Living Histories

To Honor, Educate and Preserve our History by Remembering and Honoring our Veterans.

A retired U.S. Army general remembers being at Ground Zero just hours after 9/11 attack

by Commander | Sep 14, 2020 | Living Histories

September 11th, the day when old wounds are reopened and videos of the destruction in New York are replayed on television and social media. September 11th is also a day Americans honor and remember those who lost their lives during the attacks on our country 19 years...

Honoring WWII Veteran Amato Casciato

by Commander | Sep 2, 2020 | Living Histories

Honoring veterans, educating the public, and preserving historical artifacts are the reasons why Emmett Casciato founded the Լ��Ƶ four years ago. These three principles from the museum’s mission statement caught the attention of...

Humor in Uniform

by Commander | Jul 21, 2020 | Living Histories

Vietnam was brutal and scarring for its warriors While interviewing more than 30 Vietnam War veterans, I listened to stories poignant, harsh, and tragic. Like all wars, Vietnam was brutal and scarring for its warriors. Yet, these combatants occasionally laughed at...

Sandy Groendyke B-17 Bomber pilot WWII story. German Prison Camp Survivor

by Commander | Jul 6, 2020 | Living Histories

Sandy Groendyke joined the U.S. Army Air Corps in 1943 Sandy Groendyke joined the U.S. Army Air Corps in 1943 and served as a B-17 Bomber pilot in Europe. After his plane was hit and was forced to land, he was captured and held in a German prison camp for nine...

George

by Commander | Jun 15, 2020 | Living Histories

GEORGE By Carl Burkhart George was thirty-seven years old when he went to prison. But that was okay…it meant that he was probably coming home. The prison’s name was Stalag 12B.A few months before his incarceration, although I was only four years oldI remember looking...

WWII Veteran Dorothy Schieve Served in England and France

by Commander | Jun 14, 2020 | Living Histories

Dorothy tells her story Dorothy Wilson Schieve joined the Army at age 18, in April, 1942. She served in England and was working in Paris during its liberation. She was discharged in May, 1945. “I was born in Van, Texas, but my family moved east for an oil drilling...

A View from the Tonkin Gulf – Reflections of Michael Kuhne, LT, USN.

by Commander | May 14, 2020 | Living Histories

A View from the Tonkin Gulf How did I get to the Tonkin Gulf in Vietnam? My mom and dad served in the European Theater of WWII. My dad made patriotism a given. We felt a sacred commitment to defend our nation and the hopes of others around the world. I chose my path...

Merchant Marine, U.S. Army, and U.S. Navy – Harold Wellington

by Commander | May 13, 2020 | Living Histories

Harold Wellington (in Merchant Marine uniform) served in the Merchant Marine from 1942 to 1946, the U.S. Army in 1948, and the U.S. Navy from 1950 to 1954. He served in Africa, Europe, and the Middle East. A Young Man in Vermont joins the Merchant Marines Harold...

Joe Sansosti and the Fiercely Fought, Little-Known Battle of Dai Do

by Commander | May 10, 2020 | Living Histories

Vietnam Veteran Series - The Battle of Dai Do Joe Sansosti left Brevard High School at 18 to join the Marines. “My daddy told my brother, ‘that dummy doesn’t even know there’s a war going on,” he chuckled. “I just wanted to do something different.” He arrived in...

We took care of American POWs coming back from the Pacific.

by Commander | May 10, 2020 | Living Histories

Dorothy Managan's story: “I was born on January 5, 1923, in Flushing, New York, and grew up there. World War II was going on in Europe when I was in high school. I graduated in 1941 and went into the three-year hospital program for nursing to get my R.N. at the...