31 24 1541 https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/6f6917a984cc294fac31082834fc36cc.m4v 85be408bbc9ddf17c85dda0a4fb86201 https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/ffbdfdaa7ddf915552af81c51c3b9422.pdf fc1bde946499dcfbf38cde9dd0474c9a PDF Text Text Grand Valley State University Veterans History Project Interview Vietnam War Era Jan Roy (57:10) Introduction (00:23:26)    Jan was born in Holland, Michigan in 1941. After she graduated from high school at Holland Christian High School, she began working at the Holland Furnace Company for four years, before it went out of business. Her father was a machinist and her mother was a stay at home mom. Jan had three siblings, of which she is the oldest (01:03:23). Joining the Navy (01:25:26)    Jan wanted to join the Navy, so she went to Detroit for her physical and was told she was ten pounds over weight. She was sent home and a year later was finally received. She was inspired to join by her cousin, who served as a chaplain and was killed in a plane crash on his way to Washington D.C. to receive the Chaplain of the Year award (02:15:00). She was 22 years old and wanted to leave Holland. Training (02:42:15)     Jan was sent to Bainbridge, Maryland for boot camp. The training lasted ten weeks. The base was about an hour from New York City, and was not near any water (03:12:27). This was a women only training facility, and also hosted several different schools. Boot Camp (04:07:07)  Jan was older than most of the others in her company, so she adjusted well.  She completed boot camp without getting any demerits, which she attributes to one of her instructors that was from Detroit  She started basic training in 1963. (04:46:10)  Jan had around thirty women in her training company.  Her training consisted of education (military, Navy history), physical, drill and marching and swimming.  The physical portion was easy for her as well as the military discipline aspect (06:22:25). �   She had a mild recruit petty officer, E-6, and she was fortunate for an easy instructor. Most of the people who started the training, completed it. After finishing boot camp, Jan stayed at Bainbridge and began Yeoman A school, which was a clerical school (08:29:16). A – School (08:29:18)      Having worked for four years prior to joining the Navy, Jan had typing skills and decided to pursue that in the military. This school lasted between six to seven weeks, and included basic clerical and typing skills. During this training phase, she was granted liberty and had access to the local clubs and bars because she was over twenty one years of age. A-School was a pleasant experience for her (09:37:04) She met a radioman during this time that she still keeps in contact with today. First Duty Station (10:02:00)       Jan was stationed at Naval Station Newport, Rhode Island. She started out in the personnel office, but was borrowed by the legal office around 1964 to help type wills for the men going overseas to Vietnam (10:37:15). Jan did not have a car, so she took a bus into town. She enjoyed seeing the ocean, and made friends with a woman who lived in Cape Cod and went there during her liberty. Newport was a small town, but busy with activity because it was a home port for the Navy (12:41:09). Her job normally lasted from 0800 to 1600 (8am- 4pm) everyday; she was bored with her job and was glad to switch to legal, which required her to attend Naval Justice School at Naval Station Newport (13:48:06). Justice School (14:12:19)     Jan’s class had 72 people, many of which were senior to her in rank and they thought she was not ready for the challenge. She graduated 6th in her class. She was then a certified closed microphone court reporter, who records court hearings and trials and then later transcribes them on paper. The class taught the Uniform Code of Military Justice (UCMJ). Around 1965-66, she was working as a legal aide and dealt with illegal movements from ships, unauthorized absence, and reported at their court martials (16:57:23). Working as a Courtroom Reporter (17:01:26)  One case she remembers well, involved a conscientious objector, who was holed up in a church basement, which required the F.B.I to go in and get him out. He was sentenced to �       three months confinement and busted down in rank to E-1 and had forfeiture of pay for three months (17:47:01). The same man later was given a bad conduct discharge, the trial lasted five days, and took her thirteen days to transcribe the court hearings (19:07:14). Jan often had difficulties in the hearings for unauthorized absence, especially the ones that involved men from the Philippine’s or African Americans, because she could not understand them, which caused her to interrupt the court and asked for them to speak more clearly (20:38:01). During these hearings, she learned a lot about the people and their backgrounds. Most of these people were enlisted and not drafted to her knowledge. Many people attempted to defend themselves, which in one case resulted in a mistrial and the proceeding had to be redone (22:59:04). Other cases that Jan dealt with were assaults, admin discharge hearings (one of which involved three black men involved in a drive-by shooting, where one of the men was sentenced to ten years or more and was given an undesirable discharge) (24:55:29). Admin Discharge – were cases that were generally not militarily related, but against society, such as homosexual cases. Jan knew one girl who was a homosexual that received an UD (undesirable discharge) who later appealed all the way to the President of the United States, but was denied (26:17:11). Homosexuality was a problem back then because it often times was followed by violence, such as beatings in the barracks and harassment (28:09:26). Civilian Life (29:00:00)     Many women who joined the Navy in those days did so because of patriotism but also because of the training, which opened jobs in the civilian world. Jan’s initial tour of duty was three years, but lasted four years. (29:17:06) Vietnam caused her enlistment to be extended After her enlistment ended in 1967, she returned to Holland and later joined the reserves in 1971 (30:50:20). Every year she was sent to a two week active duty assignment where she was sent back to Rhode Island. Recalled to Active Duty (31:34:23)   In 1975, Jan committed to a two year active duty recall and was stationed in New Orleans. She was working for the Naval Reserve Chief in the JAG.  She had a totally different job, which included legal documents and legal assistance; she did not do any reporting.  Jan lived away from base and was forced to take a boat to the base area. Wearing high heels and a skirt, once she almost fell in the water, and was saved by a Marine (33:10:05)  While there, Jan did not care for the job, but enjoyed being there. She also met her second husband while in New Orleans (34:16:05). After her two years, she believes she returned to Rhode Island. �U.S. Forces Azores (35:26:11)      She describes the area as ‘backwards’. Jan remembers farmers with donkeys and the local taxi cabs being Mercedes. The base was operated by the Portuguese Air Force. There she served as the legalman for the base. Mostly small legal matters. She only stayed for two weeks at a time. The local population depended highly on the military to support the island (37:38:06). The climate was cool and damp, not sun bathing weather. She was there in the March to April time frame. Back to Civilian Life (39:43:00)     1977, Jan finished her second tour of active duty and remained with the reserves but returned to Michigan. She worked for several different law firms during this time. In 1991, she moved to Grand Rapids and got a job working for the city, she retained this job for twenty years. Jan retired from the reserves in 1997 (40:23:03) Looking Back to last duty assignment (40:24:00)        Jan served as the legal officer for the Seabees, serving between Grand Rapids and Detroit. As the only legal person in the unit, she was also the only female chief in the battalion (41:22:27) Only once was she stationed on a ship during her active duty tours, the Nicholson (43:19:18). She was a chief at the time, and was the legal expert on the ship after the other woman legal aid left on leave. Jan also had difficulties navigating the destroyer escort ship that was out of Norfolk, Virginia, often getting lost. She was also worried about going out to sea because she gets seasick (44:46:00) Luckily, the ship stayed tied to the pier during her time there. Veterans Organizations (45:40:18)      Jan was first involved with the Furniture City Post of the American Legion, which is a sea service only post only open to Navy, Coast Guard and Marine veterans. There, she was the first female commander. She is also the Judge Advocate of the post (46:27:09) The Judge Advocate ensures that the protocol and bylaws are followed by the post. Later she moved up to become the commander of the 5th District, and has held several different positions in many different areas. �             Even though it is considered an all boys club, Jan has held many different roles, but is unable to go higher than the district commander because she is a female. (48:09:25) She is also a life member of Amvets. Waves National, is a sea service women’s organization, and she has been involved all the way to the national level. Jan is the Regional Officer, but the organization is slowly going away, because most of the members are World War II veterans and are getting old and unable or unwilling to get things done. (49:25:26) Every other year, she attends conventions, which is sometimes held on a cruise ship. The designation has wanted to change names, but the price of changing names would be too high, and Jan wanted to see better promotion of the organization. It is open to any women who served in a sea service capacity. She believes that she has earned the respect from the men in these veterans’ organizations by taking on many different tasks, and completing them well. She has also recently retired from the local honor guard, which is also heavily dominated by men (52:33:05) Most of the men in these organizations are Vietnam Era or younger, which give her more respect than the die hard World War II or Korean vets. On the honor guard, she would usually serve as one of the riflemen who fire the twenty one gun salute at funerals, and had to get training on the proper way to handle the rifle and how it operated. (53:43:07) Each funeral takes a commitment of about two and half hours. She finds the experience very rewarding. Most people don’t understand the military and what it means to serve, even her family. Jan was awarded Kent County Veteran of the Year, the second woman to receive that honor. (56:51:25) � 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 RoyJ1479V Title A name given to the resource Roy, Janice (Interview outline and video), 2013 Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Roy, Janice Description An account of the resource Jan Roy was born in Holland, Michigan in 1941. She joined the United States Navy in 1963, and served as a court reporter and legalman both on active duty until 1977 and in the Naval Reserve until 1997. She was stationed in New Orleans, Newport, Grand Rapids, the Azores and aboard on the destroyer escort Nickelson. Jan remains active with the local veterans organizations such as the American Legion, Amvets and Waves National. She has attained the positions of commander and judge advocate for the American Legion and was named the Kent County Veteran of the Year. Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Smither, James (Interviewer) Kentwood Historic Preservation Commission (Kentwood, Mich.) WKTV WKTV (Wyoming, Mich.) 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. Navy Vietnam War, 1961-1975--Personal narratives, American Other veterans & civilians--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 2013-02-07 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 Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Lemmen Library and Archives https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/fe606042a16f264233c6a062e2eec114.m4v 130717dcd6644a4727dc4d1659700d29 https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/1cc4608d538deec2b42b6af897d45cc8.pdf 4baac075619dae52fd17a7474c3f55cf PDF Text Text Grand Valley State University Veterans History Project Interview Ted Tees Length: 1:00:17 (00:05) Background Information   Ted was raised in Buchanan, Michigan and graduated from high school in 1965 He then went on to Lake Michigan College for two years before he was drafted into the Army (3:25) Training  Ted went through basic training at Fort Knox, in Kentucky for 8 weeks  They went through much physical training and testing, received shots and inoculations, classroom sessions, training with weapons, marching and running  He then went through Advanced Individual Training  Ted thought he would be sent to Officer Candidate School, but he went through Advanced Infantry Training instead at Fort Polk in Louisiana for 12 weeks  In AIT Ted went through enhanced weapons training, confidence courses, and there was much physical work  All of the training Ted went through was phenomenal and really prepared him for his experience in Vietnam  Ted then was sent to Fort Benning in Georgia for Non-Commissioned Officer Candidate School  Ted went through some leadership courses in Georgia and had extensive classroom training  He then went on to jump school, thinking that if he just continued to volunteer for more programs, the war in Vietnam might be over by the time he was finished training  Eventually Ted received his orders to go overseas and he had made Buck Sergeant, E5, by the time he went to Vietnam (8:40) Arriving in Nam  Ted had a flight to Vietnam and they stopped in Hawaii and Japan before arriving  It was very hot getting off the plane; the humidity was overwhelming  Everyone was very welcoming and helped to get the new men oriented  Ted was immediately sent to Camp Evans to work with Bravo Company of the 506th Airborne Infantry, 101st Airborne Division  The supply officer got him ready and he was then told he would have to go in the field right away with his new captain  Ted was a little overwhelmed and never got to settle in before he was sent out �(12:40) First Assignment  Ted became Sergeant of the 4th Platoon, but was not really familiar with his new position  The squad had already been in combat and the men were all experienced  Ted had thought that he would be fighting a bunch of barbarians, but he actually found the Vietnamese to be quite smart  Many of the American soldiers had thought they were invincible because they had been successful in 3 previous wars (20:25) Search & Destroy  Ted was finally able to go to Camp Evans to clean up and check on his weapons  He next worked on search & destroy missions, looking for the 29th NVA Regiment in the jungles of the valley  They had earlier been pushed off of Hamburger Hill and moved near the Laotian border where they continued to cross back and forth  The Americans made contact with the enemy about every 2-3days, in which it was usually the enemy initiating fire  There were well established trails in the jungle (30:05) Average Working Days  Whenever they were attacked in the jungle, it was always hard to locate their target and no one wanted to just blindly shoot back and waste ammunition  Mail and water were brought in every 2-5 days, but their missions usually lasted 14-20 days  There was a bit of a stand down during the monsoon season with the storms being so strong and making it dangerous to be out in the open  After each mission the men would return to camp to clean up, eat a few hot meals, check their weapons, and get checked out by the surgeon  Ted would work in the fire base for about 5 days and then would rotate out with another company  He was in Vietnam for a total of 11 months (41:30) Entertainment  Ted often wrote letters to his parents and friends  Having a higher up position, he often tried to humor and entertain the other men when their morale was down  Ted was able to spend several days in Sydney, Australia while on leave  He had a great time in Australia and really liked all the civilians �  On his last day in Australia Ted was taking a cab to the airport and the driver told him he did not have to pay any fare because he really appreciated what Ted was doing in Vietnam The men never had any time on weekends or at night to go to the bar or really do anything relaxing (49:40) After Service  Ted was given a new position at a Tactical Operations Center where he worked with classified documents for a while before he was sent home from Vietnam  The time really went by quickly while he was there for a his last few days and waiting to leave  Ted flew out of Vietnam on his way out and it was a great relief to finally leave  He arrived in the US and was discharged soon after returning  Ted was only 21 years old when he returned in 1970 and he felt that he completely stood out from the rest of his generation because he had changed so much  He visited his family and was looking forward to getting back to civilian life  Ted later went back to college, taking night classes while working for Whirlpool  After finishing college Ted took a position working at the Palisades Nuclear Plant � 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 TeesT Title A name given to the resource Tees, Theodore (Interview outline and video), 2010 Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Tees, Theodore Description An account of the resource Ted Tees was raised in Buchanan, Michigan and graduated from high school in 1965. He then went through 2 years at Lake Michigan College before he was drafted into the Army. Ted went through basic training at Fort Knox, Kentucky for 8 weeks and then through 12 weeks of advanced infantry training at Fort Polk in Louisiana. He then went through Officer Candidate School, Jump School, and continued volunteering for other programs, hoping that the war in Vietnam would be over before he finished training. Ted was eventually sent to Vietnam where was assigned to a line unit of the 101st Airborne Division, and went on many search and destroy missions in the aftermath of the Hamburger Hill battle. He was in Vietnam for a total of 11 months before he was discharged and able to go back to college. Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Massa, Richard (Interviewer) 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 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 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 Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Lemmen Library and Archives https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/f3fb9dc861b208c21d8e159d5ae6dfde.mp4 1ff31cef629af557169d342c17ac568c https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/89d7b7417ba408e4c3f66878ba638984.pdf b80bba299c885cf7ec9fb644535eb817 PDF Text Text Grand Valley State University Veterans History Project Interview Name of War: Manager of Veterans Affairs, Kent County, MI Interviewee: Carrie Roy Length of Interview: 00:58:48 Background (1:07)           From Deer Lodge, Montana. Grew up there most of her life. Father worked at the state prison in the area. Her mother was a nurse at Warm Springs, a halfway house for the mentally impaired. While in high school, she ended up getting pregnant and having twin daughters. She still graduated with good marks. She got married straight out of high school; however this would not work out. She ended up being a single parent. After a while, she decided that Deer Lodge was just too small of a town for her, so she moved to Sheridan, Wyoming. She went to community college there, but was struggling to keep everything balanced. So she decided that the military would be a good option for her. She did not know much about the military except for what she saw in movies. She was always very athletic and thought she would be a good fit for military life. At first she wanted to be in the Marines. After discovering that she would have virtually no choice in the type of job she would receive, she then went to the Army recruiter next door. She took her ASVAB (Armed Services Vocational Aptitude Battery), a military aptitude test. The higher the score, the more job opportunities were available to you. She did pretty well and had about 30 jobs to choose from. She ended up choosing 63 Bravo, which was light wheel vehicle mechanic. She did not know anything about it, but being a single mom, she thought the training would come in handy later. Training (4:50)       Her first session of basic training was in Fort Jackson, South Carolina. She loved basic training. While she was in “reception”, when they do all the physicals, you get your clothes, etc. she and the others there were there for about two weeks, instead of the usual two days. So it got a little boring. She got a taste of how mean and aggressive the drill sergeants would be. When they were done with the reception, they were assigned to their training units. The physical aspect of the training started right away. When they got off the bus, they had their duffle bags, which weighed 40-50 lbs. and they had to carry them everywhere on their first day. �                She knew that they were going to break her down psychologically and felt she had a leg up compared to most of the others in the unit who were mostly 18-19, whereas she was 23. The gender balance to the group was about half and half. It was under President Clinton that integrated training was allowed, and she had joined in 1998. She thinks that they did this on purpose, because of the fact that basic training is for combat training, so it has people from all sorts of skills there: cooks, military intelligence, mechanics, etc. They were organized in training companies. She was in Charlie Company. The barracks were separated by gender, women on one side and men on the other. She learned right away that everything in the barracks had its place and that everything had to be in its place. It was very structured. Some people adjusted very well as they had planned on doing it for a long time. Others were not so prepared for joining the military. Once you are there, leaving was not an option. Wherever you go you had to have a “battle buddy” for safety reasons and accountability. For those who wanted out, they would have to do something to get them kicked out, or suffer from an injury, or even fake an injury. She remembers that there was one girl who had to leave, but all the others made it through the training. Fort Jackson is located near Columbia in South Carolina. The climate was very humid compared to Montana, but the hardest thing to get used to was the fire ants. They would get everywhere. She would also deal with cockroaches. She had never seen one in her life. Her basic training lasted 8 weeks. Each week you were learning a new combat skill. She learned map reading, weapons training, which was really fun, battle tactics, combat fighting. She was a hunter back in Montana, so it was not difficult adjusting to the M-16 rifle. When she finished her basic training she came out with as an expert on weapons training. She was proud of that accomplishment. While they trained, they would always train with their battle buddy. Her buddy was a 6’2” woman who was rather bulky, but Carrie was bound and determined. Unlike most, she really described training as fun. She said it brought to her a confidence she did not know she had and she learned how far she really could push herself. Advanced Training: (14:35)     She stayed in Fort Jackson for her AIT training, where she learned how to become a mechanic. She was there for 13 weeks. She excelled at her training there. She was called a “high speed” soldier and one of her drill sergeants in AIT suggested that she go to jump school, because that is what all good soldiers do. In AIT training, they started with very basic stuff. The first thing she trained with was a lawn mower engine, learning how engines work. She would eventually work on Humvees in the military. �     She would achieve the echelon level 2 of training, which was mid-level. They did not get into deep engine functions. She learned how to replace parts, trouble shoot if something goes wrong and other such things. She also learned how to read flow charts, as the military loves flow charts. She also did some “boom” training, which was taking vehicles that had been stuck in the mud and using a boom truck to get them out. It was really disgusting. During AIT, if you pass the second phase of training and you do really well, you can get a weekend pass. She got a hotel room with a group of her friends and got some beer and partied. Others did more than that but she stayed away from them because she did not want to get kicked out of the military because she liked it. It helped being the oldest because she was the only one who could buy beer. It also helped being older because others would come to her for advice. It gave her a kind of motherly instinct. Jump School: (20:05)  When she was finished with AIT, she was sent to Fort Benning, Georgia for jump school.  It was three weeks long, each consisting of its own lessons. First ground week, then tower week and then jump week.  The first week was great. You have to run everywhere, until 5pm.  Jump school is a specialty school so people were there from all parts of the US military system, with all sorts of different ranks and it did not matter.  Tower week was when she got injured. While she was on the swing line trainer, a 12ft high platform, she was practicing her PLF’s and she did not land correctly and fractured her right femur.  She does not know what happened because she had her PLF’s down by that point. At first she did not realize that anything was fractured or broken, she was going to walk it off.  After a day, she could not walk off the pain so she went to see somebody and they diagnosed her with tendonitis. So they put her on two-day profile, which means she was restricted from doing any physical activity.  After two days of not healing she went back to sick call. Finally after going through doctors they did take x-rays and did find out that she had a bone fracture.  That was the end of her jump school days and she was really bummed because she was one day away from jumping out of a real airplane and it never happened.  Her doctor wanted her to go home and recover for 30 days, but her sergeant would have none of it. Instead she was transferred from Bravo Company to Delta Company, where they sent all the injured and others who couldn’t hack it.  While she was there, she was told to clean the cracks in the sidewalk with a coat hanger. It was humiliating, but she had to do it anyway.  She would get to paint the silver wings new logo on their wall and she thought that was cool.  She was in Delta Company for 6 or 7 weeks, until her permanent duty station came in. Fort Hood, Texas (28:10) �          She was disappointed to find that she was stationed at Fort Hood, Texas. She had heard that it was one of the less desirable places to go in the military. Fort Hood is in central Texas, not really close to anything important. Before she was sent to Fort Hood, she went home for 10 days. She still wasn’t healed and was on crutches. She did not want to show up on crutches on her first day at Fort Hood, because people there would think she was weak. She probably did more damage than good by leaving her crutches behind. She thought she would heal while sleeping, but it did not work out so much. She ended up going to sick call 2 weeks after she got there and got crutches and another profile. Her motor pool sergeant was really cool, though not very happy about her injury. She could still do everything, just not to the extent that the others could, like lifting heavy objects. Her sergeant was willing to work with her through her injury and one day he let her work in the office and do clerical kinds of things. That’s what she did for the last few months she was there. After about a year at Fort Hood, and going back to the doctor’s to find out her fracture was not healing, they gave her a choice: they could either put pins in her hip and she could stay in the military, or she could leave. Post Duty (32:30)             Given that there was no war going on, she decided to leave. This was in 2000. When she was discharged, she was a little bummed because she loved the military. When she was in Fort Hood, she met her current husband. They had met, fell in love, some stuff happened and they broke up. While she was being discharged, he was sent to Korea. She went home to Montana and started a daycare center with a friend, but it was not really working out. For the year while she was in Montana after she got out, she never really forgot about him and had been keeping in touch with his mother. One day, she asked his mother to somehow help her get in touch with him. Coincidentally, he had returned from Korea the day before. They talked on the phone and he invited her to MI. Sparks flew! Eventually he would return to Fort Hood, stopping by Montana on the way and asked her to marry him. She said yes. After getting back to Fort Hood, he prepared a place for them, and two months later she was married. After he got out of the military, they all moved back to Michigan because that is where he was from. He got out January 2001. While in Michigan, she would work in voc rehab. And after taking another aptitude test, she enrolled at Cornerstone University got her degree in psychology. Everything that she needed for school was paid for by the government. �                 She would then do an internship at the Vet Center in Grand Rapids. It’s part of the VA that deals with veterans who have post-traumatic stress disorder. She interned for 6 months counseling for PTSD and group therapy. She did not have a master’s degree, so she could not work there permanently. While she did work there, she made connections with other people in the community, other veterans. She would meet Luke Carter who was the manager for the Good Will's Homeless Veteran Reintegration Program. They had a position open for a peer counselor and a housing coordinator. She left the Vet Center and worked at this place, making money, for about a year. It was one of her favorite jobs. She like the counseling aspect of it, but it did not pay very well. She would make connections with people at the Kent County Community Development and Housing Commission. She would apply for the job and would work with her connections to get the job. (39:30) She worked there for about 2 and half years. She learned a lot. When her current job became available, it would fit her like a glove. She applied and got the job. In her current job, she advises veterans and their widows on how to apply for and receive things like service connection pension, death pensions, VA benefits, answer questions, emergency needs assistance for veterans, etc. The biggest aspect of her job is to help veterans apply for their military benefits. There is no specific demographic. They are all ages, all races. Because of their training in boot camp it is really difficult for veterans to ask for help, but the environment that they have created lets them know it is ok to ask for help. She is relatively new to the job. She is in the process of growing the department to making it a one-stop shop for veterans. PTSD and traumatic brain injury are big things that she sees for people just coming out of the military. She would love to do this long term and believes that there is a lot that the public could learn about homeless veterans. Many of them are living with friends, and not necessarily under a bridge. Some are well educated, including one she met while working at the Vet Center, who had a Ph.D. They hit hard times, and need help to build them back up. For vets who aren’t homeless, people think they are very “drill sergeant” like. But they are just people, like the rest of us. All of the funding for the program she works at now comes out of county general funds. (50:30) She worries at the condition of the state and how that will impact the program she works at. But she thinks it’s one of those things that go in cycles. She hopes that the economy will improve. Her advice: don’t let fear hold you back for the opportunities that the military brings. � 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 RoyC0708V Title A name given to the resource Roy, Carrie (Interview outline and video) Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Roy, Carrie Description An account of the resource Carrie Roy was born in Montana in 1975. She joined the Army in 1998, looking to open up new opportunities for herself. She selected light vehicle maintenance as her specialization, and was sent to Fort Jackson, South Carolina, for training. She did very well in basic training and in her advanced training, and was offered a chance to go to jump school at Fort Benning, Georgia. While there, she broke her leg, but the injury was not diagnosed or treated very well, and was still causing problems for her when she was sent to her active duty assignment at Fort Hood, Texas, and she eventually left the service because of the injury. She then got married, moved to Michigan, and completed a degree in psychology, and quickly began working with veterans, and is currently Director of Veterans Affairs in Kent County, Michigan. 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 Michigan--History, Military Veterans Video recordings United States. Army Other veterans & civilians--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.) 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 Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Lemmen Library and Archives https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/ead14b4ad0c3a0e917c39e5a14d5532e.mp4 015ae80d35c6b62e8d05f57825b8d1dd https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/d294558c15d7632412d40d3df78f8dcd.pdf ee43046a357279dfb62552504b11fea0 PDF Text Text Grand Valley State University Veteran’s History Project Korean War Myron Teegardin Interview Length: (00:20:10:00) Early Life (00:00:01:00)  Teegardin was born on June 4th, 1943 in Grand Haven, Michigan. (00:00:12:00)  Teegardin’s parents were divorced. (00:00:27:00) o The family consisted of him, his mother and father, and two sisters. (00:00:47:00)  Teegardin completed high school in San Diego, California. (00:01:00:00) o After graduation, he went to work for the American Can Company in Oregon. (00:01:10:00) o After he was laid off in the fall, he decided to join the United States Army. (00:01:34:00)  Teegardin joined the Army because he didn’t “like the ocean, which eliminated the Navy”. (00:01:50:00) o He was also drawn to the Army because he wanted to go into combat engineering. (00:02:20:00) Early Army Experience (00:02:32:00)  Teegardin completed his basic training at Fort Ord, California over the course of 3 months. (00:02:48:00) o “It was difficult because it was a complete change of life overnight”. (00:03:02:00) o He then transferred to Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri for another 3 months of basic training. (00:03:13:00) o After that, he transferred to Fort Benning, Georgia, for Paratrooper School. (00:03:23:00)  Although Teegardin wanted to go into combat training, it never materialized. (00:03:43:00)  After he completed Paratrooper School, he was assigned to stay in Fort Benning as “cadre”, which assists in training new recruits. (00:03:51:00)  It is difficult to adapt to the military “because of the discipline”. (00:04:20:00) o “Once you get your mindset…it becomes a way of life”. (00:04:32:00) o Teegardin felt that it was difficult at first, but “they build you up fast”. (00:05:20:00) o Teegardin did five-mile runs before breakfast in the morning, and after the first few weeks, he believes that “you don’t think twice about it”. (00:05:40:00)  Teegardin was deployed to Korea and traveled by ship out of Oakland, California. (00:06:02:00)  Before arriving in Korea, the ship made stops in Hawaii, Guam, and Japan. (00:06:10:00) o Just before they arrived in Guam, a hurricane had hit the island devastating much of the civilian structures. Although the ship was scheduled to dock there for a day, they stayed an extra few days to assist in the cleanup. This storm produced 184 mph winds and was one of the strongest in recorded history. (00:06:25:00) o “A coconut blew completely through a building like a cannonball”. (00:07:29:00) � While in Korea he saw “not a lot, but some” violent conflict. (00:07:57:00) o “I’ve been shot at”. (00:08:03:00) o Although Teegardin did see his fair share of combat, the majority of occurrences were “sneak- across-the-border type action”. This included explosions and small ambushes. (00:08:05:00)  Teegardin created a photo album of his experiences in Korea, which includes both photos and signatures from the men he worked with. (00:08:52:00) o He only stayed in contact with “1 or 2 of them for about a year after we were in the service”. (00:09:30:00)  Teegardin was in the 7th Infantry Division. (00:09:49:00)  Teegardin kept in touch with loved ones at home by letter, which was the only available method. (00:09:58:00) o Once in a while, the men were allowed to make a phone call, but the signal was not good and made it difficult to use as a method of communication. (00:10:25:00) o He talked to his mother over the phone one time “but it was very short and we lost the connection”. (00:10:35:00)  When the men were off- duty, they were sometimes allowed to go into “the little village”. (00:11:10:00)  The base which Teegardin was assigned to in Korea was very heavily guarded due to how close it was to the demilitarized zone, or “where the front line was”. (00:11:20:00) o For the most part, the men remained on- base for their own safety. Free time was often spent playing sports such as baseball, going to the “Soldier’s Club” where live music and shows were played, or going to the “Post Exchange” store as opposed to going off- base. (00:11:35:00) Post- War Experience (00:12:50:00)  Teegardin chose to travel by boat to return to the United States, although he was offered a flight. (00:13:40:00) o Traveling this way ensured that Teegardin would be home by Christmas. (00:14:28:00)  When Teegardin and the other men arrived back in Oakland, California on November 22nd, 1963. They were told that “they might have a change of plans and we might have to get back on and go back out” because this was the same day that President John F. Kennedy was assassinated. Luckily, the men aboard the ship were allowed to return home. (00:15:00:00)  When Teegardin returned home from Korea, he was not immediately discharged and still had duty time left to fill. (00:16:30:00) o He was stationed in Chicago in the 5th Army recruiting district. While here, he assisted in Army recruitment. (00:16:40:00) o He lived in a “hotel-type apartment” while in Chicago. (00:17:27:00)  Teegardin believes that the most difficult thing about readjusting to civilian life is breaking away from the discipline. (00:17:35:00)  The Army helped Teegardin get his “act together”. (00:18:05:00) o He was not equipped to go to college because there was no financial aid programs as there are contemporarily. (00:18:16:00) �o The Army also helped him to develop an ambitious spirit, with which he credited his decision to go back to school later in life. (00:18:20:00) � 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 TeegardenM1190V Title A name given to the resource Teegardin, Myron (Interview outline and video), 2011 Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Teegardin, Myron Description An account of the resource Myron Teegardin was born in 1943. He grew up in San Diego, California where he completed high school. Not long after graduation, he enlisted in the Army. He initially trained as an engineer, but then went to Fort Benning, Georgia, for jump school, and stayed on there as an instructor. He was then sent to Korea to join the 7th Infantry Division. His unit was close the DMZ, and there were periodic clashes with small groups of North Korean infiltrators. He returned to the US late in 1963, and completed his enlistment working as a recruiter in Chicago. Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Abraham, Kellie (Interviewer) Subject The topic of the resource Oral history Veterans History Project (U.S.) United States--History, Military Michigan--History, Military Veterans Video recordings Korean War, 1950-1953--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 2011-05-25 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 Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Lemmen Library and Archives https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/2d4e4050e2364142ad50c648ae15c32c.mp4 44cde49f9ecae3bf4b509026c99f276e https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/fff96cc01906c428c167a527dd48e704.pdf 0eb77fccb3e73c241d827eb6c7586d6e PDF Text Text Grand Valley State University Veterans History Project Chet Teater (00:28:21) (00:15) Background Information • Chet was born on February 25, 1946 • He fought in Vietnam and was a Army Specialist 4 with the tank service • Chet was born in Benton Harbor, Michigan and grew up in Caledonia • His father was a farmer and also ran a dye cast factory • There were six children in his family and his mother stayed at home • His brother was in the Navy during the 60s and Uncle had fought in Guadalcanal during World War Two • Chet had worked with a telephone company before being drafted in 1969 (2:40) The Army • Chet went through basic training at Fort Knox in Tennessee • He then was sent to Fort Benning and began working in a specialized training armor unit • Chet received his assignment to be sent to Vietnam in 1970 • Military life was hard for him at first, but he believes that it would probably be easier to adjust to now • There was much conformity and everyone was made out to be the same • He became very close with some men and still talks to some of them today • Chet arrived in Vietnam on January 1, 1970 and left that same year on December 31 (6:10) Vietnam • Chet often worked with the D Troop 17th Armored Cavalry of the 199th Infantry Brigade • They provided detail security for roads, supply for firebase camps, and went on search and destroy missions • Chet has got in touch with many old friends from Vietnam using the internet • He had not spoken to some of the men for about thirty years, but they were able to find him years later (9:15) Life After the Service • Chet began working with the phone company again after his time in the service • His family helped him to re-adjust to civilian life and forget about the war • He joined the American Legion and is now Commander of the Caledonia Region Post 305 • Chet received the Kent County Veteran of the Year Award (10:40) Citizens • Many of the people in Vietnam were nice, especially the “montagnards” �• • • • The large military base that they lived on was later completely removed by the Vietnamese because they had wanted all the materials During the war the men had to keep watch on the roads because the Vietnamese would try to rip it up and take pieces of tar for material There were many desperate people that went through their garbage Chet went with some other men to visit some orphanages and donate money (16:00) Driving Armored Vehicles • Chet had been a driver and later became a Commander, working with Armored Personnel Carriers, which were like “boxes with tracks” • He has a good memory of all his experiences and lost some really good friends • Combat was often scary with things often exploding all of a sudden all around you • Chet experienced combat two days after arriving in which they had to rescue that had been tied down • Yet most of the time it was boring, working on guard duty in very hot and dirty conditions (20:35) R & R • Chet had a choice of Italy or Australia and chose the latter • He spent most of his ten days in Sydney and it was fantastic, but very depressing when it was over (23:00) Agent Orange • Vietnam was filled with green foliage and tons of mosquitoes • Agent Orange was spray all over all the bases to kill the growth • Almost everyone that fought in Vietnam was exposed to the chemical, especially those that worked with armored vehicles because the tracks dug up so much dust • The chemical affects everyone differently and some people got cancer from it � Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Veterans History Project Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Grand Valley State University. History Department Description An account of the resource The Library of Congress established the Veterans History Project in 2001 to collect memories, accounts, and documents of U.S. war veterans from World War II and the Korean War, Vietnam War, and conflicts in the Middle East and elsewhere, and to preserve these stories for future generations. The GVSU History Department interviews are part of this work-in-progress, and may contain videos and audio recordings, transcripts and interview outlines, and related documents and photographs. Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant 1914- Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource <a href="http://rightsstatements.org/page/InC/1.0/?language=en">In Copyright</a> Subject The topic of the resource Afghan War, 2001--Personal narratives, American Iran Hostage Crisis, 1979-1981--Personal narratives, American Korean War, 1950-1953--Personal narratives, American Michigan--History, Military Oral history Persian Gulf War, 1991--Personal narratives, American United States--History, Military United States. Air Force United States. Army United States. Navy Veterans Video recordings Vietnam War, 1961-1975--Personal narratives, American World War, 1939-1945--Personal narratives, American Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Special Collections & University Archives Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Smither, James Boring, Frank Relation A related resource Veterans History Project (U.S.) Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context RHC-27 Language A language of the resource eng Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived <a href="https://gvsu.lyrasistechnology.org/repositories/2/resources/455">Veterans History Project interviews (RHC-27)</a> Oral History A resource containing historical information obtained in interviews with persons having firsthand knowledge. Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context TeaterC Title A name given to the resource Teater, Chet (Interview outline and video), 2007 Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Teater, Chet Description An account of the resource Chet Teater was born in Benton Harbor, Michigan in 1946 and was drafted into the Army in 1969. He served with an armored cavalry unit in Vietnam in 1970 and participated in an assortment of combat missions and security assignments. He discusses combat conditions in Vietnam, the Agent Orange issue, and relations with Vietnamese civilians. 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 Michigan--History, Military Veterans United States. Army Vietnam War, 1961-1975--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 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 2007-06-05 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 Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Lemmen Library and Archives https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/64e26089b6030ab98d39cd409ec64096.mp4 f30b2bff989b160d038e5406bcfca028 https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/c9eb9f0b80d67502264b7769e65b3c3c.pdf 7ebe8f4c3b83ee6cc422778e5ddc17b9 PDF Text Text Grand Valley State University Veterans History Project Benjamin Taylor (00:53:26) (00:20) Background Information • Benjamin was born in Allegan County, Michigan in 1921 • His father was a farmer and also a minister with the Church of Nazarene • They moved around Michigan a lot when he was younger • Benjamin went to school through the eighth grade (2:15) Civilian Conservation Corps • After school Ben joined a CCC Camp because there were no jobs and not much else for him to do • Most of the money he made got sent back to his family, but he was taken care of • Benjamin worked at two different CCC Camps for about six months each (3:30) National Guard June 1940 • Again, there were not many jobs available, so Benjamin joined the National Guard • He went through training at Camp McCoy in Wisconsin • Benjamin was part of the 32nd Division and they spent most of their time working on field exercises out in the woods • The National Guard was federalized in October of 1940 • The 32nd Division was mobilized and Benjamin was sent to Louisiana • He went through more field training and weapons training • Much of the equipment and weapons they worked with were from World War One (12:05) Pearl Harbor • Benjamin was at home on furlough when Pearl Harbor was attacked; everyone was then called back to the base • No one was exactly sure what was going on or what they would be doing next • Benjamin was sent to Fort Devens in Massachusetts in the Spring of 1942 • He was expecting to soon be sent to Europe, but had all of a sudden been ordered to board a troop train to San Francisco • The trip took six days and they spent much time waiting for the ship to arrive (12:55) Overseas • They boarded a luxury ship heading into the Pacific • Benjamin had never been on a big ship before, but he was only a little queasy • The voyage lasted 21 days and they finally landed in Adelaide, Australia (17:30) Adelaide �• • • • Here they camped out in the woods, which were quite different from those in the US The Australians were very nice and many of them allowed US troops to stay in their homes or invited them over for dinner They were short on gas and many things were running off coal They boarded a train to another city [Brisbane] where they trained for New Guinea (20:35) New Guinea • They landed in Port Moresby and the Japanese were already trying to attack, but had been way off on their targets • The Japanese did succeed in sinking a supply ship off the coast full of ammunition • Benjamin was with a group that walked across the island trying to meet the Japanese heading for Australia • They had to carry about 70 pounds on their backs and the mosquitoes were very bad • The natives were all very friendly and offered them fruit to eat (27:00) Combat Near Buna • Benjamin was a sergeant, leading the first squad of the third platoon [of Company C, 126th Infantry Regiment] through the mountains • They had been sent to a deserted plantation to get a boat running and look for Japanese • The boat was having mechanical problems and they had to travel on further until running into Australians that helped with extra parts for the boat (33:40) Replacement of Chief Engineer • The Chief Engineer had gotten sick and was sent back to Australia; Benjamin was chosen to take his place • Benjamin had never worked on boats before, but eventually got the hang of it and became friends with the captain • He was able to sleep in the sails at night on the boat • Most of the crew were Australians (37:10) Buna • It was easy for Benjamin to sleep at night, but during the day he was always hungry and no one ever got enough food • Many of the orders they received were disorderly and they were always short on supplies • Communications were disorganized, but they always had enough ammunition • Benjamin was injured when he was shot in the spine • An aid many helped him and many other men had to drag him out of the jungle back to camp (43:25) Australia �• • • • • Benjamin was flown back to Australia and sent in a train to a hospital He spent 13 months in rehabilitation Many men were coming in from Guadalcanal He had a very bad spinal injury and could not sit up or every move much at all Benjamin was later sent back to the US, but had wanted to stay in Australia until he had recovered (47:25) Recovery • Benjamin was sent to a Veterans hospital in Detroit, Michigan • He was still in a lot of pain and taking about 22 pills a day, wearing a leg brace • He was eventually sent home on a bus, but could still not walk as well as he once had • He is still paralyzed and can walk with a cane, but has no sense of balance � 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 TaylorB Title A name given to the resource Taylor, Benjamin (Interview outline and video), 2008 Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Taylor, Benjamin Description An account of the resource Benjamin Taylor was born in Allegan County, Michigan in 1921 and went to school through the eighth grade. After serving in the Civilian Conservation Corps for about a year, he joined the National Guard in June 1940; the National Guard was federalized in October 1940. He shipped out to Australia with the 32nd (Red Arrow) Division in the spring of 1942, and eventually went to New Guinea, where he was badly wounded near Buna. 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 Michigan--History, Military Veterans United States. Army World War, 1939-1945--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 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 2008-05-29 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 Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Lemmen Library and Archives https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/c0d26e37f3d36c6b97c0a691d8f72a21.mp4 cb3ae79e1539f0d63944107ece37e69d https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/e132e7e401a3b86a58031f4d99d42284.pdf 080b2bda9fe5f15d87beb37dd77e4e33 PDF Text Text Grand Valley State University Veterans History Project Interview Vietnam Dale Tauer Interview Length: 1:00:27 Background (00:00:23)  Dale Grew up on a dairy farm in Minnesota with one brother and three sisters; he finished high school but it was a “close call” although he graduated in 1969 (00:03:11)  His knowledge of what was going on in Vietnam was minimal as he didn't learn of anything from school and only a bit from the newspaper; the war wasn't going so well and resulted in negative press (00:03:34) ◦ Dale's father and uncle were World War II veterans and mentioned they weren't happy with the direction of the way the war in Vietnam was going (00:03:55) ◦ Dale received his draft notice in the spring of his senior year of high school after he turned 18; his number was 53 (00:04:26) ▪ He tried to get into a community college to defer his draft notice although Dale and his cousin devised a plan to get into Canada- the plan ultimately failed (00:05:20)  Once Dale went in to have his physical administered the word had gotten out via the local sheriff about his plan to avoid service- Dale was considered a “run risk” and wasn't allowed back home (00:05:57) ◦ Dale was flown out of Minneapolis the night of his physical; usually recruits had a timeframe to come home and come back to training but this was not the case for Dale (00:07:38) Basic Training (00:07:42)  Dale went to Ft. Bragg in North Carolina for his basic training (00:07:53) ◦ After a eight week training program at Ft. Bragg, Dale went to Ft. Jackson in South Carolina for AIT (Advanced Individual Training) (00:09:55) ▪ Dale was volunteered to go to Airborne Training School because no one else had volunteered (00:10:06) ▪ Dale received weapons training during AIT; he trained with machine guns- M-16 and he loved to hunt and was a good marksman (00:12:34)  He received orders late in 1969 to work as a clerical typist in Washington D.C. inside a headquarters company (00:13:37)  Dale was there less than three weeks when he was forced to go onto a commercial airliner with no luggage where they were headed to Vietnam (00:17:00)  From Anchorage, Alaska, Dale took off from a DC-10 and was stopped in Hawaii; Dale stayed in Hawaii for ten days where he received his shots and gear (00:18:20) Arrival in Vietnam (00:18:58)  Once again Dale was hung up, this time in Japan- He and another man were put on a cargo plane to Cam Ranh Bay, Vietnam (He was once again without orders)(00:18:58) ◦ Because he had a lack of orders, Dale was assigned to patrol the perimeter of Cam Ranh Bay for two weeks (00:19:22) ▪ Around March, 1970 and after fixing boat motors and mixing drinks for the other men, Dale was assigned to be a jeep driver for an officer in Da Nang (00:21:01)  Dale flew up with the officer on a DC-130 transport plane to Da Nang to be a jeep �driver (00:21:30) ◦ He was finally assigned to a unit, the 1st Battalion, 506th Infantry Regiment, 101st Airborne Division (00:21:56) ▪ Dale's first in the field assignment was to man a radio in a helicopter for another man by the name of Burger; although Dale was initially assigned to work the radio, Burger was trained to work with radios and took it instead (00:24:10) ▪ At the time, Dale was trained to be a slack man or point man- he initially didn't really know what that involved but quickly learned it wasn't the best position to be in (00:25:00)  Fear set in as Dale was brought to the ground by another serviceman- in front of them were a stack of dead soldiers (00:26:03) ◦ While the platoon moved to the next area, Dale came across the body of Burger- the man he previously had worked with; the body could have very well have been Dale's own (00:27:39) Purple Heart Recognition and Beyond (00:28:01)  Along the way, Dale was hit with shrapnel which required him to go to the first aid station once he was back at base- he then received the military decoration of the Purple Heart (00:28:01) ◦ The injury wasn't too bad as he went out onto his next mission- Dale worked as slack to Randy Bink moving up a mountain when Bink noticed they walked past two enemy soldiers; Bink pulled the pin on a grenade while Dale threw a grenade of his own out into a trench (00:32:28) ▪ At this point, Dale mentions he was making friends and getting familiar within the platoon although they would either get killed or wounded quite quickly (00:33:43) ▪ Dale operated in squad sized units where “it seemed they never had more than a dozen guys or any more than that, as they were always short” (00:34:50)  Dale hardly saw platoon or company officers, if ever; the leaders or officers wouldn't patrol with the other men (00:35:30) ◦ At one point while resting at a fire base, Dale was bitten by a rat which required an intensive round of rabies shots in the stomach area (00:36:34) ▪ By July of 1970, fighting around Firebase Ripcord was heating up- Dale mentions how it got progressively worse while on patrol as far as contact with the enemy goes (00:37:07) ▪ Dale came across a hospital complex where him and the other men had to flush through it; this location had lights and a generator (00:37:07- 00:38:48)  Dale was in the Ripcord area doing guard duty in the summer of 1970; he mentioned he was relieved from his hole position by a man named Curlyas Dale was walking across the fire base an explosion hit where Curly was and killed him (00:39:40) ◦ There was a lack of experienced men due to the conditions as his unit would keep getting new people (00:41:30) ▪ Dale recalls his involvement in Ripcord (Battle of Fire Support Base Ripcord) around July 20th, 1970- (00:42:30) ▪ Dale and the other men around him were scrambling from tree to tree as they took fire from the North Vietnamese Army (NVA); his group took a few casualties as he describes in graphic detail (00:46:06) �▪ ▪ ▪ The last memory Dale has of Ripcord is a NVA soldier firing an RPG towards him and a fellow soldier (00:48:08) His memory of what happened that day at Ripcord is hazy as he only remembers a few scenes from that day (00:51:22) [He was badly injured and the enemy took him for dead and left him on the field, where he was found by some of his comrades and brought back] Dale suffered a pretty bad concussion and only remembered a few things over the next month (00:51:41) Post-Vietnam (00:51:58)  Dale was sent to a hospital back to the United States for surgery on his shoulder where he was then sent to Minneapolis, Minnesota to a Veterans Affairs (VA) hospital (00:52:40) ◦ Dale had mixed emotions after his time in Vietnam about the war; he was confused about the whole thing- he hated the anti-war protesters but also hated the war (00:53:30) ▪ Dale was sent home back to his farm after his father suffered from a heart attack (00:54:05)  After his time in the military, Dale tended to the farm and met his wife where they had three kids- after the third child his wife suffered from postpartem depression and committed suicide (00:54:56)  Dale found work raising turkey and cattle, building hog farms and senior assisted housing (00:56:31)  Dale mentions him and his friend had trouble holding regular jobs after their time in Vietnam; Dale has trouble sleeping and wakes up frequently (00:57:18) ◦ Dale reluctantly met up with the Ripcord Association- the need to know what happened at Ripcord was always there but he buried the thoughts up until then (00:58:53) ▪ Dale and one of his buddies felt guilt about the whole situation; they felt they had let those who had died down from Ripcord (00:59:06)  Dale tried to reconnect with the family of one of his fellow servicemen and was told to stay away from the family by the man's brother (01:00:27) � 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 TauerD1541V Title A name given to the resource Tauer, Dale (Interview outline and video), 2013 Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Tauer, Dale Description An account of the resource Dale Tauer was born in Minnesota and graduated from high school in 1969. Dale tried to devise a plan to avoid being drafted but ultimately was issued as a "run risk." He started basic training in Ft. Bragg, North Carolina and went to the 101st infantry regiment. After receiving orders to work as a clerical typist in Washington D.C., Dale was sent to Vietnam in 1970 and was assigned to D Company, 1st Battalion, 506th Regiment, 101st Airborne Division. He spent several months in the field patrolling with his unit until he was badly injured near Firebase Ripcord on July 20th, 1970. The enemy left him for dead, but he was found by other American soldiers and evacuated. 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 Michigan--History, Military Veterans Video recordings Vietnam War, 1961-1975--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 2013-10-12 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 Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Lemmen Library and Archives https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/9e8d2bc05d48241c77f19538d1db0b79.mp4 4e53f0988a5c291ef822bec74c9ea1bc https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/bf3544c84c3cf6bdf83ffb83970cfeb5.pdf 3c80e5610018e95a8cd28791cb5bd916 PDF Text Text Grand Valley State University Veterans History Project Interview Vietnam War Bob Tarbuck Length of interview (1:38:12) (0:19) Background Born July 4, 1949 in East Liverpool, Ohio (0:27) Father worked in steel mill and mother stayed at home (0:45) Had an older brother that was turned down by Air force due to asthma (1:15) Graduated from East Liverpool high school in 1968 (1:30) Worked at Homer Lockland China after graduation (1:38) Knew about Vietnam War from the news and looked into it (2:15) Received draft notice during the last week of March 1969 (2:45) (3:00) Training Sent to Fort Campbell, Kentucky for basic training with 101st Airborne (3:06) All the training toughened him up and prepared him for Vietnam (3:40) Was confusing time for him; not used to the screaming and hollering (5:23) Went to training with people from all over; for some, option of jail or military (6:08) Fairly easy to adjust to discipline, but had trouble getting in physical shape (7:11) Some people faked injury so they didn’t have to continue training (9:28) Stayed in old World War II barracks that didn’t have warm water (10:15) 8 weeks of basic training before given Military Occupational Specialty (10:55) Was designated as Combat Infantry went to Fort Dix, New Jersey, for AIT (11:20) At Fort Dix learned to escape and evasion tactics and fired the M16 Rifle (14:00) Military training taught him how to survive, even if he broke some rules (15:15) Veteran drill sergeants put a lot of emphasis on paying attention to training (16:30) Sent to Oakland, California for processing before being shipped to Vietnam (18:38) (19:00) Active Duty Took flight from California to Hawaii to Guam to Long Binh, Vietnam (19:25) As they were landing the base was being rocketed; shuffled into a bunker (19:45) First thing he noticed was the humidity and the odor (20:20) Flown to Camp Evans and the plane went through aftermath of typhoon (23:00) Assigned to A Shau Valley with C Company, 2nd battalion, 506th infantry (23:58) First time being in a helicopter was on flight to the A Shau Valley (25:04) When arrived at platoon, accepted right off the bat and given briefing (26:20) Most of the platoon were veterans of battle of Hamburger Hill (27:47) First night in field was scary due to the unknown, always had 2 men on watch (28:31) Went back to Camp Evans for more training and briefing on next mission (29:50) While in field encountered enemy ambushes and called airstrikes on bunkers (32:30) Sometimes they called napalm strikes; when it exploded it sucked away all the air (33:37) Took opening to be a machine gunner; carried M60 and had an assistant gunner (35:37) During the Monsoon season activity slowed down due to inability to resupply (38:12) �Sometimes the enemy would attack at night; this was most confusing (41:00) (43:00) Active Duty Continued If platoon leader was enthusiastic the men’s spirited stayed high (44:31) Night operations were worst; couldn’t see at all and never knew what was ahead (45:45) Moved to support Firebase Ripcord and the platoon took some casualties (47:33) Started to rebuild Ripcord; laid out perimeter and helicopter dropped in artillery (49:48) Called artillery fire in on enemy vehicle traffic in the A Shau Valley (55:12) Sometimes the North Vietnamese used American weapons against them (57:06) After helping establish Ripcord, towards end of April 1970, took time off and went to Australia (1:01:18) Critical to take hill 902 to have bird’s eye view of surrounding area (1:03:45) Viet Cong started rocketing hill [July 1, 1970]and they had to call artillery on enemy forces (1:04:16) Given orders to defend hill overnight when usually they move to next position (1:07:53) Around 3am the enemy started attacking their position from all directions (1:09:38) The enemy was so close that they could hear them giving orders in Vietnamese (1:11:00) Attack ended in the morning; found unexploded satchel charges laying around (1:13:11) Next morning had lost some of his hearing; had to pick up dead bodies (1:15:10) After battle of hill 902 went to Camp Evans for couple days then to hill 1000 (1:17:27) Didn’t ever deal with civilian population but a lot of soldiers smoked pot (1:24:31) Had to spend some time in the hospital due to bronchitis (1:26:19) Flew from Cam Ranh Bay to Japan to Fort Lewis Washington (1:27:38) Time in service not done yet; home for 30 days then sent to Germany (1:27:40) Squad leader 1st infantry division while in Germany (1:28:25) (1:30:00) Post Military Service While in Germany, accepted for school at Kent State University (1:31:21) Comfortable with military life; re-enlisted in the reserves for about 6 years (1:32:45) Went back to work with Homer Lockland China; then at an oil refinery (1:33:50) Started a contracting business, but sold it when his wife was sick (1:34:06) Still feels comradery with people who are in the service (1:34:34) Experience taught him leadership, discipline, helped discover himself (1:35:07) Thinks draft should be re-instated; kids have it too easy nowadays (1:37:02) � 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 TarbuckB1450V Title A name given to the resource Tarbuck, Robert (Interview outline and video), 2012 Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Tarbuck, Robert Description An account of the resource Bob Tarbuck was born in East Liverpool, Ohio, in 1949 and was working there when he was drafted into the Army in 1969. He trained at Fort Campbell, Kentucky and at Fort Dix, New Jersey, before being sent to Vietnam, where he was assigned to C Company, 2nd Battalion, 506th Infantry Regiment in the 101st Airborne Division, which was operating in the A Shau valley. Toward the end of the year, they moved to Camp Evans and operated in that area until April, when they went into the hills north of the A Shau Valley and set up Fire Support Base Ripcord. He patrolled the Ripcord area for the next two months, and survived the enemy attack on their position on Hill 902 in early July. Not long afterward, he was sent to the rear with bronchitis, and then rotated back home. He served the remainder of his enlistment in Germany and left the service in 1971. 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 Michigan--History, Military Veterans Video recordings Vietnam War, 1961-1975--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 2012-10-05 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 Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Lemmen Library and Archives https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/b8ca61e2277ec2f800f81b80960873b6.mp4 e0afa47767b31b737c875fe6e3efe75a https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/880cdd8b49c339ad114bcc304cc3e9c0.pdf c96c1bdbe28d53cba05e28da45550a4e PDF Text Text Grand Valley State University Veterans History Project Interview Cold War/Vietnam Pete Rowe Total Time – (01:19:51) Background     He was born in Abilene, Texas in 1942 (00:17) His father was in the Pacific fighting during World War II o He flew B-24’s o His mother had family in the Texas area He grew up in many different places because his father was in the military for a long time (00:47) o When his father came back from the war, his family moved to London, England where he served as an Assistant Air Attaché (00:55) o His family spent two years in London before living in South Africa for two years o After South Africa, his family returned to Washington D.C. where they spent four years o They then moved to Salzburg, Austria for two years before living in Vienna for one year (01:11) o He eventually graduated from high school in Colorado Springs, Colorado (01:17) While he was in each location, he picked up cultural idioms and gained a different outlook on life (01:30) Training/Education/ROTC Training – (01:34)    After he finished high school he went to the University of Florida for four years where he majored in History (01:36) o He served in the Air Force ROTC (Reserved Officers’ Training Corps) at the University o The ROTC program allowed him to be commissioned as a 2nd Lieutenant (01:44) He had decided to join the Air Force because he had been in many locations with his family He made the decision to become an Intelligence Officer before he had gone to college (02:20) �     o He chose the History major so that he could further his goal His father had done some intelligence work at some embassies Some of his experiences growing up helped familiarize him with the world (03:47) He graduated from the University of Florida in 1964 (03:53) In 1964, believed he could get similar jobs as his father (04:19) o He thought he assignments would be wonderful and he would get to travel Though the Vietnam conflict was escalating, the war had not “hit home yet” o He believed America was still more worried about China, the Soviets, and the Cold War (05:15) Active Duty – Philippines – (05:28)         He received his first assignment – it was a training assignment in San Angelo, Texas at Goodfellow Air Force Base (05:30) o He became a Signals Intelligence Officer  He wanted to be a Human Intelligence Officer o The signals intelligence course was nine months long  He learned cryptography, code breaking, etc. (05:56) The other trainees were standard officers (06:15) o They were from colleges across America The men he was going to be in charge of were a “step up” from the rest (06:27) o The men had to listen for hours a time, listening to communications of foreign countries, and transcribe the communications (06:41) o He had to be in charge of these men o The men had to let off a lot of steam after this kind of work o They were enlisted men (07:21) When he was in the Philippines, they had an AN/FLR-9 radio antenna (07:31) o All of the interceptions were directed to China and the Soviet Union o There were 75-100 men in a building that would listen and then report to their Non-commissioned Officers (NCO) who would then report the information to their commanders o The Americans could see where particular airplanes were flying according to the other countries (08:28) o He would have to decide if he wanted to report the information critically or not o The men worked in eight hour shifts The receiver takes in transmissions from across the world (09:52) o A lot of the information was chaos o After intercepting for a long time, NCOs knew what and when to report They relied heavily on experienced NCOs (11:13) He went to the Philippines in 1965-1967 (11:22) Over the course of the two years, the Vietnam conflict received a small percentage of their attention (11:55) �            o The Vietnamese did not have the same kind of communication equipment that would allow for interception (12:00)  They used a primitive form of communication He knows that the Americas were effective with their interceptions and decoding (12:44) Some of the intercept operators could tell who was sending the messages based on mistakes that had been previously made (13:04) At one point, one of the reports came in that the Chinese were standing down all military and commercial aircraft (14:21) o This was a red flag for him o They immediately went to a critical flash mode (14:40) o It turned out that the information was important but nothing too critical In the Philippines, the work was fairly routine (15:26) o The style of work is one of the reasons he prefers human intelligence work more than communications intelligence (15:32)  Most of the activities he became involved with were simply routine Clark Air Base, on Luzon Island, Philippines, was the largest US military base outside the continental United States (16:33) o It had all kinds of housing, an air field, and was virtually a town within itself o It was vulnerable for theft (16:56)  There were Philippine criminals that would show up and take things – One time someone stole a fire engine (17:12) o There were horse patrols and the base (17:27) o The Escape and Evasion Course was located on the base as well o One time the perimeter patrol was on duty and they came upon a five hundred foot section of a fence that was stolen (18:19) o The base was on extremely flat land o There were several off-duty clubs (19:05) o The base was extremely active during this time He was not anywhere near a major city while in the Philippines Angeles, Philippines was a city just north of the base (19:48) o Men could go there and find prostitutes, bars, the black market, etc. There was a golf course and 11-man tackle football program on the base o The morale of the men was high because of the many opportunities (20:51) By 1967, the men were happy to be where they were and not in Vietnam (21:28) The job performance of the men was excellent o The intercepting operators were extremely capable (21:45) He was forbidden to go to Hong Kong because of security clearances (22:26) o There were R&R (Rest and Relaxation) locations in the Philippines In 1967 he went from Clark Air Base to Washington D.C. (23:02) o He spent a year in a defense intelligence college at Anacostia Naval Air Station (23:07)  He learned the art of intelligence  The training prepared him to go to other assignments (23:38) � He then spent six months at the Clandestine Officer School (23:43) o He trained in trade craft of clandestine operations o The training prepared him for his next position Active Duty – Vietnam – (24:10)             In January of 1969 he was sent to Vietnam to serve as an Intelligence Interrogation Team Chief (24:15) o His unit was in Nha Trang, Vietnam (24:26) o There were units in each of the corps The teams function was to go to locations in each corps and interrogate captured prisoners o They were more like interviews because interrogation is difficult with the language barrier (25:04) o They were limited on what they could do to the prisoners in order to make them speak His team focused on gaining strategic intelligence (25:26) The time sensitivity of information that was needed was extremely critical Before he left for Vietnam, he received no kind of preparation (26:34) o They were given some hints about interrogation, but there was not specific training He had a team of five men (27:15) o They would be sent to the different areas of their core for interrogations Many of the interrogations took place in field hospitals (27:46) o They would be put in a separate ward where only military volunteers would service o All Vietnamese personnel and staff would be kept away from the interrogated individual (28:50) He flew to Vietnam on a commercial military flight o He boarded a plane on December 31, 1969 and landed in Saigon on January 2, 1970 (29:08) o He did not receive a special seat in the plane After they landed, he was funneled through various transitional stations until he was sent to meet up with his unit o He was taken in a “beat up, old Toyota car” (29:48) Because he was not receiving technical intelligence, he did not have to wear a uniform – he was able to wear civilian clothing (29:59) o The fact that they did not wear uniforms created some degree of enmity o He is not sure why they needed to always wear civilian clothing (30:42) When he landed in Vietnam, he was briefed by his authorities (31:39) o He was briefed on general operations He had Vietnamese interpreters for those that could not speak Vietnamese (32:16) o Some were extremely competent and others were not o There were Americans on his unit that spoke Vietnamese (32:33) �            They were most effective at getting information He was able to get to know his interpreter fairly well (33:21) o His interpreter decided that interpreting was not suited for him o The opportunities to become close with the interpreters were limited o Some interpreters were reassigned by the Vietnamese military (33:41) o Most of the contact was functional and operational (33:51) When he was in Nha Trang, he lived on a base o They had two villas  One was for sleeping quarters and the other was for radios, report writing, etc. (34:25) When he was transferred from his team to headquarters in Saigon, he lived off base In Nha Trang, the skill of the Air America pilots was very good (35:11) o He also remembers the compassion shown by those in the medical facilities with the enemy POW’s (36:58)  They were very dedicated to the medical profession  He believes that many of the prisoners were surprised at the treatment they received (37:28)  The entire time he was there, he talked to no one that had more than an eighth grade education (38:01)  They had all been recruited  Many of the POW’s would tell him anything he wanted to know  Most of the men did not provide them with much information (38:52) Many of the Vietnamese soldiers that were interrogated were sick, wounded, and were not motivated in the national defense of their country (39:44) When he went to headquarters in Saigon, he was made the Traffic Exploitation Officer (40:48) o He was in charge of all the reporting from all of the field teams  He would edit and clarify reports  It was not very exciting (41:08) o There was a sense that he made something worth while for those in higher locations – he took pride in making professional reports The working environment was extremely temporary (41:46) o There was nothing permanent He does not remember an NCO that did not deserve to be there (42:03) o There was no grumbling or complaining There was no fear of snipers (43:52) o There were weekly mortar attacks in Nha Trang City  The attacks were relatively brief (44:31) o It was creepy when they found out where the shots were coming from  They realized that being there was not just a “free pass” (45:00) He stayed in Vietnam for one year (45:08) o He left in December of 1969 Over the course of the year, he became glad that he was not an Army guy (45:23) o They were always in the wild �       Any time he had to go to locations that were not hospital bases, he felt badly for the military men (45:46) o They had little support When he was in the environment, he did not worry about the big picture o He has a job to do, and the point is to do the job well (46:38)  If you learn things, then great – as long as you do what you are supposed to do, everything is fine o He was hoping that things were going well and that he was contributing (47:06) There were times when he was eating dinner and relaxing in Saigon and could see the bombing in the distance o He was wondering what they were doing in Vietnam (47:40) He sometimes wondered if the war would ever turn around (47:58) The American soldiers were happy when the drawback began While he was in Vietnam, he only knew of the anti-war protests through the newspapers (48:52) o No one ever wrote him a bad letter and no one spat on him when he returned When he returned, he landed at Travis Air Force Base in Fairfield, California (49:23) o He then flew commercially to his home in Washington D.C. DCD/CIA – ROTC Instructor – (49:35)     He was then sent into the DCD (Domestic Contact Division) program (49:52) o It was a group of CIA agents and interviewers that were placed in major US cities to gain information from businessmen, educators, newspapermen, religious leaders, etc. o The unit he was in assigned him to the CIA field office in Seattle, Washington (50:33)  He was assigned in Washington because the Boeing headquarters were there and it complemented his Air Force background very well He was in Seattle, Washington for four years (50:56) There was only in-house training o He would go and talk to various officials in the agency that did role playing activities When he would go to a company, he would establish contact with the CEO and tell them that they need information about the Soviet Union (51:30) o They wanted to talk to the employees that would travel abroad to the Soviet Union and China o Once they received approval, they would set up appointments and interview the men (52:07) �       o Based on the interview, the information would be sent to CIA offices where they would generate more requirements that they wanted  They would have another appointment with the individual (54:23)  They would always carry a tape recorder with them He worked at various companies, not just Boeing He was responsible for the feeding and care of defectors (53:11) o It was similar to the Witness Protection Program (53:18) When he was dealing with the various employees, the majority of the men were cooperative (53:45) o There were some that did not want to reveal anything o Nearly 99% of the men wanted to cooperate (54:03) At one point, he became well acquainted with a veterinarian who was a hyperbaric chamber specialist (54:08) o He had a hyperbaric chamber in his offices o Through his contacts, he became acquainted with the deputy of oceanology in the Soviet Union (54:41)  They corresponded back and forth  This became interesting by the agency  Because of space travel, scientists were concerned about the role of gravity on the body (55:01) o He encouraged his contact to bring the Soviet to the United States  He came over, stayed with the veterinarian  The information they received was quite helpful (55:49) After four years, he was sent to be an Air Force ROTC Instructor and became an Assistant Professor of Aerospace Studies at California State University, Fresno (56:15) o He worked there for four years Before he went to be an Assistant Professor, he was assigned to interview and be a debriefing officer for many of the POW’s (56:42) It was called “Operation Homecoming” o Many of the men were prisoners for six years (57:04)  When they returned, they were behind six years  News information, magazines, and mass amounts of information were given to them to fill them in (57:16) o The interviews allowed the POW’s verbally process their experiences (57:50) o Each interviewer was assigned one POW  He had to talk and interview him  He was a bachelor (58:14)  When he got back, he became “very active” o The interviews took place at the March Air Reserve Base in Riverside County, California (58:35)  The POW that he interviewed was a young pilot, tried to get out of everything he could get out of, and managed to successfully evade the Escape and Evasion course that he was required to take �          When he went to Vietnam and was captured, he spent six years in captivity without the background that he should have had (59:42) o When the men were brought back, psychological help was given if they asked for it (01:00:00) o What was found out was that the pilots were far beyond what they were assumed to be  They were well educated, mature, organized, and had everything together in dealing with the enemy (01:00:20)  They formed a POW wing with assigned positions, chaplain, historical member, etc. while they were prisoners  Some of the men even took courses (01:00:55) o North Vietnam would capture pilots, treat them well, and then release them early in order to give the impression that everyone else would be treated well (01:01:20) Because the North Vietnamese did not release the names of POW’s, there was one man that remembered 300 of the POW names and reported them as soon as he came home (01:02:18) o It was extremely encouraging to many American families at home He then went to the ROTC program at California State University, Fresno He was fearful because he knew he would be facing protests (01:03:28) o However, they never faced any protests o Perhaps the war was over and out of their minds (01:03:43) They would sometimes go to campuses and recruit, but it was not the focus of the program (01:04:23) o The program was two years long The program had near one hundred people every year (01:05:23) o He worked with roughly seven others They would go to a summer encampment somewhere in the United States for six weeks for training (01:05:57) The recruits were at nearly the same level as those that he had previously worked with o There were some mature acting kids (01:06:55) The students he worked with were relatively the same as those he served with (01:07:16) There is a difference between the different branches of military in the types of jobs that are done o Yet, the level of students in his office was very strong (01:08:40) NSA – (01:08:44)  Once he finished his teaching in 1978, he was assigned at the headquarters of the NSA (National Security Agency) (01:08:50) o He served for a brief time at the Air Force Liaison Office (01:09:02) o He was then able to acquire an executive staff position as the Briefing Officer to the Director of the NSA (01:09:16) �        He briefed ambassadors, senators, generals, etc. about the NSA’s missions (01:09:20)  He was in this position for nearly three years One of the problems of briefing anyone at the NSA was that the security levels were often so high and tight that there were many things that he could not tell them (01:10:34) o Some people would become visibly upset o A Top Secret level of clearance at the NSA is nothing  “Even janitors have Top Secret clearance (01:11:00) He then went to Fort Belvoir, Virginia to serve in the Humint (human intelligence) unit (01:11:50) o He was Chief of Plans Resources and Personnel for the Air Force for four years He had a desk job that was in charge of hiring, budget, transportation, and units all across the world – he dealt with the support aspects (01:12:11) o He had to go to various units in the Pacific and Europe o He stayed very active (01:12:54) The changes in the political sphere did not greatly effect anything within the military o The military has a culture (01:14:03) o Everyone has a job to do o Complaints happen privately (01:14:27) It is easy to not think about the deeper thought processes, philosophy, or policies because you cannot do much to change them (01:14:39) There was no things, actions, or words that were said with those he worked with that judged whether policies were right or wrong When he was with the ROTC program after Vietnam, there were those that had priority over others o It became difficult to become a pilot (01:16:17) o The military becomes very picky with who they take in (01:16:37) After the Service – (01:17:00)      His experiences in the military helped him become more compassionate with those in certain situations, allowed him to “see the other side”, and be more understanding of others situations (01:17:12) By going and working with people in different cultures, he came to learn and accept differences more than a normal person (01:17:47) He retired in 1984 at the age of 42 After the service, he taught track and field at a high school in northern Michigan before going to Grand Valley State University in Grand Rapids, Michigan where he coached track and field (01:18:27) Because the coaching position did not pay much, he received his second and third Master’s Degree from Grand Valley State University �o He received one in Public Administration and one in Educational Leadership o He took his education as a basis and got into the K-12 education world in the administrative level (01:18:54)  He served at Grandville High School o He attained a Principle Assistantship at Forest Hills Northern High School in Grand Rapids, Michigan o He retired in 2010 (01:19:36) � 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 RoweP1440V Title A name given to the resource Rowe, Stephen "Pete" (Interview outline and video), 2012 Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Rowe, Stephen "Pete" Description An account of the resource Pete Rowe, born in Abilene Texas in 1942, served in the U.S. Air Force from 1964-1986 as an intelligence officer. Pete began his service in the ROTC program. After being commissioned, Pete was sent to the Philippines where he served over an intelligence team that intercepted signals from South and Southwest China. In 1968, Pete was sent to Vietnam where he worked interrogating captured North Vietnamese's soldiers during the Vietnam War. After leaving the country in 1969, Pete began working in the Domestic Contact Position (DCP) where he interviewed individuals who commonly interacted with and traveled outside of the country in order to gain intelligence. In 1974, he began working as an assistant professor of aerospace engineering at California State University Fresno in the ROTC program. Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource James, Smither (Interviewer) Kentwood Historic Preservation Commission (Kentwood, Mich.) WKTV 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. Air Force Vietnam War, 1961-1975--Personal narratives, American Other veterans & civilians--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 2012-09-20 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 Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Lemmen Library and Archives https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/7494ef5b62f3a0ad80fa2ceb1095e5af.mp4 682591fcd213c4fd6063b1d1332d9f72 https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/30c5acc55099a54d37ca7b7a4db2002c.pdf aa6a91fcf77978c3a3f1f2689f6b8076 PDF Text Text Grand Valley State University Veterans History Project Interview Notes Length: 15:38 Stephen Rowe Vietnam Veteran United States Air Force; 20 years in the service 7602 Air Intelligence Group (15:07) Stephen Rowe • Assistant principal at Forest Hills High School (15:27) Before the service • Went to school • College at University of Florida • ROTC o Prepares you to be officer in a given service (16:39) Why the Air Force • Dad was in the Air Force for 30 years in the field of intelligence • Like intelligence and liked the way the Air Force worked so joined (17:18) Service • Graduated from University of Florida and was commissioned • Dad went to Hawaii with the service • Rowe went to Hawaii with parents and entered the service there • First assignment was to Vietnam (18:42) Combat • Saw combat in the Republic of Vietnam 1969-1970 (19:01) Time in the Service • Signal Intelligence o Philippines o 2 years o Intercepted signals from the enemy o Target was China, Russia, and S.E. Asia • Defense Intelligence School in Washington, DC o Graduated with a diploma o Learned about all types of intelligence services o 1 year • Clandestine Service School o Learned about spying, how to handle spies, etc. o 9 months • Vietnam o 1 year o Team Chief of an Interrogation Team in Nha Trang o Interrogated POWs of Vietnam • Washington, DC o Short training �• • Assigned to CIA for 4 years in Seattle, Washington Fresno, CA o Taught Air Force ROTC at Fresno State • NSA (Fort Meade, Maryland) o 4 years o NSA Director’s Chief Briefer o Briefing about NSA to all visiting generals, military people • Fort Belvoir, VA to USAF Human Intelligence • Retired after 20 years in the service (23:06) Most memorable moment • Debriefing of our POWs who had been captured in Vietnam and held as POWs for 7 or 8 years • When war ended, POWs had to be debriefed • When in the CIA, assigned to certain places to do debriefing process o Went to a base by Riverside, CA o All debriefing was done at hospitals o Spent 2-4 weeks with the men while they told their story (24:35) Casualties • Not a lot in the part of the Air Force that he was in • His group would usually fly in after the battles were over to find the POWs or casualties (25:18) Fear • Yes. Fear that won’t return • Every time you fly, you didn’t know if you would get shot down • Fear of ambush • Fear that would not do the kind of job you wanted to do (26:14) Food • Sometimes good, sometimes just ok (27:04) Leisure • In Vietnam, stationed in a coastland city so would go to the beach sometimes • Sometimes drive around the city (27:45) Staying in contact with loved ones • MAIL! (28:15) Holidays • Not fun because not with family • Military didn’t go overboard with celebrations • Christmas was the loneliest time o Get drinks with the buddies and toast to wives and children o Never toasted to win the war but to get home soon • Entertainment groups would sometimes come through o Bob Hope (30:35) Skills learned • Gained a lot through the training • * DVD cut off here. Seems as though he had more to say � 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 RoweS Title A name given to the resource Rowe, Stephen (Interview outline and video), 2006 Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Rowe, Stephen Description An account of the resource Stephen Rowe is a Vietnam veteran who served in the United States Air Force for 20 years in the field of intelligence. As a member of the 7602 Air Force Intelligence Group, Rowe went to Vietnam, the Philippines, and various bases throughout the United States. In this interview, Rowe gives an overview of his 20 years spent in the service and answers questions about food, free time, holidays, fear, and combat. One of his most memorable moments occurred just after Vietnam, when Rowe was assigned to the debriefing of one of the Vietnam POWs. Rowe spent 2-4 weeks in a hospital near Riverside, CA listening to the POWs story. Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Koptik, Rachael (Interviewer) Tittle, Victoria (Interviewer) Forest Hills Eastern High School (Ada, Mich.) Subject The topic of the resource Oral history Veterans History Project (U.S.) United States--History, Military Michigan--History, Military Veterans Vietnam War, 1961-1975--Personal narratives, American United States. Air Force 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 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 2006-06-04 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 Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Lemmen Library and Archives https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/10cc480b3da16c8694caa3d32f8d7a4e.mp4 b14e4d072e3b3687a78ac84fce11adbd https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/211acd7f4349b845c602f54eb777f2de.pdf f4851130e1606f2955e81da2ad95e0cb PDF Text Text Grand Valley State University Veterans History Project Interview World War II Gordon Rowe Length: 44:07 (00:15) Background Information      Gordon was born on May 23, 1925 in Detroit, Michigan He grew up in Highland Park and went to school in Ferndale Gordon’s father worked for Ford Motor Company and his mother was a house wife When he was about 7 years Gordon got very sick with whooping cough, scarlet fever, and a few other sicknesses that basically kept him quarantined in his house for 2 years Gordon played baseball in high school and later got a job working after school (5:10) Marines  There were many young men in Ferndale that wanted to enlist and their town had an unusually high percentage of Marines  Gordon had wanted to enlist after Pearl Harbor was attached, but had not yet graduated from high school and was told that he would at least need his diploma to enlist  That summer he went through summer classes so that he could finish high school early and was allowed to enlist when he was 17 years old  Gordon went through 8 weeks of basic training in San Diego, California, consisting of much physical activity that he enjoyed  He then went through 6 weeks of advanced training in intelligence and joined the 5th Marine Division, which was a new division that had just begun forming (13:55) Iwo Jima  Gordon’s division was sent to Hawaii in May of 1942[1944?] and they were told that they would serve as replacements in Saipan  Later his entire division was sent to Iwo Jima for the invasion  It took they two months to make it there because they were waiting for supplies and other ships in Hawaii  They landed and took an LST to shore where shells were flying all around them  There were many casualties on the landing and thousands of men were wounded  Gordon spent 36 days in Iwo Jima securing the island and then headed back to Hawaii  In Hawaii Gordon worked as a Marine swimming guard with men that were on R & R at the beach (23:45) End of War �    Once the war had ended Gordon was sent to Japan to work for 6 months and then to Palau for another 6 months There he continued working as a swimming guard, though he had though that he would be sent home after his time in Japan He later found that all the swimming areas in Palau contained many alligators There were still many Japanese soldiers hiding in the jungle that did not know that the war was over (27:25) Discharged  Gordon was sent back to San Diego in 1946 and had to remain in the barracks for another 19 days until all his time was up  He then had furlough in Michigan for 30 days and was later sent to Washington DC to be discharged  Gordon later met his wife at an ice cream shop and got married in 1950; they had 2 daughters and 1 son  He began working as an underwriter for an insurance company, where he worked for 10 years  Gordon later got a job at a hospital working as a purchasing agent and as office manager (38:10) Looking Back  Gordon feels that the Marine Corps did not provide enough academic training  There was a lot of physical work, discipline, and obedience, which did not help him later in his career  Gordon still has many good friends from the service that he goes to the local VFW 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 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 RoweG Title A name given to the resource Rowe, Gordon (Interview outline and video), 2008 Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Rowe, Gordon Description An account of the resource Gordon Rowe was born on May 23, 1925 in Detroit, Michigan. He had wanted to enlist in the Marines after Pearl Harbor was attacked, but was too young at the time. The following summer he spent all his time at summer school so that he could graduate early and enlist in the Marines. Gordon went through basic training in San Diego, California for 8 weeks and then was assigned to help form the new 5th Marine Division. Gordon was sent to Iwo Jima for the invasion and was there for 36 days securing the island. After the war ended he continued working in the Pacific for another year before he was discharged in 1946. Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Collins Sr., Charles E. (Interviewer) Collins, Carol (Interviewer) Subject The topic of the resource Oral history Veterans History Project (U.S.) United States--History, Military Michigan--History, Military Veterans Video recordings World War, 1939-1945--Personal narratives, American United States. Marine Corps 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 2008-03-10 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 Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Lemmen Library and Archives https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/74b523216e0bf2b7be6b741a18f21dd0.mp4 4a2faf2602c863e62d6c54b3c8d98cda https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/9395fa6ee18cd2f695d2def9fa2d3141.pdf 5f52183825a2352835949600dcfc57d1 PDF Text Text Grand Valley State University Veterans History Project Everett "Cappy" Rowe (1:48:42) Background Information (00:15) • • • • • • • • • • • He believes he was born in Oklahoma City but was never told the exact location of his birth. (00:15) His father worked in oil fields and his mother died in a tent fire when Cappy was 1. (00:49) He was never told that his step mother was not his birth mother until he had exited the Air Force in 1971. (1:27) His family moved around to a series of states in the Northwest. (2:45) Cappy attended high school in Iowa in 1936. The graduating class of his school was 8 kids. (3:10) He attended the University of Iowa seeking a degree in chemical engineering. (4:13) His father was then moved to Oklahoma so Cappy transferred to the University of Oklahoma. He was in the ROTC. (8:49) On June 4th 1940 Cappy was commissioned as 2nd Lieutenant of Artillery. (9:55) Cappy wanted to be a pilot in the Air Corps. He joined the ROTC to peruse this dream, however he was denied the opportunity due to high blood pressure. (5:20) The ROTC had both motorized and horse drawn artillery. (6:21) There were 2 days between Cappy being commissioned and his service at Fort Sill. (7:42) Service at Fort Sill, Oklahoma (8:00) • • • • His first task was to take a basic artillery course. (8:22) Cappy took both the first class and the second class for artillery training. Most men took just the first class, or didn’t take them consecutively. (10:00) He was then sent to Louisiana in 1941. He hated his service here because of all the mosquitoes. (11:15) In late 1941 Cappy placed in his application to be in the Air Corps. 2 months later he was requested to resubmit his application because half of it was lost. (12:08) Pilots Training (14:20) • • • • • • • Cappy did receive and was awarded his wings. He was trained as a spotter aboard an aircraft to help guide artillery fire. (14:25) 4 months after being rewarded his wings, Cappy applied for pilot’s training. He was denied as he had just completed a special training. (15:15) Cappy did eventually complete his pilot's training in San Antonio, Texas. (16:25) In January of 1942 Cappy’s girlfriend who was a nurse received orders to go to the Philippians. Cappy married his girlfriend in order to keep her from going to the Philippians for service. (17:00) Cappy was sent to Colman, Texas for the flying component of his course. (19:20) He had a civilian instructor. (20:22) Men were rewarded with a silk scarf after completing so much solo fly time. (21:37) �• • • Cappy was sent to Fort Worth, Texas to train on B24s. (22:50) Cappy was given the choice to continue his training in Nevada or Los Angeles. He picked Marsh Field, Los Angeles, in 1943. There the men prepared rigorously to travel overseas. (25:45) Cappy picked his bombardier and navigator. (26:50) Deployment to the Pacific (27:10) • • • • • • • • • • • • When being sent to the Pacific, the men flew to Hawaii. During the trip, one engine blew. Repairs took 2 days. (27:20) Cappy went surfing while he waited for the men to fix the plane. (28:40) He turned himself in when the plane landed in Fiji due to a bad sunburn he received while in Hawaii. (30:39) As the aircraft landed in Guadalcanal, the men were shot at. This was fairly common. (30:30) Cappy was in Guadalcanal for 1.5 weeks and made one raid. (31:28) Cappy when was sent to a different base where the men went on an 18 hour mission. (34:05) Because of the range of the bombing raid, the enemy was not expecting of the raid. (35:41) A C-47 was assigned to Cappy’s group. The aircraft was used to send and pick up men who went to Australia on leave. (38:12) While Cappy was on leave, his crew was taken by another Major. One their first mission with the new Major, they were shot down and were killed. (39:00) Cappy went on a mission where they did not drop their load. On the way back home, Cappy saw a destroyer. Cappy bombed the destroyer and sunk it. (40:50) Cappy flew 25 missions all together. (45:16) Cappy was involved with the bombing of the Philippine Islands. (45:50) Life in the Air Corps (47:54) • • • • Living conditions were not very good while serving in the pacific. Cappy often stayed in a tent. At one point the men did have access to a navy base that had great food. (47:54) At some location, men had to put their tents up on platforms due to rain. (49:14) Bombers would often fly over at night. The men ran to their fox hole when they heard these sounds. (49:42) Men were ordered to put the flood lights on to the aircrafts when they came over for 5 seconds. Then they were ordered to shut the lights off. (51:23) Journey Back to the U.S. (53:50) • • • • • • • • 700 men were placed on a 300 man ship for transport. (53:51) While traveling, the men hit a typhoon. (55:00) Many aboard the ship got sick. The typhoon lasted 4 days. (56:00) One man got alcohol to drink. What he didn’t realize was that he had rubbing alcohol. (57:00) When he arrived in the U.S. he got orders to travel to Portland, Oregon. (58:06) When the men arrived, much of the men’s clothing and uniforms were either destroyed or dirty. (58:21) If the men were near their home, often they just went home rather than going to a base to be discharged. (59:24) His wife was staying in Oklahoma while he was in the service. (1:00:00) �• Cappy decided to stay in the Air Corps rather than being discharged. (1:00:42) Service in England (1:05:11) • • • • • • • Cappy was sent to Tennessee with all the other re-enlisted Corps men. (1:05:11) Cappy was sent to England. He was not happy about this and wished to go some place different. (1:03:24) Cappy flew a C-47 in England. He also had a biplane to fly. (1:04:40) He flew to Paris. It was difficult to get a chance to land in the air field as it was very busy. (1:06:53) Cappy was in London, England for approx. 9 months. (1:07:25) Capppy volunteered himself to go back to the states but unfortunately was not aloud and instead was sent to South Africa. (1:07:39) He spent much of his time there transporting men and supplies. (1:08:31) Service in South Africa (1:10:50) • • • • • • • • • • • • On the ship going down to South Africa, the men played deck tennis in order for the them to stayed entertained. A doctor that Cappy had befriended wrote him an I.O.U. for a free delivery of a child. (1:11:00) Cappy served in South Africa for 3 years. He went on 3 safaris each costing 5 dollars each. (1:13:51) He did a lot of hunting of exotic game. (1:14:20) Cappy also played for a base ball team. He was called the home run king of South Africa. (1:16:00) The I.O.U. was collected from the doctor. (1:18:10) Cappy was then sent to Austria where a unit was still occupying the area. (1:20:18) The soldiers were often kicked off of land while serving in Austria by angry civilians. (1:21:04) Cappy flew himself and a Colonel to England so that they could golf on a famous golf course. (1:23:02) Cappy served in Austria for 3 years (1953-1956). (1:24:05) Cappy was one of the first men to see a Soviet Mig 5. This caused great concern for him and other soldiers who had witnessed it. (1:24:39) Cappy served as an attaché in Austria after the occupation ended. (1:26:15) The Austrian civilians mostly just went along with what the U.S. told them. (1:27:40) Service in the U.S. (1:28:36) • • • • • Cappy was sent by boat from England to New York. He also brought back a car he had purchased while in Europe. (1:28:36) He received a message from Washington shortly after arriving in the U.S. assigning him to DCSI. But he was then reassigned to the General officer of Colorado air in Colorado Springs. (1:28:54) Cappy served with NAADC in Colorado Springs. (1:32:15) He served for 4 years in Colorado Springs. Approx 1955-1960. (1:33:24) He was transferred to DIA in 1960 where he was an executive officer of a Navy Officer. He was promoted to Colonel. (1:33:57) �Service in Hawaii (1:35:25) • • • • • • He was shortly stationed performing intelligence work in Hawaii. (1:35:27) There the men relayed instructions in on Vietnam. (1:36:33) For a short time he worked in an operations officer. He was irritated about how men were treating the returning Vietnam veterans. (1:38:47) He ordered the men who worked under him to greet the returning veterans when they returned to the states. (1:39:58) Cappy served as a supervisor over a wide range of assignments. (1:41:25) He retired in approx 1971. (1:43:37) Retirement (1:44:38) • • • First he lived on Marco Island after his retirement. (1:44:40) Cappy’s wife received a job in Congress. (1:46:40) He did not get a job after retiring. He simply enjoyed retirement. (1:47:38) � 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 RoweC1436V Title A name given to the resource Rowe, Everett (Interview outline and video), 2012 Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Rowe, Everett Description An account of the resource Cappy Rowe served in the U.S. Air Force from 1941 to 1971. He enlisted in the Army prior to the start of the war, and trained initially as an artillerist, but eventually was accepted for pilot training. He served in the Pacific during the latter part of World War II, flying out of Guadalcanal and other islands. After the war, he had assignments in England, South Africa, Austria, Hawaii and the continental US, doing various types of intelligence work, and retired as a full colonel. Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Smither, James (Interviewer) Kentwood Historic Preservation Commission (Kentwood, Mich.) WKTV WKTV (Wyoming, Mich.) 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 Air Corps United States. Air Force World War, 1939-1945--Personal narratives, American Other veterans & civilians--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 2012-08-21 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 Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Lemmen Library and Archives https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/c63760dccddd53c92139175a068b1c4c.mp4 2e7f2c36758c3c15a7f416dda810c60f https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/28b86d47c5fbbbea9ea4cb1193a8404c.pdf 32ab34353e432c0eda7e5057f9c03922 PDF Text Text Grand Valley State University Veterans History Project Interview Alfred Roth (1:05:55) (00:25) Background Information • Alfred was the only boy in his small sixth grade class in Ionia County • He went to high school in Lowell • Alfred worked on his parents farm throughout his years in school • He dropped out of school in 11th grade to help his father out with the farm, but was able to get diploma equivalent in 1937 • Alfred worked for a while at the McQueen Motor Company and traveled to many states doing odd jobs • He stayed the longest in Alaska mining for gold (7:25) Pearl Harbor • At the time, Alfred had been taking government-funded classes in Seattle • He was working with sheet metal making B-17 bombers and other aircraft (8:25) Drafted into the Army • Alfred was sent to Jefferson Barracks in Fort Lewis, Washington • He then went to Missouri for basic training • Alfred went to Madison, Wisconsin for Radio Operator Training as a noncombatant • He was also sent to Houston, Texas for training and communicating with GIs in Central America • Alfred had rifle training at McClellan Field in Sacramento (11:10) Overseas • Alfred boarded a ship to Australia, but they had to take a detour and stop in New Guinea for a while to avoid Japanese submarines • He was listening and sending code; working for six hours, six hours off, and so on • Their communication was constantly interfered with by the Japanese (14:15) Alfred is Transferred to the Philippines • He was working in a radio station near the mountains in the jungle • Alfred was working with a radio mechanic, a cryptographer, and a direction finder • They were constantly harassed by the Japanese and they always slept with their rifles in their bunks (19:05) New Guinea • Alfred was working in a radio shack near the air strip • The atomic bomb was dropped on Japan shortly after he arrived • He then had enough points to go back to the US �• • He had to leave from Manila on a freighter with many other outfits It took them 30 days to reach San Francisco (23:30) Back on a Farm in Michigan • Alfred’s brothers had taken over their parents farm and he went back to working at the McQueen Motor Company • He then got a job dealing with farm milk products and spent 33 years in the area until he retired (25:30) Family • Alfred has 3 children and 6 grandchildren • He met his wife at a dance at the YWCA and was married in 1948 (27:00) Awards • Alfred has received the following awards: Asiatic Pacific Theater Medal, 2 Bronze Metal Stars, American Theater Ribbon, Philippine Liberation Ribbon, 2 Overseas Service Bars, 1 Service Stripe, Good Conduct Medal, Meritorious Unit Award (28:00) Life After Retirement • Alfred has been a life member of the VFW • He has been a member of the American Legion for 60 years • He is also a member of the Methodist Church • His military experience has been very beneficial (29:20) Alaska 1939 • There was no highway and there were vicious mosquitoes everywhere • He was staying in Seward Alaska, 70 miles away from the mining camp • They dealt with dynamite, constantly blasting and breaking up rocks • Alfred made 10 times as much mining in Alaska as he did farming in Michigan � 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 RothA Title A name given to the resource Roth, Alfred E. (Interview outline and video), 2007 Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Roth, Alfred E. Description An account of the resource Alfred Roth was born in Ionia County, Michigan. After school, Alfred traveled to many places around the United States doing odd jobs before he was drafted into the Army. Before his time in the service, some of his jobs included mining for gold in Alaska and building B-17 bombers for the government in Washington. Alfred was trained as a radio operator during World War II, working in the Philippines and New Guinea. Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Hanks, Robert (Interviewer) Lowell Area Historical Museum (Lowell, Mich.) Subject The topic of the resource Oral history Veterans History Project (U.S.) United States--History, Military Michigan--History, Military Veterans United States. Air Force World War, 1939-1945--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 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 2007-05-24 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 Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Lemmen Library and Archives https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/9b1644f968b6eb836176fe72140a7b4c.mp4 26157690b9c4fa7f72d56107de990c4a https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/93ef78a1006927645182116a39475b20.pdf 0ff0b15dca68b977139bf7fe7b7293e6 PDF Text Text Grand Valley State University Veterans History Project Thomas Michael Ross (07:30) (01:10)Childhood Zeeland HS Father worked for Chemical Company 2 Brothers Mike and Dan, older and younger Shot Marbles in Grade school Played Basketball Still acquainted with classmate that went on to join Marines (07:30) Service Dropped out of HS in 11th Grade, Got GED Joined Navy, Great Lakes IL for Boot Camp 9 wks training, 2 wks leave Norfolk VA for Ship Service School, didn’t make good marks, became boatswains’ mate Spent time in Puerto Rico and Roosevelt Roads, Guantanamo, and drydock in Charleston SC Worked on a nuclear supply ship as sub tender. USS Fulton AS11 Visited USS Nimitz, needed to be short to work on it   � Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Veterans History Project Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Grand Valley State University. History Department Description An account of the resource The Library of Congress established the Veterans History Project in 2001 to collect memories, accounts, and documents of U.S. war veterans from World War II and the Korean War, Vietnam War, and conflicts in the Middle East and elsewhere, and to preserve these stories for future generations. The GVSU History Department interviews are part of this work-in-progress, and may contain videos and audio recordings, transcripts and interview outlines, and related documents and photographs. Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant 1914- Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource <a href="http://rightsstatements.org/page/InC/1.0/?language=en">In Copyright</a> Subject The topic of the resource Afghan War, 2001--Personal narratives, American Iran Hostage Crisis, 1979-1981--Personal narratives, American Korean War, 1950-1953--Personal narratives, American Michigan--History, Military Oral history Persian Gulf War, 1991--Personal narratives, American United States--History, Military United States. Air Force United States. Army United States. Navy Veterans Video recordings Vietnam War, 1961-1975--Personal narratives, American World War, 1939-1945--Personal narratives, American Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Special Collections & University Archives Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Smither, James Boring, Frank Relation A related resource Veterans History Project (U.S.) Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context RHC-27 Language A language of the resource eng Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived <a href="https://gvsu.lyrasistechnology.org/repositories/2/resources/455">Veterans History Project interviews (RHC-27)</a> Oral History A resource containing historical information obtained in interviews with persons having firsthand knowledge. Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context RossT Title A name given to the resource Ross, Thomas Michael (Interview outline and video), 2007 Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Ross, Thomas Michael Description An account of the resource Thomas Michael Ross was born in Holland, Michigan in 1954. He attended Zeeland High School, and served in the United States Navy between 1975 and 1979. One of his assignments was on a nuclear supply ship as sub tender aboard USS Fulton AS11. Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Collins Sr., Charles E. (Interviewer) Collins, Carol (Interviewer) Subject The topic of the resource Oral history Veterans History Project (U.S.) United States--History, Military Michigan--History, Military Veterans United States. Navy Other veterans & civilians--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 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 2007-02-19 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 Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Lemmen Library and Archives https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/139651461267ddef1d78fe6b46a63116.mp4 64eb805aef431fb76dcd57cd50d5f6d7 https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/68666059aa592cd456f4e61144fd9f0b.pdf cd929c6496733b10fae2d608d44d8162 PDF Text Text Grand Valley State University Veterans History Project Interview World War II Robert Ross Length: 32:35 (00:20) Background Information  Robert was born on January 12, 1926  He was in the Naval Reserves during WWII and served in the Pacific arena  Robert enlisted when he was 17 years old because he did not want to be drafted into the Army  He had not finished school and made it through the 11th grade (1:30) Training  Robert went through basic training at Great Lakes Naval Academy in Chicago, Illinois for 6 weeks  Training was not too difficult for him because he was young and in good shape  The hardest part was getting used to constantly being told what to do and he did not really make any friends while there  After training Robert went home for 30 days on leave, then took a troop train from Detroit, Michigan to California (3:20) Guadalcanal  Robert and 5,000 other men left on a troop ship from California, where they had been waiting for a month at the staging area  It was a brand new ship and it was very full  They had no duties; all they did was eat, and then get in the chow line for the next time around; it took hours for 5,000 men to go through the line  They arrived on the island and that night there was a huge explosion that woke them  It looked like the entire sky was on fire after a large ship had been blown up � There were no survivors and bodies were being washed up on shore for days (6:40) Average Days  Robert had been transferred once to a Merchant Marine ship and found the food to be much better; they even had real eggs  On regular Navy ships the majority of the food was dehydrated: Powdered milk, eggs, potatoes…  He had been in the Pacific for 1 year before he received a package his mother had sent months ago  All the money and anything else worth anything had been removed from the package  Robert worked on 5 different Carrier Air Craft Service Units, or CASUAL outfits, while in the service  They worked on hauling aviation fuel and empty tanks  Robert spent a total of 19 months working in the Pacific (15:35) Pacific Islands  Robert felt that all the islands seemed the same and would have much rather worked in Europe  He stayed with the same small group of men while transferring from ship to ship  He made a few really good friends from Virginia and Michigan  They were never allowed any furlough because there was no place to go while on the islands  In New Caledonia they were allowed to go into town on their time off, but everywhere else they were not allowed off base because they had to stay away from the women  All the nurses on the islands were with the Army and the Navy men were not even allowed to talk to them (22:25) End of Service � Robert had been sent back to California on a converted luxury liner and then hitchhiked to Chicago  The government had given him enough money to make it back to Chicago, but he had wanted to keep it for himself  Robert traveled in his uniform and everyone was very nice to him and buying him drinks  He moved back to Michigan and began working in Ionia and later began working in a prison  Being in the Navy helped him to become a much more respectful and disciplined person � 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 RossR Title A name given to the resource Ross, Robert (Interview outline and video), 2004 Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Ross, Robert Description An account of the resource Robert Ross was born on January 12, 1926 and enlisted in the Navy when he was just 17 years old because he had not wanted to be drafted into the Army. He went through training at Great Lakes Naval Academy in Chicago, Illinois and was then shipped out to the Pacific after having 30 days leave. While in the Pacific Robert worked on 5 different Carrier Air Craft Service Units, or CASUAL outfits, hauling aviation fuel and empty tanks. Robert spent a total of 19 months in the Pacific and moved back to Michigan after he was discharged. Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Ferlito, Lori (Interviewer) Subject The topic of the resource Oral history Veterans History Project (U.S.) United States--History, Military Michigan--History, Military Veterans Video recordings World War, 1939-1945--Personal narratives, American United States. Naval Reserve 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 2004-05-15 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 Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Lemmen Library and Archives https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/3bde243a5c69d39f6504cfbd92529498.mp4 d9bdcc94d2aab7a19ca5db89656b6191 https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/6259a516c47399f4e14ff32ad40a86b9.pdf 17de74a9283a86dfee2d759e9c85f2f4 PDF Text Text Grand Valley State University Veterans History Project Interview Desert Storm Leanne Rooker Length of Interview: 14:27 [not sure who the interviewer is here so using XX as initials. (00:02) XX: What is your maiden name? LR: Leanne Marie Cook XX: Where were you born and raised, Leanne? LR: I was born in Jacksonville, North Carolina, but I was kind of raised in Michigan. I moved to Manistee, and then pretty much raised in Caledonia. XX: Okay. What is your current job? LR: I am a supervisor at the contact center of Foremost Insurance Company. XX: What is your address? LR: 10145 Alaska Avenue, Caledonia Michigan 49316. (00:53) XX: What war did you experience? LR: Desert Storm. Persian Gulf. XX: At the time of this war, were you married? LR: Yes. XX: What was your spouse’s name and his wartime occupation? LR: My spouse’s name was Brian Mitchell Rooker, and he was a Lieutenant in the Navy. XX: When and where were you married to Brian? LR: I married him, Brian, December 27th of 1990. And we were stationed in Norfolk, Virginia, on the Theodore Roosevelt Aircraft Carrier. (01:35) �XX: Did you have any children during the war? LR: Yes. Jake. Morgan was not born until 1994. XX: Where did you live and work during this war? LR: Well, we lived in Norfolk, Virginia and I was a flight attendant with U.S. Airways. During the war. XX: What type of training did you go through for this job? LR: For the flight attendant job? XX: Yes. (02:13) LR: Umm, well, there was quite a bit of training for that job. I went to training in WinstonSalem, North Carolina, for three and a half weeks. Cause I was originally with Piedmont Airlines. And then U.S. Air bought us and I had to go through further training on different aircraft. XX: What did you like or dislike about this job? LR: I loved that job. I loved flying all over the country and seeing the different cities, and you know, and the geographics and the different cultures around the country. And I liked the flexibility that the job gave me. I had quite a bit of time off so it was easy to raise a family, at that point in time. (03:10) XX: How were your children taken care of while you were gone? LR: Well, we pretty much worked it out where, um…I was pretty flexible that when Brian was out to sea, I would be home. Cause he’d be gone a couple of weeks at a time and I would just make that my vacation, or so I’d bunch up all my time and be home with the kids. Otherwise, we had a daycare person who would take Jake during the day, and Brian, actually Mitch, he goes by Mitch, would take Jake to the daycare every day when he’d go off to the ship and then he’d pick him up at the end of the day. (04:00) XX: Were you unionized? LR: Yes. XX: And how did you feel about worker’s unions? �LR: I really didn’t care. What I didn’t like about a union is that it’s one voice. So you don’t really get a raise that’s based on your performance. It’s more that everybody votes it in and so it really doesn’t matter what kind of a job you do. So everybody gets the same raise. I don’t really care for that, but XX: Did you have any other friends or family besides Mitch that did war work, during the war? LR: Family? Or friends? XX: Both. LR: Well, we had a lot of friends, what with Mitch being in the military. We had a lot of friends in the military. Some in the Navy and Mitch’s closest friend was actually in the Marine Corp. so we kind of had that aspect too. My father was active in the Marine Corp but he didn’t see any more time because he had actually served his time for Vietnam, so he didn’t have to go back to do that. (05:15) XX: Okay. How did you feel about the Persian Gulf War? LR: I really didn’t…I really didn’t think it was any of our business to be over there. And then when we didn’t really accomplish what we went there for. And had to go back, obviously, several years later, it was like, what was that all about the first time? And I felt like…I felt like it was more of a personal vendetta with the Bushes then anything else. (05:56) XX: Did you live with your family, or friends and co-workers then, as well? LR: Well, when it first started, I was living at home with my parents. And then Mitch and I got married. And I continued to live at home with my parents until he was due…cause he was deployed right after we got married, and I continued to live with my parents until he was due home. And then, just before he was due home, I moved to Virginia and lived with him. (06:42) XX: What were your friends and families feelings about the war? LR: Well, those in the military, they kind of had a different view on it. It was just a…something they were told to do, so they never questioned what came down. And in a lot of sense, I knew better than to form a big opinion on it, because all that does is frustrate me. So you had to go and it was just what it was. (07:25) XX: How did the war change aspects of your life? Like your job or your daily life? LR: Um, it really didn’t change my daily life, other than my husband wasn’t around. Anymore. Of course, then I had to worry about him. You know, you just follow the news. And I got �involved in all of the wives clubs that I could, the officer’s wives clubs, so that I could kind of be abreast of everything that was going on. Cause back then they didn’t have the internet. They didn’t have cell phones, things like that, so we went months without hearing from him. And then when he would call, it was when he was in port. And most of their ports got cancelled. So it was in a port and maybe you had five minutes to catch up on months of being apart. And at that point, we didn’t have Jake yet, so it was just him and I, so it was okay, but… (08:37) XX: Did you worry our side might not win this war? LR: Absolutely. War is always…you never know what the outcome is going to be in war. XX: Did you know anyone who was killed or wounded during this war? LR: No, not really. I knew somebody that was in an accident, but they end up not really being hurt. Their aircraft, landing on the aircraft carrier, they didn’t catch it right, so it went over. And he went in the water. XX: How did you and your spouse communicate during the war? (09:23) LR: Letters. And that one phone call, that I had mentioned before. XX: All right. Did you feel like you got a good support from the men in the service? LR: I don’t really know what that question… XX: I’ll just skip it then. Did you have areasonable standard of living during the war? LR: Yes. (10:01) XX: Did the war ever have an effect on your mental or physical health? LR: Not really. Other than just really worrying about everybody. And just really not wanting him to go to war. Not wanting him to be on the front line. So I was really happy with him not being on the front line. And I know that most soldiers, they’re trained to be on the front line so they’re not happy if they’re not on the front line, but being back home, I was happy with them not being on the front line. (10:44) XX: Okay. Did you think that America should have been in this war? Should have fought this war? �LR: Yes. But I don’t think we solved anything, for the first one. The first Gulf War. Cause it still came up later. We still had to fight it again. And the war on terrorism, I don’t really feel like it touched on what it should have touched on. XX: What did you think about the enemy? (11:18) LR: I’m trying to understand where they came from. I guess it really kind of opened up my view, because that, I’m a Christian and I’ve got my Christian values. And that other parts of the world, that they value something different. And I tried to keep things… XX: Openminded? LR: Openminded, correct. So I guess it just kind of opened up my horizons a bit more, to not be so narrow minded in thinking that the whole world thinks like the United States does, cause they obviously don’t. (12:07) XX: How did the news stories…what effect did they have on you? LR: Anxiety. Every time something came up, I was shhh, shhh, shhh. I made everybody be quiet, cause it was coming up. Cause when you have a loved one that’s over there, it’s very terrifying that something could be escalating war, and create more, you know, loss and heartache. XX: How did you feel about the American anti-war protesters during the war? LR: I kind of thought that they really didn’t have…that they didn’t understand that these soldiers that went over there don’t have any choice. They’re just doing what they’re trained to do. And the protesting, you’re not hurting the President, at all. Who you’re hurting are those over there fighting it. (13:19) XX: How did you feel the war ended? Like did we accomplish any of our objectives, or… LR: No. We didn’t accomplish anything. It just ended. Like I said, we had to go back again. And we just left. XX: How did you feel once you heard the news that everybody was coming home? LR: Thrilled. Excited. Confused, because like I said, we didn’t accomplish anything. But happy, because I knew that my husband was going to be safe. (13:52) XX: How did this war change your life? �LR: I don’t know if it did. I don’t think it did. XX: Is there anything else you would like to add to this topic? LR: No, I think we did a good job on touching on everything. (14:09) � 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 RookerL0703V Title A name given to the resource Rooker, Leanne (Interview transcript and video), 2009 Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Rooker, Leanne Description An account of the resource Leanne Rooker's husband fought in the first Iraq war while she remained home in the states. She was very anxious the whole time he was gone, even though he did not actually get involved in combat. Leanne felt that the protesting during the war was not even being heard by the President, but just negatively affecting the morale of the soldiers. She was disappointed with the war in that she felt nothing was actually accomplished because there was a second war later dealing with similar problems. Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Rooker, Jacob (Interviewer) Subject The topic of the resource Oral history Veterans History Project (U.S.) United States--History, Military Michigan--History, Military Veterans Video recordings Other veterans & civilians--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 2009-11-15 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 Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Lemmen Library and Archives https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/270fe3b5ecab7ea58b65d5eed2baae15.mp4 b66ef2cb1f353c95504b8ccb265b3a71 https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/5d5c3de9f7a65bcc2c802889f4640176.pdf fe55bfe4b28ea13b34794f25e6aec9f2 PDF Text Text GVSU Veteran’s History Project World War II Marcia Rood Interview Total Time: 13:35               (00:20) Her brother served in the Navy during WWII (00:51) Nearly 6 years old when her brother went into the service; it was 1944 when her brother was 18, knew he would be drafted soon (2:00) Father was in the Navy in World War I (2:30) At the train station when they were dropping off her brother, he and the other recruits were being counted off o Switched places with the man next to him so he could end up in the Navy (3:10) House was lonely with her brother gone o Had cousins that had battle experience (3:44) Jimmy (her brother) took basic training at Great Lakes Naval Academy in Illinois o Went to visit him once before they were shipped out o Went to California and then was sent to Philippine Islands (4:10) At this time, they had no telephone o Drove to Ferndale when they knew Jimmy would be calling o By the end of the war they had a telephone in their house – currently lived in Farmington (4:56) Jimmy was in the Philippine Islands when he was injured, then shipped to California o War ended during this time (5:27) Didn’t talk about the war often o Brother’s friend was killed on a ship that was bombed (6:16) Remembers writing letters to her brother while he was away o Sent a family picture to him (7:20) Remembers using rationing stamps to get coffee, sugar, anything that was made of rubber was hard to get o Couldn’t buy a car o These things went towards supporting the war effort (8:03) Saw newsclips at the movies about the war, as well as the radio (8:33) Remembers car breaking down when they went to visit her brother at basic training o Took a train the rest of the way; noticed a lot of servicemen on the train (9:20) Shows letters that her mother saved from Jimmy �   o One of them talks about a friend that was killed (10:13) About her brother’s injury in the Navy o Stationed in Philippines – Subic Bay o Worked on a tugboat o Brought in ships that docked o There was a small cannon on the tugboat that shot lines up the side of the ships o Problems with Japanese snipers on the island o Tried to set a trap for the snipers o Brother’s leg was tangled in a line – ended up getting fractured (12:42) There was still a concern about snipers o Her brother wasn’t in a battle but saw enough of a conflict while he was serving (13:16) Jimmy was in the Navy from the middle of 1944 until the end of 1945 or early 1946 � 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 RoodM0702V Title A name given to the resource Rood, Marcia (Interview outline and video), 2009 Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Rood, Marcia Description An account of the resource Mrs. Rood was being interviewed to talk about her brother Jimmy's time in the Navy during World War II. He served for about a year and a half. He received training at Great Lakes Naval and spent most of his time in the Philippines, where he worked with tugboats in bringing in ships to dock. Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Scheidel, Caleb (Interviewer) Subject The topic of the resource Oral history Veterans History Project (U.S.) United States--History, Military Michigan--History, Military Veterans Video recordings Other veterans & civilians--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 2009-05-26 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 Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Lemmen Library and Archives https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/02a8e5e3b1b2d97a21923f2f21d7c57c.pdf 32ade96cb7c9ff1f49b5d3fff47370ea PDF Text Text Grand Valley State University Veterans History Project Ken Rondeau (4:33) Background Information (00:10)       Born in Grand Rapids, Michigan, in 1962. (00:11) Both his mother and father were from Wisconsin. His father worked as a plant superintendent and ran an orchard. (00:17) He joined the Michigan National Guard. (00:44) Ken was training to be an electrician before going into the military. (00:47) He had grandfathers and an uncle who had already served in the military. His oldest brother served in the Navy as well. (1:00) Ken joined the National Guard to make some extra money as well as to serve his country. (1:25) Basic Training (1:33)    He was flown from Grand Rapids, Michigan, to South Carolina. He was then sent by us to Fort Benning, Georgia. (1:35) There was much emphasis placed on physical conditioning. (1:56) 2 days before graduation, one of Ken’s fellow trainees had tried to take home some of the lizards that lived on the base in his ammo pouch. (2:10) Service in the National Guard (2:56)    Ken served initially as an infantryman. He spent most of his time I the service as a Sergeant for a gun crew in the mortar section. (2:57) Most of his training was geared toward going into Germany in case Russia had attacked Western Europe. (3:19) Operation Desert Storm occurred while he was in the Reserve. (4:00) � 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 RondeauKT Title A name given to the resource Rondeau, Ken (Interview outline), 2011 Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Rondeau, Ken Description An account of the resource Ken Rondeau, born in Grand Rapids Michigan in 1962, served in the National Guard during the 1980s. During this time Ken served mostly as a sergeant training mortar crews. Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Rondeau, Brenton (Interviewer) Caledonia High School (Caledonia, Mich.) 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. National Guard Other veterans & civilians--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 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 2011-11-12 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 Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Lemmen Library and Archives https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/87cda267b70c0e341f6ac0dd27bf3b67.mp4 406e6fe21cccabf3e19ff39c7047a72b https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/6c13e216980d13f03216a69e9b12ff76.pdf dece1c219d1d28942b754d1dad93b951 PDF Text Text Grand Valley State University Veterans History Project Rex Rogers (57:33) (00:25) Background Information • Rex was born in Lansing, Michigan in the early twenties • His father was a tool and dye maker • They moved to Battle Creek, Michigan where Rex went to school • During high school Rex paid much attention to the war • He dropped out of school and began working at the Eaton Manufacturing Company • Rex assumed that he would soon be drafted once Pearl Harbor was attacked (3:25) The Marines • Rex had been offered an opportunity to defer service and continue working, but he turned it down and was drafted in into the Marines • He went through physical testing in Kalamazoo and continued with more tests in Detroit • He was the shipped out to San Diego on a train in February 1943 • They then began boot camp and went through much physical training for 10 weeks • Rex then was sent to an air base to begin training to be a radio man • He also went through rifle training and continued with the radio work for two months (13:20) Texas A & S • Rex was sent to a Texas college for specialized training for 8 months and lived in the dormitories • They were learning code and he eventually got up to 40 words a minute • Sometimes they would go and drink on the weekends, but the surrounding towns were so small and they would have to hitch hike to get there • Rex was later sent to Cherry Point in North Carolina to form the Air Warning Squadron, which helped to detect approaching enemy and instructed fighters where enemy was located for attacks (20:25) Working in the Pacific • Rex left from Clinton Bay and stopped in Hawaii • They were working in a rebuilt baby aircraft carrier • He spent about 5 months in Hawaii, working with 270 long range radios • They had a little time off once in a while to go mountain climbing and visit Honolulu (25:05) Marshall Islands • Rex had been waiting in a staging area for a long time �• • • • • • Everyone was waiting for something to happen and no one knew where they were going or what would happen next They were finally ordered to Guam on July 21, 1944 The area was badly hit, with fires everywhere There was lots of action and bombs were going off everywhere Rex was working on top of a radar van and there were dead Japanese all over the place They were waiting on the beach for the infantry to push inland and then they could set up a better radar station (33:55) One Year in Guam • Rex continued working with radar and helped bring in a Navy TBF torpedo bomber into the area • The Navy Seabees arrived and began working on the air strip • The Marine men got along well the Navy • Men in the Navy got better meals and had better living conditions • Rex and others got close to a few native families • Many of the natives worked with them or for them, helping with laundry and other things like that • There were many Japanese hiding in the hills and remained there for years, avoiding capture (40:50) Daily Life • There were many USO shows with lots of celebrities • Rex was in Guam for a long time and barely any of the damage had been repaired by the time he left • The US later came back in and helped rebuild the area • Rex often had to work on guard duty while in Guam • There were many Japanese soldiers sneaking around at night; they would sneak up to Americans sleeping in fox holes and spear them • Rex was replaced right before the invasion of Iwo Jima (47:50) Posts War • Rex had been sent back to the US in April of 1945 and was working in Texas when Japan was bombed • He began working on aircraft that were later used during the Korean War • After three years in the Marines it was difficult for Rex to get used to civilian life � 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 RogersR Title A name given to the resource Rogers, Rex (Interview outline and video), 2008 Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Rogers, Rex Description An account of the resource Rex Rogers was born in Lansing, Michigan. He was drafted into the Marines and sent to San Diego, California in February of 1943. After basic training Rex continued with radio training and then was sent to Texas. Rex lived in the dormitories of Texas A & M for 8 months where he went through specialized training, working with radar. Rex later became part of the Air Warning Squadron where he helped detect approaching enemy and instructed fighters where enemy was located for attack. He participated in the invasion of Guam continued working on radar in Guam until he was replaced shortly before the invasion of Iwo Jima. 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 Michigan--History, Military Veterans United States. Marine Corps World War, 1939-1945--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 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 2008-03-03 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 Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Lemmen Library and Archives https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/f4381edb050d43dd0617fa454d1d48ad.mp4 a26998620d19f5a2e24aec0c02359141 https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/9bc8756a789699f6b8cdd9f7db6c516d.pdf 026971fca51360817e84e59bb1f6e34a PDF Text Text Frederick Rock (1:20:07) (00:09) Background Information • Frederick was born on November 27, 1919 in Detroit, Michigan • He was in his second year of college at the University of Detroit when he enlisted in the Air Force • Frederick wanted to fly planes and some of his friends were also joining (4:20) Training • He went to Chicago and then down to Texas • Frederick attended B-25 training school for a couple months • He trained with Tail Gunners • They went to Wichita, Kansas for more training • Frederick was then sent to Florida and assigned to be a Flight Engineer on the B-17 • He went home on a leave and was late getting back so they made him do KP all night and took away his Staff Sergeant stripes (16:16) Deployment • They were a replacement crew that was being sent to north Africa • It took them a couple of weeks to get to Oran, Africa and they stayed there for about a month • Frederick then flew to Foggia, Italy • There was 10 people in his crew and he was the Top Turret Gunner and Flight Engineer • They shared the air field with the British • He slept in a tent with 3 other people from his crew • They used airplane fuel for heat • The Air Force had civilians do the cooking and he thought it was good (24:40) Combat Missions • Depending on the weather sometimes they would fly 2 to 3 times a week �• The first third of the missions were rough • His first mission was to Vienna, Austria • Their missions lasted for 6 to 8.5 hours • They mostly flew at 26,500 feet • On his first mission they forgot to turn on the electronics for the bombs and so he had to go out on the catwalk and release them • On a mission to Ploesti Oil Field the #1 engine propeller mechanics were knocked out and they lost control for a little while • Frederick started his missions on July 7, 1944 and his last one was on January 17, 1945 • He did 35 missions, but some of the rough ones counted for 2 so he had 50 total • They had the same crew until towards the end of the missions when they got a new pilot and co-pilot • Their bombardier was killed on another plane • His plane was hit by 88mm shells, they went through the wing and the main fuel tank and then exploded above • His crew was in the 348th squadron of the 99th bomb group [probably the 97th, since the 99th was based in England] (36:55) Living Conditions • He could send and receive mail • When Frederick had some time on leave he and a friend went hunting on Mussolini’s private hunting grounds, but he didn’t shoot anything because he hit the clip release button instead of the safety • There was rain and snow mix so it wasn’t very cold • His crew was pretty positive and didn’t have much stress • They played cards a lot • He liked to target practice with his pistol (47:43) Return to the US �• Frederick landed in New York and had some time on leave so he went home to Middleville, Michigan for a couple weeks • He then went to a rehabilitation center in California for a couple weeks • Frederick got married in July, 1945 • He was about to go to flight training, but they cancelled the whole program • Frederick went to Camp Bryan in Texas for a month and then was discharged (51:10) Discharge • After being discharged he went back to Middleville • They got a trailer and moved to Detroit so Frederick could finish his engineering degree using the GI Bill • He then went to work at E.W. Bliss in Hastings, Michigan for 3.5 years • Frederick ran an engineering department at a die cast shop in Middleville for 6 years • He engineered with Chrysler for a year in Kokomo, Indiana • Frederick worked at Wolverine Die Cast in Warren, Michigan for 6 years • He then started a VW repair shop • Frederick says the military made him more mature � 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 RockF Title A name given to the resource Rock, Frederick (Interview outline and video), 2008 Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Rock, Frederick Description An account of the resource Frederick Rock was born on November 11, 1919 in Detroit, Michigan. He went to the University of Detroit for a few semesters and then joined the Army Air Corps. He was a staff sergeant and assigned to be a flight engineer on a B-17 Bomber. Frederick went to North Africa and then to Italy. He was a turret gunner and a flight engineer on a crew of 10 people in the 348th squadron of the 99th bomb group. He went on 35 missions but they counted some of the rough ones as double so he had a total of 50 missions. Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Erichsen, Wallace J. (Interviewer) Subject The topic of the resource Oral history Veterans History Project (U.S.) United States--History, Military Michigan--History, Military Veterans Video recordings World War, 1939-1945--Personal narratives, American United States. Army. Air Corps 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 2008-12-06 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 Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Lemmen Library and Archives https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/5006e5cea4daa16e1fc47ecf332cd2ea.mp4 d9e392a807df3ca0814a1fb59b65df85 https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/6bc6b97fa8e58f6beffa8107a21852b4.pdf 0263c04107638a4c42e445c4a50cb162 PDF Text Text Grand Valley State University Veterans History Project John Roblin Disc One (1:05:40) (00:25) Background Information • • • • • John was born in Jackson, Michigan in 1924 He was in Michigan during the depression and his father worked for the Michigan Central Railroad Company His father had a job transfer to Chicago in 1931 John went to high school in Chicago and was part of the junior ROTC for four years; he had hoped to go to West Point when he graduated By the time he had graduated, he had already taken the ASTP and had reached the cadet rank of lieutenant colonel battalion commander [training unit rank, not regular army rank] (2:30) The Service • • • • On July 5th, 1944 John was called to join the Army, only weeks after he had graduated Prior to that, he had been paying much attention to the news of the war and they had been registering for the draft everywhere and in 1940 they had begun calling the National Guard Pearl Harbor had been a great surprise to John because he thought the war would be contained to Europe During his time in high school, many students had become concerned about the war and many were working part time to replace the older men that had left for Europe (5:00) Training • John had graduated in 1943 and shortly after was sent to Fort McClellan in Alabama for basic training • He had been surprised to see the discrimination against “afro-Americans” in the South; they could not even sit on the bus together • John spent 14 weeks in basic training where they worked on drilling, rifle marksmanship, working with bayonets, map reading, scouting, and patrolling • He was made active platoon sergeant, which kept him out of KP (10:25) Fargo, North Dakota �• John went to North Dakota Agricultural College for engineering courses • They had 18 months to cover 4 years of material • He got the chicken pox and had to go to the hospital for so long that he could not make up the time in the courses • So he went with some other who had got sick to the University of Iowa to restart their enrollment in the same type of classes • They eventually closed that ASTP because they needed soldiers in the winter of 1944 (12:15) Louisiana • He joined the 44th infantry division and was part of the 71st infantry regiment, Charlie Company • Later John was promoted to Private First Class • They trained in very marshy areas with lots of snakes (14:00) Camp Phillips, Kansas • They went through advanced training here and John made 2nd scout • He got some time on leave and visited Michigan • In July he was sent to Massachusetts to the port of embarkation, where they proceeded to the port of Boston to board troop ships (17:00) The convoy across the Atlantic in July • They traveled with escort carriers, cruisers, and lots of destroyers • They had to take a zig zag course to avoid submarines while the destroyers were dropping depth charges • They had to always wear life jackets and had to practice evacuation drills • No ships were attacked on their voyage • His worked on guard duty and was allowed four meals a day • He learned more about the Navy since he was aboard a Navy troop ship �(18:45) France • John was aboard the first Convoy to go directly to France • They went ashore on landing boats and they were given ammunition as they were leaving the ship • Then they got on trucks and drove to be put into hedgerows • The Company ahead of them was probing for mines, which took days • There were no Germans in the area, though there had been fighting nearby earlier in Normandy • There was much shell damage in the French countryside • There were many enemy and American vehicles damaged on the side of the road (21:30) The Frontlines • John had received orders to move to the front • They marched to a railroad crossing to board some box cars, going from Normandy to the outskirts of Paris • The French civilians were nice and they tried to buy soap and cigarettes from the American soldiers • Then ended up near Strasbourg where they took reserve positions • They fought against German troops, who had a lot of Polish conscripts with them • The Germans who wanted to surrender attempted to do so only at night or very early in the morning (25:45) • John and his men began to pull back to attack defensive positions during the night • They attempted to go back to Strasbourg and experienced heavy enemy fire • John had been leading the men because he was second scout �• They lost contact with the rest of the battalion because they were so far ahead • John got some shrapnel in his knee and his platoon leader was hit also; many of their men died • They were still in the middle of battle when a large patrol arrived and took them to a small village aid station and then to a hospital (30:50) The Hospital • They arrived around the time of Thanksgiving and there were many French men in the hospital also • John received a purple heart, which he sent home to his parents • The Battle of the Bulge had broke out and they were evacuated to make room for others • John went to a different French hospital for a very long time • He had to learn to walk again and he had a very bad limp • John was sent to Paris to be processed and was then sent to a ground force replacement pool • John was categorized as a “profile 4” so he could not be sent back to an infantry unit • He was offered a job as a supply clerk at a desk to process supply records (34:50) Paris • John received a day pass to Paris and local children directed him and the other men around the city • They went shopping and John thought the city was marvelous • He bought cartons of cigarettes to barter with the French; they paid $1 per carton, but in other areas of France they were able to sell them for $30 a carton • They stopped to drink coffee and eat donuts, bought wine and French bread (39:30) The Air Corps Assignment • John was sent to an Air Corps replacement pool in Paris • He was part of the 410th bomb group who were light attack bombers with A-20s and A26s �• John received another job as a supply clerk for the headquarters squadron • He helped them clean their Thompson sub-machine guns because no one else had been trained to do it • All the bombers were flying towards Germany (44:25) The End of the War • John was sent to a replacement pool again in Paris; he thought he would soon be sent to fight in the Pacific • John ended up in Germany as the 9th Air Corps service commander • He was promoted to corporal and assigned to target intelligence • They were disarming German targets such as jet air craft, flak scopes, specialty bombs and radar equipment which they sent to Ohio • Men who had received 80 points were being sent back to the US • John did not have enough points and became corporal senior clerk in Frankfurt (54:20) Rotation • John left his German marks and got on a train towards Belgium • There were barrels of beer on the train on which they traveled in for several days • They then took a ship towards New York and then went to New Jersey for processing • John took another train to Chicago and then went to Wisconsin • He decided that he wanted to go to Michigan State University, but was not able because he was not a Michigan resident • John moved to Manistee and registered to vote in 1946 to establish his Michigan residence • He got a job at the Century boat plant doing upholstery work • John started school at Michigan State University in engineering under the GI Bill Disc Two (1:00:02) (00:10) Engineering �• The engineering courses were very difficult, so John switched to business administration • He worked in an advanced ROTC program for two years for an extra $30 a month • John had already been receiving $85 a month under the GI Bill • In 1949 John was commissioned as second lieutenant (3:05) The Army Reserve • John with the Army Reserve once a week in Lansing, receiving an extra $60 a month • He graduated in 1950 and a week later the Korean War broke out • John had been trying to get a job, but the people that interviewed him were all worried about his commitment to the Reserves • John signed up for another three years of service and got a job making Army trucks (6:40) John Was Ordered to Report to Active Duty on 11/09/50 • He went to Fort Leonard Wood in Missouri as part of the 6th armored division, 231st armored infantry battalion for basic training of company C • John helped provide basic training to young draftees working mostly on rifle marksmanship (9:45) Marriage • John applied for leave to get married to his wife, Rosemary, and he provided an apartment for her to stay in while he was on duty (10:30) Artillery Headquarters • John was assigned to artillery headquarters as an operations officer for the 231st • He also worked as an assistant for the Defense Counsel • Almost all the cases that went to trial were for men on AWOL; the majority of the men were found guilty and they were court martialed (14:50) John’s Promotion • John had served his two years as 2nd lieutenant and was promoted to first lieutenant on 6/15/51 • In July of 1951 John went to California for shipment across the Pacific �• Before leaving he had a 30 day break to visit his wife • He then went to the Travers Air Base for a chartered civilian transport to Japan • They refueled on Wake Island and Hawaii, where they were allowed to venture around • They landed in Tokyo and John was processed for infantry lieutenant leader • He spent time test firing on a rifle range with an M-2 Automatic Carbine • John boarded a ship towards Korea to join another replacement pool of the 24th infantry division • He was part of the 5th infantry regiment of the 24th heavy weapons company (24:20) Dog Company • John was assigned to Dog Company and they made a few attacks with direct enemy fire • John was transferred to Charlie Company and was part of the 1st battalion • They needed replacements because they only had 10 men of a 40 man platoon • John had to train the sergeant and all the other new replacements • In Korea they were always moving forward and the lines were static • They had been trying to straighten the line near the 28th parallel • The men always patrolled at night with about 10 men of a squadron, one Korean soldier for interpreting, and a scout dog (33:15) The Winter • They had to dig out a bunker for every squad and in front they had connecting trenches and fighting holes • They enemy would not attack in sub-zero temperatures and many of their weapons froze up • They received one hot meal a day • Every many was rationed one case of beer a month • The officers also received a bottle of whiskey a month (36:50) Japan �• John received leave to go to Japan during his wife’s birthday and he was excited that he would be able to call her • His company was assigned to the outpost line of resistance duty • They had to set up an ambush and open fired on the enemy • In Japan he was issued a new outfit and they took his gun while he was there • John went to Tokyo and the city was in good condition and much warmer than in Korea • They went to nice restaurants and stayed in a nice hotel (49:40) Back to Korea • John brought back 2 cases of whiskey to share with the other men • If anyone sold the whiskey for more than $5 a bottle, they would be court marshaled (52:40) Kojido • John’s whole regiment was sent to Kojido to guard POWs and relieve units of the 26th infantry division • They were on this island for 2 months and John also received another leave to go to Japan • They went back to eastern Korea to set up defensive positions • Korea was in the process of peace talks • In the summer of 1952 John received orders to go back to the US Disc Three (00:30:31) (00:10) POWs • John had been guarding Korean and Chinese POWs • The North Koreans were very difficult to work with but the Chinese were cooperative • The Koreans had just started a riot before John arrived • The rioters had stormed the gate and tried to break out; hundreds of rioters were wounded or dead (3:25) John is Relieved �• He was relieved from the 5th regimental combat team and sent back to Japan for redeployment to the US • The ship he traveled on was very different from what he traveled on during World War Two • The ship had clean sheets, movies to watch, and a buffet for snacks • John arrived in California and then received a 30 day leave to visit his wife in Manistee • After visiting his wife, John had to report to Fort Riley, Kansas (7:40) Army General School • John was assigned to team F in Officer Candidate School • He became an instructor at the school and trained men in map reading, scouting, and patrolling (9:30) Intelligence School • John started his classes in October and completed the program in one year • He began teaching again in intelligence and map reading • John’s wife enjoyed living in Kansas and he was thinking about trying to get a regular Army commission (16:15) The Korean War Ends • The Army was allowing officers to be released from active duty • His wife was pregnant and they wanted to go back to Manistee, Michigan • John was sent home and discharged on 9/30/53 • He took a civil service exam and became a liquor enforcement officer trainee • John then had an interview for a management position at a new hospital • He got the job and was in charge of the purchasing department • They then built a children’s hospital and John was the manager there, eventually becoming an administrative officer • John took a job as a finance officer in a new hospital and retired in 1983 �."<~~ A~ ··:-C""':-' :" ::.: :.:.:.-::-: .•.• !u . . ~ ~ ;;:, r .. -,.J , \i): I I I .1 � 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 RoblinJ Title A name given to the resource Roblin, John (Interview outline and video), 2007 Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Roblin, John Description An account of the resource John Roblin joined the Army on July 5th, 1944 and was part of the first convoy to go directly to France during World War II. While in the service, John experienced a good deal of combat and eventually injured his leg. He spent a long time in a hospital learning to walk again. After John had recovered he was moved all over Europe within different regiments. After John served his time in Europe, he fought in the Korean War. He received many promotions during his time spent in the service. 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 Michigan--History, Military Veterans United States. Army World War, 1939-1945--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 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 2007-11-06 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 Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Lemmen Library and Archives https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/19ff2d33656fc847383143bf390bedb2.mp4 3cbe182406010324653671d650ff9f63 https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/459d605bea529769bfa686e7224f39eb.pdf ad8d4eeacecc1fadf91fa2548d8ea65a PDF Text Text Jack Robinson  WWII Veteran  United States Merchant Marine  (58:58)    (:15:00)Born in Newton Massachusetts 1924; Grew up in Boston Massachusetts       Adirondacks, New York: Lake George  • Started racing sailboats when he was 10 yrs old  • Began competitive racing  • Heard about the war right before 18th birthday      (:55:00)Enlisted in military on his 18th birthday      Family  • Father went to MIT for architecture but lack of jobs put him in the insurance business with his  father  • Great Grandfather was a sea captain who built the house on Lake George during Civil War days    (2:22) Enlists in the Merchant Marine‐September 1942  • Enlisted in the Merchant Marine so he could guarantee he would go to sea‐felt he could do the  most good there  • Captain Bassett was a neighbor‐Captain of the Maritime Academy  • National Academy at Kings Point‐Sea training was at sea  • Older brother was in Navy‐Submarine Service    (4:53)Kings Point‐Long Island‐Great Neck  • Based in the old Chrysler Estate    (5:30)Pass Christian Mississippi  • Basic Training  • Taught how to tie knots‐in charge of helping other cadets  • Spliced line  • Short term physical training‐ 3‐4 months long  • 6 months of sea duty before assigned to Kings Point  • Called the Inn by the Sea  • Still under construction at time  • He drew plans for some of the buildings‐delayed his sea time by 1‐2 months      �• • • • • • • • • • • • • • (8:00)Mobile Alabama‐First Cruise  Liberty Ship  Loaded Cargo‐mostly ammunition and some poison gas  (10:00)Went to New Orleans –picked up convoy  Went to New York for orders‐had to run black‐even east coast lights were black at this time  Phoned his dad saying he would meet him at grandma’s house as means of telling him location  without getting into trouble for betraying war secrets  Anchored in New York Harbor right off of the Statue of Liberty  Went to Halifax‐picked up more ships in convoy  (12:20)Shipped out at 4:00am headed for Belfast, Northern Ireland‐July 1943  Cadet‐learned about handling a ship‐billow soundings‐went down into 4 and 5 holes of ship  shafts‐drop chalk lids in holes‐measure water lines‐recorded it in ships records(called the black  gang by Jack)  Convoy made 10 knots  Only 4 Canadian Corvettes for protection  (15:45)Suppose to have 96 ships in the convoy only had 80  Still holds data to archives of the ship he was on‐data and crew information  HX244 was his convoy number    • • • •   • • • • (17:00) London  Visited Selfridge Department Store‐later bombed  Air Raid 1 week before‐under siege  Quiet for two weeks while they were in port unloading  1 week after they departed London‐ bombed again  Cardiff, Wales  Untouched at this point  Visited Cardiff Castle  Gave pound of butter and dozen egg to friend living there  Civilians in London treated military men well—as Merchant Marine sailor, he wore civilian  clothes    • • • • • (20:30)Le Havre, France  Picked up 200 barrels of wine‐brought back to French consulate in New York  Dead fog for 13 consecutive days‐never saw the sun  Dead reckoning the whole way‐within 13 miles of destination with no radar  Came within inches of other ship  (23:18) sirens warning of u‐boats but no sight of them  • (23:45) New York  Reloaded supplies for troops in North Africa    �• 15 ships of convoy broke off headed for Casablanca Africa‐had aircraft carrier and destroyers  protection on the way‐Fall 1943      • • • (27:27) Casablanca North Africa  Tanks lined up as far as eyes could see waiting to move across North Africa  Supply Line  Casablanca smelled like untanned leather and flies    • • • • • • (28:00)New York‐Returns to Academy at Kings Point  Comprehensive training‐cargo handling, ship instruction, rules and regulations, rules of the road,  signaling, navigation, first aid, mechanical drawing  Towards license for coast guard  Everyday 8‐4pm 9 month course  Started with 48 members and ended up with 24 members  Jack was grouped with men with 3 years of college and law degrees. He was also the youngest in  his group.  (31:21)Jack finished 4th in his class    • • (31:26)Free time  Jack was company commander of the rifle company at academy  After dress review on Saturday‐Jack could venture into New York where his sister lived in Mount  Vernon. He stayed over on Saturday night and returned to ship on Sunday    • • • • • • • • • •   (32:00)Graduation  October 13 1944    (32:20)Kemp P. Battle ship  Made 3 trips   1st to Marseille France  Mariposa had just arrived with troops‐kept the Battle waiting in harbor  Unloaded and reloaded 500 Arabs and took them back to Oran‐all were seasick  Morning‐breaking down convoy to go thru the straights of Gibraltar‐two ships ahead of them  smashed into each other and caught fire. Dutch captain Peter Dowling‐blew abandon ship signal  (35:35)Jack’s position was third mate  Bob McGraw‐high school classmate‐onboard ship at dry dock in Oran  Commodore was navy tanker with 20000 barrels  of high octane fuel‐minute he turned his light  on‐was hit with three torpedoes from a German submarine drifted in‐PBY seaplanes hadn’t  picked him up  Headed up Spanish coast towards Marseille  �• • • • • • • • (39:45)Back to the United States to Reload and off to Italy  Adriatic to Trieste  Water spout‐rained fish  Thru straights of Messina‐anchored in Naples  Air raid‐two Italian ships opened fire on airplane‐turned out to be an observation plane  Went to Livorno instead Genoa because Germans had control of Genoa   (43:50)Anchored at Piombino  American tattoo on British sailor  Climbed leaning tower of Pisa    • • • • • • • •   (49:00)Headed back to United States to Reload 1945  Roosevelt died‐Jack said Roosevelt was their friend  (52:20)Welding instead of Riveting put ships out quicker‐could prefab the ships‐made number 3  hatch a weak spot‐put belly bands around ship‐done while docked  Went on SS Maria Mitchell to South America‐no cargo‐war had ended‐hauled coal to Brazil  Loaded tonnage went to Argentina to Rosario  Graf Spee‐German pocket battleship sunk down there‐off of Montevideo  Rosario had political upheaval‐gun fire‐loaded corn‐topped off in Bahia‐headed to Africa  (56:20) Canary Islands to Algeria  Sub pens‐ caused rift between Americans and French  � 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 RobinsonJ Title A name given to the resource Robinson, John (Jack) (Interview outline and video), 2007 Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Robinson, John Description An account of the resource Jack grew up with boats, and enlisted in Merchant Marines as soon as he turned 18 because he wanted to be sure to go to sea. He served on several different cargo ships, crossing the Atlantic several times and visiting Britain, North Africa, France, Italy and South America. Describes convoy duty, life on ship, and explosion of a tanker hit by a U-Boat's torpedo. 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.) Video recordings United States--History, Military Michigan--History, Military Veterans World War, 1939-1945--Personal narratives, American Merchant mariner Merchant marine--United States 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 2007-10-23 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 Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Lemmen Library and Archives https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/a8abcf5f1e7d1fcc3b64ac53db5f7a8f.mp4 82de836b55d5664e150f0702d632ad13 https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/7a952516e54a2b667b1eb66ba7367471.pdf 74fa74f54beb2fa37aecc5db318c2e4e PDF Text Text Grand Valley State University Veterans History Project George Robinson (01:20:37) (00:20) Background Information • • • • • George was born in Allegan, Michigan in 1922 His father worked at Baker Furniture as a factory foreman George graduated from high school in 1942 While in school he had paid much attention to news of the war, but had never expected to be drafted George enlisted in the Army with a good friend of his after graduating high school (2:45) the Army • George was first sent to Fort Custer in Battle Creek, MI where he was sworn in and received physical examinations • He was then sent to Camp Crowder in Missouri for basic training • There was tons of red clay in the area and it was hard to breathe with all the dust • The men trained on a rifle range, marched, and did many physical activities • George was in basic training for about six months and then went to Midland Radio School in Kansas City to learn Morse Code • The classes were very difficult, but they had an excellent instructor • George and others were staying in a luxury hotel and able to go out to town on the weekends • The classes were much better than basic training and they were treated well (11:55) Camp Picket, Virginia • George continued training in Virginia and then was transferred to Little Creek for amphibious training • They worked on mock landings near beaches • They were working as a unit with the 294th Joint Assault Signal Company • George was working on furnishing communications along the beach (16:30) Florida • He was then sent to Fort Pierce in Florida to work on maneuvers in swamps • The men had been staying in tents near a sand bar when George all of a sudden got very sick • He was sent to the infirmary and the doctor told him that he had a sinus infection, but he felt much worse • George was later diagnosed with Spinal Meningitis and was sent to an Air Force hospital �• • • • • A doctor later told him that he needed to get involved in more outdoor activity, so a nurse took him out to hang out at the nearby Yacht Club on Palm Beach They met many nice rich people and visited all their mansions along the beach George continued to recover in the hospital for about two months and was then sent back to Virginia He had been told he would have to start right back in with the strenuous activity and he appealed to a general with his recent sickness George was sent home to recover for another two weeks (22:15) Europe • After his time on leave George once again went to Virginia and then to Boston • They took a troop train to Halifax, Nova Scotia and then boarded an old Canadian ship • The ship was very old and they had to sleep on hammocks and eat codfish all day • They crossed the Atlantic with a few other ships, but George said he would not have considered it a convoy • They trip lasted about a week and George was sick the whole time • They landed in Liverpool and took a train to Swansea, Wales • The area was devastated and they were there for about 3 months, working on maneuvers and other physical work (27:20) Training for the Invasion • They were getting ready for the invasion of Normandy and George was working on a SCR 284 code radio; it was very heavy and had to be set up with an antenna and a generator • They moved out to a D-Camp along the coast where there was constant air raids • The Germans were trying to blow up ships at the port and every night was like a fireworks display • They often had to hide in trenches to avoid being hit with shrapnel • George and others were in a secret briefing about a week before the invasion (35:15) Locals in Europe • Before preparing for the invasion George had met many nice people in Swansea and in London • Many locals invited them over for dinner • They people were very strong and resilient; London had been blown to pieces and many were still worried about a possible German invasion • During the war it seemed like the whole country was loaded with American troops and ships (37:30) Normandy �• • • • • They were supposed to board a ship for the invasion on June 4, but the ship was blown up before everyone boarded They left the next day on a different ship and headed for Normandy There were rockets flying all over the place where they landed, on Omaha Red, one of the worst places to land They were immediately being shot at with machine guns, artillery, and rifle fire They got off their landing craft and there were dead bodies all over the beach (45:30) Clearing off the Beach • The Germans had great technology and were able to lock down on anything that moved and destroy it • The Americans finally made it through with a tank in the evening and many were able to make it up the hill • George and a few others found a trail that Germans had been moving on and made their way up the hill • The next day they moved along the beach and ended up in a small French town • Their company took over an old French farm house and George ended up staying in the barn • They had not known much about what was going on with the invasion and there were not many superiors to answer to (51:20) Last Days in France • George began working with a ship to shore radio, trying to get ships loaded and to shore with men and supplies • They moved out of Omaha to Cherbourg and also traveled through St. Lo, which was completely devastated • Many pilots were parachuting out of their planes over France so they could cross the channel • Once the invasion had occurred, there was no longer work for an amphibious unit and George was able to go back to the US (56:55) Aboard the Queen Mary across the Atlantic • The Queen Mary was a luxury liner and the ride was much more comfortable and shorter than the ride to Europe • George went home on furlough for 2 weeks and was then sent to California on a luxury train • George was sent to Camp Pendleton for more training and to learn Allied Code for international communication in the Pacific • He had a good friend that lived in California and visited him on the weekends, spending some time in Hollywood �• George was in California for about 4 months training for the invasion of Japan (1:00:45) Hawaii • The men were sent out to Hawaii to practice maneuvers, but soon news of the end of the war came through • George was very glad that he did not have to continue working with the unit from Hawaii because he thought they worked terribly; maybe they had been stationed in Hawaii for too long • He continued to work on changing radio frequencies while waiting to be discharged • George was in Hawaii for about an extra month living in a large tunnel near a pineapple farm • They had a large parade on Honolulu after the war (1:08:45) Discharged • George was sent to Illinois to be discharged and then traveled back to Michigan • He had earlier worked in a shoe store and was not sure if he wanted to continue that work • Many of his friends were leaving to go to college at the University of Michigan and tried to talk him into it • George ended up buying his own shoe store and worked there for 40 years, but sometimes regrets not going to college � 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 RobinsonG Title A name given to the resource Robinson, George (Interview outline and video), 2008 Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Robinson, George Description An account of the resource George Robinson was born in Allegan, Michigan in 1922 and enlisted in the Army shortly after graduating from high school. George went through basic training in Missouri, radio code training in Kansas City, and amphibious training in Virginia. He then went to England to prepare for the Normandy invasion, and landed on Omaha Beach on D-Day. After the invasion George was sent to Hawaii to train for the invasion of Japan. The war ended before George was shipped across the Pacific and he was discharged shortly after. 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 Michigan--History, Military Veterans United States. Army World War, 1939-1945--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 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 2008-06-08 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 Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Lemmen Library and Archives https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/c258909e1a0454ef125f3f239048da5d.mp4 4d628d22a20a204204f15fe238ba1385 https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/9f23cf6a5ca64562c163fb9051610781.pdf 05feaa466d92a8c7ab1f75d6b8b6f5a8 PDF Text Text Grand Valley State University Veterans History Project Fredrick Robins (00:22:21) (00:15) Background Information • Fred was born in Chicago, Illinois in 1926, but moved four years later because his mother thought there was too much crime in the area • His father worked for a supply office of an ice cream factory in Wisconsin • They lived on a small farm that Fred spent time working on • Fred had been one year short of finishing high school when he got into a bad auto accident • He did not want to go back to school because he had a scar on his face • Fred tried to join the Army and the Navy, but neither would accept him because he had scar tissue on his eye • He later passed the medical exam for the Merchant Marines and joined in August of 1944 (2:50) Training • Fred traveled to New York City for basic training for 6 weeks • He then was asked to start radio operator training on Hoffman Island in NY Harbor • They classes were very strenuous and it was very hard for him to catch on • Fred studied very hard and graduated in March of 1945 • He had leave for a few days and then took a train to Portland, Oregon • They left on a victory ship to Hawaii to pick up supplies • Fred had been in Luzon on VE Day and in Hawaii on VJ Day (8:30) Osaka, Japan • From Hawaii they loaded the ship with trucks and supplies and headed to Japan • They went ashore in their uniforms and took a train to Tokyo • The train was crowded, but the people were all very nice to the Americans • Fred visited the Air Force base in Tokyo and then flew back to Osaka • They hit a huge typhoon on their way back through the Pacific and it really slowed down their trip (12:40) Ship Life • Fred served as a radio officer working on the ship and got along well with others • He spent most of his time with the chief engineer and the captain • The men on the ship were of all ages, from about 22-50 years old (15:40) Post War • Fred continued working on the ship and delivering supplies • They traveled from New York to France, from Texas to Aruba, to Rio De Janeiro, to Buenos Aires �• • Fred was able to have one month off in Buenos Aires and had a nice vacation there In Europe they delivered supplies to Algeria, Rome, and Marseilles (18:20) After the Service • Fred met a girl in Montreal and they had written to each other during the war • He left the Merchant Marine in 1947 to get married and moved to Milwaukee • He got a job at Western Electric, but his wife became very lonely and home sick so they moved back to Canada • Fred got a job at the central office of Bell Canada and worked there until he retired � 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 RobinsF Title A name given to the resource Robins, Frederick (Interview outline and video), 2008 Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Robins, Frederick Description An account of the resource Frederick Robins was born in Chicago in 1926. He joined the Merchant Marines in August of 1944, and went through basic training for 6 weeks in New York City. He completed radio operator school and graduated in 1945. During his tour of duty, he traveled throughout the Pacific dropping off supplies to and from islands. After the war was over Fred continued to travel around South America and Europe delivering supplies until he was discharged in 1947. 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 Michigan--History, Military Veterans Merchant mariner World War, 1939-1945--Personal narratives, American Merchant marine--United States 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 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 2008-05-21 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 Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Lemmen Library and Archives