Ho Tran, Tony. Interview April 22nd, 2023.
Vietnamese diaspora; Refugees; Ethnic identity; Vietnam; Amerasians
Tony Ho Tran is a writer in Chicago. In this interview, he talks about his family's immigration story, his childhood as a restaurant kid, and his mother's mixed-race heritage and his search for her father. He also speaks on his search for identity and embracing his Vietnamese heritage as an adult.
Tony Ho Tran
California State University San Marcos University Library
Jennifer Ho
In copyright.
English
Sioux City (Iowa); Vietnam; Chicago (Ill.)
Vietnamese diaspora; Refugees; Ethnic identity; Vietnam; Cambodia
Randy Kim is a speaker, storyteller, podcaster and non-profit professional based in Chicago. In this interview, he talks about his life experiences as a queer Vietnamese-Khmer American, including his childhood, background, and creative work. Randy also speaks on his relationship with his family members and the people he has met who have impacted his life for the better.
Randy Kim
Kuala Lumpur (Malaysia) Chicago (Ill.) Vietnam Cambodia
Luevano, Dora. Interview November 6th, 2025
United States. Marine Corps
Pacific Bell Telephone Company
Camp Pendleton (Calif.)
Camp Lejeune (N.C.)
California State University, San Bernardino
Palomar College
Dora Luevano served as a corporal in the U.S. Marine Corps. She was stationed at Camp Pendleton during the Vietnam War. Luevano worked in a warehouse and office, processing deceased servicemembers, collecting their personal effects, and writing letters to their family and loved ones. Luevano described her strict upbringing, immigration to the U.S. as a child from El Salvador, and decision to enlist in the Marine Corps. Luevano was forced out of military service for getting married and having a child, and she reflected on the harsh expectations and regulations that affected women in military service. She spoke about her 60-year marriage to her husband, whom she met in the Marine Corps, and their life together after military service. Luevano described how her civilian life was shaped by her upbringing, religion, military service, education, professional career, business ownership, and husband’s recent passing.
Dora Luevano
Jason Beyer
In copyright
Vietnam
San Salvador (El Salvador)
El Salvador
United States
San Francisco (Calif.)
South Carolina
New York (United States)
Fallbrook (Calif.)
Las Vegas (Nev.)
California
Palm Desert (Calif.)
Indio (Calif.)
Palm Springs (Calif.)
Philippines
Vista (Calif.)
Burke, Gina. Interview November 13th, 2025
United States. Army Nurse Corps
Vietnam War, 1961-1975
Catholics
Tagalog language
Cebuano language
Iloko language
World War, 1939-1945
MacArthur, Douglas, 1880-1964
Leyte, Battle of, Philippines, 1944
Nursing education
Military nursing
Fort Sam Houston (Tex.)
Fort Bliss (Tex.)
William Beaumont Army Medical Center (El Paso, Tex.)
Travis Air Force Base (Calif.)
Vietnam. Army of the Republic of Vietnam. Corps, 1st
United States. Army. 95th Evacuation Hospital
Quonset huts
Scrub nurses
Medical Civic Action Programs
American National Red Cross
Fort Hood (Tex.)
San Marcos Vet Center (Calif.)
San Diego VA Medical Center (San Diego, Calif.)
Agent Orange
Veterans of Foreign Wars of the United States
Vietnam Veterans of America, Inc.
American Legion
Palomar College (San Marcos, Calif.)
Cruisin’ Grand (Escondido, Calif.)
Post-traumatic stress disorder
Gina Burke served during the Vietnam War as a First Lieutenant operating room nurse in the U.S. Army Nurse Corps. Burke spoke about her family background in the Philippines, immigration to the U.S., and father’s military service. She enlisted in the Army Nurse Corps so she could complete nursing school with financial aid. Burke deployed to Vietnam and served mostly as a scrub nurse at a time when operating room nurses were in high demand. Burke reflected on the difficult working conditions and traumatic experiences that characterized her wartime service. She spoke about her social life and experience as a woman in the military. In this oral history, Burke shared how the military shaped her life and worldview. She spoke about her transition to civilian life and struggles with PTSD. Burke reflected on how counseling, community service, and veteran associations helped her feel better about her military service.
Gina Burke
San Marcos (Calif.)
Leyte (Philippines)
Cebu (Philippines)
Luzon (Philippines)
Denver (Colo.)
Escondido (Calif.)
El Paso (Tex.)
Ho Chi Minh City (Vietnam)
Da Nang (Vietnam)
San Diego County (Calif.)
Los Angeles (Calif.)
San Diego (Calif.)
Chula Vista (Calif.)
Labrado, Ed. Interview November 17th, 2025.
United States. Army
United States. Army—Officers
United States. Army. Signal Corps
Cold War
University of California, Santa Barbara
Patton, George S. (George Smith), 1885-1945
United States. Army. Army, 3rd
United States. Army. Armored Division, 6th
United States. Army. Reserve Officers' Training Corps
Reserve Officers’ Training Corps (United States)
Camp Roberts (Calif.)
M1 rifle
World War, 1914-1918
Korean War, 1950-1953
M14 rifle
M16 rifle
Fort Gordon (Ga.)
Fort Monmouth (N.J.)
Cryptography
Missiles
Fort Ord (Calif.)
Funeral rites and ceremonies
Noncommissioned officers
Warsaw Pact (1955-1991)
North Atlantic Treaty Organization
Bank of America, National Association
Nike Hercules missile
Nuclear weapons
Ramstein Air Base (Germany)
Kennedy, John F., 1917-1963—Assassination
Cuban Missile Crisis, 1962
United States. Army—Deserters
Nuclear warfare
Deterrence (Strategy)
Peace Corps (U.S.)
Edwin Joseph Labrado Jr. was a captain in the U.S. Army Signal Corps. He was deployed in Europe during the Vietnam War. Labrado was born and raised in Santa Barbara, where he graduated from UCSB and completed the Army's four-year ROTC program. After graduation, he was assigned to the Army Signal Corps and later deployed to Europe. In Europe, he served as a battalion signal officer for a Nike Hercules missile battalion that had nuclear warheads. Some of his other responsibilities included communications training, military funeral honors, and the inspection of firing batteries. In this oral history interview, Labrado reflected on the Cold War, the US anti-Vietnam War movement, and how Americans treat veterans after military service.
Ed Labrado
Europe
Santa Barbara (Calif.)
Port Hueneme (Calif.)
Ventura (Calif.)
Georgia
New Jersey
Monterey (Calif.)
Oakland (Calif.)
Russia (Federation)
Soviet Union
Germany (East)
Germany (West)
Korea
Isla Vista (Calif.)
France
Germany
Ukraine
Nagasaki (Japan)
Shaffer, David. Interview November 20th, 2025
United States. Air Force
Consolidated Aircraft Corporation
Convair
Victory over Japan Day
San Diego State University
Keesler Air Force Base (Miss.)
United States. Army Corps of Engineers
Six-Day War
Sinai Peninsula
Lajes Field (Azores)
Strategic Air Command (U.S.)
Hahn Air Base (Germany)
Lackland Air Force Base (Tex.)
United States. Federal Aviation Administration
Tinker Air Force Base (Okla.)
Bundesanstalt für Flugsicherung (Germany)
World War, 1939–1945
United States. Air Force—Occupational specialties
Davis–Monthan Air Force Base (Ariz.)
McGuire Air Force Base (N.J.)
Hitler-Jugend
European Recovery Program (1948–1952)
Servicemen’s Readjustment Act of 1944
Andrews Air Force Base (Md.)
United States. Department of Veterans Affairs
McClellan–Palomar Airport (Calif.)
Germany. Luftwaffe
Mikoyan (Firm)
Sukhoi (Firm)
Johnson, Lyndon B. (Lyndon Baines), 1908–1973
Fulda Gap (Germany)
Freemasons
Captain David Shaffer served in Europe as an air traffic controller during the 1960s. Shaffer was raised in San Diego County where his father was an engineer for Convair. From a young age, Shaffer aspired to become a military pilot, a goal which his tall height prevented. As an air traffic controller, Shaffer spent most of his deployment in Portugal and West Germany during the Cold War. He designed forward airfields during the 1967 Arab–Israeli war, although the conflict was over before they could be used. After leaving military service, Shaffer taught high school industrial arts in North San Diego County. He used the G.I. Bill to gain his master’s degree from San Diego State College and his private pilot license. In this oral history interview, Shaffer tells stories from his military service and reflects on the importance of patriotism.
David Shaffer
Colorado Springs (Colo.)
Colorado
Texas
Pennsylvania
Cortez (Colo.)
Shelter Island (San Diego, Calif.)
Azores (Portugal)
Portugal
San Antonio (Tex.)
Oklahoma City (Okla.)
Tucson (Ariz.)
Arizona
Mississippi
Israel
Middle East
Austria
Bavaria
Kastellaun (Germany)
Koblenz (Germany)
Libya
Africa, North
Winston-Salem (N.C.)
North Carolina
Iowa
Berlin (Germany)
Frankfurt (Germany)
Berlin (Germany : West)
Garmisch-Partenkirchen (Germany)
Kitzbühel (Austria)
Zweibrücken (Germany)
Moscow (Russia)
Munich (Germany)
Philadelphia (Pa.)
Ohio
New Zealand
Australia
Canada
Carlsbad (Calif.)
Arkansas
Galyean, Thomas. Interview November 12th, 2024.
United States. Army—Veterans
Poultry farms
United States. Forest Service
El Cariso Hotshots (Calif.)
Reserve Officers' Training Corps
San Marcos High School (San Marcos, Calif.)
University of California, Los Angeles
Loop Fire, Calif., 1966
Air pilots—Training of
Fort Wolters (Tex.)
Fort Knox (Ky.)
Bell AH-1 Cobra (Attack helicopter)
Phan Rang (Vietnam)
Bearcat (Vietnam)
Napalm
Fort Rucker (Ala.)
Democratic National Convention (1968 : Chicago, Ill.)
Gray Air Force Base (Tex.)
Ground-controlled approach (Aeronautics)
Vietnam Helicopter Pilots Association
United States. Army. 7th Cavalry Regiment
University of Virginia
My Lai Massacre, Vietnam, 1968
Legal education—United States
Lawyers
Fort Polk (La.)
Ho Chi Minh Trail (Vietnam)
Thomas Earl Galyean was a Captain in the U.S. Army during the Vietnam War. He served with the 7-17th CAV as commanding officer of the aero rifle platoon, securing landing zones for aircraft. Galyean then served as an Assistant S3 for the operations section of headquarters, ensuring that aircraft received their assignments. Raised on his family’s chicken hatchery in San Marcos, California, Galyean narrates his family history, his decision to join the U.S. Army, and his interest in helicopter flight. Galyean describes his experience in flight school, including reflections on media representations of military training and the Vietnam War. Galyean describes his unique role while serving stateside, forming a military response team to suppress riots in the wake of the 1968 Democratic National Convention. Galyean meditates on the impact of controversial topics, such as the My Lai massacre, civilian casualties, and the rules of engagement. Galyean reflects on religion, comradery, family, and how the military changed his life.
Thomas Galyean
Kentucky
Tây Nguyên (Vietnam)
Vietnam (Republic : 1954-1975)
Laos
Cambodia
Chicago (Ill.)
Brownsville (Tex.)
Brawley (Calif.)
Imperial County (Calif.)
Sacramento (Calif.)
Louisiana
Alabama
Pleiku (Vietnam)
Biên Hòa (Vietnam)
Qui Nhon (Vietnam)
Beacham, Dora. Interview November 1st, 2024
United States. Marine Corps—Non-commissioned officers
Operation Enduring Freedom, 2001-2014
Marine Corps Recruit Depot Parris Island
United States. Marine Corps—Military occupational specialties
Victim advocates
United States. Marine Corps. Advanced Infantry Training Battalion
Educational benefits—United States
Women soldiers
Molly Marine (Symbolic figure)
Hispanic Americans
Master Sergeant Dora Beacham served in the U.S. Marine Corps during Operation Enduring Freedom. Beacham was part of Combat Service Support Group 1 and the 11th Marine Regiment. She was deployed to Camp Fallujah, Iraq from January to August of 2004. As a Hispanic woman from a small town, Beacham reflected on how military service shaped her life and provided important opportunities. In this oral history interview, she described her family, education, and life lessons from military service.
Dora Beacham
Hondo (Tex.)
Norfolk (Va.)
Twentynine Palms (Calif.)
Iraq
Idaho
New York
Fallujah (Iraq)
Lacea, Jan Michael Letigio. Interview November 8th, 2024.
Jan Michael Letigio Lacea served in the Navy for eight years. He was frocked Petty Officer First Class HM1 (Hospital Corpsman First Class) before he left the service. Lacea described his service in the Philippines for Operation Enduring Freedom, and he reflected on his own identity as a Filipino American immigrant. He also recounted his return to civilian life, attending graduate school at CSU San Marcos, the support he received from the CSUSM Veterans’ Center, and the life lessons he learned from military service.
Carr, Jim. Interview, September 26, 2017
Barcoding
Distribution Services
California State University San Marcos
Fixed asset tracking
Sustainability
Jim Carr spent 23 years at California State University San Marcos working for the Distribution Services team and was instrumental in implementing the first barcoded inventory tracking system for the University. Jim discusses his time working for CSUSM as part of Distribution Services and how his education and background led to him this job.