Kevin Briggs spent most of his 23 year career as a California Highway Patrol officer patrolling the Golden Gate Bridge and surrounding areas.  The Golden Gate Bridge is one of the world’s most “popular” locations for persons committing suicide and during his career Kevin talked several hundred persons out of making that irreversible mistake. He is the author of the book “Guardian of the Golden Gate Bridge; Protecting the Line Between Hope and Despair”. Suicide is the 10th leading cause of death in the US.  Help is available! Call 1-800 273-TALK. Talking was one of the most powerful tools in [...]

British born actor Matthew Marsden has 38 films/television series to his credit and has played military characters many times. But it was an encounter with an Army Ranger during the filming of “Blackhawk Down” that inspired his commitment to supporting those who serve. Matthew Marsden Matthew asked the Ranger why he joined to which the young Ranger responded “For Freedom.”  Matthew then asked “You’d die for me wouldn’t you?” To which the Ranger responded “Yes sir”.   This experience inspired Matthew to really delve into the history and philosophies of the United States and what he shared on American [...]

Koh Tang Island may have been Alex Wright’s ONLY combat time in the cockpit, but it was sufficient to leave a lasting impression. Also known as the “Mayaguez Incident”, the battle was the last “official” action of the war in Indochina. The names of the personnel who lost their lives are engraved on the last panel of the Vietnam War Memorial. BBG w/ Alex Wright On May 12, 1975 Cambodian Khmer Rouge forces boarded the US merchant ship Mayaguez and took the crew hostage. The battle took place in the shadow of the recent departure of US forces [...]

Prof. Victor Davis Hanson Victor Davis Hanson is a nationally published columnist and VERY accomplished military historian. He has written or edited 24 books.  Victor’s father flew 40 missions in B-29 over Tokyo and he was named for an uncle killed on Okinawa so he grew up with military history.  In graduate school he learned that there was not much written about the vocabulary of ancient military history, and this opened the window to a life long pursuit. “Liberty Watch” and “America Armed and Free” host Charles Heller sits in to add his knowledge and expertise to the conversation. [...]

The Oklahoma City bombing was a catalyst that drove Firefighter Chris Fields to finally deal with the demons accumulated after several decades of witnessing human suffering. Chris Fields There are over 1.1 million firefighters in our nation, seventy percent of whom are members of volunteer departments. Every day they can face a roller coaster of emotions from a successful rescue to having to cut a deceased teen out of a vehicle right when the parents arrive on the accident scene. Chris was a Captain with the Oklahoma City Fire Department on April 19th when a truck bomb was [...]

Veterans Portrait Project founder Stacy Pearsall knew she would join the military – members of her family had served since the Revolutionary War.  She wanted to do something creative and became an Air Force combat photographer. She was a good one, practicing her craft in over 41 countries and twice winning the National Press Photographers Association “Military Photographer of the Year” award. Stacy and "Charlie" War is gruesome. An added challenge for combat photographers is that they often have to relive those moments while reviewing the photographs Stacy spent her three combat deployments on the ground and in [...]