Gary Howard grew up in Atlanta, Georgia, a swimmer in high school and the son of a WWII medical service officer who’d served in the Philippines. By late 1968 he’d finished college, hated every minute of it, and knew the draft was coming. He briefly … Continue readingASK A VET EP 47: What They Don’t Tell You About Taking Fire on Mekong Delta
Tim Martin’s Navy career began with a piece of advice from a high school math teacher. It was 1963, and the Las Vegas teenager and son of an enlisted Air Force man, had done something almost unheard of: he’d earned appointments to West Point, Annapolis, … Continue readingASK A VET EP 46: What They Don’t Tell You About Life on a Nuclear Submarine
Aaron Hinds knew what he wanted by the time he was fourteen years old. Raised on dirt roads outside Augusta, Georgia, and shaped by a Vietnam-veteran grandfather who taught him to throw knives and never quit, Aaron chased the fight from the start, even turning … Continue readingASK A VET EP 45: What They Don’t Tell You About Your First Firefight in Afghanistan
Stephan Wolfert didn’t come from a military family. He grew up on the blue-collar north side of La Crosse, Wisconsin, the kid who asked too many questions, got kicked out of Catholic school, struggled through college, and couldn’t quite find where he fit. In … Continue readingASK A VET EP 44: What They Don’t Tell You About Being a Combat Medic Turned Infantry Officer
As a seasoned Judge Advocate General (JAG) officer, Ron Holdaway has witnessed and navigated the complexities of military law throughout his career. From his early days in ROTC to pivotal courtroom experiences, Holdaway’s journey offers invaluable insights into the legal challenges faced by military personnel. … Continue readingEP 43: What They Don’t Tell You About Being a JAG Officer in Vietnam Combat
Tom Hopkins grew up in a small Kansas town where everyone knew your name and the Air Force base on the edge of town meant some fathers never came home. His own father, an Air Force bomber pilot who had survived flying unarmed DC-3s over … Continue readingEP 42: What They Don’t Tell You About Hunting Soviet Submarines in the Vietnam Era
Walter Cox grew up following the Navy…literally. Born in Price, Utah, he spent his childhood moving base to base as his father served: South Carolina, New Jersey, Maine, Maryland, Virginia. By the time he graduated from Norview High School in Norfolk in 1965, he’d lived … Continue readingASK A VET EP 41: What They Don’t Tell You About Being a Cobra Pilot in the Vietnam War
Jim Oliphant didn’t plan on going to war. The San Diego native was studying architecture at Arizona State when the draft caught up with him for the fourth time. After three deferments and stints considering the Navy, Air Force, and Coast Guard, Jim finally enlisted … Continue readingASK A VET EP 40: What They Don’t Tell You About Flying the CH-54 Skycrane in Vietnam
Deanna Halterman Savage graduated from Johns Hopkins School of Nursing in 1958 and joined the Air Force Nurse Corps in 1960. Not because she had a plan, but because a split-shift job in an English hospital had two pot-bellied stoves and no housekeeping staff. She … Continue readingASK A VET EP 39: What They Never Told You About Being a Combat Flight Nurse in Vietnam
Richard Colborn didn’t set out to go to war. Growing up in a small rural community in southwestern Pennsylvania, one of six children, he simply couldn’t find work after high school. So in September of 1951, he did what a lot of young men did: … Continue readingASK A VET EP 38: What They Don’t Tell You About Serving in the Korean War
