Veterans Archives: Preserving the Stories of our Nations Heroes

Send us Fan Mail A Detroit childhood two blocks from his parents. Spanish-immersion school, homestays in Senegal and Venezuela, and a front-row seat to how neighborhoods rise or stall. Adam threads those early lessons into a life of service that moves from student government to City Hall, through Detroit’s bankruptcy, and into the dirt—mowing lots, demolishing hazards, and planting 15,000 trees to...

Send us Fan Mail A pipe purchase, a recruiter’s wave, and a high school morning watching the towers fall—Ben’s story is a chain of small moments that turned into a life of service. We follow him from a childhood shaped by loss through the discipline of sports and faith, into the U.S. Army as a cavalry scout, and onto the streets of Baghdad where seconds, instincts, and rules of engagement determin...

Send us Fan Mail A boy raised in a children’s home becomes a teenage helmsman on a destroyer, threads 40‑foot seas to Beirut, hauls cargo into Fallujah, nearly dies from an unseen infection—and then decides to spend the rest of his life pulling others back from the edge. Doug Brinker’s story isn’t tidy or theatrical; it’s real, specific, and full of hard turns that keep resolving into service. We...

Send us Fan Mail A single choice to skip a class set Darrel on a path that reshaped everything—poverty to purpose, private to leader, soldier to deputy, and finally a man content with quiet Saturdays. We sit down with Darrel Johnikins to trace his route from a stove‑heated trailer in Louisiana to air defense Top Gun at Fort Carson, a tense year near the DMZ in Korea, and the relentless pace of a r...

Send us Fan Mail A kid from Detroit peers into a recruiter’s window, falls for the shine of tiny tanks, and years later finds himself keeping real helicopters in the fight. That arc frames Nick’s 38-year journey across active duty and the Guard, from Fort Knox to the German border and night missions over Iraq. The details stick: flying low along a line that looked like color on one side and black-...

Send us Fan Mail A sunburn that almost became a court-martial, an M60 that felt heavier than the moment, and a van painted the wrong color because there were no wheels to move it—Gerard’s life stitches together grit, humor, and unshakable work ethic. We sit down with an Army mechanic who asked for Vietnam and got Korea, learned fast under air-raid sirens near the DMZ, and found a second home on a...

Send us Fan Mail A Detroit childhood filled with Belle Isle picnics, DIY bike “Olympics,” and a grandparents’ house that welcomed everyone set the stage for Chuck’s lifelong commitment to service. We sit down with him to follow the arc from neighborhood games to a 30-year Army career, a leadership run at Consumers Energy, and a purposeful reinvention as an educator, nonprofit founder, and leadersh...

Send us Fan Mail A childhood reshaped by an expressway, a career born from a newspaper ad, and a camera that followed him from training fields to a war zone—Glenn Wilkewitz’s story is a masterclass in showing up when it counts. We sit down with Glenn to chart his path from Detroit neighborhoods and ROTC hallways to 30 years in the Air National Guard, where he learned to love both the hum of comput...

Send us Fan Mail What if the structure you craved as a kid became the engine of your entire life? Michelle Boulter takes us from dirt roads in Otsego, Michigan to ROTC drills, blistering Louisville barracks, and the jolt of basic training that taught her to love marksmanship and laugh at a tragically soft grenade throw. Commissioned in 1996 and moved into the Signal Corps, she pushed through a bac...

Send us Fan Mail A seven-acre childhood with backyard goalposts, glass oil jars at a full-service station, and pickup baseball games—Dave’s life started in motion and never really stopped. That momentum carried him from Delta Airlines to a draft notice, from Fort Jackson’s mess hall floor to a First Cav helicopter banking into a hot landing zone. What follows isn’t a highlight reel; it’s an unvarn...

Send us Fan Mail A quiet act of bravery can change the course of a life. For Bill Taft, it started with a decision to enlist rather than be drafted, a choice that led from Navy hangars and base gyms to school hallways, football sidelines, and a wrestling room he built from scratch. We sit down with Bill to chart a path defined by service, stamina, and a stubborn belief that preparation and care be...

Send us Fan Mail A snowy drive, a borrowed Camaro, and a Christmas party recruiter set everything in motion. From a one-stoplight town in Wisconsin to Fort Knox, Jim Vetter charted an unlikely path: split-option enlistment, tank crew at 18, and a meteoric rise to drill sergeant and commandant. We walk through the first shock at the bus, the carefully engineered stress of reception, and the hard sw...

Send us Fan Mail A quarter-mile high school hallway, a foreign exchange year in Istanbul during 9/11, and a “beer man’s kid” from Minnesota don’t usually add up to route clearance in Helmand—yet that’s exactly where Lewis Goldstein’s path led. We sit down with Lewis to unpack a career built on unlikely turns: split-option enlistment, a boot-camp proposal beside a POW museum, missing multiple deplo...

Send us Fan Mail A Detroit-area rebel who ran to Florida at fifteen didn’t just find his way—he found the ocean. We sit down with Tim Kirn to trace a life that arcs from a crowded Michigan home to the steel decks of the USS Nimitz, where a Hollywood film crew rubbed shoulders with sailors and a teenage dropout learned how to lead, endure, and grow. What starts with a shaved head and a stumble on r...

Send us Fan Mail A quiet Midwestern start. A detour through tank trails. And a cockpit view of the night the Gulf War truly began. We sit down with Jerry Binning to chart the improbable arc from Charlotte, Michigan to Fort Hood’s heat, Fort Rucker’s flight lines, and the Apache missions that punched a hole through Iraq’s radar on Day One. This isn’t a highlight reel—it’s the texture of real servic...

Send us Fan Mail A century of memory folds into a single living room as we sit with Gino D’Ambrosio—paratrooper, POW, Detroiter—to hear how a glider drop before dawn and a quiet morning in Berlin shaped everything that came after. He takes us from St. Vincent’s orphanage to Cooley High to a blacked‑out sky over Normandy, where the plan fell apart and survival began. The Battle of the Bulge crashes...

Send us Fan Mail Ray Brennan's journey through mid-century America captures an era when neighborhood connections formed the bedrock of community life. Growing up in Detroit during the 1940s and 50s, Ray paints a vivid picture of Catholic parish life, neighborhood games, and the close-knit families that shaped his worldview. His stories of attending Detroit Catholic Central High School reveal...

Send us Fan Mail Jim Lynch's life journey unfolds like a living history book of post-WWII America. From his childhood in Brooklyn during wartime blackouts to his enlistment in the newly-formed Air Force at just 17, Lynch's story captures the spirit of a generation that shaped modern America. The centerpiece of his military career reads like a Cold War thriller—a classified mission to the...

Send us Fan Mail Kevin Martin's story is one of transformation, resilience, and the enduring search for purpose that defines the veteran experience. As a Navy Corpsman who served in Afghanistan's dangerous Helmand Province, Kevin offers listeners a candid glimpse into both the intensity of combat medicine and the profound challenges of returning home. The conversation takes us from Kevin...

Send us Fan Mail From the biting winter cold of Great Lakes Naval Training Station to the sun-drenched shores of the Mediterranean, Gary Scott's naval journey shaped not just his military experience but the foundation of his civilian career. When faced with Vietnam deployment in 1971, Gary made the practical choice to join the Navy instead – where "three hot meals, a nice bed, and a hot...

Send us Fan Mail From the opening moments when Charles "Ranger Rick" Burroughs reveals his childhood abuse at the hands of his stepfather, to the triumphant reunion with his son after a 45-year separation, this conversation captures the extraordinary resilience of a man who repeatedly built something from nothing. Born in Detroit and growing up between Michigan and Iowa, Rick's jour...

Send us Fan Mail A powerful conversation with Carmencita Pinckney reveals the journey of a remarkable woman whose life has been defined by service—first in uniform, and now as a tireless advocate for fellow veterans. Born on a Navy base to a Vietnam veteran father, Carmencita grew up immersed in military culture, moving between bases from Puerto Rico to California. This foundation led her to enlis...

Send us Fan Mail What does it mean to shoulder adult responsibilities before you've even finished high school? Bobby Rindom takes us through his remarkable journey from a childhood marked by instability to finding purpose and stability through military service and skilled trades. Bobby's story begins in Florida, where frequent moves and family struggles meant attending 10-15 different sc...

Send us Fan Mail Michael Scott's military journey spans decades and continents, weaving through pivotal moments in world history. From witnessing the fall of the Berlin Wall to clearing minefields in Desert Storm, his story captures both the extraordinary experiences of military service and the profound challenges of homecoming. Growing up in small-town Michigan with a strong family military...

Send us Fan Mail "Leadership is born of respect, competence, and how you treat other people," reflects John Broschak as he traces his remarkable path from nuclear submarine officer to energy executive. His story begins in a blue-collar Pennsylvania town where an unexpected opportunity to join the Navy's elite nuclear program would completely transform his life trajectory. The crucib...