Preserving The Oral HistorIES of Combat Veterans

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Thomas Wells

Operation Iraqi Freedom | 1st Battalion, 9th Cavalry Regiment

Thomas Wells interacted with a lot of Iraqi children but there were two in particular that he found very charming. He would give them candy and money and the last time he saw them, they got a significant parting gift. (2:45)
Ali was taking an immense personal risk. If he was identified as an interpreter for the Americans, he and his entire family could be assassinated. Thomas Wells reveals what happened to Ali. (2:17)
What did they do during down time? As in every war, young men looked around for something to drink. Thomas Wells laughs as he recalls what they came up with. Since it was the dawn of the digital age while they were in Iraq, they had a lot of music and movies on personal media. (4:10)
When his unit returned from Iraq, there was a big ceremony and formation with families waiting. Thomas Wells had no one there, but he had a great homecoming when he finally got to Omaha. He regards the men he served with as heroes and hopes they feel the same about him. (Caution: strong language.) (6:23)
Tim Dunn

Vietnam | Multiple Units

His relatives were all Navy, so when Tim Dunn got it in his head to join the Marines, he caught a little flak. The Navy recruiters had not seemed interested when he and his high school buddies visited the recruiter, plus he thought that, in the Marines, he would have more reliable guys around him. (7:23)
It was shock and awe, by design. It was daytime when Tim Dunn arrived at the airport in South Carolina, but the bus to Parris Island didn't take the recruits there until it was night. More disorienting that way. The language and the volume coming from the DI's was shocking and eventually he realized why it was so harsh. (6:49)
There were three Dunns in boot camp and the senior DI had dubbed Tim Dunn "Admiral Dunn." This became his name through the rest of his time there. Although he had never fired a gun in his life, he managed to score just shy of expert rating. (6:30)
New Marine Tim Dunn had to get to the west coast on a standby ticket. He ran into Bobby Bridges, another Marine who had already been to Vietnam and who coached him on how to avoid getting bumped from the flight. His last stop before the war was in Okinawa, where you could get a last night on the town. (6:01)
He was used to hot, humid summers, but when the door on the airliner opened in Da Nang, Tim Dunn felt like he was standing in front of a blast furnace. The Marines who came to pick him up were dirty and dusty and haggard looking. (5:49)
Hotel Company was the only unit at the outpost south of Da Nang on Highway 4. Marine Tim Dunn later learned that this was area was heavily contested when the French were there. There was a combination of VC and NVA forces active in the area. (6:40)