Mike Pfeffer joined the Navy to learn a trade, and he experienced history as a result. Working in the boiler room of the USS Coral Sea, Pfeffer was a part of the evacuation of Saigon and the Mayaguez Incident at the close of the Vietnam War.
Mario Candia's camera documented the Air Force's actions during the Vietnam War and so much more. From the top-secret "Misty" missions to up close photos during a Bob Hope USO show, Mario's images illustrated the War for many.
This is the story of three sons of Our Lady Of Guadalupe who also fought in Vietnam. They came home with deep emotional scars. But theirs’ is also a story of love, loyalty, and healing.
For a long time, Frank Trout didn’t know the whole story of how he was shot in the head and left for dead on a riverbed in a thick, black, steaming Vietnamese jungle. Or how he was later sealed and zipped into a body bag—yet managed to make it out alive.
Don Asher's life has been filled with front-row views of history—a major plane crash, flying into the eye of a hurricane, taking pictures of the President of the United States, running local newspapers, and even acting in a movie with Johnny Depp.
It’s the silence that the old soldier remembers most vividly. The still quiet that hung like a cloud over the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, whether under the hot, humid, blue sky or alone in the black Virginia night.
The words came slowly, spoken with deep feeling. Major Patricia Knight (USAF retired) tried to reflect on her distinguished 21 years of service in the United States Air Force. Tears welled up in her eyes as she searched for words.
One of Shelley Morrison's earliest pictures shows a chubby-cheeked infant in overalls sitting on a sofa clutching her father’s white Navy hat with both hands as it sits precariously on her little head. Her father was a Navy lifer. It was the life she wanted for herself.
The small black-and-white photograph has faded with time, but now it means even more to Frank Gillie Jr. He picks it up carefully and holds it reverently in his cupped hands, as he shows it to me.
It might surprise you to learn what Bob Shervino remembers first when people ask about serving as an infantryman in Vietnam. “God was I hungry,” he says. It’s 55 years later, but the pained look on his face makes it seem like yesterday.
Dr. Richard Lee was sure of one thing as he shipped out for Vietnam in May of 1969. “I knew I was going to die,” he says with the calm, matter-of-fact assurance of a seasoned clinician accustomed to facing hard truths.
A U.S. Army helicopter dangled precariously over the battlefield. Wounded soldiers needed help. Right Now. Speed was critical. But every time the pilot tried to touch down fierce enemy gunfire erupted.
Suddenly, the still, black night exploded. Air Force Sgt. Greg Dittemore heard a big boom, as a flash that looked like lightning crackled across the sky.
Major John Ashford knew he was in a bad situation on that dangerous day in Bosnia in 1996. What he didn’t know was how fast it was going to go from bad to worse.