Oral history; Veterans History Project (U.S.); Video recordings; United States--History, Military; Michigan--History, Military; Veterans; United States. Army; Other veterans & civilians--Personal narratives, American;
Brian Baar served in the US Army Rangers and with several infantry units in the early 1980s. His active duty experience included training several different National Guard units, and units in the Egyptian Army.
Oral history; Veterans History Project (U.S.); United States--History, Military; Michigan--History, Military; Veterans; Other veterans & civilians--Personal narratives, American; Video recordings; Women
Sarah Brooks is a long-time volunteer at the Grand Rapids Home for Veterans. In her interview, she discusses her volunteer work there, and some of her experiences with the veterans.
Oral history; Veterans History Project (U.S.); United States--History, Military; Michigan--History, Military; Veterans; United States. Air Force; Other veterans & civilians--Personal narratives, American; Video recordings;
Tad Such served in the US Air Force between 1980 and 1983. He was stationed at Holman Air Force Base in New Mexico, where he worked as a heavy equipment operator.
Oral history; Veterans History Project (U.S.); United States--History, Military; Michigan--History, Military; Veterans; Other veterans & civilians--Personal narratives, French; Other veterans & civilians--Personal narratives, American; Video...
Raymonde Richardson was born in Paris, France and grew up during the depression. Food was very scarce and she would have to stand in a food line for five hours a day. She describes the German conquest of France and her experiences as a teenager...
Oral history; Veterans History Project (U.S.); Video recordings; United States--History, Military; Michigan--History, Military; Veterans; United States. Air Force; Other veterans & civilians--Personal narratives, American;
Todd McCrumb was born in Lansing, Michigan in 1965 and enlisted in the Air Force in 1984 shortly after graduating from high school. He had been unsure of what he wanted to do in his life, not ready for college, and unemployment in the area was at...
Oral history; Veterans History Project (U.S.); United States--History, Military; Michigan--History, Military; Veterans; United States. Navy; Other veterans & civilians--Personal narratives, American; Video recordings; Women
Cathy Seifert was born in Grand Rapids, MI in 1952. After graduating from Hope College, she entered the civil service in 1976, and then went to the Naval War College for officer training in 1978. She then served as a naval officer in various...
Oral history; Veterans History Project (U.S.); United States--History, Military; Michigan--History, Military; Veterans; United States. Navy; Other veterans & civilians--Personal narratives, American; Video recordings;
Thomas Michael Ross was born in Holland, Michigan in 1954. He attended Zeeland High School, and served in the United States Navy between 1975 and 1979. One of his assignments was on a nuclear supply ship as sub tender aboard USS Fulton AS11.
Oral history; Veterans History Project (U.S.); United States--History, Military; Michigan--History, Military; Veterans; Other veterans & civilians--Personal narratives, American; World War, 1939-1945--Personal narratives, American; Video recordings;
Ralph Baldwin was an astronomy instructor at Northwestern University in 1941 who volunteered for service after Pearl Harbor. He was initially assigned to teach navigation, but lobbied for a more important assignment. He was sent in 1942 to a...
Oral history; Veterans History Project (U.S.); United States--History, Military; Michigan--History, Military; Veterans; United States. Navy; Other veterans & civilians--Personal narratives, American; Video recordings;
Steve Hickel was born in Cleveland, Ohio in 1956. He attended several colleges and then enlisted in the Navy on June 6, 1975. He started out as a Sonar Technician on a nuclear fast attack submarine. Their mission was to find enemy subs, monitor...
Oral history; Veterans History Project (U.S.); United States--History, Military; Michigan--History, Military; Veterans; United States. Army; Other veterans & civilians--Personal narratives, American; Video recordings;
Raymond Paul Opeka was born in Cleveland, Ohio in 1956. He convinced his mother to give him written permission to join the Army before he graduated from high school. He was sent to Fort Polk for basic training where he did very poorly on many of...
Oral history; Veterans History Project (U.S.); United States--History, Military; Michigan--History, Military; Veterans; United States. Marine Corps; Other veterans & civilians--Personal narratives, American; Video recordings;
Timothy Heffron was born in Kirkwood, Missouri on November 13, 1957. He was raised in Pennsylvania and then moved to Grand Rapids with his father during high school. After high school he joined the Marines. He went to boot camp and then finished...
Oral history; Veterans History Project (U.S.); United States--History, Military; Michigan--History, Military; Veterans; Video recordings; Other veterans & civilians--Personal narratives, American; United States. Army
James Schultz was born in Chicago, Illinois on August 2, 1964 and then moved to Grand Rapids, Michigan in 1975. He enlisted in the Army after a year of college and signed up to be an airborne medical specialist. James then went to boot camp and...
Oral history; Veterans History Project (U.S.); United States--History, Military; Michigan--History, Military; Veterans; Video recordings; United States. Marine Corps; Other veterans & civilians--Personal narratives, American;
James Zegollari was born in 1960 in Grosse Pointe Farms, Michigan and served in the Marines during the Cold War. He was trained to operate and command the M-60 tank. He was stationed at Camp Lejeune, North Carolina and Twenty-Nine Palms, California...
Oral history; Veterans History Project (U.S.); United States--History, Military; Michigan--History, Military; United States. Air Force; Other veterans & civilians--Personal narratives, American; Veterans; Video recordings;
Ronald Seigel served in the United States Air Force as an Air Force Security Specialist at the Kelley Air Force Base in Texas starting in 1979. Although technically serving during peacetime, his personal account of his time in the service is very...
Oral history; Veterans History Project (U.S.); United States--History, Military; Michigan--History, Military; Other veterans & civilians--Personal narratives, American; Veterans; United States. Army; Video recordings;
Robert Darrell Burton is a Grand Rapids native and a resident at the Coit Street VA Facility. Burton spent the majority of his army service (1976-79) as a military policeman at a base in New Mexico. Burton did not see any combat during his term of...
Oral history; Veterans History Project (U.S.); United States--History, Military; Michigan--History, Military; Veterans; Other veterans & civilians--Personal narratives, American; United States. Air Force;
Roosevelt Burch was born on July 24, 1937 in Mound Bayou, Mississippi. He went to school in Mississippi until he was 9 years old and then moved to Chicago to live with his father for a while. Roosevelt later moved to his mothers’ new house in...
Oral history; Veterans History Project (U.S.); United States--History, Military; Michigan--History, Military; Veterans; Other veterans & civilians--Personal narratives, American; United States. Coast Guard;
Mike Christrup was born in Grand Rapids, Michigan on November 18, 1952. He dropped out of school his senior year to join the Coast Guard and received his GED. Mike went through boot camp in New Jersey and then went through machinist school at...
Oral history; Veterans History Project (U.S.); United States--History, Military; Michigan--History, Military; Veterans; Other veterans & civilians--Personal narratives, American; United States. Army;
Harry Bolthouse is a World War II veteran who served in the U.S. Army from 1948 to 1949. Although unable to recall much of his service experience, due to his cerebral hemorrhages, he was able to share pieces of his pre-enlistment and enlistment....
Oral history; Veterans History Project (U.S.); United States--History, Military; Michigan--History, Military; Veterans; Other veterans & civilians--Personal narratives, American; United States. Navy;
Bill Heintzelman enlisted in 1961 and trained as a radioman in the Navy. He was stationed at the Panama Canal during the Cuban Missile Crisis where he patrolled aboard ships and along the canal. When Heintzelman went back into the Navy after a...
Oral history; Veterans History Project (U.S.); United States--History, Military; Michigan--History, Military; Veterans; Other veterans & civilians--Personal narratives, American; United States. Marine Corps;
Robert Lee Hughes served his time in the Marine Corp. from 1979 until 1981. He trained mainly in Field Sanitation (Laundry/Bath Training) in Fort Lee, Virginia and Camp Lejeune, North Carolina. He did not see combat due to his time being served...
