Monty Lutz: CID, the Army’s Real Life Version of NCIS
marc.zarefsky2021-09-10T12:19:30-05:00Monty Lutz saw his first U.S. Military Police on the family’s 100-acre sugar beet farm in the San Luis Valley of Colorado in the late 1940’s.
Fred Moffatt III: A Combat Medic Knocks Down Anything In His Way
marc.zarefsky2021-09-10T12:17:59-05:00After high school, Fred worked for an electrical parts manufacturer. When he was drafted at age 19, he did not know where Vietnam was.
Ronald Navickas: Nuclear Weapons Maintenance
marc.zarefsky2021-09-11T15:59:55-05:00Ron joined the Air Force Reserve at 17, when he was assigned to the Military Police with the 439th Fighter-Bomber Wing.
Edward O’Connell: Cushy Job, Not for Long
marc.zarefsky2021-09-10T12:15:42-05:00Faith and Family. No two words better describe what sent Ted O’Connell to Vietnam in 1965, and what brought him home again.
John Charles Stevens: A Proud Member of The 101st Airborne Tradition
marc.zarefsky2021-09-10T12:14:23-05:00When asked about his response to receiving his draft notice at the age of 22, John smiled and said, “I went kicking and screaming.“
Lawrence Vaillancourt: Combat Field Medic
marc.zarefsky2021-09-11T16:00:59-05:00Lawrence Vaillancourt served as a medical records clerk and combat field medic attached to the 503rd Aviation Battalion in Germany.
Jay Warbiany: I Saw A Lot Of Air Force Bases in Four Years
marc.zarefsky2021-09-10T12:11:33-05:00Jay gave up a four-year scholarship to IIT and enlisted in the U.S. Air Force during the height of the Vietnam War.
Highlights from our 96th flight
marc.zarefsky2021-09-10T10:56:18-05:00Three WWII, 33 Korean War, and 76 Vietnam War veterans traveled on a trip that was long anticipated and will be long remembered.
Curtis Bentley: A Cook in the Messman/Steward Branch of the Navy
marc.zarefsky2021-08-15T21:16:53-05:00Curtis Bentley grew up 90 miles from Atlanta on his family’s 200 acre farm “growing anything we could eat, except for the cotton.”
Richard J. Aguinaga: A Modest Bronze Star Recipient
marc.zarefsky2021-08-10T08:29:48-05:00Richard Aguinaga was drafted at 19, entered the service on June 19, 1969, and served until his honorable discharge on December 31, 1970.
Donald N. Benkowski: Military Intelligence is a Different Kind of War
marc.zarefsky2021-08-10T08:24:19-05:00Don wanted to be a military pilot. He took and passed all the qualification examinations with just one exception.
Anthony ‘Tony’ Delaurentis: Mom vs Lieutenant Colonel
marc.zarefsky2021-08-10T08:16:35-05:00Family has always been important to Tony Delaurentis. He’s been guided by values taught by his parents, especially to respect everyone.
Dennis (Denny) Keast: ‘I never thought I’d do what I did’
marc.zarefsky2021-08-15T20:38:56-05:00Dennis was born in southern Minnesota and when he was four his family moved to Flint, MI. As a kid, Denny knew he wanted to fly.
John N. Kost: First Combat on Valentine’s Day, 1951
marc.zarefsky2021-08-10T08:07:36-05:00John Kost started high school at St. Rita but after his first year transferred to a seminary in Wisconsin, thinking he would become a priest.
Ronald T. Michalski: One Decision Changed His Course
marc.zarefsky2021-08-10T08:03:41-05:00In 1958, one decision changed the course of Ron Michalski’s life and helped the boy from Chicago’s South Side became a man.
Michael E. Morrell: Family Tradition to Serve our Country
marc.zarefsky2021-08-10T07:59:25-05:00Mike Morrell’s grandfather served in the U.S. Armed Forces World War I, and half a dozen uncles and his father served during World War II.
Phillip E. Norton: The Danger of Removing Munitions Left Over From WWII
marc.zarefsky2021-08-10T07:54:27-05:00Not the usual experience is a phrase that describes Norton's family and service. He wanted to serve, and enlisting in the Army was fastest.
Edmund Rafalski Jr.: Maintaining The OV-10 in Support of the 1st Cavalry
marc.zarefsky2021-08-10T07:49:45-05:00Ed Rafalski served in the Air Force from August 1968 to August 1972. He grew up in Calumet City, Illinois with one brother and two sisters.
Ed ‘Turtle’ Gniadek, Jr.: Just a Grunt Who is a Bronze Star Recipient
marc.zarefsky2021-08-10T07:43:43-05:00When Turtle Gniadek received his draft notice for the Army, none of his friends were interested in entering the military with him.
Willie E. Reed: Why Not Me?
marc.zarefsky2021-08-10T07:37:51-05:00Willie was born at the very end of World War II on June 3, 1946 and grew up with his family on the south side of Chicago.