Jose Jimenez was born in Caguas, Puerto Rico and lived in Chicago. He discusses his experiences as the leader of the Young Lords and an activist for Latin Americans.
Colette Seguin-Beighley is director of the LGBT resource center at Grand Valley State University. She compares her experiences growing up in San Francisco during the civil rights movement with her experiences in West Michigan.
Steeve Buckridge was born in Kingston, Jamaica. He became a professor at Grand Valley State University several years ago. He is an Associate Professor of African and Caribbean History and Associate Faculty in African and African American Studies....
Ryan Cronk is a student at Grand Valley State University, double majoring in Accounting and Economics. Ryan is an active member of the LGBT community as well as the Delta Upsilon fraternity. Ryan passionately works to educate others on LGBT issues...
Civil rights--Michigan--History; Indians of North America--Personal narratives; Discrimination against Indians of North America
Kristine Skippergosh is a junior at Grand Valley State University. She is of Native American descent and her father works for the city of Wyoming in Michigan. She discussed the difficulties her father faced regarding race in his early years, as...
Colette Seguin-Beighley was born in Oakland, California. She attended California State University, Haworth. She is a liscensed counsoler in California and Michigan. She discusses her activism with the Grand Valley State University LGBT Resource...
Oral history; Veterans History Project (U.S.); United States--History, Military; Michigan--History, Military; Veterans; African-American soldiers; United States. Air Force; Vietnam War, 1961-1975--Personal narratives, American; Video recordings;
John Heflin was born in Bellevue, Michigan and after high school enlisted in the Air Force. He was assigned to be a mechanic and trained in Columbus, Ohio. John was deployed in January 1968 to the Philippines during the Tet Offensive. After the...
Oral history; Veterans History Project (U.S.); United States--History, Military; Michigan--History, Military; Veterans; United States. Army; Vietnam War, 1961-1975--Personal narratives, American; Video recordings
Peter Ondersma was born in Orlando, Florida and moved to Michigan in 1955 when he was 8 years old. Peter went to school in Grand Rapids, Michigan and graduated in 1966 and was drafted into the Army shortly after graduation. He began basic...
Oral history; Veterans History Project (U.S.); United States--History, Military; Michigan--History, Military; Veterans; United States. Army; Vietnam War, 1961-1975--Personal narratives, American; Video recordings
Larry Van Singel grew up in Byron Center, MI, and volunteered for the Army in early 1967 since he expected to be drafted and wanted to have some choice in his training and assignment. He initially served as a clerk at the 9th Division headquarters...
Oral history; Veterans History Project (U.S.); United States--History, Military; Michigan--History, Military; Veterans; United States. Army. Medical Corps; Vietnam War, 1961-1975--Personal narratives, American; Video recordings
Derek Flack is a Vietnam veteran who served in the U.S. Marine Corps from July, 1966 to April, 1969. Flack provides detailed discussions of training in California and service in Vietnam during and after the Tet Offensive. Flack was wounded in...
Oral history; Veterans History Project (U.S.); United States--History, Military; Michigan--History, Military; Veterans; United States. Navy; Vietnam War, 1961-1975--Personal narratives, American; Video recordings;
Ray Cebulski served aboard the USS Kittyhawk as an A-6 pilot during the Vietnam War. In this interview Cebulski describes day-to-day life for a bomber pilot aboard a carrier, additional duties he had, night interdiction missions into North Vietnam,...
Oral history; Veterans History Project (U.S.); United States--History, Military; Michigan--History, Military; Veterans ; Video recordings; Iraq War, 2003--Personal narratives, American; United States. Marine Corps
Michael Adams was a marine who served in Operation: Iraqi Freedom in 2003. He served as a security forces specialist who would be one of the first team of Marines to enter Baghdad. He reports observing the destruction of the statue of Saddam...
Oral history; Veterans History Project (U.S.); United States--History, Military; Michigan--History, Military; Veterans ; Video recordings; Other veterans & civilians--Personal narratives, American; Other veterans & civilians--Personal narratives,...
Luc Nguyen’s father escaped from North Vietnam when he was a young man and following his service in the South Vietnamese Army (ARVN), became a farmer. Nguyen himself grew up on the farms where his father worked before attending the University of...
Oral history; Veterans History Project (U.S.); United States--History, Military; Michigan--History, Military; Veterans ; Video recordings; United States. Air Force; Vietnam War, 1961-1975--Personal narratives, American
Douglas Broek grew up in Muskegon, Michigan, and enlisted in the Air Force in 1967 to stay ahead of the draft. After completing basic training in San Antonio, he spent about two years working as a clerk for a security unit at Loring Air Force Base...
Oral history; Veterans History Project (U.S.); United States--History, Military; Michigan--History, Military; Veterans; Video recordings; United States. Air Force; World War, 1939-1945--Personal narratives, American;
Tom Jillson was born in Grand Rapids, Michigan in 1947 and grew up in East Grand Rapids, Michigan. He joined the Air Force upon graduating high school and was initially trained as an electrical specialist, but was then transferred to accounting. He...
Oral history; Veterans History Project (U.S.); United States--History, Military; Michigan--History, Military; Veterans; Video recordings; United States. Army Air Corps; World War, 1939-1945--Personal narratives, American
Eugene Bleil was born in 1920 and grew up mostly on farms outside of the city. He was accepted to Eastern Michigan University, but dropped out after a semester, traveled with his brother looking for work, and wound up enlisting in the Army Air...
Oral history; Veterans History Project (U.S.); United States--History, Military; Michigan--History, Military; Veterans ; Video recordings; United States. Army; United States. Air Force; Vietnam War, 1961-1975--Personal narratives, American; Other...
Ron Kloet was born on August 8th, 1936 in Grand Rapids, Michigan. After graduating from high school and briefly attending Davenport University, Kloet enlisted in the Air Force in 1955. After completing his basic training at Lackland Air Force Base...
Oral history; Veterans History Project (U.S.); United States--History, Military; Michigan--History, Military; Veterans ; Video recordings; United States. Army; United States. Air Force; Vietnam War, 1961-1975--Personal narratives, American; Other...
In July 1969, Ron Kloet returned to Vietnam for a third tour of duty. During this tour, he served as part of the intelligence section for the 1st Air Cavalry Division in the Phuoc Long Province. While with the 1st Air Cav., Kloet took part in...
Oral history; Veterans History Project (U.S.); United States--History, Military; Michigan--History, Military; Veterans ; Video recordings; United States. Army; United States. Air Force; Vietnam War, 1961-1975--Personal narratives, American; Other...
Prior to beginning his fourth tour in Vietnam, Ron Kloet initially went through officers training with the Army intending to give him an assignment at Fort Bragg, North Carolina. Kloet, wanting something else, instead volunteered to serve in the...
Oral history; Veterans History Project (U.S.); United States--History, Military; Michigan--History, Military; Veterans ; Video recordings; United States. Army; Vietnam War, 1961-1975--Personal narratives, American
Dr. Gary Lulenski was an ‘obligatory volunteer’ and held the rank of captain for the entirety of his service because of his previous medical schooling. He was stationed in Chu Lai, Vietnam as a Medical Company Commander for the Americal...
