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Description

Oral History interview of Peter Sanchez. Interview conducted by Hammond, Donald at Seminole County Fire Department Station 42.

Log

0:01-1:00 Introduction, where he was born; 1:00-2:00 Family/Siblings, reason he was born in the D.R. and Dual Citizenship; 2:00-3:00 Back to the D.R. at 8 or 9 years old, looking back not a nice place; 3:00-4:00 Where he lived in the D.R. and went to school, back to the Bronx; 4:00-5:00 Asked about enlistment, wandering around, and why the Army? 5:00-6:00 20 at time of enlistment and the process of enlistment; 6:00-7:00 Exams, ASVAB, screenings before enlistment, processing; 7:00-8:00 Moved to Florida, no friends, right situation, basic training transition; 8:00-9:00 Transition, learning what to do and not to do, physical activity; 9:00-10:00 He was ready for physical part and weapons training; 10:00-11:00 Rank in basic, when he went into basic training; 11:00-12:00 Enlisted right before 9/11, he knew he was going to war, length of basic; 12:00-13:00 Adjusting to everyday military life, time between basic and Iraq; 13:00-14:00 Base in Germany and how it was there; 14:00-15:00 Morning exercises, training, classes, hands on, deployed in Feb.2003; 15:00-16:00 Flew to Kuwait and staged there, trained, adapting to climate; 16:00-17:00 The sand's effect on equipment, weight of equipment 35 lbs.; 17:00-18:00 Equipment and heat, asked about missions and patrols; 18:00-19:00 Combat missions: Najaf, Baqubah, Mosul, intensity of combat; 19:00-20:00 Adrenaline of combat, lEOs, explosives, inside a Bradley; 20:00-21:00 Intel on who he was fighting, insurgents, Jordan, Czech sniper; 22:00-23:00 Hardly saw who he was fighting, ear protection inside a Bradley; 23:00-24:00 Description of a Bradley and how safe and secure it was, in Iraq for a year; 24:00-25:00 Close friendships with men there, close with driver who was wounded; 25:00-26:00 Described relationship of driver and gunner, rank, off-duty activities; 26:00-27:00 How he contacted family members; 27:00-28:00 Asked if he knew anybody who was killed in action, Felucia casualties; 28:00-29:00 Talked about some of the friends that he lost in the war; 30:00-31:00 Back to Kuwait, the ride back to Germany on the ship, no entertainment; 31:00-32:00 Securing of equipment on ship, landed in Belgium, bus back to Germany; 32:00-33:00 Sightseeing in Germany, saw concentration camps, partying in Germany; 33:00-34:00 30 days of leave, went to 5 different countries, 2 weeks to turn in gear; 34:00-35:00 Returned to Florida in 2005, family reaction, readjustment to civilian life; 35:00-36:00 Drinking and depression after return, got better after a while; 36:00-37:00 Contact with fellow veterans through Facebook, being a veteran in Florida; 37:00-38:00 Decision to be a firefighter; 38:00-END How he was desensitized, would he do it again? Timing, how it shaped him, thanked him for his time and service.

Date of Birth

1981-03-08

Place of Birth

Dominican Republic

Gender

Male

Race

White - Hispanic

Home State

NA

War or Conflict

Operation Iraqi Freedom

Status

Veteran

Begin/End date of Service - 1st

2001-09-26

Type

Video; MovingImage

2005-06-01

Entrance into Service

Enlisted

Branch of Service

U.S. Army

Unit of Service

1st Infantry Division, 2-2, Charlie Company

Location of Service

Great Lakes (Ill.); Boston (Mass.); Charleston (S.C.); Camp Lejeune (N.C.); Da Nang (Vietnam); Naval Air Station Patuxent River (Md.)

Highest Rank

Specialist; SPC

Prisoner of War

Unspecified

Service Related Injury

Unspecified

Battles

Battle of Kosovo

Medals

Army Commendation Medal; Good Conduct Medal; Combat Infantryman Badge; Kosovo Campaign Medal

Achievements

See video for details.

Note

Not applicable

City of Birth

Unspecified

Country of Birth

Dominican Republic

Interviewer

Hammond, Donald

Interview Date

3-22-2013

Location of Interview

Seminole County Fire Department Station 42.

Subjects

Sanchez, Peter A.; Iraq War, 2003-2011 -- Personal Narratives; Afghanistan and Iraq Wars, 2001-present -- Personal Narratives; United States. Army

Collection Description

Contains logs, audio and video recordings of interviews with Central Florida's veterans as part of a history class project for the students at the University of Central Florida (UCF). The UCF Community Veterans History Project(CVHP) started in fall 2010. It collects, preserves, and makes accessible to the public the experiences of Central Florida's veterans so that future generations will better understand the realities of conflict. It is a collaborative endeavor supported by multiple departments and offices at UCF. The veterans' histories are archived and made digitally available through the UCF library and selected materials are contributed to the Veterans History Project at the Library of Congress.

Contributor Affiliation / Organization

RICHES; University of Central Florida

Contributors

Hammond, Donald

Length of Interview

38 Minutes

Publisher

Department of History, University of Central Florida

Type

video

Rights

All rights are held by the respective holding institution. This material is posted publicly for non-profit educational uses, excluding printed publication. For permission to reproduce and/or for copyright information contact Special Collections and University Archives, University of Central Florida Libraries, (407) 823-2576. http://library.ucf.edu/about/departments/special-collections-university-archives/

Repository

University of Central Florida Libraries, Special Collections and University Archives

Contributing Project

UCF Community Veterans History Project

Document Type

Interview

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