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
April 25, 2024 • 50 mins
Master Chief Petty Officer Ken Falke served in the Navy as an Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD) Specialist during the 80s and 90s. He was tasked with disarming all sorts of explosives, and deployed all over the world, including to Iraq during the Gulf War, and Bosnia during the Bosnian War.
Now, Falke and his wife run a non-profit called Boulder Crest which helps veterans and first responders with mental health struggles, and ach...
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April 18, 2024 • 43 mins
Major Edward James Land Jr. served in the Marine Corps during the Vietnam War. In the 1960s, Land and Richard O. Culver Jr. worked together to create the first permanent Marine Corps Scout Sniper School.
In this special episode, Maj Land explains how the school came to be, and tells a few stories from his time in Vietnam.
Thank you to Regal for sponsoring this episode. You can sign up for Regal Unlimited via this link, and make...
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April 12, 2024 • 1 min
"The aircraft started to spin. Not really thinking it was anything unusual, I remember calling the pilot saying, 'Hey sir, are we going to stop this?' When he responded with, 'I can't,' I knew this wasn't going to end well."
Click here to check out our web-exclusive interview with Staff Sergeant Mark Lalli. Lalli served in Iraq as a Blackhawk Helicopter crew chief and survived a helicopter crash that killed six of the eleven passe...
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April 11, 2024 • 32 mins
Lieutenant Colonel Henry “Hank” Buttelmann served in Korea and Vietnam as a fighter pilot. In Korea, he flew the F-86, and became the youngest ace of the war at the age of 24. He left Korea with 6 confirmed kills. Buttelmann retired with four DIstinguished Flying Crosses and a Silver Star.
In this interview, Buttelmann talks about his time in Korea, the F-86, crossing the 38th parallel, and fighting enemy MiGs.
Thank you to Reg...
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April 4, 2024 • 54 mins
In this special episode, Lt. Ken Harbaugh, the host of Warriors In Their Own Words, is interviewed by MOH recipient SSG David Bellavia about his service in the Navy. Harbaugh served from 1996 - 2005 as an EP-3 pilot, tasked with collecting signals intelligence from adversaries such as Russia, North Korea, and China.
You can find more information about the 2001 aircraft collision mentioned in this interview here and here.
Thank y...
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March 28, 2024 • 40 mins
COL Walter Joseph Marm Jr. served as a rifle platoon leader in Vietnam. When a friendly platoon was trapped behind enemy lines, Marm and his platoon were sent to rescue them. Attempting to take a hill held by the enemy, Marm single-handedly killed 14 enemies with his rifle and a grenade before being shot in the face, shattering his jawbone. He then walked back to his command post and was evacuated.
Marm’s heroism led to a success...
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March 21, 2024 • 36 mins
Warning, this episode contains harsh language, graphic violence, gore, and description of rape. Listener discretion is advised.
CSM Tonya Oxendine served in the US Army for nearly 30 years, retiring as a Command Sergeant Major. She did two tours in Iraq & Afghanistan as a paratrooper.
In this interview, Oxendine describes the abuse she endured both at home, and during her time in uniform, and how she overcame that trauma.
Learn...
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March 18, 2024 • 13 mins
Today as a bonus episode, we’ll be airing an episode of Everything Everywhere Daily about Admiral Isoroku Yamamoto. Everything Everywhere Daily is a podcast that allows listeners to learn something new every day on various subjects, like history, science, geography, mathematics, and technology.
Here’s episode #1321, about Admiral Isoroku Yamamoto. He was the leader of the combined Japanese fleet in the Pacific Theater during Wor...
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March 14, 2024 • 54 mins
In this final part of his interview, Kim talks about the Battle of Anzio, earning the Distinguished Service Cross, and his feelings about the war.
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Young Oak Kim was born in Los Angeles to a Korean family in 1919. He tried enlisting prior to World War II, but was denied due to his race. When war finally broke out in Europe, Congress passed the Selective Training Service Act of 1940, requiring all men between the ages of 21 and...
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March 7, 2024 • 53 mins
In this first part of his interview, COL Kim talks about joining the Army, serving as a Korean American in World War II, and the Battle of Monte Cassino
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Young Oak Kim was born in Los Angeles to a Korean family in 1919. He tried enlisting prior to World War II, but was denied due to his race. When war finally broke out in Europe, Congress passed the Selective Training Service Act of 1940, requiring all men between the ages of 21...
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February 29, 2024 • 50 mins
Lieutenant Colonel Joseph Kopser attended West Point before joining a cavalry unit in the U.S. Army. He volunteered to go to Iraq in 2004 working out of one of Saddam Hussein's Palaces and then again in 2006-2007 where he served as a Battalion Executive Officer in the 1st Cavalry Division.
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February 22, 2024 • 47 mins
In this special episode, Lieutenant General Harry Kinnard explains how he helped develop the Airmobile concept- which later became the 1st Air Cavalry Division in the U.S. Army. The Airmobile approach integrated helicopters into the structure of ground forces, allowing troops and supplies to be delivered quickly over difficult terrain, and even over enemy lines. It’s considered as radical as the change from horses to trucks. It was...
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February 15, 2024 • 42 mins
Captain John Robert Cotter served in the Australian Army in Vietnam. He was a combat engineer, tasked with disarming mines, dismantling booby traps, dealing with gas warfare, establishing roadways for infantry transport, and more. He was among the first to discover the tactical importance and vast scale of enemy tunnels, and it was his job to crawl through them in order to map their network, seize supplies, flush out enemies, and p...
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February 6, 2024 • 38 mins
Colonel John Anthony Cash served in the Army as a Rifle Company Commander in Vietnam. In this second part of his interview, Cash tells more incredible stories, reflects on the war as a whole, and talks about coming home.
Before serving in Vietnam, Cash helped train Cuban nationals in the lead up to the Bay of Pigs Invasion.
He later contributed to Seven Firefights in Vietnam, The Exclusion of Black Soldiers from the Medal of Ho...
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February 1, 2024 • 43 mins
Colonel John Anthony Cash served in the Army as a Rifle Company Commander in Vietnam. In this interview, Cash recalls hearing updates about the devastating Battle of Ia Drang around a radio, serving in Operation White Wing, and several tragic stories from his tour.
Before serving in Vietnam, Cash helped train Cuban nationals in the lead up to the Bay of Pigs Invasion.
He later contributed to Seven Firefights in Vietnam, The Exclu...
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January 25, 2024 • 55 mins
Staff Sergeant Charles Klein served in the Army Rangers during the invasion of Normandy. He commanded a section of riflemen, and as a member of the 5th Ranger Battalion, he was one of the first units to land at Omaha beach that day.
In this interview, S/Sgt. Klein recounts his training, D-Day, and being sent home after being wounded in action.
He also shares something a fellow lieutenant said in the months following the invasion...
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January 18, 2024 • 40 mins
Sergeant Jim Purvis served in the Army as an infantryman during the Vietnam War. In this interview, he recounts being kicked out of Officer Candidate School, his time in Vietnam, and how Vietnam differed from previous American military conflicts.
“Anytime you have a war, it's a very, very sad experience.” - SGT Purvis
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January 15, 2024 • 17 mins
Today as a bonus episode, we’ll be airing an episode of History Daily about the Battle of Stalingrad in WWII which we think you’ll enjoy.
History Daily is a show that tells the fascinating stories of what happened “on this day” in history. Every weekday, they share the overlooked and often forgotten stories behind the names and dates of history. They cover a wide range of topics, like war, politics, religion, sports, science, tec...
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January 11, 2024 • 36 mins
Staff Sergeant Aquilino Gonell served in the Army in Iraq. He was born in the Dominican Republic, and was granted US citizenship after joining the military.
In this interview, he discusses the difficulty of gaining citizenship, discipling a fellow soldier for being cruel towards an Iraqi child, and defending the Capitol on January 6th as a Capitol Police Officer.
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December 28, 2023 • 23 mins
In this interview, Rick Render describes the Christmas of 1944, when he spent all day waiting in line to enter a German prison camp.
Render served as an army infantryman in World War II. He was captured during the Battle of the Bulge and taken as a prisoner of war by the Germans. He spent time in prison camps in Nuremberg and Hammelburg, and was liberated in 1945 by his own division.
Learn more about Render here.
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