1SG David Jeffers - Episode 12
Soldiers Stories Podcast
Tonight's episode is a retired soldier, 1SG David Jeffers, we served together for 2 years in the mid 80’s when we were young and full of a lot of bull. In those two years we hung out a lot together and enjoyed life. Dave learned he had a passion for teaching, he was an excellent teacher and he still is today. While I enjoyed teaching I could not wait to get back into an operational unit. Which for me there was only one unit I wanted to be in and that was the 82nd Airborne Division
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Korean Conflict Era Sailor - Episode 11
Soldiers Stories Podcast
Richard A. Guenther - A potential draftee who joined the Navy verses being drafted in the Army in 1953. It worked out well for Richard and he had a great tour of duty in the Navy, minus the almost 2 ½ months of Mess Hall duty he had to serve.
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SGT Vietnam Paratrooper - Episode 10
Soldiers Stories Podcast
SGT Fred Castaneda is a proud veteran Paratrooper who served in Vietnam with the 23rd Infantry Division commonly referred to as the Americal Division. The Americal Division is a contraction of "American, New Caledonian Division". This was unusual, as most U.S. divisions are known by a number. After World War II the Americal Division was officially re-designated as the 23rd Infantry Division. However, it was rarely referred to as such, even on official orders.
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Cold War Soldier & WWII Father - Episode 9
Soldiers Stories Podcast
This story is about a Cold War soldier who served in the Army in Germany at one of the key periods in the cold War. In 1961 Joe Wasz 19 was drafted into the service, he like a lot of soldiers drafted and similar my brother Dennis Winn, who I interviewed on my podcast took the draft into his own hands and ask for the draft board to move up his enlistment so he could move forward in his life. Joe was almost immediately activated which started a two adventure in the Army with many up & downs.
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WWII Combat Paratrooper - Darrell G. Harris - Episode 8
Soldiers Stories Podcast
WWII Combat Paratrooper - It is my honor to share this story with you about Darrell G. Harris. Below is a snippet from the comments provided to me by Fred Castaneda from the Podcast Reporter. Darrell G Harris, who was a WWII Airborne paratrooper and combat infantryman demo man with 3 combat jumps (Sicily, Salerno and Holland), as well as a beach landing at Anzio. This episode talks about his experiences in WWII with the 82nd Abn Div.
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Katrina Army Officer & Victim - The Story - Episode 7
Soldiers Stories Podcast
Retired LTC David McPherson was an Army Reserve Officer and served over 20 years of service. The stories will hear revolves primarily around a three year period from August 2005 until 2008. You will also hear about how his decision to join the service, his family and his on and off duties as a US Army Reserve Officer.
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SGT Road Soldier - Episode 6
Soldiers Stories Podcast
This episode is Sergeant Road Soldier. My guest is Grace Nix, Grace was an 88 Mike which is a Motor transport operator. They are primarily responsible for supervising or operating wheel vehicles to transport personnel and cargo. They are the backbone of the Army’s support and sustainment structure, providing advanced mobility on and off the battlefield. Like my other episodes you will learn about the mission of the 88 mike and Grace.
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Tin Can Spook - Episode 5
Soldiers Stories Podcast
Doug Fussell entered the Navy right out of High School. He was looking for the discipline, team work and fortitude the Navy would teach him. His goals were to attend college but he knew a stint in the Navy would be the best choice for his career and development. He served in the Navy from 1990 - 1994 Doug served on DD964 a Spruance-class destroyer. The USS Paul F. Foster named for Vice Admiral Paul F. Foster USN. USS Paul F. Foster Association DD-964
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Buckeye Soldier - Episode 4
Soldiers Stories Podcast
Mike Hamman is featured in this weeks episode. He is another soldier that served in the military during the mid 1990's, which was a period of few major conflicts. His stories are fun and heart felt. He lives in Pine Level North Carolina with his family and served his time at Ft. Bragg, NC
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Airborne Trooper - Episode 3.
Soldiers Stories Podcast
Patrick Horst
info_outlineSGT Fred Castaneda is a proud veteran Paratrooper who served in Vietnam with the 23rd Infantry Division commonly referred to as the Americal Division. https://americal.org/cmsaml/ The Americal Division is a contraction of "American, New Caledonian Division". This was unusual, as most U.S. divisions are known by a number. After World War II the Americal Division was officially re-designated as the 23rd Infantry Division. However, it was rarely referred to as such, even on official orders.
The link below is a short biography of SGT Castaneda recorded by the University of Texas at Austin by the Voces Oral History Project back on January 18, 2010.
https://voces.lib.utexas.edu/collections/stories/fred-castaneda
Fred was drafted and like a lot of draftees he tried to control a little of his own destiny by volunteering to be a Paratrooper. He paints the picture very well in explaining how even though he scored very high on his entrance exam he was given very few options because he was not a United States Citizen. He made the best out of a not so good situation.
I am learning after just my 10th interview, Fred was not different from many veterans, he moved on quickly after he was discharged and put his time in the military behind him, he jumped with both feet into being a very successful civilian, son, husband and father. After two decades Fred landed in the heart of the Army which is North Carolina, the home of the 82nd Airborne, XVIII Airborne Corps, FORSCOM, and the US Army Special Operations Command. He had some time on his hands and decided to visit a recruiting office and there his passion returned as a Soldier & Paratrooper.
Fred is dealing with complications from Agent Orange & PTSD. Hi days are now spent like a lot of veterans who served in Vietnam at the Veterans Administration Hospital. His stories about the media resonated with me all too well and his stories about being a PIG Gunner (this is the affectionate name given to the M60 Machine Gun) was very well told.
You will hear that SGT Fred Castaneda has an excellent radio / podcast voice and if you would like to hear more from Fred he hosts his own podcast at the http://podcastreporter.com/. He has helped me as a fledgling podcaster get off the ground.
Timeline:
Start - Fred is drafted while in College
3m:15s - Volunteered for Airborne along with his buddy
4m.20s - Talk about Fred’s Bio from University of Texas
8m.1s - Why Fred joined the Airborne
12m.15s - Coming Home from Vietnam
18m.43s - Recondo School Instructor
22m.17s - Yom Kippur War,https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yom_Kippur_War
24m.38s - Failed Recruiting Program
26m.44s - Arrived in Vietnam
29m.50s - Injured on an airborne operation at Nijmegen drop zone
33m.15s - Parachute Redeployment Duty
36m.19s - Resurgence in pride & honor of being a Paratrooper
39m. 6s - Adjusting to Civilian Life
42m.45s - Myths around the Army
45m.323s - Engaging the Enemy in Vietnam & Friendly Fire
50m.58s - Dealing with the Media (or as Fred calls it the LAME STREAM MEDIA)
52M.17S - Respect for the Helicopter Pilots & Medics
53m.28s - Best & worst experience in Army
58m.19s - Humorist stories it pass along
1h.03m.27s - Follow up on serious moments
1h.0m.25s - Donut Dolly - Red Cross
1h.15.42 - What does your career look like today
1h.18m3s - Parting thought - A line from the movie Batan
1h.19m - Closing Comments