Preserving The Oral HistorIES of Combat Veterans

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Tommy Rieman

Operation Iraqi Freedom | Company B, 3rd Battalion, 504th Parachute Infantry Regiment, 82nd Airborne

After a mission, Tommy Rieman and his company also took time to debrief with each other and other members of the Army. When they returned to Kuwait, they reached a deal with a UAV company to get a ride back to their unit. They ended up surveilling the Iraq-Iran border where there was lots of activity. (6:31)
Out on a surveillance mission, Tommy Rieman and his company faced IEDs and RPGs that ended up wounding him and killing some of his friends. After the Quick Reaction Force was able to extract them, he was able to recover from his injuries and enjoy one of the first hot meals since he was deployed. (5:41)
Getting a medical evacuation in Iraq was cathartic but he managed to recover and had a good team behind him to save his life. Returning home was a real challenge as he had to cope with everything that had happened. (6:37)
A unique opportunity, Tommy Rieman was asked to be the model and main character of America's Army, a video game dedicated to depicting American service. Touring around the country representing the game was good for him. (5:23)
Torre Tobiassen

WWII | 6th Naval Beach Battalion

Torre Tobiassen recounts his training in Scotland and Swansea, Wales. He describes his perspective on Slapton Sands as well as many training maneuvers before the invasion. During the D-Day invasion, he recalls hitting a mine and jumping off the same ship as Bob Giguere. (9:46)
Tracy Sheils

Vietnam | 1st Marine Regiment

Tracy Sheils joined the Marine Corps because he thought it was the right thing to do. He had friends going off to Vietnam and he could think of no reason he shouldn't too. (5:21)
He thought it was hot when he stopped in Hawaii, but when Tracy Sheils got to Vietnam, he found out what hot really is. His 2nd night there, the base was targeted in a rocket attack. That's when he found out what scared really is. Soon, he would see action in Hue and the A Shau Valley, and earn a combat promotion. (5:12)
He was called to the command post where there was a badly wounded Marine laying on the floor. Tracy Sheils was ordered to give the man mouth-to-mouth resuscitation, but he saw immediately that the man was dead. "Captain, he's dead." What happened then angers Sheils to this day, and the incident was dramatized in a movie. (3:40)
Sgt. Tracy Sheils never had to pull rank. He had rank, meaning his men respected him and carried out his orders. His mother was concerned about his brothers getting drafted and sent to Vietnam and so was Sheils. He didn't think they had the makeup to survive in that war, unlike the Marines in his unit. (3:52)
His one trip to the hospital was memorable. Fed up with the chaos and screaming, Tracy Sheils couldn't wait to get back to his unit. He talks about surviving an ambush, how he took up smoking and why that was a good thing, and why his flak jacket was worthless. (6:14)