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Walk In My Combat Boots by James Patterson and Matt Eversmann

Walk In My Combat Boots by James Patterson and Matt Eversmann

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James Patterson, the author of "Walk In My Combat Boots", is the worldwide, best-selling creator of the "Alex Cross" and "Michael Bennett" series of books. Matt Eversmann is a U.S. Army veteran who received the Bronze Star Medal with Valor for leading a team of Rangers in Somalia in 1993. His exploits were depicted in the 2001 film "Black Hawk Down". The two teamed up to create a touching, thoughtful book about the U.S. military, the people who join it, and veterans of three separate eras of conflict, "Walk In My Combat Boots," on bookshelves on Feb. 8.  "Walk In My Combat Boots" is a series of short stories, as told by veterans themselves. The stories cover the entire lifecycle of the veteran experience, starting before becoming a recruit, to war stories, to answering questions about military service from one's children.  Patterson said he was inspired to write the book after watching veterans' interviews and realizing he'd never heard stories from his own veteran family...

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Baghdad Underground Railroad by Steve Miska

Baghdad Underground Railroad by Steve Miska

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In 2007, Iraq was mired in a nearly country-wide civil war. The United States military needed Iraqis to help them quell the violence between Sunni and Shia militias who were tearing the country apart and ambushing American troops.  Bodies were turning up in the streets overnight, IEDs were a constant threat to U.S. forces, and innocent civilians were caught in the crossfire. Thousands of Iraqis, most with no military training, risked their lives to be interpreters for American military units throughout the country.  Their services proved invaluable in the years to come, and they became part of the “family” of the American men and women with whom they served. At home, however, they and their close relatives faced violence, death threats, and other reprisals for aiding the United States. Death Squads roamed the streets and raided homes to find, intimidate and kill Iraqi interpreters.  To incentivize Iraqis to continue their service, Congress authorized special visas for...

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Col Pierre Julien Ortiz, U.S.Marine Corps (1942-1954)

Col Pierre Julien Ortiz, U.S.Marine Corps (1942-1954)

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The first thoughts that come to mind when one thinks about World War II Marines is them landing on bloody beaches and fighting in steamy jungles of the Pacific. But this was not the role of Marine Pierre Julien Ortiz, who served in Africa, the Middle East, and Europe. His exploits and dare-devil attitude were things of fiction yet they were all real. He was an American and a Frenchman with a Spanish name and he lived in remarkable times and did remarkable things. His life was a series of rousing adventures that were the basis for several Hollywood screenplays. He was a ship's mate, a race car driver, a decorated French Foreign Legionnaire with two awards of the Croix de Guerre, a World War II Marine officer with two Navy Crosses and two Purple Hearts, a member of the covert Office of Strategic Services and captured by the Germans only to escape and three years later be captured again - and he was a Hollywood movie actor. He spoke five languages including French, German and Arabic....

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With The Old Breed by E. B. Sledge

With The Old Breed by E. B. Sledge

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Sledge's memoir gives a firsthand and unapologetically honest perspective on the Pacific Theater of World War II. His memoir is a front-line account of infantry combat in the Pacific War. It brings the reader into the island hopping, the jungle heat and rain, the filth and malaise, the fear of potential "banzai attacks," and the hopelessness and loss of humanity that so uniquely characterized the campaign in the Pacific. Sledge wrote starkly of the brutality displayed by Japanese soldiers during the battles and of the hatred that both sides harbored for each other. In Sledge's words, "This was a brutish, primitive hatred, as characteristic of the horror of war in the Pacific as the palm trees and the islands." Sledge describes one instance in which he and a comrade came across the mutilated bodies of three Marines, butchered and with severed genitals stuffed into their mouths. He also describes the behavior of some Marines towards dead Japanese, including the removal of gold teeth...

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PV2 Robert Duvall, U.S. Army (1953 – 1954)

PV2 Robert Duvall, U.S. Army (1953 – 1954)

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Robert Duvall is best known for his 70-plus years in Hollywood, playing such iconic military roles as Lt. Col. Bill Kilgore in "Apocalypse Now," Maj. Frank Burns in "M*A*S*H" and Gen. Dwight D. Eisenhower in the TV miniseries "Ike: The War Years." But did you know that before his acting career took off, Robert Duvall served in the Army, shortly after the end of the Korean War?  Robert Duvall’s Early Life Actor and filmmaker Robert Duvall was born in San Diego, but grew up a Navy brat — an endearing term for a child whose parent is on active military duty. Duvall's father was Navy Rear Admiral William Howard Duvall. His tenure included the time of the Tailhook scandal; he and Rear Admiral John E. Gordon were tasked with conducting the investigation. Robert Duvall’s mother was a relative of American Civil War General Robert E. Lee, and a member of the Lee Family of Virginia, while his father was a descendant of settler Mareen Duvall. Admiral Duvall wanted young Robert to attend...

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The X-15 Rocket Plane by Michelle Evans

The X-15 Rocket Plane by Michelle Evans

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When the Soviet Union launched Sputnik, the first man-made satellite, into low-earth orbit in 1957, it set the Space Race in full motion. The United States was determined to break the barriers of man's entry into space and dominate this undiscovered country.  While NASA projects Mercury, Gemini, and especially Apollo are often remembered and celebrated, a little-remembered partnership between the US Air Force and NASA brought an incredible new aircraft, arguably the first-ever manned spacecraft, to life: the X-15. Author Michelle Evans' 2013 book "The X-15 Rocket Plane: Flying the First Wings into Space" brings new life to the story of the X-15, those who flew the powerful plane, and the men and women who made the X-15 possible, in the air, on the ground, and behind the scenes.  The X-15 was a hypersonic, rocket-powered airplane capable of flying as high as 100 kilometers above the earth's surface, meeting the internationally-accepted boundary of space. It was capable of...

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The Patient Was Vietcong by Dr. Lawrence H. Climo

The Patient Was Vietcong by Dr. Lawrence H. Climo

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Thousands of books about Vietnam have been printed. Nearly all of them are memoirs, authored by those who experienced what is scripted. A few are fiction, occasionally written by someone who was in Vietnam at the time of the war while others are creations of fertile minds. Some have been made into Hollywood movies. What makes "The Patient was Vietcong" different than the standard Vietnam War narrative of books and movies and all those memoirs? Because it is about a healer whose remarkable and uncommon and humbling experiences in a strange land with widely different cultures leads to a self-discovery that is both enlightening and satisfying. In the 1960s, Lawrence Climo was opposed to the war but, unlike many other protesters, did not burn his draft card or leave the country. In 1965 the draft caught up with the young physician just out of medical training. When he finished his military training he would be sent to Vietnam. During training, he learned about a unique humanitarian...

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Capt. Kristoffer Kristofferson, U.S. Army (1967-1975)

Capt. Kristoffer Kristofferson, U.S. Army (1967-1975)

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Kristoffer Kristofferson is a retired American singer, songwriter and actor. Among his songwriting credits are "Me and Bobby McGee", "For the Good Times", "Sunday Mornin' Comin' Down", and "Help Me Make It Through the Night", all of which were hits for other artists. But considering his family background and his education, Kristofferson seemed destined to become a military officer. The son of an Air Force major general, he served as a captain and helicopter pilot in the U.S. Army during his own stint in the service. TogetherWeServed follows Kris Kristofferson’s path from his childhood in Texas to his acclaimed career in the entertainment world, and the role his military service played in shaping his values and his music. Kris Kristofferson’s Early Life Kristoffer “Kris” Kristofferson was born in Brownsville, Texas, in June 1936. In his youth, Kristofferson showed a fondness for country music and a talent for writing, penning his first song at age 11. Kris was a Golden Gloves boxer...

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Heroes From the Wall by John Douglas Foster

Heroes From the Wall by John Douglas Foster

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When the author John Douglas Foster was wounded while serving in Vietnam during the 1968 Tet Offensive, he received more than a piece of metal in his body - haunting memories of comrades opened his soul in a quest to learn more about those who didn't return. Sketching a fascinating portrait of the lives of those who fought and died valiantly, Foster pens a riveting and gut-wrenching read in Heroes from the Wall, ensuring that these heroes will never be forgotten by future generation who didn't know them on the battlefield. Foster seamlessly captures their quirks of personality, playful antics, heroic actions, compassion and care for others, their caring and sharing with their comrades, tender caring for their family and affirmation of life while engulfed in places of death. Foster writes with candor and resonating tone. Reader's Reviews on Heroes From the Wall An unknown name on a gravestone is as dead as the person in the grave. John Foster has brought dead names on the Vietnam...

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PO2 Jeff Bridges, U.S Coast Guard Reserves (1967-1975)

PO2 Jeff Bridges, U.S Coast Guard Reserves (1967-1975)

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Jeff Bridges is an Academy Award-winning actor, a musician, a photographer, and a philanthropist. He served in the US Coast Guard Reserves between 1967 and 1975, but he was a showbiz presence before he ever put on a uniform. The son of renowned Hollywood actor Lloyd Bridges, both his brother Beau and Jeff made appearances with their father on the TV series Sea Hunt between 1958 and 1960. Perhaps it was his father’s Coast Guard Auxiliary experience, combined with the Coast Guard role Lloyd played on the show, that influenced young Jeff’s choice to enlist as a young adult. The Beginning of Jeff Bridges’ Military Career Born in Los Angeles, California, on December 4, 1949, Jeffrey Leon Bridges would go on to become one of his generation’s best-loved actors. A child of privilege, with mother Dorothy and father Lloyd both successful actors, he grew up in the wealthy Holmby Hills neighborhood, and was on film before he was even a year old, in The Company She Keeps (1951). However, in his...

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Famous Veterans Who Died in 2022

Famous Veterans Who Died in 2022

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Honoring Famous Veterans Who Passed Away In 2022 As 2022 draws to a close, we have a lot of memorable losses to reflect on. When a celebrity dies, we go through the cycle of public mourning. Experts say that the loss of a celebrity is personal and undeniably real. It is a sadness that transcends missing their acting, their voice, or comedic timing. At TogetherWeServed, we would like to take a few minutes to remember three famous veterans whose passing was a loss to the entertainment community and their U.S. Military family. Vin Scully: Beloved Dodgers Icon and Navy Veteran Vin Scully, a sportscaster best known for his 67 seasons calling games for Major League Baseball's Los Angeles Dodgers, served in the Navy after graduating high school prior to attending Fordham University. He grew up in the Washington Heights section of Manhattan and fell in love with the game of baseball at the age of eight, becoming a fan of the New York Giants. Scully began his career as a student broadcaster...

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PO3 Isaac Sidney (Sid) Caesar, U.S. Coast Guard (1939-1945)

PO3 Isaac Sidney (Sid) Caesar, U.S. Coast Guard (1939-1945)

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Born in 1922, Sid Caesar was the youngest of three children born to the Ziser family, who were Jewish immigrants who settled in Yonkers, NY. His parents ran a 24-hour luncheonette, and Caesar spent a lot of time around its diverse clientele. From a young age he developed a knack for imitating the cadence and accents of the customers, while speaking in gibberish vaguely reminiscent of their native languages. Caesar himself spoke only English and Yiddish, but could perform this ‘double-talk’, as he called it, to mimic Italian, Polish, Russian, Spanish, Hungarian, French, Lithuanian, and Bulgarian. At the age of 14, Caesar performed in a band called The Swingtime Six as a saxophonist. In 1939, Caesar graduated high school and left home to become a musician. After establishing residency in New York City, working as a saxophonist at the Vacationland Hotel in the Catskill Mountains, he joined the local musicians’ union. Mentored by the resort’s social director, Caesar learned to perform...

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