How Veteran Bill Rider Finds Purpose in Helping Soldiers with PTS

A veteran commits suicide every 65 minutes and Bill Rider is on a mission to stop the epidemic.

Rider, 73, served in Vietnam in the Marine battalion known as “The Walking Dead.”

“It’s the most casualty heavy unit in Marine Corps history, still to this day. So I was quite fortunate to make it through my tour of 13 months there. I lost a lot of great friends,” he told The Voluntourist.

Three decades after returning from war, he was diagnosed with Post Traumatic Stress and has since helped generations of veterans with the damaging effects of war as part of his healing process.

He started an organization American Combat Veterans of War and was honored for his efforts at the PBS National Memorial Day Concert in Washington D.C. where we talked to him about the road to recovery for veterans.

The Voluntourist: What was it like being honored at the PBS’ National Memorial Day Concert ?

Bill Rider: I thought it was such a huge honor for the National Memorial Day Concert to make me one of the three veterans selected. Quite an honor. I was more thrilled when I heard I was the first person from San Diego County they had recognized. There’s so many great veterans in San Diego County that have done a lot. It’s probably the number one population in the United States for military veterans and families because of the naval base in 29 Palms and Camp Pendleton.

The Voluntourist: Tell me about your wonderful organization that helps so many veterans.

Bill Rider: We felt that there should be something more to offer to help veterans and most importantly I think we had a feeling that we had a lock on how to talk to combat veterans because all of our early guys were combat veterans from Vietnam. After we talked to the young marines and talk to them about their trauma and what they’re doing now like drugs and alcohol.

The Voluntourist: They’re doing that as a way to deal with their trauma?

Bill Rider: They’re doing that as a way to feel, actually. They went numb and they’re detached from normal life and normal relationships. They don’t realize this is what’s happening. They think this is the way it’s supposed to be, but it doesn’t have to be that way. It’s certainly not the most positive spin on PTS–I don’t use the D. The D for disorder connotation its weak, abnormal or that one isn’t able to hack it. My interpretation is if you’re a human being and you lose friends in front of you in the most surreal visceral way, you’re going to be traumatized. So we operate on that premise and try to get them back to the path of healing. They have to believe in something and they have to regain some sense of spirituality. And one of the things that I teach the incarcerated veterans is moral imperative. What’s the right thing to do? You always try to do the right thing, especially if nobody is watching because that’s the true test of character. If you pass the test then something clicks inside your mind and you realize you’re not such a bad person and that you do have integrity.

The Voluntourist: I understand you were told you had PTS 30 years after coming home from Vietnam. How did you feel when you were finally diagnosed?

Bill Rider: A psychiatrist at the VA in La Jolla and I spoke for about five to ten minutes and he said, “You’re suffering from Post Traumatic Stress.” I took it as an insult. I’m not weak. I’m a tough guy. I asked him how he could tell in that such a short amount of time and I remember him looking me in the eyes and said, “Bill, that’s what I do for a living!” Okay that makes sense.

The Voluntourist: What were some of the symptoms you were experiencing?

Bill Rider: You have hyper vigilance and that’s why I’m watching the door right now, spiral reflex, which means if someone touches you on the back of your shoulder, you jump out of your skin, you don’t smile very often and I was having nightmares. When we’re helping other veterans, we really try to make them feel like their life is going to be worth wild. A lot of them coming back from war have given up. War is an extension of politics and when you realize there are so many liars in government, that’s where it is. It’s a moral injury and it’s a spiritual  injury. Then you realize what else did I buy into that I shouldn’t have, then you start questioning everything you’ve done in life. War doesn’t bring anything besides heartbreak. What did we get out of Vietnam? Afghanistan? Iraq?

You can watch the PBS National Memorial Day Concert and watch Rider’s full story, that’s told by Graham Greene, on Video on Demand until June 10th, 2018 or watch online here.

Silver Star Medal Recipient Leigh Ann Hester: “I just did what I was trained to do”

When Leigh Ann Hester heard the call of duty as a young girl she always knew she’d serve in the U.S. Armed Forces, but she didn’t know she’d make history by doing so. To date there have only been six women who have been awarded the distinguished Silver Star Medal for valor and Hester is one of them. She is the first female soldier to receive the honor since World War II.

In 2005, Sgt. 1st Class Hester skillfully led her team safely through an ambushed attack in Iraq, which resulted in saving her entire squad, yet she humbly states she’s not a hero.

“For some reason I was put in the place where I was and I just did what I was trained to do,” she exclusively told The Voluntourist.

Hester, who was with the 617th Military Police Company, a National Guard unit out of Richmond, Ky., was recognized and honored for her courageous actions at the 29th Annual PBS Memorial Day Concert in Washington D.C. where we talked to the veteran about her military career, women’s equality in the armed forces and women who have inspired her.

The Voluntourist: What’s it like to be honored at the PBS’ National Memorial Day Concert?

Leigh Ann Hester: When they first reached out to me I didn’t fully understand how big it was and what exactly it was. I’ve seen bits and pieces of the Memorial Day Concert, but I didn’t watch it in its entirety. I did a little research and I’ve realized how important it is. There’s been a lot of women in the military that came before me and I know this is a big year for women in the military. I can only hope my actions years ago helped paved the way for women in the military.

The Voluntourist: Tell me about the incident and your actions that led to you being honored with the Silver Star.

Leigh Ann Hester: On March 20, 2005 I was deployed to Baghdad, Iraq. Our job was to clear convoy routes and make sure convoys got through our area safely. That morning we got behind our convoy to follow them through an area. They came under attack and were ambushed. My squad went in between the convoy itself, which is about 30 semi-trucks. We basically fought through the enemy. There was more than 50 out there and there was only 10 of us. We suffered zero loss, we did have three injured, but we didn’t have any casualties. For my actions, I was awarded the Silver Star.

The Voluntourist: I imagine the attack was a total surprise, so how did you jump into action so quickly? Was it training, instinct, survival mode?

Leigh Ann Hester: It was all of the above. We had been in a few fire fights before and the convoys that run through there, they’re an easy target because their big trucks with little support. It’s easy for insurgent to hit them really quickly and run away. This instance was on a larger scale. There were more insurgents out there than in previous events. It wasn’t necessarily a surprise, it’s just a matter of when. I was surprised by how many people and weapons were involved, but it goes back to training. When we saw them get hit, it helped we knew the area. We did what we were trained to do.

The Voluntourist: What inspired you to join the military?

Leigh Ann Hester: I grew up a bit of a tomboy and a daddy’s girl. My dad taught me how to shoot and hunt and fish. I always looked up to men and women in uniform. It always sparked an interest when I was little. I looked up to women especially and thought that could be me one day. My uncle and grandfather were veterans so I’m sure that had something to do with it. Growing up I had friends that were also in the National Guard and that’s something I wanted to go ahead and follow through with.

The Voluntourist: In addition, you also helped trained Afghanistan women to become part of their armed forces. Why was that important to you?

Leigh Ann Hester: Yeah, I did some work as a cultural support team member over there. It was with the army and I can’t go into real specifics of it because of operation security, but it was very humbling. The cultural difference between the Eastern and Western parts of the world, it’s very different. I look at them and I see very strong women that risk their lives going to work every day just going onto the military base. They had suicide and car bombers all the time. They’re leaving behind their families and their children and going out and doing work that still more than half of the population doesn’t approve of women doing. So for them to overcome that just to get to work and then want to work and put up with discrimination there as well is incredible. Women in the United States military have fought discrimination for years and years and it’s finally getting to where it should be, but they’re still fighting the battle of being equal. It amazes me and it was a moving experience to be able to work with them and see their motivation and their drive. To just serve their own country they had to put up with a lot more than I could ever imagine doing.

The Voluntourist: It seems like supporting women and female empowerment is really important to you.

Leigh Ann Hester: Boys have all kinds of different heroes like action figures and Superman and G.I. Joes. They’re all male role models and when I was a kid I looked up to Wonder Woman. My mom buys me a Christmas ornament every year and it’s either Andy Griffith or Wonder Woman. I don’t think I’m a hero or anything like that, I was just doing what I was trained to do and having the backs of my brothers. But I think if that helps in any way create something for a younger person then that’s great. I did my job.

The Voluntourist: Why do you think women have faced such oppression and discrimination in the military? I know you said women are finally started to been seen as equal in the armed services, but why weren’t we before?

Leigh Ann Hester: That goes back thousands of years. Not to get too political, but men have always ruled the world. Women in the military is just one of the last things. We’ve had a woman run for president, and women in the government and I think this is one of the last steps for women’s equality in the United States, but it’s slowly getting to where it should be.

The Voluntourist: Who are some of the women that you look up to and are inspired by?

Leigh Ann Hester: Lynda Carter I really looked up to as a kid and Hillary Clinton because of all of the work she’s done in years past and being a forerunner in government, as well as all of the female soldiers that have come before me.

The Voluntourist: What’s next for you?

Leigh Ann Hester: I have a few more years left in the National Guard. I’m currently a detective at the Franklin Police Department in Nashville and I plan on working there until retirement. I’ve been a police officer for 12 years now. I think I’ve always had an interest in wearing a uniform and being able to help people who can’t help themselves. It’s not always pretty and it’s not always fun, but you get a sense of reward after it.

The Voluntourist: What does putting on the uniform mean to you?

Leigh Ann Hester: The police uniform and the military uniform is a symbol of doing something that a lot of people aren’t willing to do or can’t do or don’t want to do. I don’t think of it as I or me, it’s something we choose to do and stand up for hopefully gives people a better way of life.

You can watch the PBS National Memorial Day Concert and watch Hester’s full story on Video on Demand until June 10th, 2018 or watch online here.

Korean War Veterans Joe Annello and Hiroshi “Hershey” Miyamura  Reunited After Thinking the Other was Dead

From POWs to American heroes Joe Annello and Hiroshi “Hershey” Miyamura share an unbreakable bond and unbelievable story of courage, friendship and survival that was nationally recognized at the PBS’ National Memorial Day Concert. The two became instant friends almost seven decades ago in combat during the Korean War and are still serving their country 68 years later by inspiring others with their relentless perseverance.

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In 1950, Annello, from Boston and Miyamura, from Gallup, New Mexico, enlisted in the army to fight in what many refer to as the “forgotten war.”  They were captured by Chinese soldiers during a battle where Miyamura fearlessly fought the enemy forces to allow his squad to safely withdraw. As a result his men fled, but he was taken prisoner along with Annello, who was so badly injured he couldn’t walk. Miyamura carried him for miles, but was told to leave him or they’d both die. Wanting to give his friend a chance to live Annello made Hershey leave him behind.

Shockingly he survived and was taken to a different POW camp days later where he escaped not knowing what happened to Hershey. Both assumed the other was dead however, they randomly found each other years later and the two tell their incredible story to The Voluntourist.

The Voluntourist: You two have quite the story to share! Tell me about the first time you met?

Joe Annello: It goes back to about 1950 because I joined the unit then. He happened to be in the tent when I walked in there.

The Voluntourist: Joe, I understand you’d never met a Japanese American before and you two became friends the moment you were introduced.

Joe Annello: That’s right. I come from a melting pot with all racial and ethnic groups, but we didn’t have any Japanese Americans there and Hershey was the first one I’d seen. When he walked into the tent I was very impressed. After we introduced ourselves I found out he was with the famed 442 regiment during the Second World War and thought this guy is really something. We’ve been friends for 68 years.

The Voluntourist: You two were in the same unit and were both captured at together. Please tell me anything you’d like about that time.

Hiroshi “Hershey” Miyamura: He was in a different area than I was. He was in a lower ground and I was way up in the higher ground.

The Voluntourist: How long were you imprisoned for?

Hiroshi “Hershey” Miyamura: About 28 months–a little over.

Joe Annello: My story is a little different than Hershey’s. I was only imprisoned a little over a month. We escaped from the Chinese. I was wounded, very severely wounded, and Hershey carried me for about 10 miles. He’s going to say he didn’t and I don’t want to diminish his efforts, but I only weighed 147 pounds. No, but seriously he did and the Chinese got irritated at us for slowing them down. They ordered Hershey to put me on the side of the road and at first he refused. The Chinese were going to shoot him and I told him, “No Hershey, put me on the side of the road.” That’s the last time I saw Hershey.

The Voluntourist: How did you survive?

Joe Annello: I laid in a ditch underneath a tree for two days. I was weak and delirious. Another Chinese unit was being pushed back by our forces came by and picked me up. They took me to another unit where I met five other people–one Turkish and four other Americans, but I think Hershey has a more interesting story than I do.

Hiroshi “Hershey” Miyamura: I didn’t carry Joe, I supported him. He was kind of delirious because he was injured a lot worse than he was. I felt I had to help him because if I didn’t I thought they’d shoot both of us. I did the best I could, but I supported him, not carried.

Joe Annello: I had 99% of my weight on him.

The Voluntourist: Hershey, did you escape as well or were you let go?

Hiroshi “Hershey” Miyamura: There was no way we could escape because of the conditions of the area we were put into. It was so far away from everything. Two, three fellows tried to escape, but they brought them back. I was in a weak condition. I had dysenteriae and I just couldn’t.

The Voluntourist: What made them finally let you go?

Hiroshi “Hershey” Miyamura: A year later both sides began peace talks and wanted to exchange prisoners of war.

The Voluntourist: Did you think you would be let go at some point?

Hiroshi “Hershey” Miyamura: I’m surprised I survived the march to the camp because we had to march two weeks without any food or medical attention. Even after the two weeks we given sacks of fine powder and it had to last us a week. We didn’t even have the water to wash the powder down. We only had the water to drink when we passed by a stream and we knew we shouldn’t drink it. We were told when we first arrived not to drink the water because it was contaminated. That’s how I got dysenteriae. The worst part of it, some of these boys 16-years-old refused to eat that powder. I told them if they don’t eat it they won’t survive, and we lost six of those young men.

The Voluntourist: So after 28 months you finally go home and you think Joe is dead?

Hiroshi “Hershey” Miyamura: I thought for sure they were going to shoot him because he couldn’t keep up. I had no idea that he survived.

The Voluntourist: Tell me how you two were reunited?

Joe Annello: Hershey told all of my friends that I was dead.

Hiroshi “Hershey” Miyamura: That’s what I thought. Normally they would shoot you anyway regardless whether you were wounded or not if you couldn’t keep up with the group.

Joe Annello: On my escape story we had five people in my group that I was with and ironically we were with the Chinese medical unit, but they refused to feed us or medical attention. One of the fellows died there because of gangrene. We buried him there in a hole. There was a pilot there, the only one who could walk, and I told him we have to escape. we had a couple of guys that weren’t going to last longer than two weeks. We formulated a plan for escape. We crawled up the hill one night and made a POW sign with an arrow down to our shack and that night the pilot, who was going down to the river to get some water, just kept on going. He swam down the river for a day and a half and made contact with another unit. The next morning they sent the Marine fighter pilots over and they strafed the area and around our hut so they Chinese wouldn’t come in and get us. Then five tanks from the 1st Calvary came in and surrounded the hut and we were home free.

The Voluntourist: That’s an incredible story. When did you find out that Hershey was still alive?

Joe Annello: I was on my way to California to go to the Army Language School and just before I left there I picked up an old Newsweek magazine and saw this skinny looking Japanese American looking guy who weighed about 90 pounds. He was in a bathrobe and pajamas and General Osbourne, who was the 3rd Division Commander at that time, was telling him that he was going to be awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor. The magazine was eight months old, but I was on my way to California and I wanted to drop by to see Hershey. I got to Gallup and I found out where he worked. I walked into the store and Hershey looked at me white as a sheet. His words were, “By God you’re dead!” I assured him I wasn’t dead. That was 65 years ago. I still had several friends 50 years later that thought I was dead because of Hershey.

Hiroshi “Hershey” Miyamura: They didn’t release the names [of the dead] the first year. It was only because of the peace talks they let a few of the names out. That’s when my wife heard I was a POW.

The Voluntourist: How long did you know each other before you were captured?

Joe Annello: Only about six or eight months. When I first met Hershey I was just a young kid. I was only 17 and Hershey was an old man at 24. I looked up to him like an older brother. We just hit it off. We’ve been friends since.

The Voluntourist: What’s one thing that you want people today to know about your story?

Joe Annello: You get the grasp of what friendship and hope is all about.

Hiroshi “Hershey” Miyamura: You learn a lot about yourself when you become a prisoner like that.

The Voluntourist: What did you learn?

Hiroshi “Hershey” Miyamura: Don’t give up. It’s so easy to give up. You’re hungry, you’re starving, but if you give up that’s it. Keep trying because at least you’ll have a chance.

Joe Annello:  Hershey and I both talk to various groups and military schools and that’s one of our themes–never give up!

Hiroshi “Hershey” Miyamura: I also learned that events are going to happen in your life and you won’t understand why that happened, but down the road you’re going to find out why it happened and it’s usually for the better. So I tell these young people don’t worry about something you have no control over.

Joe Annello: When I talk to a group of people, particularly Japanese Americans, I say when Hershey walked into that tent, I said to myself, “I’m going to have trouble with this guy. I know I’m going to have trouble.” The reason I say I’m going to have trouble is because until he walked in, I was the best looking guy.

The Voluntourist: How could you join the military so young? Joe, you weren’t even 18.

Hiroshi “Hershey” Miyamura: He lied.

The Voluntourist: Did you lie?

Joe Annello: Well, I told a little fib.

The Voluntourist: They didn’t check to verify your age?

Joe Annello: I forged the paperwork. No disrespect to the younger generation, but we grew up during the [Great] Depression, most of us when we were 12-years-old were adults just because of the conditions. Most of the kids now at 12 are still kids. This is not disparaging to kids now, but it was a different time.

Hiroshi “Hershey” Miyamura: But they did say that if you are 16 and you want to go home you can. Some did, but most stayed.

Joe Annello: Two weeks before we were captured, I was 17-years-old and I turned 18 on the 5th of April. The first sergeant to come to commander called me in and said, “We’re going to send you home.” I said, “Why?” and he said, “You’re only 17.” I begged and pleaded with them not to go. I said, “I’ll be 18 in two weeks,” and they hid the papers for a couple of weeks until I turned 18.

The Voluntourist: Why was it so important for you to stay?

Joe Annello: I just couldn’t leave. You don’t leave your friends.

Hiroshi “Hershey” Miyamura: Joe was a very patriotic young man.

The Voluntourist: What made you want to sign up for the military initially?

Joe Annello: I grew up in the most patriotic time for our government during the Second World War. That’s when the country pulled together everybody. It’s not like now where we’re divided. I always had a desire to join the service.

Annello received the Silver Star and Miyamura was awarded the Medal of Honor. Their story was told at the PBS’ National Memorial Day Concert by Emmy, Golden Globe and SAG Award-nominated actor John Corbett and star of “Chicago Med” Brian Tee.

You can watch the event on Video on Demand until June 10th, 2018 or watch online here.