Warriors In Their Own Words | First Person War Stories
The unsanitized truth of what we have asked of those who defend this nation. From archived tapes of WWI veterans, to conversations with modern-day warriors, these are their stories, in their own words.
Episodes
September 5, 2025 • 66 mins
During the Vietnam War, all too often the chaos of battle found Allied forces trapped and facing annihilation. The situation called for courageous men to carry out some of the deadliest missions in the history of warfare. Forward Observers, often alone, moved behind enemy lines to serve as the eyes of the artillery gunner in delivering rounds on vital targets. In this episode, Medal of Honor recipients Barney Barnum and Brian Thack...
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August 21, 2025 • 59 mins
In 1944, the Allies fought their way from the beaches of Normandy towards German soil. Their sites were firmly set on pushing all the way to Hitler's capital Berlin and putting an end to WWII. Robert Weiss was a US Army forward observer. His mission was to move ahead of the troops and find targets for the artillery, but being out in front placed him closer to the enemy and a greater risk of being cut off from his comrades. These ar...
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August 7, 2025 • 67 mins
Toward the end of 1944, it was clear that Germany was losing WWII. Low on fuel, munitions and morale, the ability of the Nazis was slipping away. Still Hitler burned with a passion for one more mad assault. In December, 1944, 600,000 Germans surged into the western front. The stage was set for total Allied defeat. Hitler could count the thousands of guns, the tons of munitions and the hundreds of tanks, but he failed to grasp the m...
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July 24, 2025 • 76 mins
By 1942, the skies over Germany were aflame with German fighters battling Allied bombers for the survival of Europe and the free world. Central to victory were the fighter planes of the Allies. At first they were obsolete and woefully inadequate. But with the advent of aircraft like the P-47 Thunderbolt and the P-51 Mustang, the tide of war was about to change. In this episode we hear the words of fighter aces Clarence "Bud" Anders...
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July 10, 2025 • 68 mins
In this episode of Warriors In Their Own Words, veterans of the 3rd Armored Division, Belton Cooper and Bertrand Close, transport us to the Race Across Europe in World War Two.
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June 26, 2025 • 38 mins
On December 8th, 1941, Japanese forces attacked Wake Island. The Americans were outmanned and out gunned, but fought hard for 15 days before surrendering. Sgt. Pearsall and his fellow Marines were taken as prisoners of war, and spent 3 ½ years at a prison camp in China during WWII.
Sergeant John Edward ‘Swede’ Pearsall served in the Marines as a part of the 1st Defense Battalion, D Battery on Wake Island in 1941.
Wake Isl...
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June 12, 2025 • 43 mins
Warning: This episode contains depictions of corpses, substance abuse, a suicide attempt, and some foul language. Viewer discretion is advised.
Kris Goldsmith is an Army combat Veteran who served in Iraq. As a 19 year-old, he was assigned the task of photographing corpses and documenting mass graves. He developed severe PTSD, and in 2007, as the result of a suicide attempt that caused him to miss redeployment, he was given a les...
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May 29, 2025 • 49 mins
Colonel Leo Thorsness served as a fighter pilot in Vietnam. He was a Wild Weasel, whose missions required them to draw surface-to-air (SAM) missiles away from bombers, and then destroy the SAM sites. This meant that Weasels spent sometimes more than 20 minutes over the target, as opposed to the one or two minutes bomber pilots spent.
On one mission, COL Thorsness’ wingman was shot down, forcing him to eject. As he parachuted to th...
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May 27, 2025 • 58 mins
Every other week, we'll be re-releasing an episode we think deserves more attention. Today, we'll hear about The Candy Bomber.
After World War Two, Germany was split up and occupied by the United States, France, Britain and the Soviet Union. In June of 1948, the U.S., France, and Britain announced they were creating a unified West German currency. Joseph Stalin opposed this unification, and cut off land routes from Berlin to W...
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May 22, 2025 • 38 mins
Colonel John Folsom served in the Marine Corps from 1980 to 2010. He was trained as a CH-46 helicopter pilot and a Forward Air Controller, but never flew combat missions. Instead he did staff work at various levels of command.
In this interview, Folsom gives an honest look into the lives of non-combat military personnel. He also talks about his work with the Dunham House, a unique assisted living facility for combat-wounded vete...
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May 8, 2025 • 24 mins
Lieutenant Commander Mike Smith served in the Navy as an F/A-18 pilot. He deployed 3 times between 2002 and 2014, and was stationed in Japan, Italy, Virginia, Mississippi, Texas, and Florida.
He was also Strike/Fighter Pilot of the Year in 2009.
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May 1, 2025 • 33 mins
Lieutenant Colonel Neal Rickner served in the US Marine Corps as an F/A-18 pilot and a Forward Air Controller. He completed three tours in Iraq between 2003 and 2007.
As a Forward Air Controller (FAC), he toured with an infantry battalion, tasked with coordinating air support based on the needs of the battalion.
After coming back from deployment, Rickner served as an instructor pilot for the F/A-18.
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April 24, 2025 • 40 mins
Technician Fifth Grade Clement Elissondo served in World War II as a tank gunner. He deployed to France just days after the Invasion of Normandy, and survived the destruction of four of his tanks.
In this interview, Elissondo describes the difficulties of tank warfare, narrowly escaping enemy capture, and the camaraderie amongst a tank’s crew.
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April 17, 2025 • 42 mins
Captain Sidney Salomon served in World War II as an Army Ranger. The Rangers were an elite American unit that trained and operated with the famous British Commandos. Using the element of surprise as their main weapon, the Rangers played an important role in the Invasion of Normandy, the Dieppe Raid, and many other significant campaigns.
In this interview, Salomon describes his experiences on D-Day. He took part in the amphibious ...
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April 10, 2025 • 36 mins
Jim Beaver is an actor most widely known for his role as Bobby Singer in the TV series Supernatural. Before his acting career, Beaver served in Vietnam with the Marine Corps as a radio operator.
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April 3, 2025 • 40 mins
Mal Middlesworth served in World War II in the Marine Corps. He was 17 years old during the Attack on Pearl Harbor, serving on a Marine Detachment on the USS San Francisco.
In this interview, he describes what he saw during Pearl Harbor, the Guadalcanal Campaign, and the Battle of Peleliu.
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March 27, 2025 • 25 mins
Charles Sternburg served in the Navy in World War II with the Black Cats. The Black Cats were a group of bombers that flew stealth missions in the Pacific, tasked often with destroying enemy submarines or flying reconnaissance. They flew seaplanes called PBY Catalinas which were nearly invisible during the night, but were incredibly vulnerable to enemy munitions.
Sternburg flew as a co-pilot and bombardier with the Black Cats.
Le...
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March 20, 2025 • 43 mins
Lieutenant General Charles D. Luckey served in the Army as an infantry officer, special forces officer (Green Beret), and a JAG officer. He retired as the oldest Green Beret in uniform.
In this interview, Luckey tells stories from his service, and what he learned about leadership during his career.
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March 13, 2025 • 34 mins
Commander Jon Macaskill served in Afghanistan as a Navy SEAL. He graduated from the Naval Academy, and served in the SEAL teams from 2003 to 2020.
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March 6, 2025 • 44 mins
Samuel Fine served as a glider pilot in World War II. He trained British Glider pilots, and flew in with them during the Invasion of Sicily. Fine also flew troops into D-Day & Operation Market Garden.
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