Alright Athens

Remembering Vietnam: A Conversation with Thanh Boyer and Frank Grose

Frank ‘Max’ Grose was 21 years old in 1967 when he was sent to Vietnam to serve in the 147th assault support helicopter company known as the Hillclimbers. He piloted his Chinook helicopter in and out of dangerous missions to supply troops fighting on the ground. In 1973, as the last U.S. troops pulled out and the country fell under Communist regime, many Vietnamese families made the difficult decision to leave their country in search of a better future. Enter 12-year-old Thanh Boyer: a Vietnam boat refugee who braved the treacherous waters of the South China Sea, both physically and mentally, to finally land in her newly adopted home in America. In Athens, Alabama.  Together, for the first time, Frank Grose and Thanh Boyer share their Vietnam experiences and the work they have done since to help veterans who returned home bearing the scars of war.  Links: https://www.alcpl.org/     If you would like to share a story, please call the library at 256-232-1233 or email apitt-leif@alcpl.org for more information. Music from Pixabay

Thanh Boyer: From Vietnam to Athens, AL

July 18, 1980, Thanh Boyer arrived in Athens, Alabama as a Vietnamese Boat refugee. She was 12 years old. This is her story - a journey of courage, pathos, humor, and single-minded determination to bring the rest of her family to America.   Links: https://www.alcpl.org/     If you would like to share a story, please call the library at 256-232-1233 or email apitt-leif@alcpl.org for more information. Music from Pixabay

Joel Mize: World War II Military Family

Joel Mize is the son and nephew of five World War II veterans representing the U.S. Army, Army Air Corps, U.S. Navy, and U.S. Marines Corps. Growing up they were his personal heroes, along with his grandmother, the matriarch of the Putnam family. Deeply patriotic, she worked in the support staff of the Muscle Shoals nitrate plant in World War I and in Mobile's Brookley Air Base during World War II. She set the tone for her sons to follow, and they served both in the European and Pacific fronts as well as in Occupied Japan. In this podcast Joel Mize talks about their war stories and the legacies they left to a young boy coming of age in the postwar era.  Links: https://www.alcpl.org/     http://www.alabamaveteransmuseum.com/   If you would like to share a story, please call the library at 256-232-1233 or email apitt-leif@alcpl.org for more information. Music from Pixabay

Frank Grose: Vietnam Chinook Helicopter Pilot

Frank ‘Max’ Grose served in the 147th assault support helicopter company in Vietnam, known as the Hillclimbers. He was 21 years old when he got to Vietnam in 1967 and tasked with flying a Chinook helicopter in and out of dangerous sorties to aid troops fighting on the ground. In this podcast he recounts, in riveting detail, missions where mere seconds and inches meant the difference between life and death. Links: https://www.alcpl.org/    http://www.alabamaveteransmuseum.com/   If you would like to share a story, please call the library at 256-232-1233 or email apitt-leif@alcpl.org for more information. Music from Pixabay

Gene Keith: Athens Art Instructor

Gene Keith, retired Athens art teacher, taught his students much more than art: for thirty four years, he also gave them lessons in life.  He reflects on his career and we get a a glimpse of why his creative and thoughtful approach to teaching made him a student favorite. Since retiring, Gene's avocation has been genealogy research and learning about his family history here in Alabama. Library Links https://www.alcpl.org/   If you would like to share a story, please call the library at 256-232-1233 or email apitt-leif@alcpl.org for more information.  Music from Pixabay