Oral history; Veterans History Project (U.S.); United States--History, Military; Michigan--History, Military; Veterans ; Video recordings; World War, 1939-1945--Personal narratives, American; United States. Army
Albert Manes was born in Brooklyn, New York, in 1919, but grew up in Michigan. He was drafted in 1941 and was assigned to the 7th Infantry Division. He served in the headquarters section of an infantry company. He saw action with his unit in the...
Oral history; Veterans History Project (U.S.); United States--History, Military; Michigan--History, Military; Veterans; Video recordings; United States. Navy; World War, 1939-1945--Personal narratives, American
James Carr grew up in Chicago and joined the Navy in 1945 at age 17 as a first class seaman. He received raining at Great Lakes Naval Station, and worked there as a dispersing clerk handling payroll for sailors being discharged after World War II....
Oral history; Veterans History Project (U.S.); United States--History, Military; Michigan--History, Military; Veterans; Video recordings; United States. Navy; World War, 1939-1945--Personal narratives, American
Robert Loftis was born July 28, 1922 in Grand Rapids, Michigan. He spent the majority of his childhood at his grandparents’ farm in Marne, Michigan. Robert enlisted into the Navy in 1942 and was sent to Great Lakes, Illinois for boot camp where...
Oral history; Veterans History Project (U.S.); United States--History, Military; Michigan--History, Military; Veterans; Video recordings; World War, 1939-1945--Personal narratives, American; United States. Army
Joseph Krzeminski was born in Grand Rapids, Michigan in 1919. His family suffered during the Depression, and he left high school and joined the Civilian Conservation Corps in 1936, serving two stints, and then joined the Army in 1940. After...
Oral history; Veterans History Project (U.S.); United States--History, Military; Michigan--History, Military; World War, 1939-1945--Personal narratives, American; Korean War, 1950-1953--Personal narratives, American; United States. Air Force;...
Chester Novak is a WW II and Korean War veteran who served in the United States Air Force from February 1944 to 1952 in the Aleutian Islands and Korea respectively. In this interview, Novak talks about growing up on a farm and joining the Army at...
Edward V. Gillis worked in the tool and manufacturing business in Grand Rapids Michigan. Gillis was a collector whose focus was Native Americans. This collection includes magazines, posters, maps, other published and some unpublished materials. The...
Oral history; Veterans History Project (U.S.); United States--History, Military; Michigan--History, Military; Veterans; Video recordings; United States. Navy; Other veterans & civilians--Personal narratives, American
Heather Majestic, born in 1971 in Pennsylvania, served in the U.S. Navy from 1993 to 1997. She went through the Naval ROTC program at Notre Dame University, and received her commission after graduation. She then took training in Naval Supply, and...
Oral history; Veterans History Project (U.S.); United States--History, Military; Michigan--History, Military; Veterans ; Video recordings; Korean War, 1950-1953--Personal narratives, American; United States. Air Force
LeRoy Van Vleet was born in Michigan in 1931. He enlisted in the Air Force in 1931, and received training as a specialist in fuels and lubricants. He was assigned to a refueling base in the Aleutian Islands for thirteen months, and then spent the...
Oral history; Veterans History Project (U.S.); United States--History, Military; Michigan--History, Military; Veterans ; Video recordings; United States. Air Force; Other veterans & civilians--Personal narratives, American
Kevin Bettinghouse, born in Grand Rapids, Michigan in 1960, served in the U.S. Air Force from 1978 to 1982 as a Ground Navigational Aid. After his basic training at Lackland Air Force base in Texas, Kevin spent eight months receiving technical...
Oral history; Veterans History Project (U.S.); United States--History, Military; Michigan--History, Military; Veterans ; Video recordings; United States. Army; World War, 1939-1945--Personal narratives, American
Martin McNamara, born in 1916 in Michigan, joined the National Guard in 1938, serving with the 119th Field Artillery. His unit was mobilized over a year before Pearl Harbor, and sent to train at Fort Knox and Fort Leonard Wood. In 1942, he was...
Oral history; Veterans History Project (U.S.); United States--History, Military; Michigan--History, Military; Veterans; Video recordings; United States. Coast Guard; World War, 1939-1945--Personal narratives, American;
Curly Garner enlisted in the Coast Guard shortly after graduating from high school. He trained on Government Island in California and was sent to the Aleutian Islands during WWII. Their job was to try and rescue pilots that went down near the top...
Oral history; Veterans History Project (U.S.); United States--History, Military; Michigan--History, Military; Veterans ; Video recordings; Korean War, 1950-1953--Personal narratives, American; United States. Navy
Raymond Hawkins, Sr. served in the Navy during the end of the Korean War. He enlisted in the Navy with hopes of traveling and avoiding being drafted into the Army. Raymond went through basic training at Great Lakes Naval Academy in Chicago,...
Oral history; Veterans History Project (U.S.); United States--History, Military; Michigan--History, Military; Veterans ; Video recordings; Vietnam War, 1961-1975--Personal narratives, American; United States. Army
Ed Henk was born in Grand Rapids, Michigan on June 21st, 1944. After graduating from high school, Henk attended Grand Rapids Junior College for three semesters before transferring to Ferris State University to study data processing. However, in...
Oral history; Veterans History Project (U.S.); United States--History, Military; Michigan--History, Military; Veterans ; Video recordings; United States. Army; World War, 1939-1945--Personal narratives, American
Ben Kleiman was born in Grand Rapids, Michigan, in 1918. He tried to enlist in the Army after Pearl Harbor, but was rejected due to poor eyesight. He was eventually drafted in 1943 and put on limited duty. He worked as a clerk at Camp Reynolds,...
Oral history; Veterans History Project (U.S.); United States--History, Military; Michigan--History, Military; Veterans; Video recordings; United States. Army; World War, 1939-1945--Personal narratives, American; Lowell Area Historical Museum ...
Richard Siegel grew up in Boston, Massachusetts, in a Russian-Jewish family. He attended college and veterinary school at Michigan State University and enlisted in the Army Reserve as a 1st Lieutenant in the Veterinary Corps. After receiving his...
Oral history; Veterans History Project (U.S.); United States--History, Military; Michigan--History, Military; Veterans; United States. Army. Air Corps; World War, 1939-1945--Personal narratives, American; Video recordings;
Harold Hanselman served in the United States Army Air Corps during World War II. He was stationed on Attu Island in the Aleutian chain in the northern Pacific ocean. He was a radio operator in a B-25 bomber that would fly bombing missions in the...
Oral history; Veterans History Project (U.S.); United States--History, Military; Michigan--History, Military; Veterans; United States. Navy; World War, 1939-1945--Personal narratives, American; Video recordings
John Barwacz was born in Grand Rapids, Michigan in 1921 and enlisted in the Navy on August 18, 1942. John went through basic training at Great Lakes Naval Academy in Chicago, Illinois and then had advanced engineer training at the University of...
Oral history; Veterans History Project (U.S.); United States--History, Military; Michigan--History, Military; Veterans; Video recordings; United States. Navy; World War, 1939-1945--Personal narratives, American;
Don Bennett was born in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan in 1925. He attended Albion College for one semester, then enlisted in the Navy, and became a submariner. He served on five patrols, one in the Kurile Islands, three near the Yellow Sea, and...
Oral history; Veterans History Project (U.S.); United States--History, Military; Michigan--History, Military; Veterans; Video recordings; United States. Navy; World War, 1939-1945--Personal narratives, American;
Carl King was born in Grand Rapids, Michigan in 1924 and served in the Navy during World War II. He was drafted into the Navy upon his request, and attended training at Great Lakes Naval Station. He joined the PT corps and worked as a machinist...
Oral history; Veterans History Project (U.S.); United States--History, Military; Michigan--History, Military; Veterans; Video recordings; World War, 1939-1945--Personal narratives, American; United States. Navy;
Homer Berry was born in Flint, Michigan on February 13, 1925. Homer decided to enlist in the Navy shortly after his brother had been drafted. After training Homer became a motor machinist mate, 2nd class petty officer. Homer was shipped to the...
