Operation Insight

The Mid America Veterans Museum

Every Veteran Has a Story, They Can Share It Here Brought to you by the Mid America Veterans Museum in O’Fallon, Missouri, this podcast facilitates stories of service and sacrifice as told by veterans. Marvel as military history is brought to life through firsthand accounts and insightful conversations. Operation Insight delivers compelling interviews with servicemembers both past and present, veteran advocates, and friends of our museum who remain dedicated to preserving the legacy of our heroes. Tune in as we explore stories of military life, the personal side of sacrifice, and how service continues beyond the battlefield. All are welcome, and all are invited to be inspired and carry the legacy forward! 🎖️Listen. Honor. Remember.🎖️

  1. 2d ago

    Sergeant First Class Cheryl Rowland

    Join us on Operation Insight as we host Sergeant First Class Cheryl Rowland of the U.S. Army and Army Reserve!   (00:00) Disclaimer (01:01) Opening Theme (01:30) Introduction (55:54) Building a Family & the Toll of PTSD (1:09:13) Part II (1:50:12) The NCOA (1:56:25) Closing

    2h 2m

  2. 2d ago

    Master Sergeant Kathy Nix

    Join us on Operation Insight as we host Master Sergeant Kathy Nix of the U.S. Air Force & Air National Guard!   (00:00) Disclaimer (01:01) Opening Theme (01:30) Introduction (38:54) Part II (56:21) Don't Ask, Don't Tell (1:16:03) Closing

    1h 20m

  3. Jun 21

    Petty Officer First Class Ken Cary

    Join us on Operation Insight as we host Petty Officer First Class Ken Carey of the U.S. Navy!   From a horse farm in Leonard, Michigan to the thunder of carrier flight decks, Ken’s story is precise, human, and unforgettable. We begin with family: great-uncles on the WWI battlefields, brothers and cousins in WWII and Korea, and a father who returned with a piece of shrapnel and a story that would become the moral compass for a son. Ken remembers the night his father recounted how a fellow soldier leapt on a grenade—the image of that sacrifice became the lesson that would follow Ken into boot camp, into leadership, and back home for a lifetime of service. Ken walks us through the moment that changed everything: a young man from Kansas and Michigan walking into a Navy recruiting office, dreaming of college and wrestling fields, only to be chosen by the Navy for aviation ordnance. What sounds mechanical—loading, testing, and safeguarding weapons—becomes a study in responsibility. Ken’s vivid accounts take you under the flight deck: safety wiring by headlamp, the hush of nighttime launches, and the trust between ordnancemen and pilots. He explains how a single shim on an F-14 pylon and a hunch saved a squadron from being grounded—and won him credibility. The episode moves like a patrol: tales from Miramar’s classrooms, Point Mugu’s experimental squadrons, the roller-coaster seas aboard the USS Eisenhower, and the unexpected leadership tests that turned a young man into a mentor and instructor. Along the way, Ken shares the funny and human moments—a butcher knife mishap that got him banned from the kitchen, the rivalry between branches of service on a missile range, and the strange economy of base housing and VW bugs that stitch a military family together. But this is not only a technical memoir. Ken also tells the intimate story of faith discovered amid deployments: how conversations, a stubborn curiosity about scripture, and the warmth of community led him and his wife to join the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. He reflects on leadership the way he taught ordnance crews—don’t ask of others what you won’t do yourself—and on the most elemental truth of all: service is about sacrifice, and every veteran carries a story worth hearing. Across decades Ken’s legacy ripples—sons who served in the Navy and Army, a family forged by shared duty, and a veteran who now volunteers to keep those stories alive. This episode threads technical detail and human tenderness into a single narrative: the cost of service, the strength of community, and the reward of passing the torch.   (00:00) Disclaimer (01:01) Opening Theme (01:30) Introduction (17:14) Ken’s Father & a Powerful Lesson on Respect (23:24) Family & a Legacy of Service (29:21) The Aviation Ordnanceman (45:50) Ken’s Long Road to Joining the Navy (1:03:00) Father & Son (1:07:56) Part II (1:22:17) Point Mugu & the USS Eisenhower (1:46:28) Keeping Up with the Cary’s (1:53:28) Learning Leadership (1:58:58) Career Delights & Disappointments (2:15:19) Ken’s Faith Journey (2:26:04) Closing

    2h 37m

  4. Jun 21

    Airman First Class Cynthia McCrea - Veteran Women of Influence

    Join us on Operation Insight as we host Airman First Class Cynthia McCrea of the U.S. Air Force Reserve and founder of Veteran Women of Influence!   (00:00) Disclaimer (01:01) Opening Theme (01:30) Introduction (41:21) Part II (1:13:40) Closing

    1h 20m

  5. Jun 14

    Sergeant Teegan LeClair

    Join us on Operation Insight as we host Sergeant Teegan LeClair of the U.S. Army! (00:00) Disclaimer (01:01) Opening Theme (01:30) Introduction (52:07) Part II (1:27:26) SALUTE (1:31:40) Closing

    1h 43m

  6. Jun 14

    Lieutenant Colonel Jim Craig

    Join us on Operation Insight as we host Lieutenant Colonel Jim Craig of the U.S. Army!   (00:00) Disclaimer (01:01) Opening Theme (01:30) Introduction (1:16:16) Waking Up to 9/11 in Hawaii (1:25:16) Part II (1:58:47) Blue Collar Colonels (2:06:28) The UMSL Veterans Center (2:17:30) “The Veterans Left Behind” & the Issue of Military Discharges (2:25:34) The GWOT Memorial (2:39:16) Closing

    2h 43m

  7. Jun 7

    Captain Paul & First Lieutenant Sue McCool

    Join us on Operation Insight as we host veteran couple, Paul & Sue McCool of the U.S. Air Force!   (00:00) Disclaimer (01:01) Opening Theme (01:30) Introduction (37:13) Vietnam & Maintaining Airmanship (1:01:40) Meeting Each Other (1:04:44) Life Together Begins (1:18:51) Finding Other Veterans (1:35:11) Closing

    1h 45m

  8. Jun 7

    Chief Warrant Officer Nick & Petty Officer Third Class Carrie Schwartzkopf

    Join us on Operation Insight as we host veteran couple, Nick & Carrie Schwartzkopf of the U.S. Navy!   They met by chance on a base, but their lives read like two converging novels of America — one threaded through mission fields and chapels, the other forged in the streets of Detroit. Nick and Carrie Schwartzkopf discuss their extraordinary shared life: a Marine who asked to be sent to Vietnam, and a Detroit girl who escaped riots and hardship to become a trailblazing aviation mechanic in the Navy. Together they trace the arc of service, survival, and the stubborn, personal courage that kept them going. Nick’s quiet intellect and knack for electronics paired surprisingly well with Carrie’s street-smarts and mechanical instinct. The episode captures the moment when two people from very different worlds find an unlikely home on the flight deck and in each other’s company. Listen as we travel from the trauma of the 1967 Detroit riots and a young woman’s yearning for structure, to the frustrations of a military veteran turned civilian. You’ll hear candid recollections of the small, human details — the smell of jet fuel, the heaviness of an instructor’s hand, the makeshift rituals on an aircraft carrier, the invitation to a commandeered Christmas party that quietly became the first step toward marriage. These scenes are threaded with humor, humility, and moments of painful honesty. The episode also follows them into later chapters: long Navy careers, the strain of deployments, re-enlistment decisions driven by both duty and practicalities, and the transition to Boeing where the wonder of aviation takes on a new dimension. Interwoven throughout is the enduring theme of service — not just to country but to family and community — culminating in Carrie’s work to create a safe support group for veterans, first responders, and others seeking a listening ear. What makes this interview resonate is its unvarnished truth: lives marked by brokenness and redemption, and decisions made by small interventions — a commander’s nod, a recruiter’s open door, a friend’s matchmaking — that redirect destinies. By the end, you feel the weight of 43 years of marriage and three decades of service as more than statistics; they are the weathered, loving texture that composes a life well-lived and still in motion.   (00:00) Disclaimer (01:01) Opening Theme (01:30) Introduction (38:03) Carrie’s Personal Journey (54:33) Nick’s Journey as a Marine (1:14:39) Meeting Each Other (1:40:48) Shenanigans on the Sea (1:47:05) Matchmaking & Matrimony (2:08:34) Desert Shield (2:27:01) Closing

    2h 33m
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Ratings & Reviews

5
out of 5
5 Ratings

About

Every Veteran Has a Story, They Can Share It Here Brought to you by the Mid America Veterans Museum in O’Fallon, Missouri, this podcast facilitates stories of service and sacrifice as told by veterans. Marvel as military history is brought to life through firsthand accounts and insightful conversations. Operation Insight delivers compelling interviews with servicemembers both past and present, veteran advocates, and friends of our museum who remain dedicated to preserving the legacy of our heroes. Tune in as we explore stories of military life, the personal side of sacrifice, and how service continues beyond the battlefield. All are welcome, and all are invited to be inspired and carry the legacy forward! 🎖️Listen. Honor. Remember.🎖️

Information

  • Creator
    The Mid America Veterans Museum
  • Years Active
    2022 - 2026
  • Episodes
    92
  • Rating
    Explicit
  • Copyright
    Copyright © Mid America Veterans Museum 2022. All Rights Reserved.
  • Show Website
    Operation Insight