Veterans Chronicles

Those who serve in our military go through rigorous training and elite forces must reach even more difficult standards. Perhaps the most famous and most demanding training belongs to the U.S. Navy SEALS. Candidates are tested physically and mentally in many different ways over many months but perhaps the most intense crucible is Hell Week. In this edition of "Veterans Chronicles" author Scott McEw...

John McCarney joined the U.S. Air Force shortly after deciding he'd had enough of college football. He trained to be a medical corpsman and was by late 1974 was on his way to Clark Air Force Base in the Philippines. Upon arriving he was stunned to learn he was assigned to the obstetrics ward of the hospital. It was just a few months later that President Gerald Ford authorized Operation Babylift, w...

In 2011, U.S. Army Lt. General Patricia Horoho became the first nurse and the first woman to serve as Surgeon General of the U.S. Army. Prior to the that honor, she provided excellent emergency care in the immediate aftermath of two major disasters and commanded some of the nation's most critical military medical facilities. In this edition of "Veterans Chronicles," Gen. Horoho walks us through he...

Frank DeVita joined the U.S. Coast Guard in World War II thinking his job would be to protect the American coast. But his war service would be much different than expected when the Navy decided to use Coast Guard personnel the responsibility of manning many of the landing crafts used during invasions. DeVita was assigned to a Higgins boat headed for Omaha Beach in the early hours of D-Day, June 6,...

George Dramis joined the U.S. Army during World War II and was sent to Europe with many other soldiers to defeat Nazi Germany. But his unit was very different from all the others. Dramis was a member of the Army's 23rd Headquarters Special Troops, better known as General George S. Patton's "Ghost Army." In this edition of "Veterans Chronicles," Dramis explains how the 23rd was tasked with deceivin...

Maj. General Mari K. Eder shares her story of joining the U.S. Army in 1977 and embarking on a 36-year career, in which she rose to be Deputy Chief of U.S. Army Public Affairs during U.S. military action in Kosovo and Afghanistan. Gen. Eder also discusses her years serving as Deputy Chief of U.S. Army Reserve and the challenges she faced while holding that position during wartime. Gen. Eder is als...

Carl Felton joined the U.S.Navy after graduating from high school in 1943, even though he didn't know how to swim. Felton was then trained in communications and sent to England to be part of the pivotal effort to attack Hitler's Atlantic Wall and establish a western front against Nazi Germany. In this edition of "Veterans Chronicles," Felton shares his memories of the vast armada of ships off the...

Douglas MacGregor was commissioned as a U.S. Army officer after graduating from West Point in 1976. He soon developed expertise in armored cavalry and tanks that proved extremely valuable in the short, decisive ground campaign during Operation Desert Storm. In this edition of "Veterans Chronicles," Col. MacGregor tells the story of how he turned an underperforming armored cavalry squadron into one...

James Wright joined the U.S. Marine Corps after graduating high school. His three years of service in the Marines fell during peacetime, but just a few years later American found itself fully immersed in the Vietnam War. Wright followed the war carefully at the time, but it was years later as an academic that he began studying the war very closely. For his book, "Enduring Vietnam: An American Gene...

Steven Fenves and his family enjoyed a nice middle class life in Hungary for his first ten years. In 1941, Hungarian authorities began discriminating against Jewish families. Within three years, he and his family were headed for the notorious concentration and death camps. In this edition of "Veterans Chronicles," Fenves provides incredible detail as he describes the persecution his family faced f...

From a young age, Mike Dowe knew that he wanted to attend the U.S. Military Academy and serve our nation in uniform. In 1950, he graduated from West Point and was immediately sent to Korea. After months of successfully pushing the North Koreans back to the north, American forces suddenly faced an endless surge of enemy Chinese soldiers pouring across the border. In this edition of "Veterans Chroni...

Tom Fitzpatrick grew up in Pennsylvania and had never been on an airplane before joining the U.S. Army Air Corps in World War II. Before long, he was serving as a radio navigator on a B-17 bomber crew. In this edition of "Veterans Chronicles," Fitzpatrick explains his role on bombing missions, the close calls his crew endured, targeting the critical Nazi oil facilities in Ploesti, and how his plan...

Retired U.S. Army Major General Victor Hugo, Jr. takes us through his distinguished Army career, from West Point through Vietnam to perfecting the Patriot Missiles that served us so well during the Gulf War. In this edition of "Veterans Chronicles," Gen. Hugo describes his time in Vietnam shortly after the French left in the mid-1950s as well as his critical assignments throughout the war. You'll...

Dakota Meyer decided to have some fun with the U.S. Marine recruiter visiting his high school. Within minutes he had a change of heart and signed up to serve. Meyer would serve in Iraq and Afghanistan, and a horrific day in September 2009 would change his life forever. In this edition of "Veterans Chronicles," Meyer shares the very difficult story of watching from a a mile away as his fellow Marin...

Charles Temple Jr. was a skilled craftsman by the time he was a teenager and when he joined the U.S. Navy near the end of World War II his skills were put to immediate use. Temple served aboard a refueling ship that was deployed to the Pacific and arrived there in the spring of 1946. In this edition of "Veterans Chronicles," Mr. Temple explains the process of refueling aircraft carriers, battleshi...

Bill Dawson joined the U.S. Navy shortly after World War II. His first choice was submarine duty but the Navy had other plans. Dawson and other sailors were chosen as part of the new Naval Combat Demolition Unit, known informally as "frogmen". Their job was to clear mines and other booby traps to allow U.S. forces to land on enemy shores - from Normandy to the island-hopping campaign in the Pacifi...

R.V. Burgin joined the U.S. Marine Corps because "it's the best that Uncle Sam had." Serving in the Pacific, Burgin saw action as a mortar man and as a leader of his unit at New Britain, Peleliu, and Okinawa. In this edition of "Veterans Chronicles," Burgin describes the fierce combat at all three battles, how he adjusted to what the Japanese were doing, and the admiration he has for the Marines h...

Whitey Johnson was a farm kid from Minnesota who had the chance to fly a crop duster when he was a teenager. The day after the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, he stood in line to join the U.S. Army Air Corps. In this edition of "Veterans Chronicles," Johnson describes his excitement at being assigned to the Flying Tigers, serving on the Shanghai Raids and his heart-pounding drama of being shot do...

Harry Miller was so intent on joining the Army in World War II that he found a way to enlist at the age of 15. He soon found himself and his tank battalion at the Battle of the Bulge. Miller tells us about the battle, the bitter cold, and the capture of a Nazi tank that led to a lengthy effort to make sure his unit got credit for it. Miller also discusses his little known assignment following the...

Retired U.S. Army Major Jeff Struecker served our nation in two very different capacities, both as an Army Ranger and as a chaplain. In this vivid and gripping oral history, Struecker shares his experiences in Operation Just Cause in Panama and in the Persian Gulf in the aftermath of Operation Desert Storm. He then walks us through his moment-by-moment memories of leading his task force to rescue...

Ten years ago, on February 27, 2011, America's last World War I veteran passed away. Frank Buckles was 110 years old. Four years earlier, we visited with Mr. Buckles to learn his story. In this special edition of "Veterans Chronicles" narrated by Greg Corombos, you'll learn about the determination of Mr. Buckles to join the Army despite not being old enough, the reaction in Europe when the America...

James McEachin joined the U.S. Army before turning eighteen, fascinated with the idea of being part of answering Uncle Sam's call to join the United States military. During his years in uniform, McEachin experienced the integration of the U.S. Armed Forces and deployed to fight in Korea in 1952. In this edition of "Veterans Chronicles," Mr. McEachin describes his first combat experience and what i...

Mae Krier grew up in North Dakota during the pain of the Great Depression. Shortly after the war, she went to visit Seattle. While there, she learned of a very good job for Boeing, working as a riveter on the wings of B-17 bombers. Later, she also worked on B-29 bombers. In this edition of "Veterans Chronicles," Krier shares what it was like to be an original "Rosie the Riveter," how the men in th...

James Pierce joined the U.S. Army National Guard as he finished high school in the spring of 2001. Within months, America was at war and Pierce eventually served in both Iraq and Afghanistan. In this edition of "Veterans Chronicles," Pierce describes his duties in both countries and details the devastating injuries he suffered when an Afghan police officer became a suicide bomber targeting America...

George Walsh learned to fly before he learned to drive. He then served as a Navy dive bomber pilot in the Pacific theater of World War II. He shares his memories of service from critical battles such as Iwo Jima and Leyte. Walsh is also a longtime historian about the dive bombers and a tireless advocate for dive bombers getting their due credit for their critical role in winning the Battle of Midw...