In June 2022, HPR teamed up with StoryCorps to gather audio conversations from Hawai‘i residents about their military experiences. Whether it's stories of service... stories of being marginalized... or stories that fall somewhere in between... these stories are as nuanced and diverse as our island communities.
The Military Voices Initiative provides a platform for veterans, service members, and military families to share their stories. In doing so we honor their voices, amplify their experiences, and let them know that we — as a nation — are listening.
StoryCorps’ mission is to preserve and share humanity’s stories in order to build connections between people and create a more just and compassionate world. As part of the Military Voices Initiative, all recordings have been archived at the Library of Congress.
These interviews were recorded by StoryCorps, a national nonprofit whose mission is to preserve and share humanity’s stories in order to build connections between people and create a more just and compassionate world, and facilitated by Hazel Diaz, Isabella Gonzalez, Cole Johnston and Franchesca Peña. Audio was produced for Morning Edition and All Things Considered by John Kalani Zak. John shares his perspective on working with the Military Voices Initiative segments in his producer's notes.
Local support for this series comes from Hawaiʻi Pacific University.
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John Zak hosts an hour-long special that honors those who have served. Listen to stories from Hawai‘i residents about their experiences in and with the military. -
Courtesy Steven JensenAs a young man, Steven Jensen dedicated himself to helping others. He noticed that veterans returning from Vietnam were having difficulty with civilian life. These observations helped to inspire Jensen's desire to become a Navy chaplain.
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For many years, U.S. Rep. Ed Case has been a staunch advocate for veterans. He speaks with his friend and constituent Allen Hoe about Allen's experiences as a combat medical officer in the Army. -
Carla Orellana, a Hawaiʻi Island mother who works with wounded warriors, confronted her deepest fears when her son was deployed to Afghanistan. She talks about what it was like learning that her son had been severely injured. -
Friends Richard Ha and Alexey Katko discuss Richard's life and his time as a soldier in the Vietnam War. After dropping out of college, Richard was drafted into the military, where he discovered life-saving leadership skills in the jungles of Vietnam. -
One of the participants was Hawaiʻi Island resident Helen Naho’opi’i, who served in the U.S. Army in the 1970s. She shared a personal story of how she continues to heal after being sexually assaulted while serving. -
Oʻahu-native Kevin Kuroda shares the amazing story of how his uncle's 1940 Farrington High School class ring was lost in France during World War II — and returned to the Kuroda family just last month. The Conversation's Russell Subiono has the story.
