Monroe County Historical Association

The Vietnam Legacy Project, a partnership of the Vietnam Veterans of America Pocono Chapter 678 and the Monroe County Historical Association, invites local veterans to share their experiences serving our country and the challenges they faced upon returning home.

Whether you choose to write your story or have it recorded it in audio or video format, your contribution will help us preserve a vital part of our history.

Please join us in this effort to honor, document, and preserve the stories of this community’s Vietnam veterans. Your stories will be archived by the Monroe County Historical Association so that present and future generations will be able to research and understand the human impact of this conflict.

QUESTIONS TO CONSIDER
When writing your narrative or preparing for an oral history interview.
Background: When and where were you born? Where did you attend high school and when did you graduate? What were your plans following high school? Did you have any interest in joining the military at that time? Were you following the war in Vietnam and, if so, what were your thoughts about it?

Enlistment/Induction: What were the circumstances surrounding your enlistment/induction? What year was it, how old were you, and what was your family’s reaction? How did you select your branch of service? What was the mood in the country/local area at the time?

Training: Describe your boot camp/training experience(s). How thorough and effective was your training? What special training did you receive?

Initial Experiences: Where were you stationed during the Vietnam era? To what unit were you assigned, and what was your specific job/assignment? Did you deploy to Vietnam? How did you travel and what were your impressions upon arrival? What were your personal concerns, going into combat for the first time?

Combat: Are there memorable combat experiences you would like to share? Describe your emotions when going into combat? How did you deal with your fear? What motivated you to keep going? Were you injured? Were you awarded any medals or citations?

Military service: What was the toughest part about your service? How was the morale for your unit? What did you think about your fellow soldiers/sailors/airmen? What was your impression of the NCOs and officers? How were new arrivals treated? What were your opinions about the enemy you faced and the civilians you encountered? What did you know about what was going on back in the States? What was the reaction to the growing protests against the war at home?

Military life: How did you stay in touch with your family? What was the food like? Did you have plenty of supplies? What did you do when your unit was not in combat? What did you do when on leave? Do you recall any humorous or unusual events? Describe the friends you made while in the service.

Return home: When and how did you return home? Describe your reunion with your family when you came home. How were you treated by the public? What did you do in the days and weeks afterward? Did you have any challenges readjusting to civilian life? What did you think about the way the war ended in 1975?

Life after service: Did you have any difficulties readjusting to life in the U.S.? Did you work or go back to school? Was your education supported by the G.I. Bill? What was your career/profession(s) after the war? Did you continue any of the relationships you formed while in the service? Did you join a veterans’ organization?

Later years: Do you think your sacrifice during the war was justified? How did your experience change you or your outlook on life? Did your military experience influence your thinking about life? What life’s lessons did you learn based on your experiences during the war? What do you think people today should know about what you went through? What do we need to remember about the war and America’s involvement? What advice or wisdom would you pass on to future generations?

Terms and conditions
By participating in the Vietnam Legacy Project, you agree to the following:

• You understand that the purpose of the Vietnam Legacy Project is to collect written and recorded narratives of local Vietnam era veterans for inclusion in the archives of the Monroe County Historical Association.
• You understand that the Monroe County Historical Association plans to retain the product of your participation in the Vietnam Legacy Project, including but not limited to your interview, video, photographs, statements, name, images or likeness, voice, and written materials, as part of its permanent collection.
• You grant the Monroe County Historical Association the perpetual, nonexclusive, transferable authority to manage, display, conserve, reproduce, transmit, prepare derivative works from, distribute, dispose of, donate, and publish the property at the sole discretion of the organization.
• You grant the Monroe County Historical Association the right to use the content in any medium, including but not limited to print, digital, or web-based formats, for public research, educational or informational programs, exhibits, marketing, and/or archival purposes.
• You release the Monroe County Historical Association, and its assignees and designees, from any and all claims and demands arising out of or in connection with the use of the content, including but not limited to any claims for copyright infringement, defamation, invasion of privacy, or right of publicity.