Veterans Chronicles

John Dailey remembers the day he decided to become a U.S. Marine. He was a young boy at a U.S. bicentennial parade in 1976. When he saw the Marine in dress uniform, he was hooked. Eleven years later, fresh out of high school, Dailey enlisted in the Marines. Soon he was guarding the U.S. embassy in Hungary while the Iron Curtain was teetering and later held the same role in Argentina. He also passe...

In last week's edition of "Veterans Chronicles," U.S. Marine Corps veteran Darren Walton told us about his role on a seven-man reconnaissance team in Vietnam from 1969-1970. He explained his role of point man, what the team's most common objectives were, and how life and death decisions had to be made within seconds. He also described how the jungle itself was also a fierce enemy. In this week's "...

Darren Walton grew up north of San Francisco and stood out as a distance runner in high school. When he found out he would soon be drafted into the U.S. Army, Walton joined the Marine Corps, intending to be part ofthe track team. Things did not turn out that way, and Walton was soon undergoing all sorts of elite special forces training and eventually being assigned to a USMC reconnaissance unit. I...

Last week, we began sharing the story of Col. Frank Cohn, U.S. Army (Ret.). He told us about growing up in a Jewish family in Nazi Germany, how his family fled to the U.S. after Kristallnacht in 1938, and how he was drafted into the Army after turning 18 years old in 1943. In this edition of "Veterans Chronicles," Cohn continues his story of service, including his Army training and the issue that...

Frank Cohn was born in Breslau, germany in 1925. His Jewish family lived very comfortably there. But soon anti-Semitiam was on the rise, even before Adolf Hitler rose to power in 1933. Within a few years, his family fled to the U.S. and within a few more years, Cohn would be at war against his homeland. In this edition of "Veterans Chronicles," we bring you the first half of our conversation with...

Dick Nelms was fascinated by flight at an early age. Born just five years after the end of World War I, he still vividly remembers what an event it was to see a plane in the sky when he was a child. Not long after the U.S. entered World War II, Nelms volunteered for the U.S. Army Air Corps. He would eventually pilot or co-pilot 35 missions aboard a B-17 bomber. In this edition of " Veterans Chroni...

Michael Trotter, Jr. was born into a family with a rich tradition of military service, but that had nothing to do with his decision to join the Army in 2003. By his own admission, he had made a lot of mistakes and his life needed to change course. So he joined the military just a a couple years after the 9/11 attacks and the same year the war in Iraq began. Soon he was a supply sergeant in theater...

James Baynham had never flown a plane before entering the service in 1942. In fact, he didn't even have an interest in aviation. What he did know is that he did not want to be in the infantry, so he volunteered for the U.S. Army Air Corps. Soon he was off to training, eventually being assigned as a B-24 pilot with the Mighty Eighth Air Force based in England. By mid-1944 he was flying missions, bu...

In this second half of our interview with retired U.S. Navy SEAL Mark Greene, we will focus on Lt. Greene's deployments - first to Iraq and then to Afghanistan. And he discusses his work helping veterans transition from the military back into civilian life. Greene shares what sound was so common in Iraq that it served as an alarm clock just about every day. He also details the role his SEAL team p...

Mark Greene grew up in a military family but his dream was to play quarterback. And he was doing well until an injury suddenly ended his career in college. After half-heartedly (at best) trying to finish college and taking other jobs, he and a friend joined the U.S. Navy with dreams of becoming Navy SEALs. In this edition of "Veterans Chronicles," Lt. Greene discusses how he wound up in the Navy,...

Jake Larson joined the U.S. Army National Guard in 1938 in order to earn money and help his family during the Great Depression. He was just 15 years old. By late 1941, he was preparing to leave the service. After Japan attacked Pearl Harbor, the Army required him to stay. By 1942, he was in England helping to train American forces assigned for invasions in North Africa and in the European theater....

Raul "Art" Sifuentes was born in Michigan and knew he wanted to be a U.S. Marine when he watched John Wayne in "The Sands of Iwo Jima" when he was just 11 years old. At age 17, while still in high school, Sifuentes enlisted in Marine Reserves and went on active duty after graduation. He left the Corps after three years and attended college. After receiving his undergraduate degree, Sifuentes plann...

On Monday, Americans will pause for Memorial Day and honor the service and sacrifice of those gave what President Lincoln called their last full measure of devotion. And the reason we are often able to remember the fallen is because those who died had a friend who lived to tell the story. That is certainly case for Don Mates and his great friend, Jimmy Trimble, a highly promising pitcher who delay...

James Finn ended up in the U.S. Navy because he didn't want to join the Army and promised his parents he would not join the Marines. Soon he was training to be a bomber pilot and eventually deployed to the Pacific theater. In this edition of "Veterans Chronicles," Mr. Finn tells us about flying the single engine TBF and TBM Avengers as part of a three-man crew, dropping bombs over Iwo Jima, Okinaw...

Last week, we followed Don Graves and his story of service as a U.S. Marine from basic training to the invasion of Iwo Jima to seeing the raising of the U.S. flag atop Mount Suribachi. Now we focus on his actions and reflections over the rest of the six-week battle on Iwo Jima. In this edition of "Veterans Chronicles," we'll hear Graves describe his memories of the Japanese sinking the carrier esc...

Don Graves was born in Michigan in 1925 and his family struggled mightily during the Great Depression. He was 16 years old when the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor. He immediately ran down to the U.S. Marine Corps recruiter's office to sign up. He was too young, but on his seventeenth birthday, Graves officially became a Marine. Nearly three years later, Graves was among the Marines invading the cr...

Paul "Bud" Haedike was drafted into the U.S. Army Air Corps in 1943. Before long, he was assigned as a bombardier on a B-17 bomber crew. From the final months of 1944 until the end of the war in Europe, Haedike took part in 23 bombing missions, and none of those missions came with a guarantee he would return to base safely.  In this edition of "Veterans Chronicles," Sgt. Haedike recounts his first...

Roger "Buck" Winters was a recent high school graduate working at a tool factory in Texas when the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941. He immediately wanted to quit his job and join the U.S. Army Air Corps. The government would not let him do either of those things at first. Winters would join the Army in 1943 and get trained as an engineer. He would be deployed to Guadalcanal and...

On April 1, 2024, LCDR Lou Conter, U.S. Navy (Retired) died at the age of 102. He was the last living survivor of the USS Arizona, which was sunk by the Japanese during the attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941. His passing marks a somber milestone for a generation that courageously rose up to defend our nation and our allies. In this edition of "Veterans Chronicles," Conter shares how he joi...

Chris Alvarez grew up knowing he wanted to serve and that he wanted to serve with the best. After being convinced to join the Marines once he was old enough, a high school teacher who had served in the Marines encouraged him to learn more about the U.S. Navy SEAL's. It didn't take much research for Alvarez to decide that's exactly what he wanted to be. In this edition of "Veterans Chronicles," Alv...

Kelly Elmlinger was a three-sport athlete in high school. She excelled in cross country, basketball, and track. After considering military service, she decided to keep playing sports at the next level, but she quickly decided college was not for her. That's when she joined the Army and became a combat medic, eventually with the 82nd Airborne Division, serving in both Iraq and Afghanistan. Later, s...

Thomas "Drago" Dzieran grew up in Communist Poland. He realized he was being fed lies and propaganda as a boy when he got in big trouble at school for asking simple questions about the government. As a young man, he became actively involved in the Solidarity movement and in spreading anti-Communist messages. His activities landed him in prison and he was eventually expelled from Poland. Poland's l...

In the early 1960's, the U.S. Army developed a new way of moving troops into and out of strategic locations. It was called Air Cavalry and operated under the theory that moving forces by helicopter was faster and more precise than driving them or having them jump out of airplanes. One of the earliest and best known Air Cavalry engagements was at Landing Zone X-Ray during the Battle of Ia Drang in...

Leon Walker, Jr. grew up in a family full of Army and Marine Corps veterans. He tried to enlist in the Marines but the recruiter didn't want to be bothered on his lunch hour. Within minutes, Walker joined the U.S. Navy. He was initially assigned to serve as a deckhand on the fast frigate USS Reid, but on his first deployment he started learning how to navigate. For the next 21 years, he served as...

Melvin Jenner was already in the Michigan Air National Guard when the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941. After joining the U.S. Army Air Corps and undergoing training for a bomber crew, he was soon flying missions in the European Theater of World War II. The next few years would bring him harrowing bomber missions, a secret flight over Normandy on D-Day, and an unforgettable role...