Military service is a transformative experience, no less today than it was during the American Revolution. What follows is a narrative journey tracing the experiences of men and women who answered the call to duty, from their enlistment to their return home. Excerpts from diaries, memoirs, and postwar depositions tell veterans’ and others’ stories
By Lew McDaniel My duty station was at Site 3, Teufelsberg, in West Berlin. Initially, I was an “operator” in the Pit. The Pit was the central area under an inflatable dome covering our antennae. During my “trick” (rotating 8-hour shift), I listened to frequencies assigned by the CHOP (Chief Operator) or scanned to
By Will Mears Two recent Veterans Breakfast Club programs have featured veterans of the Army Security Agency (ASA) whose work was important and behind-the-scenes. Their job was, among other things, to intercept, decode, and interpret enemy communications in real time. It was painstaking, highly technical work, carried out under strict secrecy. And yet, as
By Todd DePastino As I circulated at our Veterans Breakfast at the Town and Country Diner in Bordentown, New Jersey, Dimitry Olhovsky caught my eye. White hair, piercing blue eyes, a Slavic accent, and “U.S. Air Force” on his name badge. That combination told me he had a story to tell. Dimitry was born
Mess Management Specialist 2nd Class Williams Hendrickson scans for mines from the bow of the guided missile frigate USS NICHOLAS (FFG-47) during an Earnest Will convoy mission in which tankers are led through the waters of the Gulf by U.S. naval ships (USN) The US is now at war with Iran, but
By Jim Cardillo, USMC, Vietnam, 1967-68 In March 2025, I had the rare privilege of visiting the island of Iwo Jima with my brother for the 80th Reunion of Honor. Only a limited number of visitors are permitted on the island one day each year for this solemn occasion. As the nation marks the
