Personal Narrative Film, Video Manuscript/Mixed Material Photo, Print, Drawing Larry Bond Collection
Veterans History Project Service Summary:
- War or Conflict: Iraq War, 2003-2011; Cold War
- Branch of Service: Army
- Unit of Service: 131st Transportation Company, Army National Guard
- Location of Service: Fort Bliss, Texas; Germany; Fort Lewis, Washington; California; Fort Dix, New Jersey; Camp Arifjan, Kuwait; Iraq
- Highest Rank: Specialist Four; Sergeant
- Collection Number: AFC/2001/001/43890
At the age of 19, Larry Bond enlisted in Army, attracted by the promise of a good specialty, that of radar mechanic. He served for seven years; twelve years later, he was drawn back into serving in the military, this time as a citizen soldier in the Army National Guard. His unit was activated for duty in Iraq in the early days of Operation Iraqi Freedom. In his capacity as a truck driver, he saw enough errors committed by his own men, especially officers, to make him extremely wary, a condition which carried over in his re-entry into the civilian world.
Interview / Recording
Share
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PlayArriving in the Middle East; original plan was to begin in Turkey and enter Iraq from there, but they actually began in Kuwait; he was a truck driver but also had other duties; soldier in his unit picked up a device from a bombed-out truck and brought it back to camp; it turned out to be an explosive which went off, injuring him and several other men; this was preventable because the soldier had shown off the device and no one did anything about it. 00:07:11.0 - 00:14:14.2
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Playwhenever a car passed him if a bomber might be in it; a market next to their base's wall was bombed and only after that was the market moved; he blames the leadership for not anticipating that; his truck getting stranded for two hours one night when an escort got lost; a near-fatal mix-up at a check point. 00:14:23.5 - 00:24:47.8
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PlayUnit deactivated in April 2004; there were some injuries but no fatalities in his unit; took some time off after he got home; did not go back to his old job; has a problem with authority; was angry over a fatal job accident caused by his company rushing a worker. 00:34:12.1 - 00:39:57.7
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PlayHow the military affected his life in a positive way; authority must be questioned. 00:42:37.0 - 00:44:17.1
About this Item
Title
- Larry Bond Collection
Names
- Bond, Larry
- Herman, Rakim
- Draper, Mark
- Sade Williams
- Free Library of Philadelphia
Home State
- Pennsylvania
Headings
- - Bond, Larry
- - Cold War -- Personal Narratives
- - United States. Army.
- - Iraq War, 2003-2011 -- Personal Narratives
- - United States. Army.
Repository
- Veterans History Project, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress
Gender
- Male
Status
- veteran
Service History
-
Cold War
- Branch of Service: Army
- Highest Rank: Sergeant
- Dates of Service: 1976-1983
- Entrance into Service: Enlisted
- Military Status: veteran
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Iraq War, 2003-2011
- Branch of Service: Army
- Unit of Service: 131st Transportation Company, Army National Guard
- Location of Service: Fort Bliss, Texas; Germany; Fort Lewis, Washington; California; Fort Dix, New Jersey; Camp Arifjan, Kuwait; Iraq
- Highest Rank: Specialist Four
- Dates of Service: 1995
- Entrance into Service: Enlisted
- Military Status: veteran
Materials
- Video: DVD [1 item] -- Oral history interview (collected 2006-07-28; 2006-08-03)
- Video: VHS [1 item] -- Reference copy (collected 2006-07-28; 2007-05-29)
Collection Number
- AFC/2001/001/43890
Cite as
- Larry Bond Collection (AFC/2001/001/43890), Veterans History Project, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress
Online Format
- image
- video
Additional Metadata Formats
Part of
Wars & Conflicts
Service Branch
Location of Service
- California
- Camp Arifjan, Kuwait
- Fort Bliss, Texas
- Fort DIX, New Jersey
- Fort Lewis, Washington
- Germany
- Iraq