I want to give a shoutout to the Mid-America Veterans Museum located in my hometown of O'Fallon, Mo. Being a veteran, I toured the museum many years ago and was impressed with the collection of military memorabilia and personal relics of veterans. Every branch of service is represented, and there are even some personal artifacts from veterans who were KIA. The museum is an excellent tribute to the military men and women who wore the uniform!
In November of last year, I was approached by my neighbor who wanted to know if I would be interested in the Veterans History Project (VHP). Congress created the VHP in 2000 to collect, preserve and make accessible the firsthand recollections of U.S. military veterans. I was honored to volunteer for the project, which involved being interviewed by two high school students while being videotaped. The videotape was then sent to the Library of Congress in Washington, D.C. The videotape will be available to future generations so they can better understand what we saw, did and felt during our military service.
In April of this year, I was asked if I would participate in a podcast (Operation Insight) about my military service. I gladly accepted and was interviewed on June 10, 2025. The podcast was facilitated by an Army veteran and Gold Star Family member. I basically covered much of my previous experiences during the videotaped interview and some more in-depth discussions on specific topics. Both experiences allowed me to talk about my time in the active Army, Army Reserve and Navy Reserve. I never thought I would ever talk about my military experiences. Now, there is an audio podcast and videotape of my interviews for future generations and especially my grandchildren. I am forever grateful to the volunteers at the Mid-America Veterans Museum for allowing me to tell my story.