Mark Radlinski and Luke Radlinski
Both Mark (left) and Luke (right) Radlinski were lieutenants in the Navy. Luke deployed in 2001 to the Persian Gulf in support of the conflict in Afghanistan, and his brother, Mark, went to Iraq in 2006. But just before Mark left, they had a fight and parted on bad terms.
At StoryCorps they talk about Luke’s email to Mark that helped them move on, and their feelings upon Mark returning home.
Originally aired March 9, 2012, on NPR’s Weekend Edition Saturday.
Tracy Johnson and Sandra Johnson
North Carolina National Guardsman Tracy Johnson (left) is an Iraq war veteran and an Army widow. She is also believed to be the first gay spouse to lose her partner at war since the repeal of “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell.”
Tracy married her long-time partner, Staff Sergeant Donna Johnson, on Valentine’s Day in 2012. Later that year, Donna was killed by a suicide bomber while serving in Khost, Afghanistan. She was 29 years old.
The Army did not consider Tracy to be Donna’s next of kin, but when Army representatives arrived to inform Donna’s family of her death, Tracy presented their marriage certificate and asked to be part of the military escort that would welcome her wife back to U.S. soil. This request was ultimately granted at the insistence of her mother-in-law, Sandra Johnson (right).
At StoryCorps, Tracy and Sandra talk about finding out that their wife and daughter wasn’t coming home.
Originally aired February 16, 2013, on NPR’s Weekend Edition Saturday.
Above: Staff Sergeant Donna Johnson. Photo courtesy of U.S. Army Public Affairs Office.
Judy Pilgrim and Randy Pilgrim
Army Specialist Lance Pilgrim was among the first troops to enter Iraq in March 2003. After he returned home. His father, Randy, quickly realized something was wrong with his son. Eventually, he was diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder and died after an accidental overdose in 2007 at the age of 26.
Suffering from panic attacks upon his return, Lance tried to manage them with pain medications, and according to his mother, Judy, he soon became dependent on the drugs. After he began leaving his base without permission, he was given an other-than-honorable discharge, which meant his service in Iraq no longer qualified him for veteran’s benefits or a military funeral with honors when he died.
After his discharge, Lance, who was later diagnosed with service-related post-traumatic stress disorder, attempted to restore his benefits by writing to the VA.
Listen to Judy read one of Lance’s letters.
The Pilgrims filed a lawsuit against the United States Department of Veterans Affairs claiming negligence in the treatment of their son. The case was settled in 2011 and subsequent, Randy requested a military funeral for Lance. This request was denied.
In 2009, two years after Lance ‘s death, the Army changed his discharge to “honorable” and Judy and Randy received Lance’s medals.
Originally aired January 13, 2013 on NPR’s Weekend Edition Saturday.
Above: Lance Pilgrim with his parents, Randy and Judy, at his pre-deployment ceremony in January 2003. Photo courtesy of Judy Pilgrim.
Marilyn Gonzalez and Jessica Pedraza
Both Sergeant Marilyn Gonzalez and her daughter, Specialist Jessica Pedraza, serve in the Massachusetts Army National Guard.
In 2010, Marilyn received orders to deploy to Iraq, but her daughter Jessica did not. When Jessica found out that her mother was about to be deployed, she changed her job so she would go to war with her mom.
Originally aired December 8, 2012 on NPR’s Weekend Edition Saturday.
Photos on left: Marilyn and Jessica at their base in Kuwait in 2010.
Photo on right: The mother-daughter duo on one of the trucks they drove in Iraq in Camp Speicher, Tikrit, Iraq.
Courtesy of Jessica Pedraza
Gordon Bolar and Dave Isay
StoryCorps founder Dave Isay recorded a
National Day of Listening interview with his friend Gordon Bolar, who is also the General Manager of public radio station WMUK in Kalamazoo, Michigan.
They talked about Gordon’s son, Matthew, who was in the Army and served two tours in Iraq.
Matthew was killed by a roadside bomb in 2007.
Gordon also shared a favorite memory of his son from a few months before his death.
Originally aired November 23, 2012 on NPR’s Morning Edition.
Justin Cliburn and Deanne Cliburn
Specialist Justin Cliburn deployed to Iraq in 2005 with the Oklahoma Army National Guard. His job was to train the Iraqi police in Baghdad.
When he sat down for StoryCorps with his wife, Deanne, he told her about his friendship with a young Iraqi boy named Ali.
On Veterans Day 2014, StoryCorps released a series of animated shorts from our Military Voices Initiative—including one of Justin’s story.
Click here to watch “The Nature of War.”
Originally aired November 10, 2012, on NPR’s Weekend Edition Saturday.
Harvey Hilbert
Army veteran Harvey Hilbert was sent to Vietnam in 1966.
One night his company went on a mission in the South Vietnamese jungle.
It was the last night Harvey fought in the war.
Originally aired November 9, 2012 on NPR’s Morning Edition.
Adeline Rockko and Zachariah Fike
Captain Zachariah Fike is an Army National Guardsman on a special mission.
He finds Purple Heart medals for sale in antique stores and on the internet, buys them, tracks down their rightful owners, and returns them.
So far, he has reunited five families with lost medals.
The first one belonged to Corrado Piccoli, an Army translator who was killed in Europe during World War II.
At StoryCorps Captain Fike and that soldier’s sister, Adeline Rockko, remembered their first conversation.
Denny Meyer
When Denny Meyer enlisted in the Navy in 1968, he had to hide the fact that he was gay.
At the time, homosexuality wasn’t tolerated in the Navy and anyone found to be gay would be discharged from service.
At StoryCorps, Meyer recalled what it was like to be gay and a sailor in those days.
Originally aired June 22, 2012, on NPR’s Morning Edition.
Harrison Wright and Sean Guess
When Sean Guess brought his grandfather, Harrison Wright, to a mobile booth in Austin, he asked about Harrison’s service during World War II.
Harrison was drafted in early 1943 and soon after shipped out to Europe. He played the bugle in his unit, and, at the end of the war, he was called upon for a special assignment.
Originally aired May 25, 2012, on NPR’s Morning Edition.