Ask A Vet Podcast

Seven grenades with the pins pulled. A Marine he'd never met shaking beside him in the hole. Forty minutes of fire, a lull, then forty more. Then the word came down the line: "Fix bayonets."

Amadeo Robert "Stef" Stefanelli grew up in South Brooklyn in a family of Marines. He enlisted at 17, started boot camp at Parris Island in April 1966, and survived a plane that nearly went down over the Pacific before he ever reached Vietnam. In 1967 he served as a machine gunner with the Marines, moving north from Dai Loc to Phu Bai, Dong Ha, C-2 and Con Thien, within sight of the DMZ. He lost friends, carried mortars and an M14 when the new M16s jammed, and earned a spot promotion to corporal in under a year.

Now 78, Stef talks honestly about the friend who told him "I'm so lucky" the day before he was killed, coming home to protesters at Port Authority, years of nightmares, and the seven years of PTSD group at the VA that helped him come through the other side.

This episode is dedicated to the Marines Stef served beside who never came home, including PJ Smith, Sgt. Solomon, James Trusha and Herbie Rogers, and to every Marine and Corpsman who fought along the DMZ in 1967.

Content advisory: This episode includes descriptions of combat, the deaths of friends, wounded prisoners, the destruction of a village, racial violence, physical abuse in boot camp, a mention of suicide, PTSD and alcohol use. Veterans Crisis Line, 24/7: call 988 then press 1, text 838255, or visit VeteransCrisisLine.net.

⏱️ CHAPTERS

01:27 A Family of Marines and Parris Island

05:40 Infantry Training and the Plane That Almost Went Down

09:43 Stories from Vietnam: Hastings, Prairie and Starlite

12:39 Dai Loc, Mortars and China Beach16:19 Learning from the Veterans and Losing His Gun Team

19:55 Seven Grenades and “Fix Bayonets!”

23:32 Heading to Phu Bai and Ambushed on the Way to Dong Ha

26:22 Mortars, Rockets and Con Thien Near the DMZ

30:07 Ambushes, Losing Friends and a Spot Promotion

35:12 Life in the Field, a B-52 Strike and a Captured NVA Soldier

42:11 Leadership, Coming Home and the Aftermath of War

47:05 Nightmares, R&R and Facing His Fears

50:11 Coming Home to Protests and Racial Violence

52:29 Life After Vietnam, Family and the Marine Corps

57:23 When the M16 Jammed and the Weapons He Carried

1:01:34 Looking Back at 78, Remembering Fallen Marines and Finding Healing

🎖️ SUBSCRIBE for new veteran interviews every week.

Listen on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/4UvdMjkOkOgoHM2yIckhlh

Listen on Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/ask-a-vet-podcast/id1854840136

Read the blog: https://curioushumanography.com/

Follow us: https://www.instagram.com/curioushumanography/

If you're a veteran with a story to tell, or you know someone who should be on the show, reach out at [email protected]

#AskAVet #VietnamVeteran #USMC #Marines #ConThien #VietnamWar #VeteranStories #PTSDAwareness

Thanksgiving Day, 1967. Lieutenant Douglas Greenlaw's platoon was supposed to land, pop green smoke, and mark a safe zone for the rest of the company. Instead, the helicopters set them down a thousand yards too far, at the edge of a North Vietnamese battalion. Forty-five Americans against roughly four hundred. They fought for five hours.Doug grew up in a steel-mill family on Lake Michigan, survived being thrown from a car at four and struck by lightning at thirteen, flunked his way off a college baseball team, and was drafted. The Army turned him into an infantry officer. In Vietnam with the 196th Infantry, he led a platoon and then, at 23, a company of 158 men on search and destroy missions along the Ho Chi Minh Trail. He was wounded twice, earned the Silver Star and the Purple Heart, and survived a booby trap so devastating that he says he died on the table.Then he came home and went to work: straight A's at Indiana University on the GI Bill, radio ad sales in Indianapolis, building The Family Channel, taking MTV to Madison Avenue, and running a 100-year-old media company. At 82, he says he's the luckiest man you'll ever meet, and he's not done yet.📖 Read Doug's book, Forged by Lightning: From Boyhood to the Battlefield to the Boardroom: https://www.amazon.com/Douglas-Greenlaw/e/B0D6ZC5KPK⚠️ CONTENT ADVISORY: This episode contains graphic descriptions of close combat, killing, severe battlefield wounds, the death of a child, and the lasting effects of war. Viewer discretion is advised.If you're a veteran in crisis, or worried about one, help is available 24/7. Call 988 and press 1, text 838255, or visit VeteransCrisisLine.net.⏱️ CHAPTERS00:40 Growing Up in a Steel Mill Town02:10 Thrown From a Car at 65 MPH03:55 Struck by Lightning at 1305:38 Indiana University and Back to the Mills06:30 Drafted06:51 Basic Training at Fort Knox07:24 Selected for OCS08:06 On Detail With Sergeant Street14:53 Officer Candidate School16:44 Training Officer Candidates19:14 Jungle School in Panama20:42 Shipping Out to Vietnam21:18 First Command: Firing the Platoon Sergeant25:25 Search and Destroy29:48 90 Days in the Field33:31 Booby Traps, Snipers and Walking Point34:53 Firefights Nearly Every Day38:24 The Weapons He Carried39:18 Night Patrols Under a Full Moon40:39 "Call Me Law": Leading Like a Brother42:43 Thanksgiving 1967: 45 Against 40046:03 Surviving the Ambush46:50 Face to Face With a North Vietnamese Lieutenant49:11 Into the Tunnel53:44 The Purple Heart and the Silver Star54:50 Losing Fear and Faith55:45 R&R in Bangkok58:46 Company Commander at 2359:44 The Men He Led1:00:40 Arnold Bittner, the Medic Who Wouldn't Get Down1:04:06 1968 and the Tet Offensive1:06:10 Patrolling the Ho Chi Minh Trail1:07:43 Face-First in a Rice Paddy1:09:39 The Booby Trap1:12:27 "Dying Is Not That Bad"1:13:51 Recovery in Da Nang and the Bob Hope Show1:16:33 Yokohama and the Red Cross1:19:05 Rehab at Fort Sheridan1:19:54 Coming Home Without Fear1:23:20 Selling Radio Ads in Indianapolis1:27:58 Building The Family Channel1:31:31 Taking MTV to Madison Avenue1:33:30 CEO of Multimedia1:36:23 Marriage, Family and an Only Child1:37:02 The Nightmares and How They Stopped1:40:26 What Vietnam Taught Him1:42:41 The Wounds He Still Carries1:43:45 82 and Not Done Yet1:44:11 The Greenville Journal🎖️ SUBSCRIBE for new veteran interviews every week.Listen on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/4UvdMjkOkOgoHM2yIckhlhListen on Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/ask-a-vet-podcast/id1854840136Read the blog: https://curioushumanography.com/Follow us: https://www.instagram.com/curioushumanography/If you're a veteran with a story to tell, or you know someone who should be on the show, reach out at [email protected]#AskAVet #VietnamVeteran #VietnamWar #ArmyVeteran #InfantryOfficer #SilverStar #VeteranStories #MilitaryHistory

On October 23, 1983, at 6:22 in the morning, a truck bomb destroyed the Marine barracks in Beirut, Lebanon. Marine Scout Sniper Frank Roberts was 400 yards away, sleeping in the dirt near Charlie Company. The blast threw him into a wall. When he came to, the four-story building was gone.Frank was 20 years old. He had come up through amphibious recon school and Scout Sniper School, where he learned from the legendary Carlos Hathcock, and was sent to Beirut with 1st Battalion, 8th Marines on what was called a peacekeeping mission. In this episode of Ask A Vet, he tells us what it really was: restrictive rules of engagement, constant shelling, sniper duels, and, after the bombing, more than a week cut off with no resupply and their chain of command gone.Frank also shares what came after: training the next generation of snipers, undercover narcotics work in New Haven, a contract on his life during the largest RICO case in Connecticut history, and the oyster farm in South Carolina where he found his way home.IN MEMORY: This episode is dedicated to the 241 American service members, 220 Marines, 18 sailors, and 3 soldiers, killed in Beirut on October 23, 1983, to the 58 French paratroopers lost the same morning, and to every Marine and sailor who served there.CONTENT ADVISORY: This episode contains graphic descriptions of combat, the aftermath of the bombing, severe injuries, PTSD, and strong language. Veterans in crisis: call 988 and press 1, text 838255, or visit VeteransCrisisLine.net.⏱️ CHAPTERS00:36 The man with two birth certificates01:01 Growing up in a Marine family02:20 The first enlisted man in the family04:31 Parris Island05:36 Eight months at sea on the USS Nassau07:47 Selected for Scout Sniper08:18 Amphibious Recon School, Little Creek10:28 Scout Sniper School and Carlos Hathcock12:04 The M40A1 and two-man teams14:27 Learning to stalk16:11 Orders to Beirut18:36 Patrolling the rubble19:44 Rules of engagement: one round at a time22:18 First sniper mission25:49 Humping through Beirut27:32 Ambushed in a ditch31:17 The man with the white handkerchief35:47 Letters home36:52 Warning signs and the tank that was moved37:58 The morning of the bombing41:03 "It was gone"42:43 241 lost44:17 Cut off: no ammo, no food, no water46:15 Help turned away47:47 The plane he refused to board50:24 33 days of shelling51:03 A prayer under fire53:20 Abandoned: "What's to become of us?"55:35 Twelve men step forward57:55 Coming home1:00:05 Rebuilding as a sniper instructor1:01:14 Delta Force and a CIA offer1:02:16 New Haven Police: undercover narcotics1:05:39 The raid on West Street1:08:18 No fear left1:09:01 The Latin Kings and the FBI1:11:07 A contract on his life1:13:35 On the witness stand1:17:43 The truth about the bomb1:19:10 Becoming an oyster farmer1:24:03 The bond with his brothers1:27:25 Nightmares, healing, and the VA1:30:10 Closing🎖️ SUBSCRIBE for new veteran interviews every week.Listen on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/4UvdMjkOkOgoHM2yIckhlhListen on Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/ask-a-vet-podcast/id1854840136Read the blog: https://curioushumanography.com/Follow us: https://www.instagram.com/curioushumanography/If you're a veteran with a story to tell, or you know someone who should be on the show, reach out at [email protected]#AskAVet #Beirut1983 #MarineCorps #ScoutSniper #BeirutBarracks #VeteranStories #USMC #militaryhistory

This episode is a little different. Amy Rodman Little isn't a veteran, but the daughter of one who never came home.

Army Captain David "Dave" Rodman was an artillery officer, former Big 33 football star, and devoted husband and father. He was killed in Vietnam on May 8, 1968, while helping pull wounded soldiers onto a rescue helicopter. Amy was four years old.

For most of her life, Dave was a name on a plaque, a theater in Germany, and a box of sympathy cards. Then, at 30, Amy found a box in her mother's garage. Inside were 45 handwritten letters her father sent home from Vietnam.

What followed was a decades-long journey to know the man behind the name: reunions with his Army brothers, a first visit to The Wall, an Honor Flight, a Purple Heart handed to her by a stranger, and finally a book, Love, Dave: Letters to Home – A Daughter's Journey to Know the Father She Lost in Vietnam.

📖 Get Amy's book, Love, Dave: Letters to Home

Paperback: https://lovedavebook.org/products/love-davee

Book (Amazon): https://a.co/d/05ORteQG

Chapters:

02:55 Who was Dave Rodman?

04:58 From law school to Army OCS

06:42 Volunteering for Vietnam

07:39 Arriving just before Tet

08:12 Growing up without him11:13 The day the Army came to the door16:28 Finding the lost letters21:53 What the letters revealed about him23:44 Mom, remarriage and a new family27:02 Meeting his Army brothers at Fort Sill28:20 Howitzers and the Bird Dog

31:33 Seeing him move in home movies

35:30 Writing the book43:08 Cameras, knives and the PX

46:28 The Tet ceasefire and the rules of war

49:28 Rats, bunkers and stolen brownies

52:28 Artillery liaison officer

54:00 May 8, 1968

55:56 The chaplain who inspired him

58:01 The R&R that never came

1:01:07 Her mother and the book

1:01:21 The Big 33 honors Dave

1:03:18 "Do you feel closure?"

1:04:12 The people she met along the way

1:07:29 A Purple Heart from a stranger

1:09:09 "Love, Dave"

1:11:27 The Silver Star and the Rodman Theater

1:15:09 The Honor Flight

1:21:40 Looking back on the journey

🎙️ Subscribe to Ask A Vet for more stories from those who served and the families who stood behind them.

Find Your Local Honor Flight Hub: https://www.honorflight.org/

#AskAVet #VietnamVeteran #GoldStarFamily #VietnamWar #MilitaryHistory #Veterans #HonorFlight #WelcomeHome #LoveDave

When Saigon fell in 1975, retired Air Force Senior Master Sergeant Scotty Acton was stationed on Guam — and watched over 50,000 Vietnamese refugees pour onto an island 8 miles wide. In this episode, Scotty takes us through 22 years in Air Force logistics: keeping fighter jets flying with "mission capable" parts, riding out a Category 5 typhoon with no water for 13 days, midnight runs across German air bases to save weather reports, the Ramstein air show disaster, and racing the clock for parts during Desert Storm. After retiring in 1991, Scotty spent 19 years as a logistics expert for Lockheed Martin supporting the F-16 program. Today he's known as "Pastor Scotty," leading a ~35-person Sunday church gathering at Summit Vista, home to 118 of his fellow veterans.

This is a story about the guys who never fly the planes — but without whom nothing flies at all.

CHAPTERS:

01:01 – Growing Up in Illinois & Beating the Draft

04:17 – His Father's Service & Growing Up the Eldest of Eight

07:46 – Basic Training in a Divided Country (1969)

09:22 – First Duty Station: Germany & Learning Military Supply

14:32 – Getting Married & Building a Military Family

15:52 – Life on a Cold War Air Base

20:07 – Vietnam's Ripple Effects & Manual-Era Supply Work

25:02 – The Midnight Paper Run on a "Spook Bird"

27:04 – Tragedy on Base: Crashes and the Ramstein Air Show Disaster

31:02 – Warner Robbins & Earning the Name "Loggy Central"

34:53 – Stationed on Guam (1974–1976)

38:03 – The Fall of Vietnam & the Refugee Crisis on Guam

43:50 – Riding Out Typhoon Pamela

47:04 – Ellsworth AFB & the B-52 Bombers

50:34 – Desert Storm: Racing the Clock for Parts

56:51 – The Hardest Aircraft to Keep Flying

58:14 – The Pacer Plank Fuel Cell Scare

1:00:36 – Why He Turned 4 Years Into a 22-Year Career

1:01:57 – Retiring from the Air Force & Joining Lockheed Martin

1:03:38 – The F-16, the A-10, and "Just-in-Time" Logistics

1:08:09 – What Modern Warfare Could Relearn from Desert Storm

1:11:06 – The A-10 Warthog & the Fight to Save It

1:12:12 – Retiring from Lockheed & Becoming "Pastor Scotty"

1:13:57 – His Honor Flight Experience

1:16:13 – Looking Back on 22 Years of Service

1:18:22 – Closing Thoughts & Remembering the Deployed

🎖️ SUBSCRIBE for new veteran interviews every week.

Listen on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/4UvdMjkOkOgoHM2yIckhlh

Listen on Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/ask-a-vet-podcast/id185484https://www.amazon.com/Guns-Girls-Greed-Blackwater-Mercenary/dp/B0C7P83DL6/ref=tmm_hrd_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&dib_tag=se&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.mkEEmt-2FfH-9tCi7QeOEPCZa-IpA_7bFHYQGqsrC8TGjHj071QN20LucGBJIEps.mq8h2uvyyrYUNuA75Kke3F64R8r2RhdO2CALCiNnymk&qid=1788289472&sr=8-1

Read the blog: https://curioushumanography.com/

Follow us: https://www.instagram.com/curioushumanography/

If you're a veteran with a story to tell, or you know someone who should be on the show, reach out at [email protected]

#AskAVetPodcast #VeteranStories #AirForce #ColdWar #DesertStorm #F16 #MilitaryLogistics #FallOfSaigon #VeteranPodcast #ThankAVet

Larry grew up in and out of foster homes across the West and landed in San Francisco's Haight-Ashbury during the Summer of Love — homeless, drifting, and certain he was headed nowhere good. He enlisted in the Army looking for structure. He got Vietnam instead.

Assigned as a radio operator (RTO) with the 1st Battalion, 12th Cavalry, S2 Intelligence, Larry humped a 20-pound PRC-25 through the jungle near the DMZ, took part in the relief of the siege of Khe Sanh, moved into the A Shau Valley, and later shifted south to Tay Ninh near Black Virgin Mountain. He survived combat, multiple bouts of malaria (including the nearly fatal falciparum strain), and losing close friends in the field — then came home in 1969 to an Army that had no name yet for what he was going through, and no plan beyond antipsychotic medication.

This is a conversation about all of it: the war, the radio, the friends he lost, coming home to a country in upheaval, addiction, 31 years of service as a VA employee, activism with Vietnam Veterans Against the War, recovery work that took him as far as Moscow and St. Petersburg, and the long, ongoing work of healing.Content note: This episode includes a firsthand account of an interrogation Larry witnessed in Vietnam. Listener discretion advised.

⏱️ CHAPTERS:

00:36 — Growing up in Salt Lake City, foster homes

01:06 — Haight-Ashbury, San Francisco, 1966–67

05:22 — Enlisting in the Army

06:22 — Boot camp, Fort Lewis

07:48 — AIT at Fort Ord, orders to Vietnam

09:50 — Arrival in-country, Camp Radcliffe

13:19 — Joining the 1st Battalion, 12th Cavalry

14:45 — Becoming an RTO, first days in the field

17:08 — The interrogation

19:47 — Search-and-destroy patrols, snakes, helicopter insertions

21:49 — Relief of Khe Sanh and the A Shau Valley

22:19 — Moving south to Tay Ninh, Black Virgin Mountain

23:18 — First bout with malaria

26:36 — Radio relay duty, isolation on the mountain

33:54 — Losing a friend — the Claymore mine

37:01 — Coming home, May 1969

39:47 — PTSD before it had a name

42:07 — An interracial marriage in the Deep South

43:29 — Transfer to Germany

47:56 — Discharge and the search for work

50:31 — Hired at the VA — the start of 31 years

54:34 — Protest and activism in Salt Lake City

59:02 — Addiction and getting clean

01:02:05 — The birth of his daughter and a turning point

01:05:00 — Recovery work in Russia

01:09:55 — Family, aging, and loss

01:13:51 — Final reflections on Vietnam, enemies, and peace

🎖️ SUBSCRIBE for new veteran interviews every week.

Listen on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/4UvdMjkOkOgoHM2yIckhlh

Listen on Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/ask-a-vet-podcast/id1854840136

Read the blog: https://curioushumanography.com/

Follow us: https://www.instagram.com/curioushumanography/

If you're a veteran with a story to tell, or you know someone who should be on the show, reach out at [email protected]

Morgan Lerette joined the Air National Guard in 1999 for one reason: his grandfather told him the Air Force had the best food. Two years later, September 11th changed everything. Morgan deployed to Oman, Jordan, Kuwait, and Iraq during the ground offensive — then walked away from active duty and into one of the most controversial jobs in modern warfare: private military contractor for Blackwater.In this episode, Morgan takes us inside the world most people only know from headlines — protecting U.S. diplomats and senators in Baghdad's Red Zone, the total absence of rules of engagement, meeting Erik Prince and Iraq's sitting president, and the moment that got him fired from Blackwater. He also opens up about the slow build of PTSD, why he eventually rejoined the military as an Army Intelligence officer, writing a book Blackwater's leadership wasn't thrilled about, and what he's learned about finding purpose after the uniform comes off.This is a raw, funny, and at times heavy conversation about war, money, loyalty, and what it actually costs to come home.Timestamps:1:40 – Meet Morgan Lerette: Joining the Air Force for the Food 3:59 – Basic Training at Lackland AFB 7:00 – Security Forces Training & Community College 9:01 – Where He Was on September 11th 12:00 – Activated: First Deployments to Oman & Jordan 17:07 – Scud Missiles, Kuwait & the Ground Offensive Into Iraq 22:59 – Coming Home & Hearing About Blackwater 24:39 – The $500-a-Day Call That Changed His Life 31:32 – Selection & Training in Moyock, NC 47:34 – First Missions Protecting Diplomats in Baghdad 55:55 – Rocket Attacks & the Market Bombing 59:05 – A Divided Iraq & Becoming Jaded 1:06:30 – Meeting Diplomats: John Bolton, Colin Powell & Charlie Daniels 1:12:26 – The Truth About Erik Prince 1:18:30 – No Rules of Engagement: Driving Through Baghdad 1:24:39 – Meeting the President of Iraq & Seeing Babylon 1:28:17 – The Scariest Moments Overseas 1:40:28 – Getting Fired From Blackwater 1:44:51 – Coming Home & His Dog Shelby 1:49:02 – Back to Iraq as an Army Intelligence Officer 1:54:06 – What Does "Winning" Even Look Like? 1:57:15 – Coming to Terms With PTSD 2:00:12 – Writing the Book 2:03:24 – Why Blackwater Wasn't Happy About It 2:07:02 – Private Military Contractors Today 2:08:31 – Life Now: Family & Finding Purpose After WarConnect with Morgan: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/blackwaterdude1?igsi=MXVvaXAyeno0MXd6dg%3D%3D&utm_source=qrTikTok: @BlackwaterDude1 Morgan’s Book: https://www.amazon.com/Guns-Girls-Greed-Blackwater-Mercenary/dp/B0C7P83DL6/ref=tmm_hrd_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&dib_tag=se&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.mkEEmt-2FfH-9tCi7QeOEPCZa-IpA_7bFHYQGqsrC8TGjHj071QN20LucGBJIEps.mq8h2uvyyrYUNuA75Kke3F64R8r2RhdO2CALCiNnymk&qid=1788289472&sr=8-1ASK A VET Listen on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/4UvdMjkOkOgoHM2yIckhlhListen on Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/ask-a-vet-podcast/id185484https://www.amazon.com/Guns-Girls-Greed-Blackwater-Mercenary/dp/B0C7P83DL6/ref=tmm_hrd_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&dib_tag=se&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.mkEEmt-2FfH-9tCi7QeOEPCZa-IpA_7bFHYQGqsrC8TGjHj071QN20LucGBJIEps.mq8h2uvyyrYUNuA75Kke3F64R8r2RhdO2CALCiNnymk&qid=1788289472&sr=8-1Read the blog: https://curioushumanography.com/Follow us: https://www.instagram.com/curioushumanography/If you're a veteran with a story to tell, or you know someone who should be on the show, reach out at [email protected]#AskAVetPodcast #Veteran #Blackwater #PrivateMilitaryContractor #Iraq #AirForce #Army #PTSD #VeteranStories #MilitaryPodcast

He served on Cold War fast-attack submarines, surfaced through Arctic ice, and spent up to 85 days underwater breathing recycled air — all without his family knowing if he was alive. Retired Navy Commander Henry Rausch joins the show to talk about his time as a submarine officer, the true story behind his bestselling memoir Submerged, and why the submarine force may be America's most important — and most overlooked — line of defense.

Henry was the son of a Navy Master Chief, turned down a path to medical school at Stanford, and instead went straight into the Navy's nuclear submarine program during the Reagan-era buildup.

Two tours on 637-class fast-attack submarines later, he'd surfaced through polar ice, tracked Soviet boats in the North Atlantic, missed the birth of his son, and lived through a near-collision in the Strait of Gibraltar that still shows up in his dreams.

📖 Get Henry's book, Submerged: https://henryrausch.com/my-books/submerged-life-on-a-fast-attack-submarine-in-the-last-days-of-the-cold-war/

Henry Rausch served on classified submarine missions during the Cold War. Before publishing his memoir, Submerged, he submitted the book to the Department of Defense for a pre-publication security review, where it was vetted and approved with certain information redacted. The information Henry shares in this episode has been cleared for publication.

👍 If you enjoyed this one, subscribe and leave a review — it helps more veterans' stories reach people who need to hear them.

Chapters:

00:00 – Meet Henry Rausch

05:00 – Why He Joined the Navy

10:00 – Becoming a Nuclear Submarine Officer

15:00 – Training to Serve on a Submarine

20:00 – Inside a Nuclear Submarine

25:00 – How Submarines Stay Hidden

30:00 – The Secrets of Submarine Warfare

35:00 – Life Before Going to Sea

40:00 – Learning to Hunt Soviet Submarines

45:00 – Reporting for Duty

50:00 – The Mission to the North Pole

55:00 – Life on a Cold War Submarine

1:00:00 – The Pressure to Qualify

1:05:00 – What Can Go Wrong Underwater

1:10:00 – Becoming a Submariner

1:15:00 – A Day in the Life Underwater

1:20:00 – Food, Movies & Life at Sea

1:25:00 – 85 Days Underwater

1:30:00 – Communicating With Home

1:35:00 – Being Hunted by the Enemy

1:40:00 – Weapons of the Cold War

1:45:00 – Under the Arctic Ice

1:50:00 – “It’s Kind of Game Over”

1:55:00 – Surfacing at the North Pole

2:00:00 – The Cost of Being Away From Home

2:05:00 – Why Submariners Don't Talk

2:10:00 – Lessons From a Life Underwater

2:11:44 – Final Thoughts

Subscribe for more interviews with the men and women who served.If you or a Veteran you know has a story that should be heard, we'd love to hear from you at [email protected].

Herman "Butch" Peace enlisted in the Army at 19 and became a Huey pilot in Vietnam — flying troop insertions, taking fire, and watching men he served with die, all before he could legally rent a car back home. At 77, he finally put that year into words in his memoir, One Year: Or the Rest of Your Life. In this episode, Butch walks us through flight school, his first solo flight, arriving in-country, the crew that became his second family, a midair collision that changed everything, and the long, slow process of coming home. He also opens up about the year he spent training pilots in Iran during the fall of the Shah, and how he eventually became a classically trained portrait painter after studying in France.

This is a raw, funny, and deeply human conversation about war, brotherhood, and what it means to carry that year for the rest of your life.

📖 Get Butch's book, One Year: Or the Rest of Your Life: https://www.amazon.com/ONE-YEAR-Vietnam-Helicopter-Pilots-ebook/dp/B0FXPD6Z7K?ref_=ast_author_mpb 

🎨 See Butch's artwork: https://hlpeace.com/

TIMESTAMPS 

01:06 – Family history: his father, a WWII ball turret gunner shot down after D-Day 

04:43 – Boot camp at Fort Polk 

06:56 – Flight school shenanigans 

07:40 – First helicopter: the Hiller OH-23 

07:56 – His first solo flight 

11:19 – Flight school culture vs. basic training 

16:56 – Shipping out 

18:27 – Arriving in Vietnam 

22:14 – Meet the "Robin Hoods" 

23:55 – Life at the base, rockets, and "Rocket City" 

27:43 – First assignment: flying the smoke ship 

33:09 – Crew roles: aircraft commander, Peter pilot, crew chief, door gunner 

34:57 – What made the Huey special 

36:43 – Accidents in-country 

54:20 – The midair collision, in his own words 

1:03:36 – A sling-load accident and its aftermath 

1:13:00 – Base camp life, C-rations, and R&R stories 

1:40:11 – Comparing the UH-1D and UH-1H 

1:45:26 – The flight surgeon and a sergeant's act of humanity 

1:49:38 – Coming home on the "Freedom Bird" 

1:53:16 – Adjusting to life after Vietnam 

1:59:08 – Teaching pilots in Iran during the fall of the Shah 

2:06:49 – Looking back on the war

Ask a Vet brings you unfiltered conversations with veterans about their service, their struggles, and their lives after the uniform.

If you or a Veteran you know has a story that should be heard, we'd love to hear from you at [email protected]. 
#Vietnam #Huey #HelicopterPilot #VeteranStory #MilitaryHistory #AskAVet

Roderick "Roger" Pugh grew up hunting and fishing in rural Alabama — and ended up living through 9/11 in basic training, the initial invasion of Iraq, an IED explosion that nearly killed him, and a front-row seat to the execution of Saddam Hussein. Along the way, he became — by his own research — the first African American sniper in the Iraq campaign and U.S. Army history.

In this episode, Roger opens up about the invasion of Baghdad, clearing the Baghdad Zoo, sniper school, his years fighting PTSD, and the brothers he's lost along the way. He's also the author of the memoir 2 Lives, based on true events from his life and career.

📖 Roger's memoir, 2 Lives: Memoir of the 1st African American Sniper in the Iraq Campaign & US Army History (Based on true events), is available now on Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Lives-African-American-Campaign-History/dp/B0FM4BF8YZ

🌐 Follow more of Roger's story at The Bama Mist: https://thebamamist.com/

⚠️ This episode contains descriptions of combat, injury, and discussion of PTSD and suicide. If you or someone you know is struggling, the Veterans Crisis Line is available 24/7 — dial 988 then press 1, or text 838255.

Chapters: 

2:52 – Basic training at Fort Benning the day 9/11 happened 

8:43 – Shipped to Germany, stationed where Elvis Presley once served 

10:59 – The night a bar fight turned into an international brawl 

18:47 – The call to deploy: crossing the berm into Iraq 

25:37 – Tarantulas, sidewinders, and a camel he'll never forget 

29:58 – The Karbala Gap and his first brush with a sniper team 

37:37 – Taking Baghdad International Airport & sleeping on a pallet of cash 

40:45 – The mission to clear the Baghdad Zoo 

56:22 – Selected for sniper school 

1:08:33 – Deployed again — this time as a sniper team leader 

1:14:41 – The IED explosion that nearly ended his life 

1:15:41 – Losing a soldier & witnessing Saddam Hussein's execution 

1:26:05 – South Korea, and meeting President Obama on duty 

1:34:35 – The weight of PTSD, therapy, and a hard conversation about suicide 1:38:44 – His claim to history: the Army's first Black sniper 

1:43:09 – Remembering a fallen brother, Chris Cowell 

1:45:08 – Final thoughts & his memoir, 2 Lives

If you or a Veteran you know has a story that should be heard, we'd love to hear from you at [email protected]. 

👉 If you’re a Veteran struggling with VA benefits, click this link to schedule a free consultation: https://ameconsultation.com/ref/AVPP1211J20A26YXO

Disclosure: This is a referral partnership with American Medical Experts. We may receive compensation if you book through our link.

🎖️ Curious Humanography is proud to partner with Utah Honor Flight, helping veterans visit memorials built in their honor. To learn more or support their mission, visit UtahHonorFlight.org and honorflight.org.

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