Iraq War veteran preserves his stories for Library of Congress

Bomb disposal vet from Iraq War preserves his stories for Library of Congress
Florida Times Union
By Matt Soergel
Posted: July 29, 2013

ST. AUGUSTINE - Tim Fredericksen — tall, muscular, looking every bit the elite ex-military man he once was — leaned forward in an armchair to tell some of his war stories.

He got through the details fine: where he grew up, when he served, the tough training. How it was all he ever wanted to do, how he went to an Army recruiting office the minute he got out of his California high school, how that was the easiest day that recruiter ever had.

Then he told of coming to Iraq for the first time: the U.S. air base under fire as his plane landed, the blazing heat, the unfamiliar sounds of a country at war.

His memories ambushed him. His voice faltered. Tears came.

George McLatchey handed over a box of tissues and turned off the recorder that was capturing those war stories. Fredericksen wiped his eyes. “Sorry about that.”

McLatchey spoke gently in reply. “Tim, you don’t need to apologize.”

Moments later, he turned the recorder back on, and Fredericksen, with a tissue in his hand, started talking again. For 56 minutes, he told his stories — funny ones, sad ones, horrific ones — which will now be preserved for future generations, future historians.
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