The head of the Vietnam Center and Archive’s Oral History Project, Dr. Kelly Crager, has an article in the August 2009 newsletter of the Society of American Archivists Oral History Section newsletter, Dialogue. Featured articles in this month’s newsletter focus on oral history projects in Texas. Dr. Crager’s article highlights the Vietnam Center and Archive’s Oral History Project.
Tag: oral history
-
Ambassador Siv Interview
Photo taken by Victoria Lovelady, Public Relations Coordinator
The oral hisotry interview of Ambassador Sichan Siv is now available online. To listen to this remarkable interview click here or search the Vietnam Center and Archive’s Virtual Vietnam Archive.
-
An Interview With Ambassador Sichan Siv
Photo Courtesy of Victoria Lovelady, Senior EditorOn the morning of March 12, 2009 Ambassador Sichan Siv sat down to an interview with Head Oral Historian Kelly Crager and Vietnamese American Heritage Archivist Ann Mallett. Ambassador Siv, graciously agreed to be the first person to be interviewed for the Vietnam Archive’s Vietnamese American Heritage Oral History Project, and to be the keynote speaker during the banquet on the evening of March 14th at the 2009 Vietnam Center Conference: Laos, Cambodia, and Thailand and the Vietnam War. Crager and Mallett conducted the interview in order to record Ambassador Siv’s phenomenal story in his own words and to hear in his voice the expression, emotion, and feeling of his words that is not fully conveyed by the written word alone.The questions Crager asked Ambassador Siv document the Ambassador’s incredible life journey of faith, hope, love, and perseverance over great adversity and loss. Throughout his life Ambassador Siv has always helped others no matter how desperate his own circumstances were. As a young man in Cambodia he worked for CARE (Cooperative for Assistance and Relief Everywhere) to help refugees during the Vietnam War. After surviving the killing fields of the Khmer Rouge and losing his entire family (his mother, brother and sister-in-law, sister and brother-in-law, and their children were all killed by the Khmer Rouge) he escaped to Thailand where he helped his fellow prison inmates and fellow refugees living in a Thai refugee camp by teaching English (before being placed in a refugee camp he was imprisoned for illegal entry into Thailand because he no longer had any ID or documentation). Once the Ambassador immigrated to the U.S. in 1976 he continued his humanitarian efforts and worked to help refugees from his position as Deputy Assistant to the President for Public Liaison and U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations.The Ambassador walked into the room for the interview carrying his distinctive red and black jacketed memoir, “Golden Bones: An Extraordinary Journey From Hell in Cambodia to a New Life in America,” just published eight months prior (July 1, 2008). Immediately upon seeing Ambassador Siv one is stuck by how distinguished looking he is and the air he gives of being laid back, relaxed, and comfortable in any situation. He is tall, athletic, and looks younger than his actual age, one would not guess that he had just celebrated his 61st birthday less than two weeks prior to the interview. Siv walks with an agility and grace that belies that his legs were severely wounded by pungi sticks when he fell into a booby trap while fleeing Cambodia, and that he had been malnourished and starved for nearly a year in a Khmer Rouge slave labor camp. His eyes, smile, and jokes reveal a genuine kind and caring spirit. The Ambassador is an eloquent and gifted speaker, extremely intelligent and observant, and speaks many languages.Crager began the interview of Ambassador Siv by asking the Ambassador about his beginnings, his childhood in Cambodia, and ended with accounts of his experiences as a U.S. Ambassadaor to the UN. Ambassador Siv was born on March 1, 1948 (year of the Boar 2490) in Phochentong (his father’s village) under a full moon. (Sichan means “beautiful moon.”)
Photo Courtesy of Victoria Lovelady, Senior Editor
Left to Right (Ambassador Sichan Siv, Ann Mallett, and Martha Pattillo Siv)
-
Student Spotlight: Natalie Swindle
Natalie Swindle has worked as a graduate assistant for the Oral History Project of the Vietnam Archive since August of 2007. She came to the archive after graduating from Angelo State University with a Bachelor of Science degree in Psychology. Natalie is the interview transcription editor for the OHP, and she also conducts oral history interviews with Lubbock area veterans. Originally from Kerrville, Texas, Natalie is working on a Masters of Education in Counselor Education on the community counseling track. Her long term career plan is to become a counselor for veterans. -
Forward Air Controllers Reunion
From 1-5 October 2008, I attended the biennial reunion of the Forward Air Controllers (FACs) of Vietnam. Held in Colorado Springs, CO, this year’s reunion centered around the dedication of a memorial to the FACs at Memorial Park, a place well known to Air Force veterans.Forward air controllers served as the eyes of the U.S. military in Vietnam, usually piloting slow-moving, propeller-driven airplanes to observe enemy movements in the jungle, and often receiving deadly fire at low altitudes. The FACs are an amazing group of men noted for their bravery in combat, and for their maverick attitude in general. It was a real pleasure to spend several days with them, listening to their stories and getting to know them.I was especially honored to meet Col. Bud Day, a veteran of World War II and the Korean War, who also led the “Misty” FACs (those flying F-100 jets) before being shot down over North Vietnam in 1967. Colonel Day spent the remainder of the war as a POW in various prison camps, and was awarded the Medal of Honor after returning home in 1973. Colonel Day is the most heavily decorated living veteran in the United States.
-
Oral History Interview of Interest
We have recently posted to our Oral History web page an interview conducted with Mr. Michael Little. Little served in the Central Highlands with the 504th MP Battalion from August of 1967 until August of 1968. While in country, Little underwent a life changing experience when he developed a very close relationship with a group of Bahnar Montagnard children from a village near Pleiku. Following his departure from Vietnam in August of 1968, Little attempted to stay in contact with the children through friends in the 504th, but lost contact after the last of his buddies returned to the US. However, in 1994, after years of separation, Little was able to reconnect with his Montagnard family when the Vietnamese government opened the Central Highlands to foreign visitors. In this interview, Little recounts his experiences in Vietnam with particular focus on his continuing relationship with his Bahnar family. In addition to helping his “adopted” family, Little continues to aid the Montagnard people through his role as a board member of the Friends of Vinh Son Orphanage. Little’s story is one of a remarkable bond that could not be broken by time, distance, or the fortunes of war.(Photo courtesy of Mike Little)Related Links: -
Dr. Kelly Crager to speak in Washington, D.C.
Oral Historian Dr. Kelly Crager will travel to Washington D.C. next week to participate in academic gatherings and a Congressional briefing. First on his agenda is a panel discussion, “American POWs of the Japanese: World War II Experiences,” at the Sigur Center for Asian Studies, part of The Elliot School of International Affairs, at the George Washington University. On Wednesday, September 10 he will speak before the Senate Armed Services Committee on the issue of compensation for prisoners of the Japanese during World War II. Finally, on September 11, he will make a presentation on his recently published dissertation, “Hell under the Rising Sun: American POWs and the Building of the Burma-Thailand Death Railway,” at the Navy Memorial Lecture Hall, in an event co-sponsored by Navy Memorial and the Asia Society. Congratulations, Dr. Crager, on these outstanding achievements and contributions! Photo courtesy of Wikipedia -
Medal of Honor Winner Ed Freeman, 1928-2008
Retired Army Helicopter pilot and a winner of the nation’s most prestigious military honor, Captain Ed Freeman, passed away on August 20 in Boise, Idaho, after a long illness. He is survived by his wife Barbara, and sons Michael and Douglas Freeman.Captain Freeman was a veteran of World War II, Korea, and Vietnam, and the recipient of the Congressional Medal of Honor for his actions on November 14, 1965 at Landing Zone X-Ray, in the Ia Drang Valley of Vietnam. His citation credits him with helping save 30 seriously wounded soldiers in 14 separate rescue missions in an unarmed helicopter. The heroic actions of Captain Freeman and others at the battles of Ia Drang were chronicled in the book We Were Soldiers Once…And Young and the Mel Gibson film adaptation.Vietnam Center and Archive staff had the honor of meeting Freeman at the 2005 40th Anniversary Reunion of the Ia Drang Battles held in Washington D.C. At the reunion, Dr. Richard Verrone interviewed Captain Freeman about his experiences in that campaign.Related Links: -
Gamewardens of Vietnam Reunion
From 17-19 July, I had the pleasure of attending the reunion of the Gamewardens of Vietnam in Norfolk, Virginia. 2008 marked the 40th anniversary of the Gamewardens, so this was certainly a very special event. The U.S. Navy initiated Project Gamewarden to combat enemy traffic on the inland waterways of the Mekong Delta during the war, and this Brown Water Navy was involved in some of the most harrowing experiences of the Vietnam War. Mainly operating PBRs (patrol boat river) these sailors plied the rivers and canals of South Vietnam, searching for shipments of enemy weapons, food, etc.As you might imagine, I met a number of very colorful individuals at the reunion, and enjoyed the distinct honor of speaking with members of River Division 593, a group whose gallantry in combat earned them a number of medals, including the Navy Cross which was bestowed upon David Larsen in 1970.The Gamewardens have offered much support to the Vietnam Center and Archive over the years (see Gamewardens collections donated to the Archive), and I look forward to working with them in the Oral History Project in the future. -
Student Spotlight: Melinda Moser
Student Assistant Mindy Moser has worked as a transcriptionist for the Oral History Project for three years. She recently completed her degree in Nutritional Science and is currently in the graduate program at Texas Tech. This summer, Mindy spent three weeks in Nigeria as a volunteer for the Children’s Emergency Relief International, providing basic health care and teaching children in the country’s largest AIDS orphanage. She is originally from Dallas, Texas.Mindy will soon leave us to work for Covenant Health Systems. Good luck in all your future endeavors, Mindy!
