Interview

Katie: What is your name?

Detroy: Detroy

Katie: Where are you from?

Detroy: Norfolk, NE

Fauna: What war were you in?

Detroy: Korean

Fauna: What was the main religion during the war?

Detroy: I think it would have been protestant. Well, that was for the soldiers. Over  in Korea it was probably Hinduism.

Katie: How was the fashion different from now?

Detroy: There was quite a change. The fashion wasn’t as much of an issue as it is today. Now people care a lot more about if they are in fashion. They didn’t really care back then.  

Katie: What year were you called up?

Detroy: 1951, I was a jr. in college. During that time there was a test and you could take this test to see if you were able to finish college. There were 35 people who took the test and I was one of the two that passed. I was able to finish college before I left for the war. 

Fauna: Did you think you were going to have to fight in the war?

Detroy: Well yah, when I first went over there we were bombed practically every night. I was assigned to the 8^th US, so I was protected practically every day.

Fauna: Was anyone (family or friends) affected when you were in the war?

Detroy: I don’t think so; if anyone was affected then it was probably minimal. I don’t think they even missed me!

Katie: Did you have any relatives fighting with you?

Detroy: No, my brothers were either too old or too young to fight.

Katie: How long did you fight for?

Detroy: 17 months and 9 days, the war only went on for 7 months but I had to stay

Fauna: What was it like being in another country?

Detroy: It was different at first with all the different situations you were confronted with, but after awhile it was kind of like home.

Fauna: What was the weather like there?

Detroy: Korea is known as “the land of the frozen rose”. It was very cold there.

Katie: Did you feel different when you came home?

Detroy: I don’t think so; I had grown up and matured. It had made me different. Our country promised that they were doing the same thing back then, that same as we are promising Iraq, and look at Korea now. 33,600 people were killed and 150,000 casualties

Katie: What were some of the main foods?

Detroy: They served army foods, we got our steaks and pork chops like if we were at home.

Fauna: What did people listen to as long as music?

Detroy: I don’t think we listened to a lot of music where we were.

Fauna: Did you have a lot of free time?

Detroy: Yes, after the war. I mean after the ceased fire. Weekends off. We stayed in Metal buildings and ate at our houseboy’s home. We went out one time and found a skull. We turned it in and they told us it was a local person.

Katie: What did you read?

Detroy: We sometimes read the records of the people in the army

Katie: What was the dating like there? And did you date?

Detroy: Some guys did. No I didn't. There were more important things to do than to date. I had to focus on fighting.  

Fauna: What were the working conditions like?

Detroy: Good, sometimes we got awful close the front line, but sometimes the conditions got very hard.

Fauna: Where they very strict there?

Detroy: Yes, very.

Katie: What was another job you did besides fighting?

Detroy: one of my jobs was to make sure the front line was 2^nd lieutenants and I would send up 450-500 people every month. It was hard to do because I knew they would get killed.

Katie: Do you have any stories when you were at the war?

Detroy: I met John Eisenhower and he had to come through so he could be sent back to the US. I wish I had stolen the paper that said he was there.

Fauna: Did the war get really long?