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C.O. Smith, U.S. Coast Guard, Korea (Interviewed March 5, 2009) C.O. Smith, Texas A&M Class of 1950, is proud of the role that the United States Coast Guard played in World War II. On board the Coast Guard Cutter Bramble, C.O. Smith spent 4 years at sea, almost making it to Europe before mechanical problems sent them to Puerto Rico to dry dock and then through the Panama Canal and to the Pacific and Alaska, where his crew supplied Navy Seabees who were building the Loran Stations.
Charles Smith, U.S. Army, Vietnam (Interviewed July 16, 2009) Charles Smith grew up in Bryan and graduated from E.A. Kemp in 1960. He served 20 years in the U.S. Army and 22 years with the Postal Service. In the Army between 1960 and 1981, He served one tour in Vietnam as a Recon Squad Leader but his duty was cut short by a bout with Malaria. He also served four tours in Germany and one in South Korea.
Randy South, U.S. Marines, Gulf War (Interviewed April 20, 2005) January 16, 1991, is a day few of us should ever forget. We were glued to our televisions watching the invasion of Kuwait. It was the start of Operation Desert Storm and Randy South was there as a mortarman, with 2nd Battalion, 3rd Marines.
Mike Southerland, U.S. Army, Vietnam (Interviewed Jan. 26, 2011) The Brazos Valley and particularly residents of Bryan know Mike Southerland for his service on the Bryan City Council since 2006. Many others though know of his 22 1/2 years of military service in the U.S. Army. One year of that, from Feb 1969 to Feb 1970, was spent as a chopper Pilot in Vietnam, flying some 900 hours of mainly what they called Ash and Trash missions between Chu-Li and 80 miles south of Da Nang. There are some stories to tell of reconnaissance, transport and occasional assault. After Viet Nam, Mike Southerland spent another 19 years in uniform, ending his military career stationed at Bryan’s 420th Engineering Brigade, under General Al Jones.
Bob Spoede, U.S. Army, Vietnam (A&M Class of 1948) (Interviewed February 2, 2007) Bob Spoede is an author and a former A&M professor, and a Vietnam veteran. He was older than most, 38, when he first arrived in country. He served 18 months in the Marines and also served four years in Germany. He was inspired to serve after his brother died in a plane crash while serving as a Marine in 1943.
Dr. Douglass Starr, U.S. Navy, WW II (Interviewed April 17, 2008) Dr. Douglass Starr’s World War II service all happened before he turned 20 years old. But he packed a lot into those 3 1/2 years. A navy sonarman who serve with honor aboard the proud destroyer USS Nicholas DD-449. He was a Texas A&M journalism professor until the age of 83. Douglass Starr has many stories to tell of not only his World War II service but in Korea aboard the Destroyer USS Walke -- And perhaps the most fascinating was his eyewitness to history. On 2 September 1945 in Tokyo Bay, the signing of the surrender by the Empire of Japan aboard the USS Missouri. You see the Nicholas was moored right alongside Big Mo on that historic day.
Dr. Douglass Starr, U.S. Navy, WW II (Interviewed April 17, 2008) Dr. Douglass Starr’s World War II service all happened before he turned 20 years old. But he packed a lot into those 3 1/2 years. A navy sonarman who serve with honor aboard the proud destroyer USS Nicholas DD-449. He was a Texas A&M journalism professor until the age of 83. Douglass Starr has many stories to tell of not only his World War II service but in Korea aboard the Destroyer USS Walke -- And perhaps the most fascinating was his eyewitness to history. On 2 September 1945 in Tokyo Bay, the signing of the surrender by the Empire of Japan aboard the USS Missouri. You see the Nicholas was moored right alongside Big Mo on that historic day.
Paul Stephens, Army Air Corps, WW II (Interviewed Sept. 20, 2006) Colonel Paul Stephens will never forget the early morning hours of June 6, 1944, the dawn of D-Day. Hours before sunrise and the beach invasion at Normandy, came the paratrooper drop behind the beaches between them the Americans and the British flew someone 1,000 transport planes and one of those was a C- 47 piloted by Colonel Stephens. Paul Stephen served his country as a flyer and for more than three years of his long service, witnessed the war in Europe from his cock pit. His is a fascinating story. Paul W. Stephens is A&M class of 1938.
Larry Stewart, U.S. Navy, Vietnam (A&M Class of ‘65) (Interviewed Sept. 8, 2009) Most local folks know Larry Stewart today for his public service as a member of the College Station City Council. But long before he ever even thought about entering local politics, he served 20 years in the U.S. Navy as a Pilot, most of those years flying the P-3 Patrol Plane. A 1965 graduate of the United States Naval Academy, the first six months of his service was flying missions out of the Philippines to Vietnam during the war. The remaining 19-plus years sent him most anywhere there was an 8,000-foot runway. He spent 2 1/2 years based on the carrier USS Lexington. “The Lex” as it’s well-known today to many a tourist to the Corpus Christi Bay area. It’s a fascinating military career.
