
◦ When an alert would happen, his unit would resort to fighting positions and
again, it was a secret to the US but not to the local population (01:09:07)
▪ Baltazar put Ft. Hood, Ft. Carson, and Ft. Bliss in El Paso, Texas as his
number one destination- he laughs because he got sent to Ft. Knox, Kentucky
(01:09:39)
Back to the United States (01:10:58)
Baltazar was sent to Ft. Knox, Kentucky after 13 months in Korea; he was assigned to the 1st
�
Training Brigade Unit (01:11:05)
He was still an E5 and was an Advanced Individual Training Instructor- about a year later he
was E6 (01:11:32)
◦ Baltazar was selected by a committee to go to drill sergeant school at Ft. Knox for about
five weeks (01:15:30)
◦ He received a score of 49 out of 50 and the person that graded him told him the only
mistake he made was that he wasn't perfect- Baltazar was humbled by that (01:17:57)
◦ Overall the quality of individuals of recruits were intelligent; he remembers a young man
that had a masters and was gung-ho as could be (01:21:22)
▪ The young man that Baltazar mentioned wanted to become a Chaplain and he wanted to
know why the man didn't just go through OCS and the man replied that if he didn't go
through the training, how would he know what the other soldiers are going though
(01:22:15)
▪ Baltazar did the training stint for three years which would have been around 1981 as his
enlistment was coming up (01:23:15)
The Marine Corps Years (01:24:47)
After nine years and three three-year enlistments, Baltazar decided he wanted to join the Marine
Corps (01:24:47)
His Command Sergeant Major told him he was going to make E7 soon and asked him why he
wanted to give that up and Baltazar replied that something was telling him to join the Marines
(01:28:04)
◦ He was told that he'd be brought down to Lance Corporal, an E3 position, as well as go
through boot camp and that was fine with Baltazar (01:29:42)
◦ Baltazar was brought in as the Marines were suspicious of his situation: they asked him if he
was related or knew any people in congress- they couldn't believe he wanted to come into
the Marine Corps as an E6 (01:32:08)
◦ He actually came back as a Staff NCO as an E6 in the Marine Corps at Ft. Knox (01:33:05)
▪ Some of his previous majors from the Army were sitting at the NCO bar as he walked in
(01:35:13)
▪ He was at Ft. Knox from around 1981 til 1983; he was then assigned to an inspective
duty over in Alameda, California (01:36:39)
▪ Baltazar finished a three year enlistment with the Marines and then went on Reserve
Status for three years (01:37:36)
He was thinking about himself and starting a family and that's a big reason why he
chose to not be on active duty (01:38:53)
Baltazar and his family lived in California from 1983/84 til almost 2000 (01:41:35)
Him and his family ended up moving to Marshall, Michigan in 2000 (01:43:28)
National Guard Duty (01:45:50)
In 2007, Baltazar joined the National Guard after his daughter entered college (01:45:50)
After the E6 and E5 slots were filled, he decided that he didn't need the rank in order to lead as
part of the National Guard (01:50:23)
◦ In 2010, Baltazar was deployed to Kuwait, Iraq, and Afghanistan for six months (01:52:50)
◦ The deployment was an individual deployment because of Baltazar's expertise in weaponry
and prior combat experience (01:53:38)
▪ Kuwait was his main base and first flew out to Afghanistan; he was accountable for all
�▪
the heavy machinery (01:54:33)
He went back and forth from Kuwait to Afghanistan twice and would be gone from ten
days to 14 days at a time (01:57:19)
Baltazar was accounting for equipment in Iraq as the United States started to
withdraw troops as this made his job quite critical (02:00:00)
◦ He mentions that while he was in Iraq it seemed like the Insurgents were just
waiting for the US troops to get out (02:04:26)
Back to the United States (02:06:00)
Baltazar returned from Iraq in 2011 and wanted to return in 2012 but his aged barred him from
his deployment (02:07:27)
Baltazar came home to a loving family in 1972 when he got back from Vietnam and came back
from Iraq to a loving family in 2011 and that's what he believes keeps him grounded and sane
(02:10:05)
He feels like he can still perform for the military and be able to provide experience for young
men and women; to pass the torch on to the younger generation is one of his goals (02:11:17)
�
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
MartinezB1571V
Title
A name given to the resource
Martinez, Baltazar (Interview outline and video), 2014
Creator
An entity primarily responsible for making the resource
Martinez, Baltazar
Description
An account of the resource
Baltazar Martinez was born in Plainview, Texas, in 1952. He was one of the last people to be drafted into the Army in 1972. He trained as an armored cavalryman and was deployed to Vietnam toward the end of the year, but stayed only a few days before being sent home. He re-enlisted twice, and served in Korea and in different bases in the US until 1981. He subsequently served in the Marine Corps for three years, and then later joined the Army National Guard, and deployed to Kuwait, and Iraq in 2010. He currently serves with the 507th Engineer Battalion, but did not deploy with them to Afghanistan in 2011 due to his age.
Contributor
An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource
McGregor, Michael (Interviewer)
Publisher
An entity responsible for making the resource available
Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Special Collections & University Archives
Subject
The topic of the resource
Oral history
Veterans History Project (U.S.)
United States--History, Military
Michigan--History, Military
Veterans
Video recordings
Vietnam War, 1961-1975--Personal narratives, American
Iraq War, 2003-2011--Personal narratives, American
Afghan War, 2001--Personal narratives, American
United States. Army
United States. Marine Corps
United States. National Guard
Language
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eng
Rights
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<a href="http://rightsstatements.org/page/InC/1.0/?language=en">In Copyright</a>
Type
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Moving Image
Text
Relation
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Veterans History Project (U.S.)
Date
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2014-03-08
Source
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<a href="https://gvsu.lyrasistechnology.org/repositories/2/resources/455">Veterans History Project Collection, (RHC-27)</a>
Format
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application/pdf
video/mp4
-
https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/46327f45f3596b2e0c6661c41a1f91c8.m4v
ea0ca424b230f2262fa4d4edf5b14697
https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/48ceb2f64815317b8eb8338a967d62bd.pdf
fb38100ea081b69256d3556ff26f348d
PDF Text
Text
Grand Valley State University
Veterans’ History Project
John Matt
Iraq War & War in Afghanistan
1 hour 24 minutes 42 seconds
(00:00:12) Early Life
-Born in Marquette, Michigan on October 1, 1984
-Grew up in Marquette
-His father worked for the city of Marquette
-In charge of city maintenance
-His mother worked in various secretarial positions in the hospital
-He had two brothers
-Attended Marquette High School
-Graduated from there in 2003
(00:01:05) Enlisting in the Marines
-After high school he did a lot of job hopping
-He was working as part of a security detail at a casino
-A friend, who had just completed Marine boot camp, came and visited him
-Encouraged John to go and talk to a recruiter
-He wanted consistency in his life
-Enlisted in the Marines in November 2005
-Prior to going to boot camp there was a preparatory period
-Getting physically prepared for boot camp with the help of a recruiter
(00:03:00) Marine Corps Boot Camp
-Took a van from Marquette to Milwaukee, Wisconsin to go to the MEPS
-Military Entrance Processing Station
-Various physical tests to see if you’re qualified to go into the military
-Took a plane from Milwaukee to San Diego, California
-There were drill instructors waiting at the airport
-Spent three hours standing at attention on the curb waiting for the busses
-In the meantime the drill instructors yelled at the new recruits
-First week of training was called “Hell Week”
-Get your head shaved, no sleep for thirty six hours after arriving, lots of waiting
-Basically getting indoctrinated into military life
-On the Friday of “Hell Week,” called “Black Friday” get assigned to training company
-Boot camp lasted thirteen weeks
-First month the focus is integration at San Diego
-Drills, learning about ceremonies, military protocol, and the history of the Marines
-Second month is at Camp Pendleton, California
-Qualifying with the M16 assault rifle
-Land navigation training
-Going out into the field and sleeping in a tent for a week
-Third month is back at San Diego and there is further training with drills and ceremonies
-Boot camp ends with “Parent Day” which is the graduation from boot camp
�-Parents from the area can see their sons and daughters graduate
-First time that you’re truly recognized as a Marine
-His father was a disciplinarian, so getting yelled at was not shocking, or foreign
-Learned that teamwork was key to survival
-Knew that in the future, if one man made a mistake, it could be fatal
-There were always those few who didn’t care, or didn’t cooperate
(00:09:08) School of Infantry
-His specialization was as an infantryman
-After boot camp went home for ten days of leave
-Returned to California and went to the School of Infantry at Camp Pendleton
-Two months of infantry training
-Working with a variety of weapons
-M240 machine guns, Mark 19 grenade launchers, .50 caliber weapons
-Getting the skills needed to be considered an infantryman
-Went on marches in the mountains
-Every Marine has to receive at least some kind of infantry training
-Even Marines in administrative positions receive a month of infantry training
(00:10:58) Assignment to the 3rd Battalion of the 1st Marines
-In April (or May) of 2006 he was assigned to the 3rd Battalion of the 1st Marines
-It took some adjusting to go into the unit that had fought in Fallujah, Iraq
-Had to prove himself before being fully accepted
-For the next year they focused on training to get ready to go to Iraq
-Spent three weeks of every month training in the field
-Receiving urban combat training
-He began to work with people who were from the Middle East
-Learning about the culture, customs, and the language
-Trained with them as stand-ins during urban training
-The goal was to not be culturally shocked when he got to Iraq
-The other part of it was showing that the Iraqis were humans too
-Feels that the media only focuses on the negative aspects of the people
(00:16:52) Deployment to Iraq
-The initial plan was to go with the 31st MEU (Marine Expeditionary Unit) to Thailand
-Train with the Thai military and other military forces in the area
-Before leaving saw his sergeant major in the “smoke pit” smoking cigarettes
-Learned that this meant they were probably going to Iraq, and not with the 31st MEU
-The second day that they were on the ship they were called to the flight deck
-Told that there was a change of plans and they were going to Iraq
-On the voyage over began target practice
-Challenging because of the motion of the ship
-They had a month and a half to prepare before arriving in Iraq
-Left the United States in summer 2007
-Most likely mid-May because he remembers celebrating the 4th of July in Iraq
(00:19:30) Arrival in Iraq
-When they arrived there was no clear route into Iraq
-Had to go with a four man team of combat engineers to clear the route of IEDs
-From there their mission was to find an abandoned building and get established in it
�-The ship arrived in Kuwait
-They had to wash dust and dirt off their equipment, vehicles, and clothing
-Kuwaiti culture demands that no foreign soil be on their soil
-Stayed in Kuwait for a week
-While in Kuwait given more cultural awareness courses
-Went to a place called TQ in Iraq (Al-Taqaddum Air Base west of Baghdad)
-Collected their ammunition and got assigned to a vehicle there
-Spent five days at TQ
-After TQ went to their area of operations in Iraq
-Operating near COP (Combat Outpost) Golden
-They paid some of the local elders to move out of their houses and live with family
-This allowed them to set up in the houses and have immediate access to the area
-They would go out on patrols and meet with the locals
-Operating in a largely uninhabited part of Al Anbar Province (western Iraq, bordering Syria)
-South of the city of Al Karmah
-They could see rockets being fired at night
-On the outskirts of an area where major fighting was occurring
(00:24:00) Interacting with Iraqis Pt. 1
-In their interactions with the Iraqis they would try to figure out what the people needed
-First step was to contact the village elder and talk to him first
-From there give him water, educational supplies, and any other supplies
-He would go and hand out the supplies to the families
-It showed that the U.S. was the supplier, not the savior
-Whenever they went out to meet with the Iraqis, medics came along
-Able to provide medical assistance the villagers wouldn’t have gotten otherwise
-The Iraqis reacted positively to the American presence, but they were wary of helping
-They wanted to help, but were afraid of what the Insurgents might do to them
-Some Iraqis helped regardless of what the Insurgents threatened
(00:27:40) Daily Routine in Iraq
-His days were organized in a 4x4x4 pattern
-Four hours of patrolling a square kilometer area
-Watch the roads and study the daily habits of the people
-Talk to the locals and gather any possible intelligence
-Figure out who needed to be talked to
-Either because they could help, or were a threat
-Four hours of guard duty at the house
-Go up on the roof and watch the neighbors to check for consistency
-Four hours of sleep
-The 4x4x4 pattern would be done twice a day
(00:30:16) Interactions with Iraqis Pt. 2
-One Iraqi man wanted to help, but wanted to be “arrested” to do it
-He didn’t want to look like he was willingly helping the Americans
-Told them to stage a fake raid on his house at night
-The situation seemed sketchy, so they went to talk with him during the day
-The man had left and his son was the only one at the house
-His son had three cell phones which was a sign of being involved with the Insurgents
�-The man never did come back to his house
(00:31:52) Enemy Contact in Iraq
-The worst contact they had with the enemy in Iraq was soon after they arrived
-Combat engineers were helping to build up their fortifications
-A vehicle-borne sniper came by and shot at them
-One of the combat engineers was hit through both lungs
-He walked over to see how the engineer was
-The man was already pretty much lifeless
-Drove home the selflessness of all military personnel
-A noncombatant gave his life for the combatants
-The combat engineer wound up dying en route to a larger medical facility
-The contact drove home the severity, and reality, of the deployment
-After that they didn’t take too many more casualties
-All wounded, no fatalities
(00:36:06) Living Conditions in Iraq
-At times they could go to their battalion’s base
-Living conditions still weren’t good there
-No air conditioning, and the base was made up of tents
-In the field they would live off MREs (meals ready to eat)
-Sometimes only ate one MRE a day
-Taking a real shower was nonexistent
-Learned how to use body wash and a bottle of water to get somewhat clean
-The average temperature every day was around 130oF
-Grew to appreciate the most basic things when he came home
-They would pay villagers $30 for a block of ice just to help deal with the heat
(00:38:38) Coming Home from Iraq
-The deployment to Iraq was nine months
-Did not receive any R&R while in Iraq
-Came home around Christmas/New Year’s Eve of 2008
-Boarded a ship in Kuwait and sailed home
-It was a chance to unwind and decompress before coming home
-Aboard ship they received reintegration classes
-Learning how to cope with being around family again
-At the time didn’t want to get lectured, but knew that it was necessary
-Learned about the signs of PTSD and how to deal with it
-Upon coming home, some men wanted to go back to Iraq because it was easier than civilian life
-In Iraq everything was provided, no bills to pay, just had to stay alive
(00:41:00) Leaving the Marines
-At first he wanted to stay in the Marines
-He had his wife and children to consider though
-If he stayed in there was a chance he would wind up going to Afghanistan
-Left the Marines and went to college and got a part time job
-Didn’t have insurance and had to rely on state aid
-Felt that that wasn’t good enough and wanted to pursue other options
(00:43:18) Enlisting in the National Guard
-Enlisted in the National Guard and was able to stay in college and keep working
�-Assigned to the 1431st Engineer Company in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan
-Volunteered to go help the 1433rd Engineers in the Lower Peninsula
-Wound up getting deployed to Afghanistan
-Joined the National Guard in March 2010
-Only five months after getting out of the Marines
(00:44:20) 31st MEU (Marine Expeditionary Unit)
-After Iraq, but before the National Guard, went with the 31st MEU on a training mission
-Learning how to be a “boat company”
-Operating like a special operations unit off of a ship
-Went to Okinawa, Japan for a month
-Went to an island in the Philippines and trained with the Filipino Marines
-Had some encounters with the Filipino civilians
-Little kids would trade random items for ballpoint pens
-Learned a lot about jungle warfare from the Filipinos by going on patrols with them
-Went to Seoul, South Korea and trained with the Republic of Korea Marines
-Visited the city of Seoul
-Saw the Korean War memorials and got to see what the war was like for them
-Went to the Korean Demilitarized Zone
-Saw the Bridge of No Return
-If you start to cross it you have to cross to the other side
-Otherwise you will be shot
-Asked his officer if he could try to run it, but was not allowed
-Went back to Japan for another month and then flew home
(00:48:19) Training with the National Guard
-Went to Fort Crowder, Missouri for demolitions training
-Spent one weekend a month training with the National Guard
-The role that he trained for was to be a combat engineer
-Clearing roads of IEDs and other explosives
-They had a vehicle that could safely detect where explosives were
-They also had equipment for BIP: blow in place
-Destroy an explosive without the help of a bomb disposal team
-Also learned how to efficiently cut down trees by using explosives
(00:51:25) Deployment to Afghanistan
-He was deployed to Afghanistan in the summer of 2012
-Went to Kingsford Armory in the Upper Peninsula and took a bus to Grayling, Michigan
-Remembers being escorted to the Mackinac Bridge by the Freedom Riders
-Motorcycle group that will escort deploying soldiers and welcome them home
-Along the way people would come out and show their support as they passed through towns
-It was a morale boost to see local support
-Flew to Afghanistan
-Remembers that it was a long plane ride
-A lot of them took sleep medication to help the time pass
-Remembers getting fed a lot
-Stopped in Germany to refuel and to get a chance to stretch in the airport
(00:55:07) Arriving in Afghanistan
-Landed at Kandahar Air Field in southern Afghanistan
�-There was a major base there
-Received cultural integration classes at Kandahar
-Stayed at Kandahar for a couple weeks waiting for an assignment
-Got a chance to Skype with family back home
-It was totally different than what was available in Iraq in 2007
-Had access to a TGI Friday, soccer games, internet, ping pong, video games
-Meant to be a taste of the United States in Afghanistan
(00:56:50) Afghan Society
-Afghanistan was mostly nomadic, agricultural, and primitive compared to Iraq
-The cities were slightly more modern than the rural areas
-They had access to some modern amenities like a barber shop
(00:58:10) Assignment in Afghanistan
-He and his unit were assigned to Forward Operating Base Pasab near Kandahar
-Their mission was route clearance
-Securing roads and clearing them of IEDs and other explosives
-Making it safe for the infantry to go out on patrols during the day
-Felt hugely responsible for the safety of the infantrymen
-They would get up before dawn to go make sure the roads were clear
-The other part of route clearance was to make it safe for the locals to travel
(01:00:20) Enemy Contact in Afghanistan
-There were more IEDs in Afghanistan than in Iraq
-His unit had the highest discovery and detonation rate of IEDs
-By the time they arrived the terrorists were running out of money and starting to retreat
-The first couple months they were there they always had firefights during route clearance
-Eventually the firefights stopped and it became easier to do their job
-They lost one man very quickly
-He stepped on an IED and it detonated right beneath him
-It was the same as in Iraq, it made the situation very real again
-He knew how to deal with it after having experienced it in Iraq
-Went and talked to the new soldiers and made sure they were alright
-Still completed the mission for that day for the sake of closure
(01:03:42) Interacting with the Afghans and Coalition Forces
-The Afghan people had a larger sense of entitlement than the Iraqis had
-They would more readily ask for stuff from American soldiers
-Help from soldiers was expected
-If you didn’t have anything to give them they would turn against you
-Little kids would throw rocks at them
-During the deployment he saw a loss of public support happening in Afghanistan
-The Afghan National Army (ANA) became a threat at times
-Members of it wound up being double agents for the various terrorist groups in the area
-At the end of his deployment he started seeing people returning to the region
-Indicated that Afghanistan was normalizing and support was returning
-The ANA had a lot to learn still even at the end of his deployment (2013)
-They were not used to American military tactics
-Just wanted to charge into a situation guns blazing
-The didn’t understand protocol or Rules of Engagement
�-There were communication problems
-Didn’t know if interpreters were trustworthy
-Most of the time had to rely on body language to communicate
-At Kandahar Air Field you could meet the other Coalition soldiers
-Never carried out operations with them though
-Always made sure to guide the ANA soldiers and give them advice
-During house searches they had the ANA do the searches and act independently
-This allowed for the ANA to see that they were being given respect
(01:11:08) Living Conditions in Afghanistan
-Living in a forward operating base was much better than the living conditions in Iraq
-At the FOB he had access to a modern gym
-On the FOB they were able to eat real meals and not just MREs
-They had “Taco Tuesdays,” and steak and lobster on Thursdays
-Remembers they had a butter sculpture of the Last Supper
-Showed that the Afghans were starting to respect American culture too
-Served as a morale boost
(01:13:58) End of Deployment to Afghanistan
-Even by the spring of 2013 there was still a lot of work to be done in Afghanistan
-Around Easter 2013 they were preparing to return to the United States
-By the time they left Afghanistan the firefights had stopped and IEDs had gone down
-There was only one road that consistently had IEDs on it
-In their area, enemy morale had been broken and they were retreating
-Went to Kandahar Airfield for a few weeks
-Looked for ways to kill time
-Did end of deployment work
-Physical and psychological health evaluations
(01:16:42) Coming Home
-From Kandahar flew to Fort Bliss, Texas
-Processed out there
-Mostly allowed to just unwind and not have any military responsibilities
-Just had to report at 7 PM each night so they knew you were alive and well
-Went to the on base shopping mall, saw movies, and swapped war stories
-Took more reintegration courses at Fort Bliss
-After Iraq understood that they were necessary for readjusting
-From Texas flew back to Michigan and landed at Sawyer International Airport
-Formerly K.I. Sawyer Air Force Base
-Left Sawyer International on a bus and after only driving a few miles the bus broke down
-Still had to go to Kingsford Armory for the formal homecoming ceremony
-He was walking distance from his house though
-In the meantime the soldiers got off the bus and started making snow angels
-Got a new bus and went to Kingsford for the homecoming ceremony
-Got to be reunited with his wife and children
-Remembers that it was a much bigger homecoming than when he was in the Marines
-Reaffirmed his National Guard service, truly felt that he was fighting for his community
(01:21:15) Present Service
-Still does the one weekend a month, two weeks a year with the National Guard
�-He is currently involved with helping to train soldiers at Fort Custer, Michigan in urban combat
-How to properly breach and clear houses
-Incorporates both his infantry and combat engineer experience
(01:22:35) Reflections on Service
-Learned that there was nothing that he couldn’t handle
-He loved, and still loves, the spirit of teamwork in the military
-Helped him to learn that it’s okay to have a support network and to ask for help
-He still loves the sacrificial aspect of the military
�
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
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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
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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
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RHC-27_MattJ1670V
Title
A name given to the resource
Matt, John (Interview outline and video), 2014
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
2014-09-27
Description
An account of the resource
John Matt in 1984 in Marquette, Michigan. He grew up in Marquette and attended high school there and graduated in 2003. In November 2005 he enlisted in the Marines and attended boot camp at San Diego/Camp Pendleton and the School of Infantry at Camp Pendleton specializing as an infantryman. In the spring of 2006 he was assigned to the 3rd Battalion of the 1st Marines. In mid-May 2007 he and his unit left for an international training mission in Thailand, on the second day of sailing they were rerouted and deployed to Iraq. They arrived in Iraq in late June/early July 2007 and were stationed in a village south of the city of Al-Karmah near Combat Outpost Golden in the Al-Anbar Province. During his time in Iraq he went on patrols and took part in the humanitarian mission to improve the lives of the Iraqis. Around Christmas/New Year's Eve of 2008 he and his unit returned home. In 2008 and 2009 he went with the 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit to Japan, the Philippines, and South Korea to carry out training missions with the allied forces in those countries. After leaving the Marines in late 2009 he enlisted in the National Guard in March 2010 and was assigned to the 1431st Combat Engineers Company in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan based out of Kingsford Armory where he could be near his wife and children. He volunteered to help the 1433rd Combat Engineers based in the Lower Peninsula and wound up getting deployed to Afghanistan in the summer of 2012. His unit operated out of Forward Operating Base Pasab helping to clear the road of improvised explosive devices and other explosive materials.
Creator
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Matt, John
Contributor
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Jones, Adam (Interviewer)
Subject
The topic of the resource
Iraq War, 2003-2011--Personal narratives, American
Afghan War, 2001--Personal narratives, American
United States. Marine Corps
United States. National Guard
Oral history
Veterans History Project (U.S.)
United States--History, Military
Michigan--History, Military
Veterans
Language
A language of the resource
eng
Type
The nature or genre of the resource
Text
Moving Image
Source
A related resource from which the described resource is derived
<a href="https://gvsu.lyrasistechnology.org/repositories/2/resources/455">Veterans History Project collection, (RHC-27)</a>
Rights
Information about rights held in and over the resource
<a href="http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/">In Copyright</a>
Publisher
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Grand Valley State University Libraries. Allendale, Michigan
Relation
A related resource
Veterans History Project (U.S.)
Format
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video/x-m4v
application/pdf
-
https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/64cc7151ae3a3318bb1dfdc6eca8bc3c.m4v
2061b7b0928ebda60a833a8cd767b651
https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/e2eaddbbdc1705305a7abf9b424a07b4.pdf
68019f43dd3af15b9003b9737c73ec8f
PDF Text
Text
Grand Valley State University
Veterans' History Project
Jacob Mol
War in Iraq and War in Afghanistan
1 hour 32 minutes 9 seconds
(00:00:39) Early Life
-Born in Grand Rapids, Michigan on December 15, 1986
-Lived on the West Side of Grand Rapids
-Had four brothers and a half sister
-Moved north to Cedar Springs, Michigan
-Graduated from Cedar Springs High School
-Father worked as an electrician all over the United States
-Jacob traveled with him
-Mother stayed at home, but also did dental assistant jobs
-Worked various jobs after high school
-Decided to forgo college because of the cost
(00:02:28) Enlisting in the Marines
-Decided to enlist in the Marines in May 2006
-Sworn in on September 11, 2006
-Part of a delayed entry program because he wanted to work on aircraft
-Had been in the Young Marines when he was younger
-Taught how to march and be in formation, values, and leadership skills
(00:04:08) Basic Training
-Sent to San Diego for basic training in February 2007
-It was cold at night and hot during the day
-Boarded buses and taken to the base
-Drill instructors got on the bus and started screaming at the recruits
-Got off the bus and stood at attention waiting for further orders
-Gathered gear, had their heads shaved, and moved quickly
-Waiting to get sorted into their training unit
-Arrived at 10 PM
-Woke up the next day at 7 AM
-Kind of expected the craziness of the first few days
-Knew that if he followed orders he would be fine
-Part of Platoon 2134 of Fox Company
-Had one senior drill instructor and three other drill instructors
-Three of the drill instructors were veterans and one of the drill instructors was new
-Didn't know much about any of them
-Phase One of basic training lasted a month
-Starting physical training
-Taught Marine Corps history
-Received First Aid training and learned the basics of rifles
-Phase Two of basic training was at Camp Pendleton, California
-Received Field Training while at Camp Pendleton
-Did two weeks of rifle training
-One week of classroom work
-Some men had never handled a rifle before in their entire life
�-After a week of class they spent a week on the rifle range
-Completed rifle training with qualifications
-Did outdoor training at Camp Pendleton
-Did “the Crucible”
-Three or four days of night navigation training
-Obstacle courses
-Completed by running up the hill called “Reaper” and getting dog tags
-Trained with the M16A2 rifle
-Had iron sights
-Accurate up to 500 yards
-For night navigation training they were given a flashlight, compass, and a map
-Worked with a team of five men and tried to avoid getting “captured”
-His fire team did not get “captured”
-Phase Three focused on physical training and uniform protocol
-Taught how to take care of their uniforms
-Did swimming qualification
-Martial arts qualification
-Trained with a lot of men from California, Texas, Ohio, and Michigan
-There were a lot of Hispanic recruits
-Befriended a lot of the men he trained with
-There were no women training with them at San Diego
-Only women he ever saw there were the Navy corpsmen doing medical work
-Basic training lasted about three months, give or take a week
-Assigned Marine Occupational Specialty 6213: fixed-wing aircraft mechanic
(00:15:23) Marine Combat Training
-Went home for two weeks of leave
-Spent one week with his family
-Spent another week working with recruiter
-Getting new recruits ready for basic training and trying to get people to join
-Sent to Camp Pendleton for Marine Combat Training
-Abbreviated version of the School of Infantry that Marine riflemen went through
-Advanced rifle training
-Learning how to move forward while firing at targets set at varying distances
-Trained with different weapons
-M240 grenade launcher, .50 caliber machine gun, other larger weapons, and hand grenades
-Received more land navigation training
-One day of Day Navigation
-Had to move from one point to the next while staying concealed
-One night of Night Navigation
-More difficult because they had to move through the mountains
-Pretty much everyone passed Marine Combat Training
-Men only got held back due to medical reasons
(00:20:10) Engine Training
-Sent to Pensacola, Florida for “A School”
-Taught how to work on aircraft engines
-Three months of classes
-Similar to a college course
-Taught by civilian and Navy instructors
-Learned about jet engines, helicopter engines, and turboprop engines
�-The higher your class ranking, the more choice you had about what aircraft you would work on
-He was #2 in his class
-He selected EA-6B Prowler work
-The Prowler was a fixed-wing jet aircraft derived from the A-6 Intruder
-Used extensively in the Vietnam War
-Used for electronic warfare
-Jam radar, conceal aircraft, and pick up enemy communications
-Core of most of the aircraft was 20 to 50 years old
-Fun to work on
(00:24:53) Prowler Training
-Sent to Naval Air Station Whidbey Island, Washington to learn how to work on the Prowler
-Part of a Marine Corps and Navy joint training squadron
-Learned about the fuel system, engine, oil system, and landing system of the aircraft
-Taught how to do flight inspections
-Trained there from October through November 2007
-Able to go home for Thanksgiving 2007
(00:26:47) Downtime during Training
-Allowed to go off the base when he was at Pensacola
-No vehicles allowed
-When he was at NAS Whidbey Island he was allowed to have a car
-His cousin let him borrow his car, so he could go into Seattle
(00:27:47) Stationed at Marine Corps Air Station Cherry Point
-Assigned to Marine Corps Air Station Cherry Point, North Carolina
-Marine Tactical Electronic Warfare Squadron 3 (VMAQ-3)
-VMAQ-3 was getting ready to deploy in 20 days, so he was swapped into VMAQ-2
-Learning how they worked in a VMAQ
-VMAQ-2 was basically the same as VMAQ-3 just with a different command
-Squadrons were on a six month rotation at the time
-The squadrons worked together at Cherry Point
-He was with VMAQ-2 for a few months
-Transferred to VMAQ-4 for a month
-Transferred back to VMAQ-3 when they got back from their deployment
-Because he moved between squadrons so much, he received some training multiple times
-For example, he had to go through gas chamber training multiple times
-This involves putting on a gas mask and other gear to protect from WMDs
-You then go into a room that is sealed and filled with tear gas
-Once the room is full, you remove your gas mask and inhale the gas
-The objective is to give you an idea of what a gas attack would be like
(00:32:22) Deployment to Iraq & Arrival in Iraq
-Deployed to Iraq in August 2009 with VMAQ-3
-Orders for Al Asad Air Base in Iraq
-Didn't know what to expect going into Iraq
-They were on the south side of the air base
-Lived in huts made out of shipping containers
-Had doors, windows, and air conditioning
-Had a gym, chapel, and a general store on the base
-Before deploying they went to a base in Nevada for pre-deployment training
-Spent a month there getting used to a desert climate
-Got used to working 12 hour shifts
�-He always worked at night
-Didn't receive any cultural training
-Wouldn't have much contact with the Iraqis anyway
-Left the United States on C-130s and flew to Germany
-Spent a day in Germany
-Took a commercial airliner to Kuwait and boarded C-130s again to fly into Iraq
-First thing he noticed about Iraq was how hot, dry, windy, and sandy it was
-Daytime temperatures averaged at 120 to 130 degrees Fahrenheit
-Didn't deploy as a whole squadron
-Prowlers and a forward unit went over two weeks earlier than the rest of the squadron
-Ironically, Jacob's group got there earlier because one of the Prowlers got delayed
-When they arrived, VMAQ-1 was still there
(00:38:17) Stationed at Al Asad Air Base
-Had concrete bunkers that the aircraft could be stored inside
-Huge blast doors on the outside and dual tunnels that led out onto the runway
-VMAQ-1 had a similar bunker about an eighth of a mile down the runway
-Nice to have an enclosed space to work in
-Out of the sun and safe from small arms fire or mortars
-Never attacked when he was in Iraq
-They were about 100 kilometers west of Baghdad
-Basically in the middle of nowhere
-Built around an oasis
-Knew almost nothing about the Iraq War or Al Asad Air Base's history before arriving
-Heard stories about Saddam's treatment of the Iraqi people
-Knew Al Asad had been some kind of leisure and sports compound during Saddam's regime
-Note: Originally named Qadisiyah Airbase and built during the 1980s
-Worked from 5 PM to 7 AM, plus or minus a half hour
-Had evening meal as breakfast then briefed on what needed to be done during the shift
-Usually sent out aircraft on night missions
-Did an inspection of the Prowlers then got them ready to fly
-Sent out two aircraft at a time
-If there was nothing else to do then they could just sit around for the remaining six hours
-Had internet and computers to pass the time
-Able to get their work done at a relaxed pace, most of the time
(00:44:56) End of Deployment in Iraq
-Deployment ended in February 2010
-Last Marine air unit in Iraq
-They were relieved by the Navy
-Worked with the Navy personnel when they came to help shut down the air base
-Had to gather up any left over Marine gear
-Had been in Iraq for seven or eight months
(00:46:30) Technical Problems in Iraq
-Had to do oil changes on the aircraft almost every time they came back from a mission
-Very repetitive task
-If they didn't have to do an oil change then they still had to do an oil inspection
-Basically making sure there wasn't too much dust and sand in the oil
-Air frames of the aircraft always broke because they were so old
-Washed the Prowlers every couple days to keep them dust free
-Also made sure they stayed dry so no dust or sand could stick to the plane
�(00:49:20) Morale in Iraq & Contact with Home
-Morale was affected due to the length of the shifts
-Noticed that halfway through the deployment tensions flared
-Near the end of the deployment everyone started to calm down again
-Worked out at the gym to deal with frustration
-Slept a lot to pass the time
-Wore headphones when he slept and listened to classical music to drown out the aircraft noise
-Able to Skype his family once a week
-Chance to let them know that he was okay and how life was in Iraq
(00:52:19) Returning to Marine Corps Air Station Cherry Point
-Left Iraq in February 2010 and got 20 days of leave
-Returned to Michigan and went to the Upper Peninsula with his family to go snowmobiling
-Returned to Marine Corps Air Station Cherry Point
-Took the Prowlers apart for in depth inspections and to clean their components
-Some of the aircraft needed their engines swapped out
-More in depth maintenance after returning to the States than deploying to Iraq
(00:54:23) Deployment to Afghanistan
-There was a rumor they would be deployed to Japan for a shorter, three month deployment
-A month later their orders were changed to Afghanistan
-Did pre-deployment training in Yuma, Arizona
-Different because he had a higher rank and there were new men in the unit
-VMAQ-3 received another Prowler and about 30 new Marines to maintain said Prowler
-Passed through Germany, again, en route to Afghanistan
-Flew from Germany to Kyrgyzstan
-Got to spend the day there
-Interesting place
-A lot of vendors selling old Soviet gear
-He bought $200 worth of Soviet stuff and sent it back home
-Boarded a commercial airliner and flew to Bagram Air Base, Afghanistan
(00:58:20) Stationed at Bagram Air Base
-He was stationed at Bagram for his entire deployment in Afghanistan
-Bagram was huge compared to Al Asad
-His unit was quartered next to the emergency evacuation helicopters, C-130s, and the hospital
-More of a sense that he was in a war zone
-Every two or three days militants shot rockets or mortars at Bagram, usually at 2 AM or 9 PM
-Came out of batteries in the city or in the hills near the base
-Most of the time the rockets hit nothing, but when they found their mark they caused damage
-When they took mortar/rocket fire they went into bunkers scattered around the base
-Concrete enclosures capable of taking a direct hit
-In retaliation, attack helicopters went out to search and destroy the enemy batteries
-Missions took about an hour, which meant they had to sit in the bunkers for an hour
-Worked day and night shifts at Bagram
-Noon to midnight for half of his deployment then midnight to noon for the other half
-Never worried about small arms fire
(01:02:09) Living Conditions at Bagram
-Sleeping arrangements were worse at Bagram than in Iraq
-Slept in wooden shacks with screen windows
-City of Bagram was a quarter mile away, but they were not allowed to go into the city
-Bagram was primarily used as an R&R base for soldiers in Afghanistan
�-Had cheerleaders and comedians tour the base to entertain the troops
-He didn't go to those shows because he felt the combat troops needed them more
-Had a bazaar on base that acted as a sort of local shopping center
-Remembers they had furs for sale that were illegal to buy in the United States
-There were Afghan food vendors and a Pizza Hut
-The chow hall (dining hall) at Bagram was better than the one at Al Asad
-Wider variety of choices
(01:06:16) Security in Afghanistan
-Never went off base
-There was a school on the base for Afghan children, so he was able to visit that
-Remembers the children were friendly and wanted candy
-During the last two months he was placed on security detail because he hurt his back
-Gave him a chance to see the security measures put in place on their end of the base
-Had a guard shack with a rotating security camera
-Marine(s) patrolled the area near the guard shack with Air Force guards in towers
-Had T-walls (steel-reinforced concrete walls topped with razor wire)
-Also had old Soviet landmines scattered around the perimeter of the base
(01:09:10) End of Deployment in Afghanistan Pt. 1 & Getting Wounded
-On the last day in Afghanistan he got wounded
-He had everything packed up except for his rifle
-Shells started landing near the building he was in, so he ran outside toward a bunker
-Once inside someone pointed out to him that his arm was bleeding
-He had taken a small piece of shrapnel in his arm
-Closest encounter he had with combat
(01:11:29) Progress of War in Afghanistan
-Friend told him they had taken more mortars following the execution of Osama bin Laden on 5/2/2011
-Learned that VMAQ-3 had sent out aircraft to support the raid
-The bombardment in which he got wounded led to a delay in leaving Afghanistan
-Needed to repair the holes in the runway
-Knew something big happened whenever there was a lot of activity at the hospital
-Saw men missing arms and legs
-Able to watch the news, but he usually knew more about what happened than the news talked about
(01:15:36) End of Deployment in Afghanistan Pt. 2 & End of Enlistment Pt. 1
-Came home in May 2011
-Enlistment was for five years, so that was coming to an end as well
-Placed in an old C-130 hangar at Marine Corps Air Station Cherry Point
-Did not lose any aircraft on either deployment
-Only one aircraft got hit by enemy fire in Afghanistan and it was a fairly easy repair
-When he got back to the States in May he had nine months left in his enlistment
-Could have gone on another deployment, but the rotation schedule changed
-Prowlers were being replaced by the EA-18G Growler (variation of the F/A-18F Super Hornet)
-He felt the Prowlers were better for electronic warfare because they were simpler aircraft
-EA-18Gs had problems with jamming their own electronics
-Decided at the beginning of his enlistment not to make a career out of the Marines
-Wanted to serve his country, serve his family, and qualify for the GI Bill
(01:22:00) September 11, 2001
-He was 15 years old when the September 11th Attacks happened
-Remembers being at school, it was 9 AM, and he was in health class
-Teacher got a call and turned on the news
�-Watched in real time as the jet hit the second World Trade Center Tower
-Feels that it had a little influence on his decision to enlist
-Wanted to do his part to defend his country and his loved ones
(01:23:52) End of Enlistment Pt. 2
-Not much encouragement for him to reenlist
-Military was downsizing at the time
-Iraq War was coming to an end
-War in Afghanistan was slowing down
-Discharged in February 2012
(01:24:42) Life after Service
-Moved back to Michigan and moved in with one of his brothers
-Tried to get a job working on aircraft, but nobody was hiring at the time
-Got hired at the plastics factory that his brother worked at
-Worked there for two months
-Hired by Loomis Armored (a cash handling company)
-Applied to Grand Valley State University in mid/late 2013
-Majored in electrical engineering
-Feels the Marines prepared him for hands-on work, taught him discipline, and multitasking
-Also made him a little too picky when it came to irrelevant details
-Wasn't too hard for him to readjust to civilian life
-Didn't want to be around too many people for a while
-Took a year to return to his “old self”
-Even after a year school came as a bit of a shock
-Noticed a definite gap between the civilian students and the veteran students
-Hard time relating to the younger students
(01:31:24) Reflections on Service
-Feels that his time in the Marines made him more responsible
-Changed him for the better
-Appreciates everything that he got out of his time in the Marines
-Enjoyed the work he did in the Marines and the people he worked with
�
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
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Smither, James
Boring, Frank
Relation
A related resource
Veterans History Project (U.S.)
Identifier
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RHC-27
Language
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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
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RHC-27_MolJ1778V
Title
A name given to the resource
Mol, Jacob (Interview outline and video), 2015
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
2015-06-18
Description
An account of the resource
Jacob Mol was born in Grand Rapids, Michigan on December 15, 1986. In May 2006 he decided to enlist in the Marines and was sworn in on September 11, 2006. He began basic training in San Diego in February 2007 then received Marine Combat Training at Camp Pendleton, California. He was designated as a fixed-wing aircraft mechanic and trained on aircraft engines in Pensacola, Florida. He graduated second in his class and volunteered to work on EA-6B Prowlers. He received training with those aircraft at Naval Air Station Whidbey Island, Washington then joined Marine Tactical Electronic Warfare Squadron 3 (VMAQ-3) at Marine Corps Air Station Cherry Point, North Carolina. He deployed to Iraq in August 2009 and was stationed at Al Asad Air Base until February 2010 then deployed to Afghanistan in fall or winter 2010 and was stationed at Bagram Air Base until May 2011. He completed his enlistment at Marine Corps Air Station Cherry Point and was discharged in February 2012.
Creator
An entity primarily responsible for making the resource
Mol, Jacob
Contributor
An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource
Smither, James (Interviewer)
WKTV (Wyoming, Mich.)
Subject
The topic of the resource
Oral history
Veterans History Project (U.S.)
United States--History, Military
Veterans
Video recordings
Iraq War, 2003-2011--Personal narratives, American
Afghan War, 2001--Personal narratives, American
United States. Marine Corps
Type
The nature or genre of the resource
Moving Image
Text
Source
A related resource from which the described resource is derived
<a href="https://gvsu.lyrasistechnology.org/repositories/2/resources/455">Veterans History Project collection, (RHC-27)</a>
Rights
Information about rights held in and over the resource
<a href="http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/">In Copyright</a>
Publisher
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Grand Valley State University Libraries. Allendale, Michigan
Relation
A related resource
Veterans History Project (U.S.)
Format
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video/x-m4v
application/pdf
-
https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/6ab263495ca4f6426d643bea777500a0.mp4
7dafe8965a10cb00a57d49fb34569ed8
https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/b60966b87e7935ac43ea765ad8ba7738.pdf
c7d9790e3f828246fabc23b8fcfc06ab
PDF Text
Text
Grand Valley State University
Veterans History Project Interview
Iraq
Christopher Notestine
Total Time (00:52:44)
Introduction (00:00:09)
Christopher was born in Charlevoix County, Michigan on July 26th, 1980 (00:00:21)
He has a younger brother and grew up with both parents and comments it was a “white picket
fence” type of family (00:00:55)
◦ Christopher had no major motivation to join the Army as he just drove by the recruiting
office one day and thought that's where he wanted his life to go (00:01:21)
◦ He worked as a roofer before he started basic training at the age of 19 (00:02:06)
◦ Christopher did his basic training at Ft. Benning in Georgia and trained as 11 Bravo
(Infantry) (00:03:15)
▪ After AIT and basic training, he showed a knack for weapons and did a few more weeks
of additional training in Dragon and Javelin weapons systems (00:05:26)
▪ Christopher spent a few weeks at home and then headed out to Ft. Lewis in Washington
(00:06:35)
▪ He was part of the 2nd Battalion 23rd Infantry that worked with Stryker vehicles
(00:07:04)
▪ His unit was originally decommissioned; eventually they became recommissioned and
became the 23rd Infantry Stryker Combat Team (00:09:16)
His units did hard training as they wanted to get the units up and running- they
trained in Yakima, Washington at high altitudes; this was all prior to the September
11th, 2001 attacks (00:11:09)
They went to JRTC Ft. Polk, Louisiana for about a month and then to NTC in Ft.
Irwin, California (00:11:40)
The attacks of September 11th occurred right before he left for Louisiana and
California while he was in Washington (00:11:57)
◦ Christopher was told he was going to train before heading overseas- he didn't
have a clue where he would be heading at the time though- about eight months
later Christopher and his unit were in Iraq (00:13:54)
◦ At the time he remembers he and his unit being gung-ho about getting revenge
for what had happened- even though he comments now that he didn't know what
was going on then and just wanted to go do something because Americans were
killed (00:14:28)
▪ In preparation to go to Iraq, there was physical and mental testing done- he
said they just went and jumped on a plane and left as they didn't have any
plans and then just went to war (00:15:36)
Deployment in Iraq (00:15:58)
Christopher and his unit landed in Kuwait and went to a base just south of the border of Iraq
and waited there for about a week for their vehicles to get there (00:16:02)
It was October of 2003 and very hot- weather in triple digit degrees (00:16:28)
�◦ After the vehicles showed up he mentions the Army figured out their vehicles weren't RPG
proof so they had to rework the vehicles which took a couple days (00:17:36)
◦ He describes the process of moving north towards Iraq as they witnessed chaos and mayhem
and didn't really have any guidelines on how to deal with it all- they didn't stop because of
IED's (00:18:24)
▪ One of the first bases Christopher went to was Anaconda- “it was horrible” he comments
while he laughs about it (00:20:43)
▪ The living situation was pretty bad at the camp so they slept in their trucks for about a
month (00:21:24)
One of the Stryker units' duties was to be the first group there after a base had been
mortared- he says that the mortars were hit and they'd be out the gate before anyone
called them out there (00:23:09)
nine out of ten times they wouldn't be able to catch who was mortaring them but if
they did catch them, they would (00:24:11)
◦ Christopher mentions there was all types of ethnicities and genders represented
in his unit- he says he thinks every unit in the Army is like that (00:26:08)
◦ He jokes that tires were their best technology in detecting IED's (00:27:39)
▪ A lot of the raids he was involved with dealt with insurgents who were
weapons dealers- a lot of the time there wasn't anything there (00:29:14)
▪ The nature of the fighting stayed the same as he mentions Saddam Hussein's
forces used mortars and the insurgents or other people that didn't want the
United States there used IED's- all the action was jumbled together
(00:32:19)
▪ After they spent about nine-ten months in Mosul, Iraq, they showed the next
group of soldiers what they did and advised them on what to do; they handed
over their Strykers and were shipped out Diamondback Airfield across the
Tigris River (00:33:16)
On the way to Diamondback, one of their C130 planes got hit and had to
do an emergency landing between their and Kuwait (00:34:31)
Back to the United States (00:35:10)
The homecoming process was very long as Christopher just wanted to see his family but had to
go through and be 100% accountable to the Army and their check-ins (00:35:30)
Christopher and his unit got about a month's time worth of leave (00:37:52)
◦ He got married a few months before he deployed and had the wedding ceremony when he
returned from Iraq (00:38:59)
▪ Christopher was injured in Iraq by an IED and couldn't do infantry anymore; he didn't
feel his service was complete- he joined the National Guard and came to the 1434th
Engineer unit out of Grayling, Michigan and has been there since 2005 (00:40:25)
▪ Christopher gets the impression that the Iraqi's don't really care to change their ways and
it angers him that the United States is still there and not much has happened although he
acknowledges he's sure not everyone is like that (00:41:34)
Back to Iraq (00:42:36)
Christopher and his unit were doing construction missions on his 2nd deployment to Iraq; they
would go out to certain bases and build police stations or army style barracks for the local
police (00:43:05)
�
He was deployed for eight months with few additional months of training (00:44:06)
◦ His unit went through specialized combat training but Christopher didn't have to because he
was previously in the Army; they trained at Ft. McCoy in Wisconsin for about a month or so
(00:44:35)
◦ If his unit needed anything he was the go-to guy for fixing things (00:46:51)
◦ The timeframe for his deployment was 2009-2010 (00:47:37)
Back to the United States (00:48:16)
The homecoming the 2nd time around was in Grayling, Michigan and was a lot different: there
was not much checking in with the National Guard and they saw their families and friends
immediately (00:48:37)
He mentions he didn't do a darn thing for about three weeks after he got home from Iraq
(00:49:44)
◦ He went back to work for the National Guard; he had to go to Wisconsin to do inventory
(00:50:32)
◦ Christopher and his unit went to El Salvador; they built four or five school houses for kids
but they spent several million dollars- he says it would have been cheaper to contract it out
(00:51:42)
�
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
NotestineC1576V
Title
A name given to the resource
Notestine, Christopher (Interview outline and video), 2014
Creator
An entity primarily responsible for making the resource
Notestine, Christopher
Description
An account of the resource
Christopher Notestine was born in Charlevoix County, Michigan, in 1980. He joined the Army at the age of 19 and did his basic training at Ft. Benning in Georgia. He became part of the 2nd Battalion 23rd Infantry which used Strykers. Christopher and his unit went to Iraq in October of 2003 and mostly stayed in Mosul, Iraq. He was injured by an IED in Iraq and could no longer serve as part of the infantry so he enlisted with the National Guard in the 1434th Engineer Battalion based out of Grayling, Michigan. He went back to Iraq in 2009-2010 as part of a construction unit. He continued to work for the National Guard after he got home from Iraq in 2010.
Contributor
An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource
Dashner, Matthew (Interviewer)
Publisher
An entity responsible for making the resource available
Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Special Collections & University Archives
Subject
The topic of the resource
Oral history
Veterans History Project (U.S.)
United States--History, Military
Michigan--History, Military
Veterans
Video recordings
Iraq War, 2003-2011--Personal narratives, American
United States. Army
United States. National Guard
Language
A language of the resource
eng
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
Moving Image
Text
Relation
A related resource
Veterans History Project (U.S.)
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
2014-03-08
Source
A related resource from which the described resource is derived
<a href="https://gvsu.lyrasistechnology.org/repositories/2/resources/455">Veterans History Project Collection, (RHC-27)</a>
Format
The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource
application/pdf
video/mp4
-
https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/1cb72cf92e54854a1f616403ff9b2dd9.mp4
a0f2eeb38469c8a4dda61c0ae6b50c64
https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/e13ea8082a486e1eb34fa8979552ee6d.pdf
ceb907f610dcb61de1ac9273a713b1fe
PDF Text
Text
Grand Valley State University
Veteran’s History Project
Iraq War
Ron Oakes
Interview Length: (02:10:09:00)
Joining the Guard / the 1996 Summer Olympics (00:00:23:00)
Oakes returned from Vietnam in April 1969 (00:00:23:00)
o He went back to Grand Rapids Junior College and began looking for a job;
although he did find a job work at a GM plant, it only lasted two months
(00:00:34:00)
Oakes found that he was not an inside worker; the day-to-day grind of
working inside a factory after being in Vietnam did not appeal to him
(00:00:48:00)
o Oakes went back to working for Herpolsheimers, a department store in downtown
Grand Rapids, Michigan and going to school (00:01:01:00)
Oakes had worked for Herpolsheimers before serving in Vietnam
(00:01:09:00)
o He also went back to dating and meeting people; his wife had been a blind-date
the day before Oakes had shipped out to Vietnam in October 1967 (00:01:27:00)
He looked her up when he came back because they had corresponded
while he was in Vietnam and eighteen months later, they married
(00:01:47:00)
o Eventually, by using his GI bill, Oakes went to United Electronics Institute for
ninety-nine weeks and earned a degree in electronics (00:02:13:00)
After getting his degree, Oakes was hired by Montgomery Ward and his
first job was down on the South Side of Chicago, where he worked for the
better part of five years (00:02:28:00)
Following Chicago, Oakes transferred to Grand Ledge, Michigan, worked
there for another three or four years, then transferred to Davenport, Iowa
(00:02:38:00)
The company went through some downsizing and in 1985, Oakes lost his
job, so he and his family moved back to Grand Rapids (00:02:51:00)
o Oakes tried several different jobs and eventually got into computers working for
his brother, who he worked for five years before a position opened up at Grand
Rapids Public Schools doing computer repair; he took the job and worked with
the school system for seventeen years before retirement (00:02:59:00)
During his first thirteen years of marriage, Oakes and his family moved ten times;
however, when they moved back to Michigan, they settled, bought a house and after
about a year, Oakes decided he needed a little extra income when he retired, so he
considered joining the Michigan National Guard (00:03:34:00)
o In December 1985, he joined the Michigan National Guard in Grand Rapids,
specifically the 46th Infantry Brigade Headquarters as a truck driver for the
Brigade commander (00:03:56:00)
�
o Because he had already been in the service, when they sent him to MEPs in
Lansing, Michigan, it was a walk-through; they put him at the front of every line
and he went though the process quickly (00:04:09:00)
MEPS = the medical evaluation prior to join the Guard (00:04:30:00)
o Oakes had the choice of either Army or Air National Guard, although the Air
National Guard was primarily prior-service Air Force personnel (00:05:01:00)
o The difference between the Guard and the Reserves is that in the Guard, they
mobilized the entire unit, whereas in the Reserves, they could take individuals to
back-fill someone who went on leave (00:05:09:00)
If they were needed, then the Guard mobilized the entire unit
(00:05:39:00)
The first few years in the Guard consisted of weekends drills and two weeks at Camp
Grayling, Michigan (00:06:01:00)
o After joining in 1985, Oakes went through a cold-weather school in 1989 and in
1991, during the Gulf War; Oakes unit was put on alert to be mobilized
(00:06:07:00)
However, when the President shut the operation down after one hundred
hours, all the mobilizations and alerts reversed (00:06:21:00)
Had they needed to go, the unit would have gone to Fort McCoy,
Wisconsin, where they would have spent six weeks getting additional
training before shipping out (00:06:31:00)
In 1996, Oakes and his unit provided security for the 1996 Summer Olympics, a
experience a lot of the people in the unit enjoyed (00:06:53:00)
o Oakes’ unit’s headquarters company did not go, but most of their companies did,
so Oakes served as backfill with them (00:07:04:00)
o It was a fun experience; Oakes enjoyed meeting people from other countries and
seeing how the Olympics ran from the inside (00:07:19:00)
o Oakes’ unit provided security for a lot of venues, including marksmanship and
badminton, and their last few days were spent guarding the Marriott in downtown
Atlanta, which was the headquarters of the Olympic Committee (00:07:27:00)
They inspected vehicles for bombs and contraband; they found two
concealed weapons while they were there and there was one person who
was unfamiliar with the packing garage layout and came out the wrong
way (00:08:01:00)
o They used a lot of different facilities to house the Guard units, including an old
Delta hanger at the airport, as well as public schools on the outskirts of the city;
Oakes’ unit stayed at Peachtree Elementary in the city of Peachtree (00:08:40:00)
In the school, they took all the desks out of most of the classrooms and put
about sixteen cots and a hanging rack in the room, converting the
classroom into a squad bay (00:09:05:00)
They used the kitchen and gym floor for eating around the clock because
there were always people leaving (00:09:25:00)
The soldiers’ days usually began at three in the morning and ended around
six in the evening; after getting up, cleaning, eating and getting dressed,
the soldiers got on a bus that took them to their venue (00:09:34:00)
�
The soldiers arrived at the venue an hour before the competition
started so they could receive different security briefs before they
got to their position; when they were leaving, the soldiers had to
brief the people coming to replace them (00:09:46:00)
It was typically fourteen hour days, plus an hour and a half bus ride
from the barracks to the venue (00:10:06:00)
The city contracted with the local schools and used their buses to
move the soldiers; naturally, traffic in the city was heavy
(00:10:28:00)
o All the soldiers had to wear name-badges, large placards with their name and
picture on them (00:10:38:00)
If the soldiers took the subway on a day off, the badge got them free
transportation on the Atlanta subway system (00:10:49:00)
o The soldiers did try and get in to see the diving competition; there were tickets
reserved for the security forces but they were seven to eight hundred dollars,
discounted, so not a lot of the soldiers bought any (00:11:04:00)
o The soldiers did walk around, including going through the park where the bomb
went off about two hours before the explosion (00:11:24:00)
They woke the soldiers up that night and did a headcount to make sure
everyone was accounted for; after the headcount, Oakes called home and
his whole family was up watching the Games, so they knew about the
explosion before he did (00:11:30:00)
Oakes let his family know he was fine; he was in the park but he
got out before the explosion (00:11:49:00)
The troops’ concern was they were going to have to stay a little longer
because they were going to beef up security; however, the next morning,
the unit was due to rotate back to Michigan and the next day, the unit went
down to the airport and back to Michigan (00:11:54:00)
Oakes was thirty-five years old when he joined the Guard in 1985 (00:12:38:00)
o There was a range in the ages of the soldiers in the unit; there were a few Vietnam
veterans, including Oakes (00:12:46:00)
o A person’s entry into the Guard depended on when they could retire and Oakes
made it in by seven months; they took a person’s age and added twenty to it and
that number had to be less than fifty-five (00:12:54:00)
The mandatory retirement age in the Guard is sixty and when Oakes
turned sixty, at the end of the month, he was retired (00:13:06:00)
o Oakes entered the Guard as an E-4, a specialist; he got out of the Marine Corps as
an E-4 Corporal and in the Guard, he went from an E-4 to and E-8 (Master
Sergeant or First Sergeant) before he retired (00:13:21:00)
There were people in the unit who were just out of high school and the people with
higher ranks were generally people who had been around longer because it took a long
time to reach those ranks (00:13:53:00)
o A lot of people who joined were also the veterans because at that time, Vietnam
had only been over for about twenty years (00:14:06:00)
�
o On the other hand, there are a lot of soldiers in the Guard who have never been in
combat or deployed, through no fault of their own; because of the field they had
chosen, such as logistics, there is not combat requirement (00:14:15:00)
There are presently even one-star generals in the Michigan National Guard
who have never mobilized because their job has never called for it, despite
them being excellent leaders (00:14:35:00)
The Michigan National Guard currently has some really good leadership and had Oakes
not been forced to retire, he would still be in the Guard; presently, he does contract work
with the state logistics department (00:14:51:00)
The standard commitment for anyone in the Guard is one weekend a month, both
Saturday and Sunday with the possibility of Friday depending on the circumstances, and
fifteen days of annual training at Camp Grayling (00:16:14:00)
o Because of the on-going conflicts, the Army has changed the process to the point
that some units have annual training three or four times a year, cutting down on
the amount of time they need to spend at another base, allowing a unit to deploy
to Iraq or Afghanistan in half the time (00:17:04:00)
o Any problems are solved before the unit deploys to its advanced base
(00:17:29:00)
Post-9/11 Operations / Iraq Deployment (00:18:05:00)
When the attacks on 9/11 happened, things “really started popping” (00:18:05:00)
o Not much happened in Oakes’ unit specifically, apart from being command and
control for the entire brigade; however, a lot of their infantry units were called up
as well as some of their support units, such as: engineering units, transportation
units and maintenance units (00:18:09:00)
At that time, the brigade also had some armored units and they were called
up along with the infantry battalions, many of whom ended up in combat
zones overseas (00:18:23:00)
o Every day, the soldiers in the unit were waiting for the phone call saying that the
orders had come down and to stand-by for mobilization (00:18:39:00)
o In the Guard, different components of a brigade can be called up at different times
and after 9/11, the transportation units were called up first, just a matter of days
after the attacks (00:19:22:00)
The brigade’s support units went first because the Army needed
transportation and maintenance before the infantry arrived (00:19:50:00)
The last two units in the brigade were the last two units that the Army
needed; a lot of the units in the Guard were support units that the Army
did not need during peace-time on a base because there were civilian
contractors already doing the jobs (00:20:04:00)
o Once a unit was called up, after a certain amount of time, the brigade was no
longer in command of them; they could still communicate with the unit but the
unit now belonged to the U.S. Army (00:21:09:00)
o In the beginning, the units were typically going for thirteen months with the
knowledge that it could increase to eighteen months depending on the
requirements (00:21:44:00)
�
If it was going to be a long, drawn-out war akin to World War II, the
commitment could be open-ended (00:21:55:00)
Oakes’ orders when he want to Iraq in 2005 said he was activated for up to
seven hundred and sixty-five days, well over two years; the Army could
have kept him and the other soldiers in his unit for that long but a normal
mobilization was for twelve months (00:21:57:00)
A few years ago, Oakes’ old brigade deactivated and its units moved to other brigades
throughout the state; different Guard units are constantly moving from different
commands (00:22:51:00)
o A unit would deploy, come home for two or three years at the most, then deploy
again; just about every Guard unit in Michigan has served time in Iraq at least
once and some as many as three times (00:23:06:00)
o Presently, most of the Guard units preparing to deploy are deploying to
Afghanistan instead of Iraq (00:23:22:00)
o On occasion, the Guard does move a single soldier from unit to unit based on his
or her commitment (00:23:42:00)
One time, there was a transportation unit in Kansas that could only field
one platoon out of three, so Guard units in Michigan and Massachusetts
each sent a platoon; when the unit deployed overseas, the unit had three
platoons from three different states (00:23:53:00)
Guard units in different states all training on the same equipment, so it was
not difficult to insert the out-of-state platoons (00:24:22:00)
Following 9/11, the number of people attempting to join the Guard increased
(00:24:42:00)
o Even now, there is still higher levels of enlistment; a few years ago the Guard had
to shut down enlistments sixty days early because they had completed their yearly
quotas (00:25:01:00)
o Enlistments had stayed up because a lot of kids coming out of high school join
because of the educational benefits; a lot of colleges end up giving discounts to
military personnel apart from the regular GI bill (00:25:46:00)
When Oakes attended college, his GI bill paid for part and the college had
a program that paid for the rest; Oakes joked with his wife that he did not
pay more than two thousand dollars for his education, although on the flipside, it took him eleven years of a single course a semester to obtain his
degree (00:26:09:00)
Eventually, Oakes was called to active duty to assist in shuffling units around throughout
the state (00:26:48:00)
o However, because he needed additional training, Oakes went to a base in Helena,
Montana and trained at an Army Reserve course in the end of July / beginning of
August for two two-week classes (00:27:04:00)
o He came back to Michigan on a Wednesday, went back to working at the National
Guard Armory, and as he was leaving on Friday, a soldier ran out and told him he
had been mobilized, although Oakes did not believe him (00:27:43:00)
Oakes went back into the armory and read the e-mail, which told him and
another soldier to stand-by (00:28:04:00)
�
Oakes started driving back and forth to Detroit because it was September and the unit’s
activation date was Oct. 8th and its movement date was Oct. 11th to Fort McCoy,
Wisconsin (00:28:13:00)
o Realizing he did not have much time before he deployed, Oakes spent three days
at home organizing his personal affairs and four days in Detroit with the Guard
unit; Oakes knew what his MOS (Military Occupational Specialty) was within the
new unit but he needed time to get to know the other soldiers (00:28:33:00)
o The new unit was around sixty members strong and Oakes and two others ended
up leaving on Oct. 8th as an advanced team to Fort McCoy, while the rest of the
unit came over on the 11th (00:29:04:00)
Going away at the airport was better than when Oakes left for Vietnam; he
had around fourteen family members at the airport when he flew from
Grand Rapids to Chicago (00:29:18:00)
Oakes flew from Grand Rapids to Chicago, meet the other two advanced team members
from Detroit, and all three flew to an airport near Fort McCoy (00:29:30:00)
o While the unit was at the base, they received additional soldiers and equipment,
packed their equipment and received extended training, which included “liveconvoy training”, when the soldiers used live ammunition against the targets
(00:29:46:00)
o The unit was at the base for Thanksgiving, although Oakes’ family ended up
visiting the weekend before Thanksgiving (00:30:15:00)
On Dec. 1st, the unit’s advanced team of twenty soldiers, which Oakes was part of, took
off from Wisconsin on a Miami Air commercial airline that the government had
contracted (00:30:30:00)
o The flight had to land early because the battalion commander had a heart attack,
so the plane landed in Buffalo, New York; the commander and a sergeant stayed
behind and both eventually got transportation from Fort Drum and arrived in
Kuwait about three days after the rest of the soldiers (00:30:55:00)
Because he was the First Sergeant, Oakes ended up carrying the
commander’s 9mm pistol over to Kuwait (00:31:41:00)
o The flight also stopped in Iceland for refueling around one or two o’clock in the
morning and in Budapest, Hungary (00:31:53:00)
Normally, the plane is allowed to taxi to the ramp for the terminal and the
soldiers allowed to deplane, walk around the terminal, and buy souvenirs,
etc. but for some reason, in Hungary, that was not the case (00:32:08:00)
They left the plane on the tarmac and had a cleaning crew come out to
clean the plane, as well as restock it with water and food, before the plane
took off again (00:32:20:00)
o The route of the flight took the soldiers over Iraq and they flew over Baghdad in
the dark before landing at the Kuwait International Airport (00:32:33:00)
At the airport, the soldiers boarded buses that took them to Camp Virginia, which was a
staging area for all soldiers going into Iraq; even foreign soldiers from NATO traveled
through the camp before going into Iraq (00:32:47:00)
o The soldiers could tell the NATO soldiers because of their uniforms and like the
Americans, they had their nation’s flag on their sleeve (00:33:03:00)
�
o The advanced team stayed at Camp Virginia for two weeks before heading into
Iraq proper (00:33:12:00)
While at the camp, the soldiers went through live-fire training again,
although this time they spent the night in the desert (00:33:20:00)
The first night the soldiers spent in the field, there was a rather
powerful thunderstorm and they were all worried because they
were sleeping on cots under ponchos next to the trucks made out of
metal (00:33:36:00)
Before the storm happened, the soldiers saw light darting around in
the sky and at first, they thought the lights were long-distance
aircraft but several years later, Oakes deduced that they were
small, unmanned observation drones used for security along the
Iraqi border (00:34:06:00)
They made it through the training and on Dec. 15th, “went over the berm”
and into Iraq (00:35:16:00)
There were four soldiers, Oakes included, in the unit called “the crusty four”, who were
the four oldest members of the unit; everyone else was much younger than them
(00:35:35:00)
o Three of the four had been Vietnam veterans and they all managed to take
everything that was happening in stride (00:35:43:00)
o Once the soldiers finally got to their base and got settled, it became just like any
other day-to-day living routine; they got up in the morning, ate breakfast, worked
for most of the morning, ate lunch, worked during the afternoon, ate dinner, and if
they were off-duty, went back to their quarters and either watched TV, exercised,
etc. (00:35:59:00)
o The four older soldiers hung together and did their physical training together,
mostly a lot of walks (00:36:23:00)
The name of the base where the unit was stationed was “Q-West” and the base was on an
old Iraqi jet fighter base (00:36:31:00)
o After the 1991 Gulf War, the base fell under the imposed no-fly-zone and
although it had been the most modern base the Iraqis had, no aircraft could fly
from it (00:36:41:00)
During the 1991 Gulf War, the Americans had cratered the runway so
nothing would fly and those craters still existed when Oakes first arrived
there and caused problems later on (00:36:56:00)
o When the soldiers arrived at the base, it was late in the day and they expected it to
be a functional base; instead, they were told to keep their weapons handy because
the perimeter was full of holes and although there were guard towers, they were
manned by the Iraqi National Guard (00:37:07:00)
The perimeter was fourteen and a half miles long and encompassed the
entire base (00:37:32:00)
o The base had a ten thousand foot, heavy-duty runway, thirty-three clamshell
hangars with doors two feet thick to withstand bomb blasts, and various support
buildings, including a computer building and a personnel center (00:37:36:00)
�
The soldiers later discovered several bomb-manufacturing buildings on the
base and there was also an Iraqi ammo dump outside the base itself that
took up two or three square miles (00:37:59:00)
o The base was pretty much self-sufficient, although nothing worked at that time;
when everything did work, the base had its own sewage treatment plant as well as
underground power and communication lines (00:38:15:00)
For the power and communication lines, the Iraqis had buried between
eight and sixteen six-inch PVC pipes and ran the wires through them, with
the only way to access them through manhole covers (00:38:52:00)
The soldiers could drive along the perimeter road and every fifty meters
was a manhole and inside every manhole was a conduit running in one
direction and a conduit running in the opposite direction (00:39:10:00)
When the base was shut down in 1991, there was nobody there, so Turkish
Kurds came over the border and stripped everything, including the copper
from the wires in the manholes (00:39:23:00)
They even tipped over power transformers about the size of a VW
Bug, took the copper from inside, and left the shell (00:38:49:00)
Anything that was too big to carry they left and stripped out of it
what they could (00:40:02:00)
The Iraqis also left a handful of MiG-21 fighter jets and soldiers from the
101st Airborne, which had occupied the base before Oakes’ unit, had drug
the planes, parked them in front of various buildings they had renovated
and used them as war trophies (00:40:17:00)
o The base had an underground power plant buried under twenty-four feet of sand,
although the fuel tanks were aboveground (00:40:48:00)
The Americans took the fuel tanks out in 1991, effectively shutting off
power to the base (00:40:56:00)
o None of the bunkers were damaged and outside of the bomb damage to the
runway, only two buildings on the base suffered damage (00:41:24:00)
One of the buildings was two stories tall, had an elevator in it, and was
used as a VIP building; the building had taken a cruise missile strike
because on one side, the roof had fallen on the second floor, causing the
second floor to collapse onto the first (00:41:32:00)
The other building was what Oakes assumes was the communication
center and it too took a precision-guided strike on it; the soldiers could tell
because there was pieces of rebar but the concrete had been blown off
(00:41:55:00)
o By the time Oakes’ unit arrived, all the buildings on the base had been gutted by
one group or another (00:42:10:00)
When the unit first arrived on the base, Oakes’ main duty was, because he was the First
Sergeant, maintaining personnel and taking care of day-to-day issues; however, there was
really not a lot of work at the beginning because everyone was trying to get settled
(00:42:38:00)
o The unit had a TOA (Transfer of Authority) with the unit who had occupied the
base in which the units exchange flag and the older unit board airplanes and goes
home (00:42:51:00)
�
The previous unit had started renovating one building but stopped because
they ran out of building supplies, so Oakes unit worked to get the supplies
and they built new desks and cubicles (00:43:07:00)
o In terms of living quarters, some of the soldiers had to double-up because there
were initially not enough personal quarters to go around; the individual quarters
were built in Turkey then trucked down to the base (00:43:33:00)
o It took the soldiers a few weeks to get everything organized to the point that they
were able to work properly (00:43:49:00)
Convoys eventually started steadily arrived at the base, coming down from Turkey and
up from Baghdad (00:43:53:00)
o They were rebuilding the American Embassy in Baghdad and some of the
supplies were coming out of Turkey (00:44:00:00)
One day, Oakes went for a drive and on one of the side roads was a
convoy with massive spools of wire, all bound for Baghdad and the
Embassy (00:44:05:00)
o Most of the convoys coming out of Turkey were fuel (00:44:26:00)
They were civilian convoys of tanker trucks and although they were all the
same model truck, each truck was painted a different color and the convoy
looked like a circus coming down the road (00:44:33:00)
The soldier designated these “white convoys” because they were civilian
and were guarded by NATO soldiers (00:44:57:00)
o There were convoys at all of hours of the day, both day and night, and the convoy
arrivals were irregular so that the insurgents could not pick out a set time when a
convoy would be on the base (00:45:06:00)
o There were also line convoys that came from the south and brought the soldiers
supplies, such as food (00:45:20:00)
o Once the fuel arrived from Turkey, it went into a four million gallon fuel farm on
the base, which consisted of large fuel bladders buried under the sand
(00:45:28:00)
A tanker would pull up to the bladder and pump its fuel through a filter;
the people in Turkey had a tendency to fill the tankers with both water and
fuel figuring they could get more money (00:45:42:00)
At that time, the black market for fuel was very high because the civilian
Iraqi population needed fuel; even though the country had a large number
of oil wells, all of the refineries had been knocked out (00:46:02:00)
o The soldiers had to watch the convoys carefully because the drivers would have
hidden compartments and they would try to smuggle in weapons, booze, or drugs
(00:46:26:00)
All the trucks drove in front of a side-scanning x-ray the soldiers had set
up and they were able to see everything within the trucks, even the
smuggled items (00:46:52:00)
The soldiers checked all the trucks for bombs, as well as the IDs of
everyone in the truck and if they found contraband, they simply told the
driver to leave, which often scared them enough because the drivers were
Turks and there was animosity between them and the Iraqis (00:47:07:00)
�
It only happened a couple of times, but that did not deter others
from trying to smuggle goods in (00:47:35:00)
Later on, more booze was confiscated than anything, including entire
cases of Jack Daniels whisky, because all of Iraq was a dry country
(00:47:42:00)
In the mess hall, the soldiers generally drank pop, Gatorade, and
non-alcoholic beer (00:47:52:00)
Oakes’ unit was attached to the 917th Support Group, which was then attached to a
Division, which in turn was attached to the Theater and finally the Southern Command in
Kuwait and Miami (00:48:29:00)
o A normal battalion ran between three and four companies but Oakes’ battalion
eventually reached eleven (00:49:05:00)
o About four weeks into the operation, the battalion commander re-organized the
command structure (00:49:12:00)
Oakes’ unit was three people short when they left Michigan, so the
commander ended up bringing twelve soldiers from the different
companies to “beef-up” Oakes’ unit (00:49:20:00)
Over time, the commander moved the experienced soldiers around and put
them into positions that maximized their particular skill sets (00:49:52:00)
Around the end of February, Oakes became the property-book NCO for all eleven
companies in the battalion, which meant he had to get all their information transferred
from the States to his system (00:49:57:00)
o The system was an Internet system out of Birmingham, Alabama and over time,
Oakes had to get everyone into the system; however, not all the units used the
same software and as the other units converted, Oakes transferred the information
into the existing system (00:50:12:00)
o Oakes ended up getting all the units except the unit working in the ammo dump
because they were not going to convert their software until after the unit had
returned home (00:50:35:00)
At some point, the unit converted early and when all the units were
preparing to leave, the unit came to Oakes asking for help (00:50:51:00)
At the time, serialization accountability about sensitive materials
was high priority and some of the unit’s serial numbers did not
match with what was in their books (00:51:01:00)
However, Oakes could not help them because he did not have their
paperwork (00:51:16:00)
As time progressed, the soldiers slowly improved the base and made things better for
themselves (00:51:24:00)
o The Airborne forces had already built a repair center and started using some of the
bunkers; the base served as the rear-area for all the helicopters stationed in Mosul
(00:51:35:00)
Over time, more and more units arrived on the base; when Oakes and the advanced time
first arrived, they were told that there was around eight hundred people on the base; by
the time their unit left, there were around five thousand soldiers per meal (00:52:06:00)
o The perimeter security changed over time as well; the Iraqi National Guard
eventually became the Iraqi Army (00:52:31:00)
�
Iraqi forces manned the guard posts during the day and at night, American
forces guarded the perimeter (00:52:42:00)
o A single man, nicknamed “the Mayor”, had the task of strictly running the base
and he acted as a liaison between the base and the various civilian support units
(00:52:51:00)
The mayor already dictated which units would receive which buildings
and if a unit wanted another building, they had to talk with him as he
assigning buildings (00:53:19:00)
Although there were only two damaged buildings on the base, all
the other buildings had been gutted; even the underground power
plant had been wrecked (00:53:31:00)
After each unit received a building assignment, they moved their living
quarters near it and built dirt berms and as part of this, each unit received
its own generator (00:53:49:00)
The generators were maintained by a civilian company, KBR, and
once a day, they would turn each machine off and check to make
sure it was running properly (00:54:01:00)
The generators were huge because they had to supply power for
around one hundred living quarters apiece (00:54:07:00)
o The soldiers eventually improved the front gate security (00:54:34:00)
At first, it was just a straight drive through the gate and the soldiers
modified it to create lanes divided by walls of sand so that if a truck was a
suicide bomber and it went off, the explosion would not affect the trucks
on either side (00:54:37:00)
They also angled traffic barriers so that a vehicle had to go around each
barrier (00:54:59:00)
The soldiers did not have any incidents with insurgents apart from a couple of rockets;
one rocket exploded in the sand in the middle of the base and the other was a dud and it
landed in the sand as well (00:55:17:00)
o In the beginning, each unit was assigned a guard tower at night; however, because
there were not enough units to man each tower individually, each unit had to man
two or three towers (00:55:42:00)
Part of the Sergeant Major and Oakes’ job was to take hot food out to the
soldiers in the guard towers and check on them (00:55:55:00)
One night, the two men went out to a tower where there were two young
females standing guard; both the Sergeant Major and Oakes were Vietnam
veterans, so they were cautious whereas the two females were sitting in
the guard tower, smoking by flashlight (00:56:03:00)
However, neither had been trained properly in the manning a guard
post because they were both clerks, so the Sergeant Major and
Oakes showed them what they were doing wrong and explained
that if they wanted to smoke, do it in the corner with the flashlight
pointed down (00:56:35:00)
They never wanted to fully expose themselves in the guard tower
because if someone came through the wire, the guards could easily
be seen (00:57:06:00)
�
On the way back to the compound, the radio rang out “shots fired”
and both men realized that it was close of where they were
currently driving (00:57:26:00)
(00:58:33:00) - (01:00:15:00) Technical Difficulties
In the beginning, there was an Iraqi training battalion on the base, so there
were already Iraqi soldiers on the base (01:00:32:00)
The night that the Sergeant Major and Oakes had delivered food to the two
female clerks in the guard tower, Oakes thought he heard gunfire when he
was walking down from the tower (01:03:39:00)
There was an Iraqi village a few miles away from the base and
Oakes initially assumed the gunfire was someone in the village
firing into the base (01:03:47:00)
All of the sudden, news came across the radio that there was a
wounded soldiers at the fuel dump, about one hundred yards from
where the Sergeant Major ad Oakes were driving (01:04:09:00)
They turned around and went back to the guard tower to make sure
the two females were aware of the situation and to look out the
back of the tower, not the front (01:04:31:00)
The two sergeants stayed at the guard tower with the two clerks for
a while, watching as vehicles moved around looking for whoever
fired the shots (01:04:48:00)
They never did find the person who fired the shots although the soldiers
knew it was an AK-47 based on the sound it made (01:05:39:00)
The next morning, the soldiers found an empty C-Ration container
and several empty AK-47 shells on top of a bunker (01:05:46:00)
They could not track anyone in the desert if they wanted to unless
the had a dog, which the base did not have (01:06:03:00)
As best anyone could figure, a soldier in the Iraqi training battalion
did not like the Americans being there and had decided to take
some potshots then sneak out through the wire (01:06:12:00)
o The base’s rear gate was not that far from where the
shooting occurred and was manned twenty-four hours a day
by Iraqi soldiers, so the shooter could have easily slipped
out of the base (01:06:22:00)
o Several years later, Oakes learned that the same bunkers the men were
investigating for souvenirs had trapdoors in them and the base was lined with
underground tunnels that none of the soldiers knew about (01:06:50:00)
A soldier Oakes had trained with was going around taking pictures on the
inside of a bunker when he noticed a wooden chair; a couple of days later,
the soldier went back and the chair had moved (01:07:09:00)
The soldiers put someone up on one of the other bunkers with night vision
to watch the bunker and sure enough, after two or three days, there were
people coming out of the bunker (01:07:34:00)
�
As it turned out, one the cooks at the mess hall was supplying the people
hiding in the bunker with food (01:07:45:00)
The cooks working the mess hall were neither Iraqi nor Americans,
they were foreigners (01:09:08:00)
On Dec. 30th, a Special Forces C-130 landed on the base’s airstrip; although the airstrip
was not yet operational, planes could land on parts of it (01:09:28:00)
o The plane had come straight from Baghdad and just landed on the airstrip
(01:09:43:00)
o Normally, a pilot was supposed to circle the runway and observe it through his or
her night vision goggles to check the condition of the runway and to make sure
there were not obstacles on the runway (01:09:49:00)
Special Forces did not act that way; they just came in and landed without
waiting (01:09:58:00)
o However, there was hole in the runway about one hundred yards from where the
plane touched down; the engineers had cleared away debris but there was still a
hole three feet deep, the width of the runway and one hundred and fifty feet long
(01:10:04:00)
o The plane landed and although the pilot tried to brake, the front wheel went into
the hole, hit the three-foot bank, and sheered off the front wheel as well as part of
the fuselage before continuing for another one hundred feet (01:10:26:00)
Part of a wing came off and caught fire but there was only a single small
Iraqi fire truck on the base; other men were hauling handheld fire
extinguishers to put the fire out (01:10:41:00)
o There was between seven and nine people on board the plane and in the back was
a “sterile” HUMVEE without identification (01:10:55:00)
The C-130 was also “sterile”; the numbers had been subdued to the point
that anyone could not tell who operated the plane (01:11:04:00)
o Naturally, the plane was totaled and out of the people who were on board, a
chaplain lost both his legs and died before he got to hospital in Baghdad while the
others were taken up to Mosul for injuries (01:11:13:00)
o The next day, the higher-ranking personnel were able to look at the wreckage and
as it turned out, a firefighting unit who had come from Mosul to watch against
flare-ups was from the Michigan National Guard out of Grayling (01:11:31:00)
o The wreckage sat on the runway for a couple of weeks although no one could land
on the runway anyway because it still had not been repaired (01:12:18:00)
When they finally decided what to do with the wreckage, they first
destroyed what remained of nose and the front end, where all the sensitive
equipment was, and then dug a large hole, pushed the remaining wreckage
into it, and buried it all (01:12:26:00)
Operations in Iraq (01:13:13:00)
Once Oakes became the PVO NCO, he began flying up regularly to Mosul for meetings
with the Theater property books; his job involved keeping track of all the equipment
coming in and out off of the base (01:13:13:00)
There was a constant stream of trucks going south from the base to
another jet fighter base at Balad (01:13:28:00)
�
When the trucks left Oakes’ base, they were unarmored and some
independent contractors had begun armoring trucks a the base in
Balad; when the armored trucks returned to the base, Oakes had to
re-identify them (01:13:32:00)
o FOB (Forward Operating Base) Diamondback was basically the Mosul Municipal
Airport, which American soldiers had turned into a military base (01:14:14:00)
There were not many units assigned to the base itself, apart from a medivac squadron and a MASH (Mobile Army Surgical Hospital)
(01:14:28:00)
The helicopters were always coming and going, bringing people in
and out of the hospital (01:14:39:00)
After a while, Oakes also noticed that remote-controlled drones also
operated out of the base (01:14:45:00)
One evening, Oakes and some other soldiers are sitting around and
a man was guiding a drone on a tether out to the runway; on the
runway, the man unhooked the tether, walked away, and the next
thing the soldiers knew, the drone was moving (01:14:52:00)
Most of Oakes’ trips around were done by helicopter, although he did travel with a
couple of convoys (01:16:02:00)
o During the first convoy, the soldiers took some equipment down to the military
junkyard in Balad (01:16:06:00)
Oakes and two other men rode in a truck together; one man manned the
gun turret, one acted as the truck commander and the other drove
(01:16:17:00)
Oakes’ smaller convoy ended up linking up with a much larger convoy
heading south carrying vehicles for rebuild, empty containers, and a
couple of damaged vehicles (01:16:28:00)
The trip took around six hours and on the way down, the convoy passed
another convoy of HETs (Heavy Equipment Transport) carrying tanks and
artillery pieces headed north (01:16:48:00)
While the men were in Balad, they turned in all their old canvas, including
their tents, because they could sleep in the bunkers (01:17:06:00)
However, all the canvas stayed in-country and was given to the
Iraqi Army because the Americans would not risk bringing
anything back due to the bug infestations (01:17:19:00)
Even the soldiers’ uniforms were checked very closely when they
left the country and returned home (01:17:33:00)
The men also turned in some inoperative refrigerators and computers left
by the pervious soldiers who occupied the base (01:17:44:00)
The junkyard in Balad was massive, everything from broken computers up
to tanks that had been hit by land mines, as well as wreckage other
damaged and destroyed vehicles (01:17:51:00)
o Oakes also went on a couple of convoys to Mosul because they needed lumber for
building (01:18:13:00)
o Going out on convoys broke up the repetition of the day-to-day routine, which
would occasionally wear on Oakes (01:18:23:00)
�
He would wake up in the morning, eat his breakfast and then sit in front of
the computer, do paperwork, wait for an e-mail, repair something, or send
e-mails back home (01:18:29:00)
Oakes was thankful that they had computers on the base because unlike Vietnam, he and
the other soldiers were able to communicate easily with home (01:18:38:00)
o He used the computers on Sundays to call his wife at home; Oakes was eight
hours ahead of Michigan, so he waited until around four in the afternoon before
calling (01:18:43:00)
Occasionally, Oakes called his daughter at her work as well as his other
daughter and son periodically just to talk with them (01:19:05:00)
o One of the soldiers had set up a web-cam to talk with people at home but the
others did not condone that because they had a very limited bandwidth in Iraq and
it had to be routed through the Netherlands (01:19:33:00)
The soldiers could tell when there was a lot of people using the Internet
because the system bogged down (01:19:57:00)
o If someone was wounded or killed on the base, the commanders immediately
turned the Internet off because they did not want the information leaking out
before the next-of-kin were notified (01:20:05:00)
There was not just the eleven companies in Oakes’ battalion on the base and they had to
be sensitive to those units as well (01:20:24:00)
o One of the units was an infantry unit and every night, they would go out on
patrols of half American / half Iraqi soldiers looking for insurgents and every
morning, they would come back with somebody (01:20:05:00)
Oakes was in Iraq before the much-publicized “surge” began (01:20:54:00)
o He was in the country when the Iraqis had their first vote and has pictures of all
the ballots traveling through the base to be counted; all the villages in the area
brought their ballots to the base, where they were loaded on a helicopter then
flown to Baghdad for counting (01:20:57:00)
In some places, traveling in a convoy was very dangerous (01:21:31:00)
o The route down to Balad took the soldiers past the city of Tikrit; they had to build
a wall between the city and the road running around it because the inhabitants did
not like the Americans (01:21:32:00)
The convoy did not stop or slow down there because Iraqis would throw
hand grenades over the wall, although the grenades would not do much
damage to the vehicles (01:22:01:00)
o The highways were dual-lane expressways designed to have trees on both sides
and in the middle; however, since the war was over, the locals had cut down some
of the trees for firewood (01:22:28:00)
On the way back from the trip to Balad, the convoy received word that
another convoy in front of them had been hit with an IED (Improvised
Explosive Device), although the convoy was on the other side of the
highway (01:22:50:00)
Oakes’ convoy had come down that side the day before, which meant the
IED was either planted in between or had been planted much earlier;
sometimes, an insurgent would plant an IED and let it sit for a couple of
days (01:23:03:00)
�
o After awhile, the soldiers began looking for signs of something being out of place,
like a pile of dirt and/or rocks, an abandoned vehicle on the side of the road, etc.
(01:23:20:00)
If they saw something suspicious, the lead gun truck would call back to
the convoy so the convoy would either move cautiously or stop all
together while the gun truck investigated (01:23:40:00)
There might be something else a mile down the road and they would do it
all over again (01:23:57:00)
o However, the insurgents began to adapt to the tactics; they realized that a convoy
would swing to the side to avoid an abandoned vehicle, so the insurgents would
place the IED across the road from the vehicle (01:24:05:00)
The insurgents knew what was happening and were watching the soldiers
all the time (01:24:16:00)
o Along the convoy routes, the soldiers could see where the power lines had been
destroyed (01:24:33:00)
The Iraqi infrastructure was very similar to the American infrastructure,
including power lines on the steel towers (01:24:37:00)
On occasion, there were black patches on the ground and Oakes initially assumed they
were where a vehicle had crashed or burned; however, as the patches got closer to the
road, he saw that it was oil seeping up through the ground and pooling (01:25:02:00)
o They were digging water wells on the base and had to dig five or six before they
found water; they kept finding oil (01:25:26:00)
The majority of the base’s water came through a pipeline from the Tigris
River and went through purification (01:25:41:00)
However, the problem with the pipeline was that it was old and every
village it passed through tapped into it so that by the time water got to the
base, there was barely anything left (01:25:48:00)
One time, the pipe cracked and water was spraying up in the desert
like a fountain (01:26:02:00)
The convoys that Oakes went out on were during the daytime, although the base had
convoys going in and out scattered throughout both day and night (01:26:56:00)
o Each vehicle in a convoy had a GPS locator in it, so the people back on the base
knew where the convoy was at all times (01:27:06:00)
o If a convoy got hit, they would hit a panic button, turning their icon on a
television screen back at the base red and the base would get the reaction force to
the convoy as fast as they could (01:27:12:00)
There were smaller bases all along the MSR (Main Supply Route), each
had its own reaction force and they would send the reaction force from the
nearest base to help a convoy (01:27:27:00)
o It threw the insurgents off a little bit not knowing when the base would send out
convoys but generally, at night they could not see the vehicles in the convoy
(01:27:57:00)
The Americans could see any insurgents because they had night vision
goggles, which the insurgents did not (01:28:08:00)
�
o During the day, the soldiers might see someone walking around but could do
nothing about it, whereas if they saw someone walking around at night, that
person might be a free-fire target and the Iraqis knew this (01:28:15:00)
o There was so much supplies and fuel on the base that the soldiers had to run
convoys all the time (01:28:31:00)
The soldiers could also only put so much traffic on the MSR; they did not
want it wall to wall with trucks because then it is akin to “shooting ducks
in a barrel” for the insurgents (01:28:41:00)
o The base also built up supplies for various operations (01:28:53:00)
On one occasion, the Army moved into an area near the Iranian border;
one day, there is nothing there and the next morning, there is a fullyfunctioning combat base (01:28:57:00)
All the supplies for the base had been built up at Oakes’ base,
which was sending convoys every five minutes (01:29:04:00)
Once the convoys reached the desert, they drove side by side,
causing some of the Freightliner trucks, designed only to run on
hardtop roads, to get stuck in the sand (01:29:13:00)
Oakes’ base supplied almost all the coalition forces stationed north of
Baghdad and they moved fuel to Balad, which supplied all the forces
within Baghdad itself (01:29:36:00)
The IEDs employed by the insurgents could do major damage depending on what they hit
(01:30:10:00)
o The devices that exploded around Oakes’ convoys tended to put holes in the
vehicles or destroyed engine compartments (01:30:15:00)
o At the time, most of the devices were ordinance left by the Iraqi Army but as
Oakes now understands it, the insurgents are employing more fuel and fertilizer
bombs (01:30:23:00)
When the Iraqi Army disbanded, they left ordinance everywhere; every
week, the soldiers destroyed all the ordinance they had captured for that
week in an explosion, although sometimes, not everyone received word
that the explosion would be happening (01:30:36:00)
In Vietnam, if someone heard an explosion, they hit the ground; in Iraq, if
someone heard an explosion, they turned and looked at it (01:31:11:00)
o In the beginning of the fighting, a lot of the IEDs were 155 mm artillery shells
and the insurgents had a knack for putting them behind guardrails on the highway,
which added shrapnel to the mix (01:31:21:00)
When Oakes went on his first convoy, someone had gone through and cut
down all the guardrails; the post were still there but the metal was gone,
even on some of the bridges (01:31:32:00)
o There were holes just outside the main gate where early on, someone had snuck in
and planted an IED (01:32:10:00)
o In two of the guard towers later on, the units had LRADs, which were high
quality night vision devices normally mounted on tanks (01:32:21:00)
The “mayor” of the base had been a tanker in Baghdad and brought the
two devices to the base for security (01:32:37:00)
�
Where the LRADs were located, in a two-story guard tower and on top of
a repelling training tower, the soldiers could see the road leading into the
base and if anyone was out there (01:33:02:00)
More than once, someone alerted someone else that there were
three people on the road, two carrying weapons and one carrying a
shovel, and they were about a mile away from the base; the base
would send out the infantry (01:33:05:00)
The insurgents also launched mortar strikes into Mosul itself (01:33:36:00)
o When Oakes’ unit first arrived in Iraq, they sent a four-man team to the FOB next
to the Mosul airport and another team to a different FOB (01:33:40:00)
o The team at the FOB in Mosul had not been there for more than tens days when a
suicide bomber attacked the mess hall (01:33:54:00)
The bomber had worked in the mess hall but was let go; the next day, he
went to the mess hall wearing a bomb suit, sat down to talk with someone,
and pulled the detonator, wiping out an entire group of people
(01:34:08:00)
Luckily, although there were some American casualties, none were from
Oakes’ unit; they had already eaten and left (01:34:20:00)
The bomber had used a lot of ball bearings and the soldiers could tell
exactly where he was sitting because the ground is peeled back and
everything around it has holes in it (01:34:33:00)
Even as late as 2005 when Oakes unit first arrived, most of the bases where still being
built; Oakes’ unit and similar units were taking the bases over from the active-duty forces
that had occupied them since the war began (01:35:05:00)
Out of the entire time they were there, Oakes’ battalion only lost six soldiers, three to
IEDs and three to traffic accidents (01:35:26:00)
o During one the traffic accidents, a tanker truck went off the side of the road, and
rolled; the door of the truck had been pulled opened and the driver flung partially
out and when the truck rolled, the door closed and killed the driver (01:35:33:00)
o In the other traffic accident, two soldiers in a HUMVEE went to avoid an
overpass over railroad tracks being repaired by going down the hill, over the
tracks, and back up; however, it was dusty and they ended up rolling, killing the
gunner and the driver (01:35:54:00)
o The IED deaths were cause mainly from shrapnel that took out the truck
(01:36:55:00)
o There were other times that IEDs exploded but no one was killed, although the
vehicles tended to be destroyed (01:37:01:00)
Oakes has pictures of a tractor trailer that was full of holes from shrapnel
and even when they got it back to the base, it was still leaking diesel fuel
(01:37:08:00)
The base was removed enough from any settlements, with the nearest village being three
miles away, that they did not receive a lot of incoming enemy gunfire (01:37:37:00)
o When they watched the villages through the LRADs, Oakes commented to
another Sergeant that it looked like a game on Atari because all the buildings were
green blocks (01:38:03:00)
�
o Another time, Oakes was in the guard tower and a soldier told him to look
through the LRAD, which was pointed at a village five miles away from the base;
someone in the village had started a bonfire and seven Iraqi men armed with AK47s were standing around it for warmth (01:38:25:00)
The soldier told Oakes to keep watching a nearby bush and he saw a
rabbit, which a dog near the fire chased away (01:38:57:00)
The soldier wanted to know what to do about the Iraqis carrying weapons
but there was nothing the soldiers could so (01:39:19:00)
All the Iraqis carried weapons, including those who worked on the
base; they had to check the weapon into a vault at the front gate
and when left, the Iraqis got their weapon out (01:39:27:00)
Every Iraqi drove a white vehicle, both cars and pick-up trucks, although taxi cabs were
white with an orange roof (01:39:40:00)
In the middle of August, Oakes looked at a thermometer outside their building and it read
130° in the shade (01:40:01:00)
o The facilities that had living quarters in them were air-conditioned, as well as
working space; there first things the soldiers did when the arrived was to put
window air conditioners in the buildings they were using (01:40:16:00)
o The soldiers did not care about the cosmetics of an installation; if it worked, then
it worked (01:40:25:00)
The morale in Oakes’ unit was good, although some of the units they supplied did have
different problems (01:40:41:00)
o Oakes believes part of the unit’s high morale came from the food that the soldiers
received in the mess hall, which was great (01:41:14:00)
Every Sunday was surf’n’turf; the soldiers spent a lot of taxpayers money
eating lobster and t-bone steak on Sunday (01:41:16:00)
The soldiers still kept MREs in the vehicles for convoy duty as well as
some snack food from home but the mess hall in general tended to serve
really good food (01:41:32:00)
The soldiers drank bottled water everywhere, never the local water
(01:41:44:00)
In early April, Oakes got an infection near his throat (01:41:58:00)
o When he went to see the doctor, she said she was not going to touch the infection
because it was near his throat; instead, she had her assistant wake the medi-vac
helicopter crew to fly Oakes to Mosul (01:42:21:00)
o While the helicopter crew was waking up, Oakes went back to his area, got his
overnight bag, got on the helicopter and flew up to the hospital in Mosul; after
dropping Oakes off, the helicopter crew made it a worthwhile trip and picked up
some supplies they needed back at the base (01:42:37:00)
o Oakes had anticipated that he was only going to be in Mosul overnight but it took
the doctors three times to lance the boil on his neck (01:42:54:00)
When he finally got back to his base, he had to have the area checked
every day for two weeks (01:43:23:00)
They made him were a large bandage over the wound, even when he was
promoted from E-7 to E-8 but luckily, the doctors got everything out
before he left for leave (01:43:47:00)
�
On May 6th, Oakes left for leave to meet his family in Ireland (01:44:01:00)
o From his base, Oakes went to Balad, took a C-130 down to Kuwait, were he went
through the process of turning all his equipment in for storage, flew from Kuwait
to Frankfurt, Germany, spent the night there, then finally flew to England and on
to Shannon, Ireland (01:44:06:00)
o Oakes’ family ended up landing in Ireland forty-five minutes before he did
(01:44:50:00)
Oakes stayed in Ireland for two weeks; his kids stayed for the first week
before returning to the United States, while Oakes and his wife spent the
second week (01:45:16:00)
o On the way back, the route reversed but when he got back to Balad and tried to
arrange from transport back to his base, no one knew the base Oakes was talking
about (01:45:24:00)
He ended up getting a flight on a Sherpa aircraft, a small aircraft used to
transport freight around (01:45:42:00)
The Sherpa pilots flew along the knap of the earth, about one
hundred feet of the ground; when they came to a power line, they
simply flew up and over (01:46:26:00)
Oakes had flown on a Sherpa aircraft going down to Balad when
he started his leave and the pilot warned the passengers that if they
heard a snap-pop, it was just a flare; there was a short somewhere
on the plane and it was causing the plane to release anti-missile
flares (01:46:34:00)
o Sure enough, the passengers heard a pop and looking out
the window, saw flares all over the place (01:46:50:00)
o Oakes finally did get back to base, although it took him a couple of extra days
because of the complications with arranging a flight (01:47:03:00)
o Oakes had been promoted from E-7 to and E-8 just before he left to go on his
leave to Ireland (01:47:17:00)
When he returned, the soldiers were still building different parts of the base, cleaning out
and renovating buildings, etc. (01:47:22:00)
o They eventually destroyed the damaged VIP building and buried it and they
knocked down only the part that was damaged (01:47:34:00)
o On some of the buildings, they simply dropped canvas down to act as the wall,
which did nothing during dust storms (01:48:01:00)
The base would get dust storms that made visibility near zero and because
the sand was so fine, it caused a lot of maintenance and respiratory
problems (01:48:07:00)
When it rained, all the sand turned to muck (01:48:35:00)
Luckily, the soldiers arrived in the winter season in November and December, which
meant it was cool (01:48:42:00)
o They actually received snow in Mosul the first weekend they were there; the team
located in Mosul sent back pictures of them having snowball fights (01:48:48:00)
o A couple of mornings, the soldiers would wake up and find ice covering the
various mud puddles around the base (01:48:57:00)
�
o It would get up to 70° during the day but at night, the temperature might go as
low as 20°; thankfully, all the living quarters already had heat/cool units installed
(01:49:11:00)
The living quarters were converted conex containers; they put a floor down, linoleum on
top of that and paneling up the walls (01:49:32:00)
o All the electrical outlets were 120 volts and the soldiers had to buy transformers
for some of the equipment that was 110 volts so they could work (01:49:44:00)
o The generators all put out 120 volts and most were covered with a canopy to keep
the hot summer sun off of them (01:49:56:00)
Oakes also noticed that all the buildings had a parking area covered with a
canopy to keep the sun off the vehicles (01:50:04:00)
Oakes did not meet too many Iraqis apart from those who worked on the base and ran
little shops near where he worked but in general, they were glad that the Americans were
there (01:50:36:00)
o Oakes had dinner with an Iraqi general who had spent seven years in prison
because he had been considered unfriendly with Saddam’s regime; the general
was in charge of the Iraqi training battalion and on time, the battalion invited
Oakes’ entire unit up to eat with them at their mess hall (01:50:50:00)
o Oakes does not recall running into anyone who was upset with the Americans
being in the country because the soldiers were helping them and the Iraqi
economy (01:51:16:00)
o They had been a country without leadership for an extended period, which led to a
lot of black market activities, such as stealing water, gasoline, etc. (01:51:25:00)
o The economic structures along the highway were similar to those in the United
States, meaning the soldiers could travel down a highway and see a strip mall;
however, the strip mall might not be up to the same standards as those in the
United States (01:51:36:00)
None of the stores in the mall would have run on electricity because there
were no power lines running to the building (01:51:55:00)
The fuel stations consisted of nothing more than the hoses and a meter
device with a hill behind the station, on top of which was a storage tank
(01:51:58:00)
A road led up above the storage tank so that a only gravity was
needed to get the fuel from the tanker truck into the tank and to get
from the storage tank to the vehicles (01:52:11:00)
o All of the homes had high walls around them because of the Muslim belief that
the women are not to be looked at by anyone but the husband (01:52:28:00)
o They had houses, apartment buildings, etc. (01:52:56:00)
Their building material was different because they had to building in the
desert and was built to withstand both the high heat of the summer and the
wetness of the rainy season (01:52:59:00)
Believe it or not, the desert turned green during the rainy season
(01:53:09:00)
o Gypsy farmers would go through the desert and harvest
wheat they had planted in an area before (01:53:17:00)
�
o Closer to the Tigris or Euphrates, there were farms along
the both rivers with irrigation ditches; the Iraqis elevated
the plants and the let the water run alongside the mound
(01:53:35:00)
They did not want to spray water because the water
would immediately evaporate (01:50:04:00)
o Even cities such as Balad, watering was done with
irrigation ditches (01:53:52:00)
o The only time Oakes saw water being sprayed was at the
one car wash he saw (01:54:09:00)
o On one convoy returned from Balad, the soldiers passed three kids dressed in
Western-style clothing waiting for the school bus, which surprised Oakes
(01:54:20:00)
o A lot of the shops on base were run by people from Turkey (01:54:49:00)
The shop keepers sold a lot of pirated DVDs; the soldiers might get three
DVDs for a dollar (01:54:55:00)
They could tell a DVD was pirated because they would be
watching it and all of the sudden, someone would stand up and
leave the movie theater (01:55:02:00)
Other shops would sell sandwiches and pop always in sealed bottles and
cans; the soldiers never drank anything out of a fountain (01:55:12:00)
The government spent some money trying to make some things similar to the United
States (01:55:28:00)
o In Mosul, there was one little square that a restaurant that sold chicken, one that
sold hamburgers, another that sold fish and a final one that sold pizza
(01:55:36:00)
o Even in the mess hall, a major ice cream company came in and supplied ice cream
to the base (01:55:56:00)
o The soldiers did not pay for any of the food; there was tons of food in the mess
hall and the soldiers could eat all they wanted (01:56:14:00)
The soldiers eventually built a center for the convoys where everyone going on a convoy
could congregate and receive a security briefing as a group (01:56:37:00)
o They showed where the last attacks, gunfire, IEDs, etc. had occurred in the past
twenty-four hours or if there was a major battle occurring, an alternate route the
convoy would take (01:56:54:00)
o There were also refrigerators and freezers of ice, as well as cases of various food
and bottled water the soldiers could take with them on the convoy (01:57:08:00)
The soldiers could only take so much because the vehicles tended to be
full of equipment; between ammunition and communications gear, there
was not a lot of space to move around (01:57:23:00)
Return Home (01:57:36:00)
The soldiers arrived on the base on Dec. 15th and left on Nov. 10th (01:57:36:00)
o When the soldiers left the base, they went back to Camp Victory in Kuwait to
wait for transport (01:57:58:00)
�o Eventually, the soldiers were picked up and transported on buses to the Kuwaiti
International Airport; once they arrived at the airport during daylight, the soldiers
sat in the buses in a parking lot for several hours (01:58:05:00)
They did not put the soldiers on a plane during daylight; the 747 airliners
were parked on the tarmac but nobody was in them (01:58:19:00)
o The soldiers eventually loaded up with five hundred people to a plane; one plane
was going west and landing in Dallas and the other plane was going east and
landing in Atlanta (01:58:34:00)
Oakes’ plane ended up making a special trip and went to Fort McCoy,
unload the around one hundred soldiers from his unit, then continued on to
Fort Lewis, Washington to unload the rest of the soldiers (01:58:51:00)
o From Kuwait, the plane stopped in Shannon, Ireland for refueling and while in
Shannon, they opened the bar for the soldiers and everyone went there
(01:59:13:00)
It took about an hour to refuel the plane, after which everyone got back
aboard and they did a headcount to make sure everyone was there; once
they were sure, they closed the door and continued the trip (01:59:31:00)
o The plane stopped next at JFK in New York City at four in the morning and
again, the soldiers open a bar (01:59:39:00)
o Finally, the plane arrives at Volk Field, a Wisconsin Air National Guard base near
Fort McCoy (02:00:01:00)
It was getting cooler outside the further west they went and by the time the
plane landing in Wisconsin, it was snowing; however, all the soldiers’
gear was packed and all they were wearing was the desert fatigues, which
did not offer a lot of warmth (02:00:09:00)
They eventually walked to a hangar through the snow and turned in their
weapons; there were soldiers there from Michigan and they took the
weapons, boxed them up, and shipped them back to Michigan so the other
soldiers did not have to carry them any more (02:00:34:00)
o Once the soldiers get to Fort McCoy, they are placed in barracks and the next day,
they go through medical inspection and then waited for transport (02:01:06:00)
o Two days later, the soldier get on buses around midnight on the 18th and as the
buses left, most of the soldiers fell asleep (02:01:33:00)
Around daylight, they reached the Michigan state line and stopped at a
McDonalds to get breakfast; some soldiers went to a gas station next door
to get some food and the workers told them to take as much as they
wanted, it was on the house (02:02:11:00)
When the buses got back on the road, a state trooper had his lights going
and he saluted the soldiers as they passed (02:03:53:00)
o When they got back, Oakes wife had rented a stretch limo HUMVEE that Oakes
did not know about (02:03:26:00)
o The reception the soldiers received was a lot better than the reception Oakes
received when he returned from Vietnam (02:04:04:00)
The same four who hung out together in Iraq were all Vietnam veterans
and three were on the bus; one stayed at Fort McCoy because his wife had
a new job working in Kansas as a librarian (02:04:13:00)
�
o A few months after returning home, the unit had a ceremony and handed out
flags, trophies and plaques; a month after the ceremony, Oakes transferred out of
the unit (02:04:38:00)
o The Guard had a new job lined up for Oakes, so he went through more training
for a month and then began working as an Equal Opportunity Advisor, which
meant he made sure soldiers did things appropriately (02:04:54:00)
Oakes left active duty for a year but was called back in Apr. 2007 and was active duty for
twenty more months, until Dec. 2009 (02:05:26:00)
o He left the Guard and went back to his civilian job and retired from that job in
July; Oakes retired from the Guard on March 31st 2009 when he turned sixty years
old (02:05:43:00)
After Iraq, Oakes initially went back to the 1225th in Detroit for a month then transferred
to Jackson, Michigan as an equal opportunity advisor (EOA) (02:06:04:00)
o He needed training to be an advisor, so Oakes spent thirty days at Patrick Air
Force Base in Florida; EOA training is some of the most difficult in the military
because the soldiers were dealing with people emotions and feelings
(02:06:20:00)
o After coming home for a month, the unit in Jackson transferred to Grand Rapids,
Michigan and the commander wanted Oakes to come with him, so Oakes did so
(02:06:38:00)
o However, Oakes had not been home a month when he transferred out of the job
and into the logistics section for the state of Michigan (02:07:01:00)
o In Apr. 2007, Oakes was re-activated to do the property book duties for the 177th
MP Brigade that had been mobilized (02:07:18:00)
o The 177th came home a year later but Oakes stayed with the unit because their
property book officer for whatever reason could not perform the job; Oakes
stayed with the unit until Dec. 2008 before going back to his civilian job working
for a local school system in January (02:07:30:00)
When the school year ended in July, Oakes retired from the school system
(02:08:01:00)
o When Oakes reached the age of sixty in Mar. 2009, the Guard forcibly made him
retire (02:08:08:00)
While Oakes was in Iraq, he would have liked to have seen more people, including going
to their homes and becoming friendlier with them (02:08:22:00)
o The hardest part was not being able to get to know any Iraqis and what their
lifestyle was like; very few of the soldiers were able to do this (02:08:32:00)
o On a couple of occasions, they sent out teams to distribute soccer balls, supplies,
etc. but Oakes’ job kept him from being able to do that (02:08:42:00)
o He also would have simply liked to get out more; in the beginning, it was a little
more hazardous to go out but in the last two or three months, it was probably safer
(02:08:59:00)
The biggest response Oakes receives when people find out he had served in Iraq is they
thank him for his service, although Oakes does not advertise that fact (02:09:38:00)
�
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
OakesR2
Title
A name given to the resource
Oakes, Ronald (Interview outline and video, 2 of 2), 2010
Creator
An entity primarily responsible for making the resource
Oakes, Ronald
Description
An account of the resource
After returning from Vietnam in 1969, Ron Oakes married, earned a degree in electronics and traveled around the Midwest working. Eventually, he and his family moved back to Michigan, where Oakes joined the National Guard. As part of the Guard, Oakes helped provide security for the 1996 Summer Olympic Games in Atlanta, Georgia and deployed to Iraq in 2005 for eleven months. While in Iraq, Oakes performed a variety of jobs, including being a property book manager for his entire brigade stationed at FOB "Q-West", a former Iraqi Air Force base between Balad and Mosul. After the eleven-month deployment, Oakes returned to the United States with the rest of his unit and continued serving in the Guard until March 2009, when he retired at the age of sixty.
Contributor
An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource
Smither, James (Interviewer)
WKTV (Wyoming, Mich.)
Publisher
An entity responsible for making the resource available
Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Special Collections & University Archives
Subject
The topic of the resource
Oral history
Veterans History Project (U.S.)
United States--History, Military
Michigan--History, Military
Veterans
Video recordings
Iraq War, 2003-2011--Personal narratives, American
United States. National Guard
Language
A language of the resource
eng
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
Moving Image
Text
Relation
A related resource
Veterans History Project (U.S.)
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
2010-06-15
Source
A related resource from which the described resource is derived
<a href="https://gvsu.lyrasistechnology.org/repositories/2/resources/455">Veterans History Project Collection, (RHC-27)</a>
Format
The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource
application/pdf
video/mp4