Join the Veterans Breakfast Club for an open and wide-ranging virtual conversation on Monday, June 9, 2025, at 7:00pm ET. This online event, part of our ongoing VBC Open Conversation series, invites veterans from all eras of service—as well as families, friends, and supporters—to come together and share stories, memories, and insights about the military experience, past and present. The program will be held on Zoom and streamed live to Facebook and YouTube.

We encourage you to join us directly on Zoom for the most interactive experience. Simply click this link to participate: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/6402618738.

VBC Open Conversations are exactly what they sound like: unscripted, interactive gatherings where the agenda is shaped by those who attend. There are no formal presentations or set topics—just real people sharing real experiences. Whether it’s swapping boot camp stories, discussing combat tours, reflecting on the transition to civilian life, or exploring current issues facing today’s military and veteran communities, these conversations cover it all.

We believe every veteran has a story to tell and wisdom to share. This event is a chance to listen, learn, and connect with others who understand the unique bonds and challenges of military service. If you have something on your mind—whether a personal memory, a question, or a topic you think deserves attention—we encourage you to bring it to the conversation. Veterans are also invited to email Todd DePastino at todd@veteransbreakfastclub.org with any specific topics or issues they’d like to discuss.

The Veterans Breakfast Club’s mission is to create communities of listening around veterans and their stories, and our Open Conversations are one of the most dynamic ways we do that. These sessions are often wide-ranging, emotional, funny, and thought-provoking, providing a welcoming space where everyone’s voice is valued.

This event is free and open to all. To join the conversation live on Zoom, please use this link: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/6402618738. Or tune in on Facebook or YouTube at 7:00pm ET on June 9. Whether you have something to share or simply want to listen and learn, we welcome you to be part of the conversation!

We’re grateful to UPMC for Life  for sponsoring this event!

Army Rangers in World War II – A Veterans Breakfast Club Live Conversation
📅 Wednesday, July 10, 2025
🕖 7:00pm – 8:30pm ET
📍 Online at veteransbreakfastclub.org/events/online-events

The Veterans Breakfast Club invites you to an in-depth 90-minute livestream event on Wednesday, July 10 at 7:00pm ET, focused on one of the most legendary fighting forces of World War II: the U.S. Army Rangers.

Host Glenn Flickinger will lead a conversation with two of the leading experts on Army Ranger history—David Hogan Jr. and Mir Bahmanyar—as they delve deep into the Rangers’ origins, missions, and enduring legacy.

The U.S. Army Rangers were born in 1942 out of the need for agile, highly trained soldiers capable of rapid deployment and specialized operations. Inspired by British Commandos, the Rangers spearheaded some of the most difficult and dangerous missions of the war. They climbed the cliffs at Pointe du Hoc on D-Day, raided Italian strongholds at Cisterna, and faced annihilation and triumph in equal measure.

Who were these men? What distinguished their training, tactics, and culture from conventional forces? And how did their experience shape the future of U.S. special operations?

These questions and more will be explored by:

🔹 David Hogan Jr. – A distinguished military historian and senior historian at the U.S. Army Center of Military History. Author of Raiders or Elite Infantry? The Changing Role of the U.S. Army Rangers from Dieppe to Grenada, Hogan brings a deep archival and analytical perspective to the evolution of Ranger forces. Read more: https://warroom.armywarcollege.edu/author/david-hogan

🔹 Mir Bahmanyar – A former U.S. Army Ranger turned historian and author of Shadow Warriors: A History of the US Army Rangers. Bahmanyar combines lived experience with scholarly insight and has served as a historical consultant for film and television. Learn more: https://www.mirbahmanyar.com/about

Join us for an evening of rich storytelling, expert analysis, and interactive discussion. Whether you’re a military history buff, a student of World War II, or just curious about America’s elite forces, this program will offer unparalleled insight into the formation and legacy of the Army Rangers.

🔗 Watch live and join the conversation at:
👉 https://veteransbreakfastclub.org/events/online-events

#ArmyRangers #WWII #VeteransBreakfastClub #MilitaryHistory #DavidHogan #MirBahmanyar #SpecialOperations #WWIIRangers #VBCOnline

We’re grateful to UPMC for Life  for sponsoring this event!

Live on July 14: Wayne Vansant, Navy Veteran and Legendary War Comic Artist
📅 Monday, July 14, 2025
🕖 7:00pm – 8:30pm ET
🎥 Watch live at veteransbreakfastclub.org/events/online-events

The Veterans Breakfast Club proudly presents a special 90-minute livestream with Wayne Vansant, Navy veteran and renowned illustrator of some of the most historically accurate war comics ever published. The event goes live on Monday, July 14 at 7:00pm ET, and will be hosted on our VBC Online Events platform.

Wayne Vansant is best known for his groundbreaking work on The ‘Nam—Marvel Comics’ landmark series that brought the Vietnam War to life through the eyes of the soldiers who fought it. Launched in 1986 and developed by Vietnam veterans and journalists, The ‘Nam stood apart for its realistic, month-by-month portrayal of a single soldier’s tour of duty. Vansant took over the art after issue #13 and helped turn the book into a cult classic, praised for its authenticity, visual storytelling, and deep respect for those who served.

Wayne brings a unique perspective to his art. He served as a radioman in the U.S. Navy from 1970 to 1973 during the Vietnam War, and that firsthand experience has shaped his entire career. Unlike most comic book creators, Vansant insists on historical accuracy—studying uniforms, weapons, terrain, and tactics in painstaking detail to ensure his depictions are as true to life as possible.

In addition to The ‘Nam, Vansant has created graphic novels and illustrated histories such as Normandy, Gettysburg, The Vietnam War: A Graphic History, Katusha, Bombing Nazi Germany, and The Red Baron. His work is celebrated for blending action with education, making military history accessible and compelling for all readers.

As this profile on War Is Boring explains, Vansant sees his comics not as entertainment alone, but as a form of remembrance and a visual archive for future generations.

Whether you’re a fan of military history, comics, or just want to hear from a veteran who’s spent a lifetime documenting war in ink and color, you won’t want to miss this conversation.

🔗 Join the livestream here on July 14 at 7:00pm ET:
👉 https://veteransbreakfastclub.org/events/online-events

#WayneVansant #TheNam #VietnamWar #MilitaryComics #VeteransBreakfastClub #WarArt #GraphicHistory #VietnamVeteran #VBCOnline

We’re grateful to UPMC for Life  for sponsoring this event!

Join the Veterans Breakfast Club for a special 90-minute online conversation with historian Robert S. Norris, author of Racing for the Bomb: General Leslie R. Groves, the Manhattan Project’s Indispensable Man. This event will spotlight the overlooked military mastermind who turned atomic theory into wartime reality: Lt. Gen. Leslie R. Groves.

The Manhattan Project looms large in American memory—Los Alamos, Trinity, Hiroshima—but few remember the man who made it all possible. In Racing for the Bomb, Norris reveals how Groves, often dismissed as a caricature of military bluster, was in fact the indispensable architect of the atomic age. From selecting the sites at Oak Ridge, Hanford, and Los Alamos to coordinating vast industrial-scale construction, international uranium acquisition, bomb design, and the formation of the elite 509th Composite Group of B-29s, Groves ran his own army, treasury, and state department—all under a veil of secrecy.

Robert S. Norris, a leading nuclear historian and former analyst at the Natural Resources Defense Council, brings to life the driven, brusque, and deeply ambitious general whose personal force of will—combined with keen judgment and boundless energy—shaped not just the bomb, but the postwar national security state that emerged from its use. Groves pioneered “black budgets,” security clearances, and compartmentalized intelligence—hallmarks of Cold War secrecy.

Racing for the Bomb is the first full scholarly biography of Groves, completing the unfinished work of historian Stanley Goldberg and offering an authoritative, readable, and revealing portrait based on Groves’s private papers, military records, and firsthand interviews.

Don’t miss this chance to explore the atomic age from a new perspective: not from the scientist’s lab bench, but from the general’s war room. Norris will discuss Groves’s pivotal role in the decision to use the bomb, his fraught but productive relationship with J. Robert Oppenheimer, and the lasting implications of his management style on U.S. defense and intelligence structures.

Register now at veteransbreakfastclub.org to join the discussion.

We’re grateful to UPMC for Life for sponsoring this event!

Live July 28: Honoring the U.S. Army Chaplain Corps with Stories of Service and Sacrifice
📅 Sunday, July 28, 2025
🕖 7:00pm – 8:30pm ET
🎥 Watch live: veteransbreakfastclub.org/events/online-events

In recognition of U.S. Army Chaplain Corps Anniversary on July 29, the Veterans Breakfast Club invites you to a special 90-minute livestream conversation with military chaplains—past and present—on Sunday, July 28 at 7:00pm ET.

Military chaplains serve in every branch of the armed forces, offering spiritual care, counseling, and moral support to service members in peace and war. They are non-combatants who go where the troops go—into battle zones, on deployments, and into the deepest struggles of the human soul. Their mission is to nurture the living, care for the wounded, and honor the fallen.

This Veterans Breakfast Club program will spotlight the U.S. Army Chaplain Corps, founded on July 29, 1775, making it one of the oldest branches of the Army. From its beginnings during the Revolutionary War to the battlefields of Iraq and Afghanistan, chaplains have ministered to soldiers in foxholes, field hospitals, and far-flung outposts around the world.

📖 Hear powerful true stories such as:

• Chaplain Emil Kapaun, who comforted fellow prisoners of war in Korea and gave away his own rations before dying in captivity—he was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor.

• The Four Chaplains, who gave up their life jackets on the sinking USAT Dorchester in 1943, joining arms in prayer as the ship went down.

• Chaplains in modern times who’ve led interfaith services on aircraft carriers, delivered last rites under fire, and helped veterans heal invisible wounds long after battle.

This event will feature chaplains from multiple generations and faith traditions, sharing what it means to serve both God and country. They’ll speak on topics like moral injury, grief in combat, religious diversity in the ranks, and how spiritual support plays a vital role in military life.

📺 Join the conversation live on July 28 at 7:00pm ET
👉 https://veteransbreakfastclub.org/events/online-events

This is not just a history lesson—it’s a tribute to the quiet strength, compassion, and courage of those who serve the spirit of the service member.

#MilitaryChaplains #ArmyChaplainCorps #USArmyChaplains #ChaplainsInCombat #VeteransBreakfastClub #VBCLive #FaithUnderFire #ChaplainDay #MilitaryMinistry

We’re grateful to UPMC for Life and Tobacco Free Adagio Health for sponsoring this event!