There are nearly 800,000 veterans currently living in Illinois, each with a unique story and experience during their service and as transition back into civilian life. Ahead of Veteran’s Day, we spoke with four of those Illinois veterans about why they served, what challenges they face, and misconceptions about veterans and their experiences.
Bon Bui was born in Quảng Bình, Vietnam in 1946 and fled to the South during the war. He became a South Vietnamese Marine during the war and was trained by US forces in the United States. After Saigon fell in 1975, he become a prisoner of war for 10 years before finally relocating to America under an asylum program. Bui recounts the atrocities of war first hand.
Steve Allen of Newman, Illinois was a combat Marine infantry officer who served in the Vietnam War from 1970-1971. He attributes his Christian faith to keeping himself and his men alive and helping him make moral decisions during the hell of war.
