Veterans' Voices: Stories From Our Archive

Over the years KQED has collected various stories from veterans and their families. On this Veterans Day, here are some that have stuck with us.

	California Vets Reflect on Iraq Combat’s End President Barack Obama marked the end of the American combat mission in Iraq in August. The California Report’s Scott Shafer talked with veterans about what they would like to hear the president say. Photo slideshow
	Homeless Veterans In San Diego, the VA Medical Center has enrolled 17,000 veterans of Iraq and Afghanistan wars. Almost a third of them are diagnosed with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, and nearly 10 percent have traumatic brain injuries. We meet one homeless veteran who served in the Iraq War. Veterans Village of San Diego
	Veterans and Chronic Pain Navy veteran Derek McGinnis, an above-the-knee amputee, discusses how he uses exercise to deal with chronic pain. Mr. McGinnis also works to help other veterans suffering from chronic pain and Post Traumatic Stress Disorder.
	Grief After War All families are changed when a loved one dies. For military families, the loss is often compounded by the special circumstances of dying in a war. For the past few months, Scott Shafer has been talking with military families about how the death of their loved ones in Iraq and Afghanistan changed their lives — years after their loss. Listen to the first part of this series.
	Tribute Our soldiers have been to hell and back. To Holly Hubbard Preston, no matter what your politics, they deserve far more than our indifference.
	Déjà Vu, All Over Again Greg Unangst, Vietnam veteran, recalls the lament of a fellow soldier in Vietnam and its disturbing echo today.
	The War Zone When the first American combat troops arrived in Vietnam, they joined an army of civilians caught in a brutal war zone. Jill Hunting comments on war’s toll on noncombatants. Read the story.
	War Destroys the Living Too Ann Wasserman lost both her brothers within a single month of World War II. Sixty-three years later she still has not recovered from receiving the devastating news of their deaths via telegram.
	The Injustice at Port Chicago Rev. Diana McDaniel relives the disaster at Port Chicago through the eyes of her Uncle Irvin.
	Making a Difference Dean Woo was among American soldiers who liberated the Nazi death camp at Dachau. He and his daughter Evelyn tell the story of what he saw and what he did.