Veterans Voices: First Gulf War

AMPERS

Memories and stories from Minnesota veterans who served in the First Gulf War. To learn more, visit MinnesotaVets.org. Made possible with support from the Minnesota Arts and Cultural Heritage fund.

  1. Cal Portner: Mobile Photo Processing Unit

    Episode 1

    Cal Portner: Mobile Photo Processing Unit

    Cal Portner was part of a unit that ran a mobile photomat at his German base. When Desert Shield, and later Desert Storm, broke out, he and his unit members were not allowed to deploy, for the moment, because their work was so essential to the security of Europe.

    2 min
  2. Darrin Janisch: Alpha Alert

    Episode 2

    Darrin Janisch: Alpha Alert

    Darrin Janisch’s fellow paratroopers in the 82nd Airborne had just returned from Operation Just Cause in Panama. They figured that was their big deployment for a long while. They never figured on Saddam Hussein invading Kuwait.

    2 min
  3. Larry Liljenquist: With the 7th Fleet

    Episode 3

    Larry Liljenquist: With the 7th Fleet

    Larry Liljenquist, a marine, was given sea duty on the flagship for the 7th Fleet. The fleet, scheduled to go to Russia, suddenly received orders to redirect to the Persian Gulf.

    2 min
  4. Lori Allert: Mobilized

    Episode 4

    Lori Allert: Mobilized

    Army nurse Lori Allert was told in summer 1990 that she may be deployed. Saddam Hussein’s Iraqi forces had invaded Kuwait. So she waited. And waited. Finally, after New Year’s, she got the call. She was being mobilized.

    2 min
  5. Theresa Dawson: Russian Linguist

    Episode 5

    Theresa Dawson: Russian Linguist

    Theresa Dawson was a Russian linguist in Berlin when war the US went to war with Iraq. Though her unit had the opportunity to deploy, they were still vital to the mission in Europe, where the Berlin wall had fallen but a Soviet threat still lingered.

    2 min
  6. Lisa Erickson: Jet Engine Mechanic

    Episode 6

    Lisa Erickson: Jet Engine Mechanic

    Lisa Erickson's dad joked that she didn’t even know how to put gas in her car. But the Air Force made her a jet engine mechanic and she learned. She was one of two females on the crew at Kadena Air Force Base, Okinawa, that supplied jet engine motors to planes in the Gulf War.

    2 min
  7. Cal Portner: Trip to Spain

    Episode 7

    Cal Portner: Trip to Spain

    During Desert Storm, Cal Portner’s unit was asked to take its mobile photo equipment to Spain to set up a photo processing and interpretation center for a stateside unit.

    2 min
  8. Eric Kerska: Good Hunting

    Episode 8

    Eric Kerska: Good Hunting

    Erick Kerska’s plane touched down in Saudi Arabia. The Gulf War was ramping up and this Army officer never forgot what the flight attendant told him when he exited the plane: "Good hunting."

    2 min
See All (27)

About

Memories and stories from Minnesota veterans who served in the First Gulf War. To learn more, visit MinnesotaVets.org. Made possible with support from the Minnesota Arts and Cultural Heritage fund.

Information

  • Creator
    AMPERS
  • Years Active
    2K
  • Episodes
    27
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © 2025 Association of Minnesota Public Educational Radio Stations. All rights reserved.
  • Show Website
    Veterans Voices: First Gulf War