Let’s help veterans tell their stories. Maybe they worked in the mess halls serving chow, or helped load ordnance onto jets waiting their turn to launch on combat missions, or maybe they had to watch their friends get hit in an ambush or a firefight in a rice paddy in Vietnam. It’s time we hear what they have to say!
If you are a veteran, or you know a veteran you’d like to have considered, send an email to VoicesToVeterans@gmail.com with the name of the veteran, a short summary of his or her story, and a picture of the veteran in uniform if you have it. I’ll then select veterans from the nominations I receive and write-up their stories for the Voices to Veterans Spotlight. Every veteran whose story I feature will receive a free signed copy of my latest Steve Stilwell legal thriller, Sapphire Pavilion, which is dedicated to “Wounded Warriors and Vietnam War veterans, especially those heroes still waiting to come home.”
I met Private First Class (PFC) Sue (Van Meter) Hodge after she read an article about when veterans are permitted to salute the American flag. Sue was ecstatic after learning that because she is a veteran, she can salute the flag she so willingly served as a member of the Women’s Army Corps, or WACs, […]
I’ve had the honor of interviewing numerous veterans. Many were citizen soldiers, drafted in times of national need and answering our nation’s call. When their tours of duty ended, they returned home and got on with their lives. I could tell right away Command Sergeant Major (CSM) Thurman C. Cousins was different. Battle tested in […]
Sergeant Paul Schuler, U.S. Army, has an amazing memory. During our three-hour interview, he went from story to story, recalling with great detail his Army experience and his tour of duty in Vietnam. I could tell very quickly the year Paul spent in Vietnam from April 1970 to April 1971 is indelibly inscribed in his […]
Airman Ronnie Turner-Winston, U.S. Air Force, is the kind of veteran I have always admired. She enlisted in the Air Force, served her country in time of war, then returned to civilian life where she serves as a role model for everyone she comes into contact with. She had me laughing and smiling as she […]
I never know what to expect when I interview a veteran. Such was the case with 1st Lieutenant Dave Anson, U.S. Army. Dave was referred to me by a fellow veteran who said “I think you should talk to Dave. He is a hell of a nice guy and his story needs to be told.” […]
I am often amazed at how humble veterans are when they describe their experiences heading off to war. I cannot imagine the emotions, the patriotism, the fear, and the camaraderie that must have pulsed through their veins as they left everything familiar behind to board a ship or plane bound for the ultimate unknown. That […]
Like many veterans, Technical Sergeant Susan “Susie” Goebel, U.S. Air Force (Retired), hesitated to talk to me about herself. She views her 15 years of service as nothing special or heroic. In fact, she’ll tell you she was just doing her job. To Susie, the family separations, the inspections in the middle of the night, […]
Private First Class (PFC) Rick Adler, U.S. Army, grew up two streets over from me on Elizabeth Lane in Olmsted Falls, Ohio. I didn’t know him then—he is ten years older than me. I should have known him—I learned to swim at the pool his family owned at the corner of Fitch and Cook Roads. […]
Have you ever heard the Navy’s old recruiting slogan, “Join the Navy and see the world?” That slogan certainly rang true for Petty Officer Third Class Jim McCune, U.S. Navy. But life had much more in store for Jim than the excitement of a world cruise on a powerful U.S. aircraft carrier—he and his young […]
When most of us are 16, our biggest worries are getting our drivers license or figuring out our date to the prom. When Staff Sergeant Jerry Ingram was 16, he was a combat tank commander with Company C of the 4th Tank Battalion, 4th Marines, preparing to fight his way to victory across the Pacific […]