Podcasts about Bataan Death March

On December 8, 1941, as the Japanese were bombing Pearl Harbor, they were simultaneously attacking other Allied positions around Asia.  One of the biggest attacks was on Manila and the Philippines and the Filipino and American forces on the island of Luzon. Filipino and American forces ended up surrendering, which began one of the most brutal and horrifying episodes of the entire war.  Learn more about the Bataan Death March and how and why it happened on this episode of Everything Everywhere Daily. Sponsors Newspapers.com Get 20% off your subscription to Newspapers.com Mint Mobile Cut your wireless bill to 15 bucks a month at mintmobile.com/eed Quince Go to quince.com/daily for 365-day returns, plus free shipping on your order! Stitch Fix Go to stitchfix.com/everywhere to have a stylist help you look your best Tourist Office of Spain Plan your next adventure at Spain.info  Stash Go to get.stash.com/EVERYTHING to see how you can receive $25 towards your first stock purchase and to view important disclosures. Subscribe to the podcast!  https://everything-everywhere.com/everything-everywhere-daily-podcast/ -------------------------------- Executive Producer: Charles Daniel Associate Producers: Austin Oetken & Cameron Kieffer   Become a supporter on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/everythingeverywhere Update your podcast app at newpodcastapps.com Discord Server: https://discord.gg/UkRUJFh Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/everythingeverywhere/ Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/everythingeverywheredaily Twitter: https://twitter.com/everywheretrip Website: https://everything-everywhere.com/  Disce aliquid novi cotidie Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Just hours after the attack on Pearl Harbor in 1941, Japan invaded the Philippines. In the midst of the death and destruction, tens of thousands of American and Filipino soldiers were forced to march on what became known as the Bataan Death March. Why does God allow such horrors? Satisfactory answers don't come easy. Join John Bradshaw on location in the Philippines for “The March of Death.”

Just hours after the attack on Pearl Harbor in 1941, Japan invaded the Philippines. In the midst of the death and destruction, tens of thousands of American and Filipino soldiers were forced to march on what became known as the Bataan Death March. Why does God allow such horrors? Satisfactory answers don't come easy. Join John Bradshaw on location in the Philippines for “The March of Death.”

Dr. David Pyle, Steven Taylor, and Johnathan Dawson are three local friends who are engaging in the Bataan Death March to raise money to help Honor Flight of the Ozarks and raise money for local vets! Join Ted, Steve, and Lucas for the KZRG Morning Newswatch!

Dr. David Pyle, Steven Taylor, and Johnathan Dawson are three local friends who are engaging in the Bataan Death March to raise money to help Honor Flight of the Ozarks and raise money for local vets! Join Ted, Steve, and Lucas for the KZRG Morning Newswatch!

Dr. David Pyle, Steven Taylor, and Johnathan Dawson are three local friends who are engaging in the Bataan Death March to raise money to help Honor Flight of the Ozarks and raise money for local vets! Join Ted, Steve, and Lucas for the KZRG Morning Newswatch!

In this captivating episode of 10x Your Team with Cam & Otis, Val Burgess takes us on a historical journey through the powerful stories of veterans from World War II and beyond. Val shares her extensive work in preserving the narratives of those who served, highlighting the harrowing experiences of POWs, the resilience of Bataan Death March survivors, and the emotional liberation of Mooseburg. Through these stories, Val emphasizes the importance of remembering and honoring the sacrifices made by veterans across different conflicts. This episode not only sheds light on the untold stories of bravery and endurance but also underscores the vital role these narratives play in understanding our shared history and shaping future leadership. Join us as we delve into the rich tapestry of veterans' experiences and the lessons they impart.More About Val:Val Burgess is a passionate storyteller and historian dedicated to preserving the powerful narratives of World War II veterans. Her journey began in 1993, inspired by her Uncle Vernon's desire to revisit the prison camp where he was held during the war. With a background in design and marketing, Val organized a commemorative trip for former POWs, sparking a lifelong mission to capture and share their stories of bravery, sacrifice, and resilience. Through her work, Val has conducted numerous interviews with veterans, weaving together their experiences into a vivid tapestry of wartime heroism and human endurance. Her efforts culminated in a transformative journey across Europe with 125 former POWs and their families, retracing the steps of their wartime odyssey. Val's dedication to honoring these veterans extends beyond storytelling; she seeks to inspire future generations by highlighting the enduring values of courage and perseverance. Her presentations are renowned for bringing history to life, captivating audiences of all ages with tales of adversity and triumph. Val Burgess continues to carry the torch of remembrance, ensuring that the legacy of these remarkable individuals will never be forgotten.The Cam and Otis Show - Podcast - MasterfileChapters:[00:00] Introduction and WelcomeCamden and Otis introduce the episode and guest, Val Burgess.[05:00] The Importance of StorytellingVal discusses the role of storytelling in preserving history and shaping perspectives.[15:00] Lessons from HistoryExploring how historical narratives can inform and influence modern leadership.[25:00] Listening and UnderstandingThe significance of listening to diverse stories and perspectives.[35:00] The Impact of Sharing StoriesHow sharing stories can foster connection and growth within teams.[45:00] Closing Thoughts and TakeawaysFinal reflections from Val and the hosts, encourage listeners to embrace storytelling in their leadership journey.#10xYourTeam #VeteranStories #WWII #MilitaryHistory #Leadership #POWStories #BataanDeathMarch #VeteranLegacy #HistoricalNarratives #MilitaryLeadership #VeteransRemembered #WW2History #OralHistory #MilitaryHeroes #LeadershipLessons #HistoricalLeadership #VeteranVoices #MilitaryResilience #StoriesOfCourage #TribeAndPurpose #LeadershipDevelopment #VeteranLegacy #PersonalGrowth #TeamDevelopment #LeadershipJourneyVal BurgessWebsite: https://warsvoices.com/

New York Times bestselling author ROBERT DUGONI and co-authors, CHRIS CRABTREE and JEFF LANGHOLZ, Ph.D., join BOOKSTORM Podcast to discuss HOLD STRONG, their epic novel based on the lives of real-life heroes! Part of the book takes place during the Bataan Death March in the Philippines during WII (and in the South China Sea) … and a portion takes place in war nerve centers stateside. We talked about the role of faith, humor, and friendship in surviving the un-survivable. Wait until you hear about the role of women in the Navy's non-combat roles, including the incredibly talented code-breakers! Given the extraordinary trauma these characters experienced, is there such a thing as returning to “normal” life after war, or is there forever a new normal? Must they compartmentalize what they experienced? We had a poignant discussion about respect for life when the choices are stark. Powerful! How does love thrive in these difficult circumstances? Be sure to listen to Robert's incredible personal story at the end - we had chills! Join us – you'll be so glad you did!You can find more of your favorite bestselling authors at BOOKSTORM Podcast! We're also on Instagram, TikTok, Facebook, and YouTube!

Some guys are so bored with their partner that they execute foreplay like it's the Bataan Death March, or like Patrick Bateman in American Psycho without the murder, and then wonder why their wife's responsive desire doesn't kick in. If she thinks you're only into her if she does XYZ in bed, then it is adaptive and self-protective not to have sex with you, as it is actually only about sex to you and not about connecting with a woman you deeply love and desire. More about this in today's episode! Subscribe if you love the DPM show! https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/drpsychmomshow/subscribe and you'll get all my awesome bonus episodes! Most recent subscriber episode: "The Interesting Thing That Happens When Women Make More Money." For my secret Facebook group, the "best money I've ever spent" according to numerous members, go ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.facebook.com/groups/376126477688726/?mibextid=uJjRxr! Or click blue subscribe button on www.facebook.com/drpsychmom. It's $4.99/mo. For coaching from DPM, visit https://www.drpsychmom.com/coaching/ For therapy or life coaching, contact us at https://www.bestlifebehavioralhealth.com/. Follow me on TikTok! https://www.tiktok.com/@therealdrpsychmom and YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCqLm4xRaUeroBodFc-h4XDQ

The Japanese attacked the Philippines almost simultaneous with their December 7th, 1941 attack on the U.S. fleet at Pearl Harbor.  Following Japanese air attacks, the Japanese 14th Army landed in the Philippines on December 8th.  By January 1942, the Japanese had U.S. and Filipino forces bottled up on the Bataan Peninsula.  Those U.S. and Filipino forces surrendered on May 8th.  It is arguably America's worst military defeat ever.  Among the roughly 12,000 Americans taken prisoner were four Navy doctors.  John Glusman tells their story in “Conduct Under Fire: Four American Doctors and Their Fight for Life as Prisoners of the Japanese, 1941-1945.”

The dehumanized view of the enemies of Japan in World War 2. The Bataan Death March. Texas rangers or a sheriff. If we cut illegals off from their benefits will they riot? Congress abusing their constituents will continue until we change who we vote for. Getting kicked off shows. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Summary   "A sadness of men." We've reached the final movie of our Manix Pixie Dream Girl series and realize what connects these movies are sad men of the early 2000s, not quirky women. Also discussed: Behind Her Eyes, Jackpot! and the second ending of Bennifer.     Show notes:   The Bataan Death March of Whimsy Case File #1: Elizabethtown (AV Club)   I'm sorry for coining the phrase "Manic Pixie Dream Girl" (Salon)   The Hunt For The Worst Movie Of All Time: Elizabethtown (Redux) (Stereogum)     Recommendations:   Lisa:  Behind Her Eyes (Netflix)   Andrea G.:  Jackpot! (Prime)   Andrea W.:  "Middle" by Nicky Lawrence (music)   Music credits  "Electrodoodle" by Kevin MacLeod From: incompetech.com Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License   Theme song "Pyro Flow" by Kevin Macleod From: incompetech.com Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License   "Good Times" by Podington Bear From:  Free Music Archive Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License     Pop This! Links: Pop This! on TumblrPop This! on iTunes (please consider reviewing and rating us!) Pop This! on Stitcher (please consider reviewing and rating us!) Pop This! on Google PlayPop This! on TuneIn radioPop This! on TwitterPop This! on Instagram Logo design by Samantha Smith Intro voiced by Morgan Brayton Pop This! is a podcast featuring three women talking about pop culture. Lisa Christiansen is a broadcaster, journalist and longtime metal head. Andrea Warner is a music critic, author and former horoscopes columnist. Andrea Gin is a producer and an avid figure skating fan. Press play and come hang out with your new best friends. Pop This! podcast is produced by Andrea Gin.  

Summary   "I'm impossible to forget, but I'm hard to remember." We have come to the third movie in our Manic Pixie Girl series, and some say this is the movie where it all began: Elizabethtown. Also discussed: Andrea Warner's broken toe, swimming while injured, and the various films of Cameron Crowe.     Show notes:   The Bataan Death March of Whimsy Case File #1: Elizabethtown (AV Club)   I'm sorry for coining the phrase "Manic Pixie Dream Girl" (Salon)   The Hunt For The Worst Movie Of All Time: Elizabethtown (Redux) (Stereogum)     Recommendations:   Lisa:  One Day (Netflix) Andrea G.:  Loony (music)   Andrea W.:  Robot Dreams (movie)     Music credits  "Electrodoodle" by Kevin MacLeod From: incompetech.com Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License   Theme song "Pyro Flow" by Kevin Macleod From: incompetech.com Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License   "Good Times" by Podington Bear From:  Free Music Archive Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License     Pop This! Links: Pop This! on TumblrPop This! on iTunes (please consider reviewing and rating us!) Pop This! on Stitcher (please consider reviewing and rating us!) Pop This! on Google PlayPop This! on TuneIn radioPop This! on TwitterPop This! on Instagram Logo design by Samantha Smith Intro voiced by Morgan Brayton Pop This! is a podcast featuring three women talking about pop culture. Lisa Christiansen is a broadcaster, journalist and longtime metal head. Andrea Warner is a music critic, author and former horoscopes columnist. Andrea Gin is a producer and an avid figure skating fan. Press play and come hang out with your new best friends. Pop This! podcast is produced by Andrea Gin.  

This week Seth and Bill take a deep dive into one of the most exciting, and heroic, episodes of the Pacific War-the rescue of some of the survivors of the Bataan Death March during the raid on Cabanatuan in 1945. US Army 6th Rangers under the command of COL Henry Mucci infiltrated deep behind Japanese lines to rescue American POWs languishing in the Cabanatuan Prisoner of War camp. The raid, led by Ranger Captain Robert Prince, was a resounding success and truly one of the most exciting stories to come out of the campaign for Luzon.

Show SummaryOn today's episode, we feature a conversation with John Pray, Brig. Gen., USAF (Ret), CEO of Operation Homefront. Operation Homefront provides relief and recurring family support programs and services throughout the year to help military families overcome short-term difficulties so they don't become long-term hardships About Today's GuestJohn I. Pray, Brig. Gen., USAF (Ret.) has served as Chief Executive Officer of Operation Homefront since 2015. He credits his parents with instilling the importance of service to others and love of country – two core beliefs that have formed the moral compass John has used to guide all the major decisions in his life. John's father, a career Army officer who served during World War II, survived both the Bataan Death March and three and a half years as a POW, and the Korean War, believed his mother was the one who deserved special credit for all she had to deal with his long absences and the many uncertainties that characterize military life. Their example was the driving force behind John's decision to join the United States Air Force. He retired after serving 27 years in a variety of staff and command assignments, to include the Director of the White House Situation Room, to accept the opportunity serve as the Executive Secretary of the National Security Council during the Bush Administration. Once John left the Federal government, he chose to continue serving our military members and their families. First, in a variety of executive capacities at the United Service Organizations (USO) and since May 2015, as the President/CEO with Operation Homefront, another nationally recognized nonprofit. In his current role, he oversees the fulfillment of the organization's vital mission – to help build strong, stable, and secure military families so they can thrive, not simply struggle to get by, in the communities they have worked so hard to protect. The Operation Homefront family, consisting of 120 staff members, 20 national board members, over 50 regional advisory council members, nearly 4,000 volunteers, scores of corporate and foundation donors and tens of thousands of individual donors, share a common passion to help our military families in their time of need because of all they have done for all of us in our nation's time of need.John holds a Bachelor of Science degree from the U.S. Air Force Academy and master's degrees from Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, the School of Advanced Airpower Studies, and the Air War College. He has also completed senior executive programs at the Columbia University Graduate School of Business, Harvard Business School and the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania. Links Mentioned in this Episode Operation Homefront WebsiteProvide FeedbackAs a dedicated member of the audience, we would like to hear from you about the show. Please take a few minutes to share your thoughts about the show in this short feedback survey. By doing so, you will be entered to receive a signed copy of one of our host's three books on military and veteran mental health. Episode Partner: Are you an organization that engages with or supports the military affiliated community? Would you like to partner with an engaged and dynamic audience of like-minded professionals? Reach out to Inquire about Partnership Opportunities Contact Us and Join Us on Social Media Email PsychArmorPsychArmor on TwitterPsychArmor on FacebookPsychArmor on YouTubePsychArmor on LinkedInPsychArmor on InstagramTheme MusicOur theme music Don't Kill the Messenger was written and performed by Navy Veteran Jerry Maniscalco, in cooperation with Operation Encore, a non profit committed to supporting singer/songwriter and musicians across the military and Veteran communities.Producer and Host Duane France is a retired Army Noncommissioned Officer, combat veteran, and clinical mental health counselor for service members, veterans, and their families.  You can find more about the work that he is doing at www.veteranmentalhealth.com  

In this episode, Dr. Megan McElheran, a clinical psychologist and CEO of Before Operational Stress, Inc. discusses stoicism's practical applications and the misinterpretations associated with it. Dr. McElheran shares her extensive work with trauma-exposed professionals, including military personnel and first responders, and highlights the importance of managing stress and trauma. Marcus and Dr. McElheran delve into the concept of post-traumatic growth, the necessity of facing adversities, and maintaining mental health resilience. The conversation also touches on Dr. McElheran's Bataan Death March experience, underscoring the significant lessons in resilience and determination. Episode Highlights: 02:29 The Misconceptions of Stoicism 08:04 The Impact of Trauma on First Responders 29:32 Stoic Wisdom for Overcoming Hardship 31:10 The Hero's Journey and Personal Growth 32:22 Embracing Pain and Suffering 37:55 Curating Thoughts and Building Confidence 40:20 The Bataan Death March: A Lesson in Endurance Dr. Megan McElheran, CEO of Wayfound Mental Health Group in Calgary, AB, is a Clinical Psychologist with 16 years of expertise in Operational Stress Injuries (OSI). Specializing in active-duty military, Veterans, and public safety personnel, she focuses on assessment, diagnosis, and treatment. Driven by a passion for OSI prevention and resilience enhancement, she developed the BOS program. Exploring innovative approaches, she's delving into psychedelic medicine for psychological injuries. A sought-after speaker and educator, Dr. McElheran shares her insights nationally. Her recent publication in the European Journal of Psychotraumatology, "Functional Disconnection and Reconnection," sheds light on novel strategies for public safety personnel's well-being. You can find out more here: https://www.beforeoperationalstress.com/ Learn more about the gift of Adversity and my mission to help my fellow humans create a better world by heading to www.marcusaureliusanderson.com. There you can take action by joining my ANV inner circle to get exclusive content and information.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On December 8, 1941, as the Japanese were bombing Pearl Harbor, they were simultaneously attacking other Allied positions around Asia.  One of the biggest attacks was on Manila in the Philippines and the Filipino and American forces that were entrenched on the Bataan Peninsula. Filipino and American forces ended up surrendering, which began one of the most brutal and horrifying episodes of the entire war.  Learn more about the Bataan Death March and how and why it happened on this episode of Everything Everywhere Daily. Sponsors Available nationally, look for a bottle of Heaven Hill Bottled-in-Bond at your local store. Find out more at heavenhilldistillery.com/hh-bottled-in-bond.php Sign up today at butcherbox.com/daily and use code daily to choose your free offer and get $20 off. Visit BetterHelp.com/everywhere today to get 10% off your first month. Use the code EverythingEverywhere for a 20% discount on a subscription at Newspapers.com. Visit meminto.com and get 15% off with code EED15.  Listen to Expedition Unknown wherever you get your podcasts.  Get started with a $13 trial set for just $3 at harrys.com/EVERYTHING. Subscribe to the podcast!  https://link.chtbl.com/EverythingEverywhere?sid=ShowNotes -------------------------------- Executive Producer: Charles Daniel Associate Producers: Ben Long & Cameron Kieffer   Become a supporter on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/everythingeverywhere Update your podcast app at newpodcastapps.com Discord Server: https://discord.gg/UkRUJFh Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/everythingeverywhere/ Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/everythingeverywheredaily Twitter: https://twitter.com/everywheretrip Website: https://everything-everywhere.com/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

As a child, MG (Ret.) Antonio Taguba knew his father had been involved in the Bataan Death March – but it wasn't until the older man's dying days that General Taguba learned the full extent of it. That conversation inspired him to play a leading role in shining a spotlight on this dark moment of WWII, eventually leading to veterans of the battle and Death March receiving the prestigious Congressional Gold Medal. Hosts LTG (Ret.) Leslie C. Smith and SMA (Ret.) Dan Dailey sit down with General Taguba to discuss his own Army origin story, the historical events of April 1942, and why he still travels across the country to deliver the Gold Medals to survivors and veterans every year.   Guest: MG (Ret.) Antonio Taguba, U.S. Army   Special thanks to Director, T.S. Botkin, and to Producers, Amanda Upson and Benito Bautista, for permission to use audio clips from their documentary, A Long March. For more information check out, https://www.lfffilm.com/.   Audio Clips Credits: Upson, Amanda, and Benito Bautista. A Long March. United States: Good Docs, 2022.   Has a member of the Army changed your life? Now is your chance to thank them publicly with a shoutout via our Hooah Hotline and have it possibly appear on an upcoming episode of AUSA's Army Matters podcast!   AUSA's Army Matters podcast can also be heard on Wreaths Across America Radio on Monday at 8 pm Eastern  You can find Wreaths Across America Radio on the iHeart Radio app, the Audacy app, and the TuneIn app. Search the word Wreath.    Donate: If you are interested in supporting AUSA's educational programs, such as this podcast, please visit www.ausa.org/donate. Feedback: How are we doing? Email us at podcast@ausa.org. Disclaimer: AUSA's Army Matters podcast primary purpose is to entertain. The podcast does not constitute advice or services. While guests are invited to listen, listeners please note that you are not being provided professional advice from the podcast or the guests. The views and opinions of our guests do not necessarily reflect the views of AUSA.

moving 60,000 POW's 60 miles --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/rocky-seale7/message

82 years ago – April 9, 1942 – some 75,000 American and Filipino servicemen became POWs when Bataan peninsula fell to Japanese forces.   With in days the overwhelming majority of them were forced onto the Bataan Death March.   These are their stories.   I mention the following men in this episode: Jim Gallagher – Sportswriter from Philly who died on the first day of the march (Episode 27) Ray Hunt – The young air corpsman who escaped the march and became a guerilla leader (Episode 28) Jack and Bobby Aldrich – Brothers who served in the same Artillery unit and marched together (Episode 29) Gen Ed King – The man who surrendered Bataan (Episode 24) Lester Tenney – A tank man in the army reserves who was injured on but survived the Death March (Episode 2)  Pantingan River Massacre – When the Japanese killed some 300 surrendered Filipino soldiers (episode 31) A young POW's search for water at Camp O'Donnell (episode 32)

Jeremy talks about the benefits of rucking and how it has show to increase bone density.  Starting training as Jeremy and Jeff will be in White Sands, New Mexico this time next year for the Bataan Death March, a 26.2 mile ruck through the desert.  Ask questions here:jeremymullinspodcast@gmail.comJeremy Mullins Podcast Presented by: Summit Rejuvenation Clinics and GreenUp Wealth ManagementFree consultationsSummit Rejuvenation Clinics: https://www.getsummithrt.com/jeremy-mullinsGreenUp Wealth: https://greenupwealth.com/speak-with-a-planner/Connect on Social Media: Jeremy Mullinshttps://www.instagram.com/jeremy.d.mullins/Jeffrey Renohttps://www.instagram.com/jeffrey_reno/?utm_source=qr

The Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency (DPAA) has the principle responsibility to provide the fullest possible accounting for our missing personnel to their families and our nation. It was created in January of 2015 by merging the Defense POW/Missing Personnel Office and the Joint POW/MIA Accounting Command along with several functions of the Air Force Life Sciences Equipment Laboratory. DPAA Media Relation Chief for Outreach and Communications Sean Everette joins us to describe the agency's functions. We are also joined by Clark Baldwin, the nephew of World War II soldier Clifford Strickland, whose remains were just recently identified and returned to the US. There are an estimated 81,000 personnel still missing from conflicts between World War II through the present day. These include 72,115 from World War II, 7,482 from Korea, 1,577 in Vietnam, 126 from the Cold War, 5 from the Gulf Wars and 1 in Libya. DPAA staff is comprised of both members of the various military branches and civilian specialists. One could describe their role and “cold case file” detectives using a variety of resources to accomplish their tasks.  Once remains are identified, the recovery themselves can be complicated and dangerous; from 16,000 foot mountain peaks to remote jungle sites. Clifford Strickland was captured by the Japanese in the Philippines. After surviving the Bataan Death March, he died on July 29, 1942 in the Cabanatuan POW Camp.  The dead from this camp were buried as “unknowns” in a common grave.  Clark says that although his uncle died before he was born, his family kept his memory alive with stories. Eventually they gave up hope that his remains would ever be found. However, Clark's cousin began attending DPAA outreach events. In 2015 they received notice that they may be able to identify Clifford's remains. Clifford's remains were positively identified on December 20, 2023. A key element in the process is having family members submit DNA samples for use in final identification. Listeners with family members still missing can find more information about how to start the process by visiting the DPAA website. TAKEAWAY: “It makes me proud that I am an American and that the DPAA works so hard to fulfill our nation's promise that we will never leave a man behind.”

Two days after Corregidor fell, more than 11,000 American and Filipino POWs were marched to a beachy cove known as the Army 92nd Garage.   Here they stayed, cramped, hungry, and thirty for nearly 3 weeks – baking in the tortuous Philippine sun because there was no protection from elements.   Among these men was my great-grandfather Alma Salm, who would endure 33 months of torturous POW life – experiences that would follow him home and color the remainer of his life.   Here are links to other episodes I mentioned in this episode: #40 – Describes the relentless week of bombings on Corregidor, leading up to the Japanese invasion. #44 – Details the Marines' final fight to defend Corregidor #39 – The experiences of Alma Salm's wife and daughter in Honolulu while Pearl Harbor was being attacked #32 – Life at Camp O'Donnell, where the Bataan Death March survivors were imprisoned after the march   You'll find images and maps about the 92nd Garage and Alma Salm's story at: Left Behind Website (includes sources) Instagram: @leftbehindpodcast  Left Behind Facebook page

Clement Leone stands in the war room, that is filled with many memories and mementos, at his home in Lake Heritage. He is wearing the Legion of Honor award which he received at the French Embassy in Washington D.C. (Darryl Wheeler/Gettysburg Times) This interview of Clem Leone was conducted at his home in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania by John Fenzel and his son Luke, on June 16, 2018.  At the time of this interview, Clem was 94 years old.  The following narrative is derived from multiple sources, detailed at the end of this post.  Many of the photos of awards, models and artifacts were taken at his home. Major Clement “Clem” Leone US Army Air Force   B24 Liberator Radio Operator 2nd Air Division/445th Bomb Group/700th Squadron POW - Stalag Luft IV Poland  Nov. '44 – May ‘45 Clem Leone was born in Baltimore in 1924.  He had two brothers and three sisters and one of his brothers served in the Merchant Marines during WW II.  I asked Clem what he remembered of growing up during the Great Depression.  “It was tough makin' a living.  Not enough food to eat.”  Clem had a step father who was a railroad telegrapher.  “He made an above average salary for the time, but even so, we had to scrounge everywhere we could to get food.”  Clem attended Southern High School, loved his experience, and characterized himself as a nerd.  “I went there to learn and I graduated with honors.” When the war broke out Clem was 17.  He wanted to enlist but his mother wouldn't let him.  “When they started drafting 18 year olds she let me go.”  Clem enlisted in November of '42.  The Army gave him several tests to identify his skills which would then be used to determine his military occupation.  Clem did well on the radio test and had he had the option of radio school or auto and truck mechanic school.  Clem had already taken auto shop in high school so he figured he should learn something else and he selected radio school.  Clem headed to Fort Pickett in Virginia and then to Miami Florida for basic training.  At the time the Army needed radio operators so badly that they shortened his basic training and sent him to radio school in Sioux Falls, South Dakota.  There he spent 13 weeks having “morse code pounded into you.”  Clem wanted to fly and after passing a physical for flying he went to gunnery school to learn every weapon on the aircraft.  The training was primitive but creative for the time and the technology available.   Next stop for Clem was Boise, Idaho where the gunners were teamed with a pilot, co-pilot, engineer and bombardier.  There were a total of 10 in the crew for the B24 Liberator.  The crew was sent to Sioux Falls where they practiced formation flying and Clem was assigned primary responsibility for the radio and secondary responsibility for the upper machine gun turret.  In November of '43 they left for Europe.  They headed for England via Brazil and then to the Ascension Islands.  “The Ascension Islands were a tiny speck in the middle of the ocean.  My thought right away was, the Navigator just got out of cadet training.  I hope he learned his lessons.”  The Navigator got them to the Ascension Islands where they had Thanksgiving dinner while they plane was serviced.  They then flew to Africa and then to Tibenham, England.  Clem was in the 700th Squadron and Jimmy Stewart was a pilot in the 701st Squadron.  One day Jimmy Stewart needed a radio operator to go on a training flight so he could check out a new pilot.  Clem volunteered.  “He was very strict.  You never would have guessed he was a movie star celebrity.” The crew's first flight in December '43 was a training mission to get accustomed to a new pilot.  During the flight, the number 4 engine caught fire and they were able to extinguish the flames.  The pilot was looking to make an emergency landing when the number 1 engine caught fire.  The pilot hit the bail out button and the crew ejected.  Clem didn't get out of the plane until they were at 800 feet, and he hit the ground so hard he broke his leg.  All but the pilot made it out alive. On February 4th of 1944 they had their first mission that took then into Frankfurt, Germany.  They loaded onto their plane, the “Wacky Donald” and headed for Germany.  Clem recalled the flight was uneventful, with lots of flack but no Nazi fighter planes.  They arrived at their target, dropped their bombs, and started to make their turn to head back to England.  One of the planes in the formation above the Wacky Donald had one bomb stuck in its bomb bay and when it released it hit the number two engine on the Wacky Donald.  Clem looked at the window to find a huge hole in the wing.  This forced them to drop out of formation and head back to Tibenham at a much slower speed than the rest of the formation.  The pilot ordered the crew to throw all non-essential equipment, including all but 50 rounds per machine gun, out of the bomb bay to lighten the plane to maintain their altitude.  They were 5 to 6 hours from home. Clem (lower left) with his crew. Top center is Lt. Robert Blomberg, an up and comer with the 445th Bomb Group who died at the controls when his ship blew up. Others in the crew were also KIA. Notable in this team photo is the small man next to Blomberg, Lt. Donald Widmark, co-pilot and brother of future actor Richard Widmark. The co-pilot would grab a parachute and leave Blomberg behind 75 years ago today. Clem's personal rule was to stay with the ship as long as the officers did, but when he saw Widmark bail out, he said, “It was time for this guy to go.” The plane and crew limped home and didn't hit any resistance until they received heavy flack over the coast of France just before they headed over the English Channel.  The plane dropped to about 4,000 feet and then received a radio transmission, “fighters at 6 o'clock.”  Two ME-109 were closing on the Wacky Donald.  Clem was in the upper gun turret and swung the guns around and took aim at the ME-109's.  Another transmission blared “fighters at 12 o'clock.”  Clem pivoted to 12 o'clock and saw a wonderful sight; two British Spitfires.  “Boy, they were beautiful.”  The Spitfires took out one of the Nazi planes and one of the Spitfires chased the other ME-109 back to France.  The Wacky Donald continued back to their air field and Clem recalled, “The White Cliffs of Dover….man they were beautiful!”.  The runway came into sight, but the excitement wasn't over.  The pilot said “I have to put us into a dive to get enough speed to land.  Put the landing gear into the down position and just pray they lock.”  Their prayers were answered, and the pilot got them home in one piece.  “None of us were hurt, but we did a lot of sweating.” With two near misses under his belt Clem flew 4 more missions into Germany and France without incident.  With D-Day looming, Operation Argument was developed.  The objective was sustained and heavy bombing of aviation related targets in Germany.  This was also known as “Big Week”.  The crew of the "Wacky Donald" received orders to bomb a ball bearing plant in Gotha Germany, 145 miles west of Dresden.  “That was a long flight.”  The 20 plane formation took off on February 24 '44.  While making their way to the target they came under attack by the Luftwaffe using Fokker 190's.   The enemy aircraft unleashed a barrage of incendiary rockets directly at the aft section of the "Wacky Donald." Clem was on the radio when he heard a tremendous explosion and saw flames begin to consume the plane. Amidst the chaos and the 200-mile-per-hour slipstream, Clem gripped the barrels of the top turret machine gun, a desperate attempt to maintain some semblance of control.  He looked around and found the tail gunner dead and half hanging out of the plane and one of the waist gunners dead in his position.  The other waist gunner was wounded but managed to eject.  The ball turret gunner came up to escape the fire, but he had to go back and retrieve his parachute leaving Clem and the Engineer to fight the flames with the fire extinguishers.  That proved to be pointless as massive amounts of hydraulic fluid fed the flames.  In a moment that seemed to stretch into eternity, Clem's dire circumstances took a dramatic turn.  The co-pilot climbed over Clem and exited the plane through the upper hatch and bailed out.  Clem's theory was, “if the pilot or the co-pilot leaves, it's time for this boy to go.”  Later Clem learned that 13 of the 20 planes in his formation were shot down. The engulfing fire reached the wing tanks, triggering a catastrophic explosion that instantly transformed the night sky. The force of the blast was so intense that it rendered Technical Sgt. Leone unconscious and propelled him clear of the disintegrating aircraft, setting him on a terrifying free-fall towards the earth below. Plummeting from an altitude of perhaps 10,000 feet, Clem was unconscious, his body hurtling down at a speed that should have guaranteed a fatal outcome upon impact. However, fate had other plans for the feisty airman. In a miraculous twist of events, Clem regained consciousness mid-fall, his face covered in blood, yet his mind startlingly clear. With death staring him in the face, he managed to summon his wits, frantically searching for the orange metal ring on his chest that stood between life and certain death. With a decisive yank, Clem pulled the ring, deploying his parachute and transitioning from a deathly free-fall to a controlled descent. Despite his injuries, including fractured ribs sustained upon impact, Clem survived the ordeal, a testament to his incredible resilience and presence of mind in the face of overwhelming adversity. This harrowing experience not only showcased Clem's indomitable spirit but also marked the beginning of an extraordinary tale of survival against all odds.   Clem put on his parachute and climbed through the upper hatch.  At this point the plane was still flying 240 mph and Clem had to hold on to the two upper guns to keep from blowing off.  The plane was being consumed by flames and Clem was trying to decide how to exit the plane without getting caught in the spinning props or being thrown into the big double tail in the rear.  “While I was contemplating what to do apparently the ship exploded because I found myself at 14,000 feet without an airplane.”   Clem knew he was over enemy territory, and his mind was spinning on how to avoid capture.  His chute opened without a problem and he could see below that there was a pond and he was headed straight into it.  “Well wouldn't you know it, I got out of the plane safely and here I am going to land in this pond and drown because I can't swim.”  Luckily, he remembered his training on how to use his cords to direct his landing.  At about 8,000 feet he saw a crowd of civilians running toward him.  Now he remembered being told that German civilians would kill American pilots because they were told they were gangsters. Clem made sure to pull his legs up so he wouldn't break them and instead broke three ribs and hurt his back. With the crowd rapidly approaching, Clem pulled out his sidearm to try and defend himself.  He could hear them yelling, “Hollander, Hollander!”  He then realized he wasn't in Germany but rather occupied Netherlands.  Clem motioned them to come closer and tried to use his language card to speak Dutch but to no avail.  They brought Clem to a farmhouse and gave him a slice of bread with some jelly and a drink.  Clem didn't know what to expect so he gave the Dutch his firearm in case he was captured.  Better the Dutch to have it than the Nazi's.  Then came a knock at the door and it was a member of the German Home Guard; A Dutch citizen in a Nazi uniform who said, “you are my prisoner.  For you the war is over.”  Clem was led down a road by the Home Guard followed by the Dutch villagers.  Clem was directed to enter a civilian camp, but the Dutch were yelling, “no, other way!”  A 17 year old ran up to Clem and said “come” and he began running.  Without thinking Clem took off with him.  At the same time the Dutch villagers handled the guard.  “They beat the daylights out of him!” They ran into the woods and took Clem to a camouflaged underground bunker just big enough for a cot and a bucket for a latrine.  They told him to stay put and they would be back as soon as the Nazi's stopped looking for him.  A few days later they returned with a doctor.  The doctor taped his ribs and gave him some pain killers and the Dutch brought him some food.  Clem was told he would have to stay put until the villagers were able to hand him off to the Dutch underground.  He hid in the shelter for a week.  One day he heard a truck pull up and was sure the Nazi's had finally found him.  Instead, it was the Dutch underground and Clem's luck continued.  The underground took him to Amsterdam where a family hid him for a while.  They hid him in the attic and sometimes closets.  In the evenings they took him out for walks. They were trying to arrange to get Clem into France and then over the Pyrenees Mountains into Spain and from there to England. The underground thought they had found safe passage and they took Clem and began walking south until they eventually came to a train station, and they handed Clem off to a guide to take him the rest of the way.  At the train station a Nazi soldier asked him where the train was headed.  Clem was dressed in civilian clothes and had identification papers that identified him as a deaf and dumb accountant from Sumatra.  They chose Sumatra because of Clem's Mediterranean complexion and Sumatra was a Dutch possession.  They took the train to a farmhouse in southern Holland and then walked to the border of Belgium.  At the border they had to time the patrols of the Belgium border guards so they could slip across the border.  Once across the border there was a truck waiting for them that took them into Antwerp. Clem was taken to a home where he was hidden for a short time until the underground felt they had another contact that could take him into France.  After exchanging pleasantries, the contact started asking Clem about the name of his plane, when he was shot down and who had helped him.  Clem made up stories about why he couldn't remember and gave up no information.  At that point he was led to a building and was handed over to the Nazi's.  After four and a half months Clem was no longer free.  It was July of 1944 and he had no idea when the war would be over.  I asked Clem what went through his mind at that point.  He said, “I thought it was all over.”  Clem was put in a prison cell with another American that had been captured, Odell Hooper from Oklahoma.  They remained there for about a week until the Nazis had accumulated more Americans.  They were then put on a passenger train to an interrogation center. “All that time, all my mom had was the telegram she received telling her I was shot down,” Leone said. “She didn't know whether I was dead or alive.” At the interrogation center they were put into solitary for a week.  When Clem was brought before the Nazi interrogation officer he was asked for his name, rank, and serial number.  The Nazi, in a very friendly manner said, “Leone.  That's Italian.  Aren't you fighting for the wrong side?”  Clem gave then no information and was sent back to his cell.  Next, they were taken by train to Stalag Luft IV located in present day Tychowo, Poland just south of the Baltic Sea.  Clem remembered when they stepped off the train they saw a long line of German guards, all very young in age and holding German Shepherds.  The Americans were told to run into the POW camp while the guards allowed the dogs to nip at their heels.  When Clem's group made it inside the camp the resident POWs told them, “You were lucky.  They usually prod you with bayonets.” “The Americans already there said we were lucky,” Leone remembered. “The captain who would prick people with bayonets had just gone on leave.” In eight months, Leone had one shower. Had him and his comrades known about the Jewish concentration camps, he admitted they probably wouldn't have gotten even the one shower so as to avoid being gassed. The camp held mainly allied air crews and most of the guards were from the Luftwaffe.  There was a connection between the aircrews which made life a tiny bit more bearable.  Clem was led to his cell by an elderly Nazi soldier who told him, “this won't be pleasant but its bearable and you will be able to live through it and you will be able to get to go home.”  Clem was offered the opportunity to be placed in the officer's camp as an orderly, but he refused.  He wanted to be with the NCO's.   The POWs were warned not to cross the warning wire” that extended around the perimeter of the camp.  If they stepped across it, they would be shot without warning.  Beyond the warning wire there was a series of fences and barbed wire entanglements to make sure no one thought of escape.  Food did exist and red Cross parcels were delivered with some regularity and had some nutrition in them.  Meals consisted of raw potatoes and bread with sticks in it.  Once they were given a block of cheese infested with bugs.  To pass the time they walked around the perimeter of the camp, played baseball with make-shift bats and balls, and played football with a make-shift football. The guards inside the camp were elderly and unarmed.  The POWs called them ferrets because they were always trying to get information from the POWs to pass along to the camp commandant.  The guards in the towers and in the Commandant's barracks were armed.  “They were nasty, and they all spoke perfect English.”  Bartering in the camp with the guards was a big business.  Cigarettes and spam carried high currency.   One of the men bartered with a guard for parts to a radio which he built into a functional transistor radio which kept the POWs somewhat informed of the progress of the war.  They knew the Allies were winning and that helped with morale. In January of '45 the Allies were advancing into Nazi Territory.  The men at the camp could hear artillery in the distance.  They thought Liberation could be not far away.  The Nazi's decided to evacuate the camp to avoid the Russian troops advancing from the east.  They decided to march the camp west.  The sick and wounded were transported by train.  On February 6, 1945, the remaining men began what would become known as the German Death March.   The men were assembled in columns of 4 or 5 across and were forced to march between 5 and 20 miles each day.  The men had inadequate clothing to provide them protection from one of Germany's harshest winters on record.  Snow and sub-zero temperatures resulted in frost bite and the complete lack of sanitation, food or drink resulted in extreme weight loss, lice, dysentery and in some cases death.  Men who could not keep up were escorted by a Nazi soldier into the woods and executed.  Sometimes the men were able to sleep in barns but often they slept in open fields exposed to the elements.  The march took the POWs through numerous German towns where they were distained by the German citizens who had endured prolonged and devastating Allied bombing.  They threw eggs and tomatoes and tried to assault the POWs.   They stole eggs for food. At one point, they collected all their cigarettes to trade with a farmer for a pig to roast. They dodged friendly fire from U.S. airplanes that had no way of knowing they were American prisoners. “Survival,” Leone said when asked what was going through his mind during the more than a year he spent in Europe. “How's this gonna end? What are they finally gonna do? Any time you don't have your freedom, I think you'd feel that way. The worst part of it as far as not having your freedom was that week in solitary.” Clem believes the march ended on May 6th, 1945.  That day they woke up and found that the guards had disappeared.   The POWs wondered what had happened.  A short while later they heard engines and soon a British Lorry appeared carrying British soldiers.    The number of men thought to have started the march was 6,000+.  The total time estimated for the march was 86 days.  It is believed the men covered 600+ miles as the Nazi's continually changed direction to avoid the advancing Soviet troops.  It is thought that 1,300+ men perished in the harsh winter conditions.  No official records were kept making it hard to get precise numbers.  Despite the lack of records this forced march is often compared to the Bataan Death March. The British took the POWs clothes and burned them.  They deloused the men and gave them plenty of time to take a nice hot shower.  Initially they were issued small portions of rations until their digestive systems became accustomed to food again.  Clem boarded the ship, The Jonathan Worth for a 13 day voyage home.  When they entered New York Harbor they were greeted with pleasure boats “with gals in bikini's and some of them had records playing don't fence me in.”  I asked Clem if he remembered seeing the Statute of Liberty.  “Oh Yes.  That was a wonderful site!”  Next, they were taken to Fort Dix and were given a big steak dinner.  They were permitted one phone call and Clem called his uncle to come pick him up.   Clem arrived back in Baltimore and had a 60 day recuperation furlough.  He looked up his high school sweetheart who had waited for him to return and they decided to get married and move to Miami where Clem was scheduled to report back for duty.  They were married and before they left on their honeymoon Clem received a letter to be ready to deploy to the Pacific.  Fortunately, when he returned from his honeymoon the war was over.   Clem went about building his life with a keen sense for making money and advancing.  He worked as an auto mechanic, then networked his way into a Pontiac dealership in the service area, became shop foreman and then went into sales and various other roles in the car business.  In a chance meeting someone asked him if he had ever considered teaching auto mechanics.  He had not but decided to give it a try because it had a pension.  Clem ended up teaching high school auto mechanics for 22 years and was beloved by his students.  He also stayed in the Army and Air Force Reserves for 33 years reaching the rank of Major.  “In my opinion, there are no real heroes in a war,” Leone said from his Mount Joy home in the Lake Heritage development. “There's nothing glorious about war. It's mayhem.” Clem Leone passed away at the age of 98 on Wednesday, September 28, 2022.  CLem received France's highest award, the Legion of Honor, at the French Embassy in Washington, D.C., and also received the Purple Heart, the POW Award and the Dutch equivalent to the French Legion of Honor. Luke Fenzel with Clem Leone (June 16, 2018) John and Luke Fenzel, with Clem Leone (June 16, 2018) The above narrative was derived from the following sources: Written Account by Walter Schuppe, Avon, CT, (860) 558-1072; walter11_22@yahoo.com "WWII vet, former POW, recalls War as 'Mayhem'," Gettysburg Times Article by Mark Walters, December 6, 2010 "Death for Wacky Donald," by Robert Matzen

A proposal for a new county jail draws lukewarm support; An Arizona congressman wants to crack down on high speed border chases; The Benson airport is dedicated to a survivor of the Bataan Death March; and more...

In 1942, the American forces in the Philippines were in a very bad way and were forced to surrender to the Japanese that had trapped them on a small peninsula on the island of Luzon. What followed was a brutal hellmarch, a suffocating train ride, and internment at a camp with conditions so bad that men wished for death. In this episode we're telling you the story of the surrender and the torture that followed, but this little slice of bleakness is only being served so that we can come back next week and tell you all about the daring spec-ops raid that was launched to save these men and bring them home. But for now, why don't you go ahead and grab a drink, settle in, and enjoy this episode of Hundred Proof History titled The Bataan Death March: Aptly Named! If you enjoyed the show, please consider joining our Patreon where you get classic episodes, bonus episodes, and early access to new releases. All for just $3 a month! --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/100proofhistory/message

In the world of City Clubs, Jeff McFadden is well known and well-respected. As the CEO of the Union League of Philadelphia he has developed a national reputation as a club leader. Ask GM's who know him and they use adjectives to describe him like "Brilliant", "Visionary" and "remarkable." In this episode, Jeff shares his involvement in transforming the Union League from a club in financial trouble generating about $7 million in annual revenue to a club that does about 100 million annually. He also shares his perspective on breaking away from old financial models and how to engage new, younger members with long-time club personalities. Is now the time to double down and invest in your club? Listen to Jeff's thoughts on that topic as well.  Noteworthy Moments: Jeff talks about making the leap to the Union League - 3:45 Park it! The Union League buys a parking garage - 9:07 Building your granddaughter's club - 13:21 Thinking differently about the financial future and the "right way to run a railroad" - 15:25 Change management and getting the right people on the bus - 19:03 The city club and more. Building an investment portfolio - 25:52 How Jeff views appealing to different member demographics - 35:06 Is this the time to invest in your club? - 39:28 Episode Summary: For club leaders who feel stuck in the "same old, same old" Jeff provides a fresh take on some long time issues. He also offers some insightful thoughts around managing the issue of engaging younger new members while keeping long time members excited about the club. As the General Manager, now CEO of the Union League of Philadelphia, Jeff is gone from managing day to day operations of a city club to running a $100 million business. If you're someone hoping to create this kind of growth at your club and this type of career track for yourself, you'll appreciate Jeff McFadden's Perspective Let's Connect If you find Crushing Club Marketing helpful please share it with a friend and be sure to subscribe and rate this podcast. Also, find more information on private club marketing services from StoryTeller, check out our website here. If you'd like to connect with Ed Heil on LinkedIn, feel free to send a request! Transcript Ed Heil: [00:00:00] You're listening to Crush and Club Marketing, a podcast for progressive club leaders looking to increase their club's revenue. Time for Change begins right now. In the world of city clubs. Jeff McFadden is well-known and well-respected as the CEO of the Union League of Philadelphia. He's developed a national reputation as a club leader, as GM's who know him and these adjectives to describe him like brilliant, visionary and remarkable. In this episode of Crushing Club Marketing, I catch up with Jeff to learn more about his involvement in building the Union League from a club in financial trouble to a club that does about 100 million in revenue annually. He calls it accidental brilliance, but there's more to it than that. [00:00:44][44.7] Ed Heil: [00:00:46] Your name has come up in so many conversations regarding just what a strong leader and visionary you are and in the work you've done at the Union League. And I know that it's difficult to talk about yourself in that way. But there was a quote that I read from Jason Straka from the Frye Straka, a global golf course design firm and Jason Straka, said Union League CEO Jeff McFadden is one of the most respected general managers associated with the golf business. He's credited with vastly expanding the Union League's social and business opportunities, knowing that many of their members on a vacation home down on the Jersey Shore and or vacation there quite a bit. Jeff saw an opportunity for a second golf facility, and obviously this is referring to one of the the golf clubs that the union now owns. But when you hear those kind of accolades, and that, what goes through your mind. [00:01:46][60.0] Jeff McFadden: [00:01:47] Well, first of all, what goes through my mind is I pay Jason, which is a good thing. And that's probably why he had those nice accolades about us. But when he and Dana Frye did at Union League, National is just over the top. It's the Disney World of golf. It's spectacular. Over the last year, 27 holes. And now we're proud. I'm very proud of what I did. I think a lot of what we've done over the last 25 years was accidental brilliance through really just perseverance, hard work, you know, trying to get the right strategy and then keeping your head down and, you know, working through what you could do and keeping a smile on your face to, you know, that's. [00:02:27][40.1] Ed Heil: [00:02:27] Yeah, well, you make it sound simple and, you know, I guess when it comes second, nature probably feels simpler. Although I know it's not always been super easy, as is. Most jobs are when you're there that long. But 25 years, you know, that's a long run. And your first two jobs in you know as I think GM and both both jobs five years and three years which is pretty typical, right. I mean, is that do I have that right? Help me out with that. [00:02:56][28.7] Jeff McFadden: [00:02:56] Yeah. No, When I graduated the hotel school at Cornell, I went to the Cosmos Club as food and beverage manager, got promoted to assistant GM clubhouse manager. And then my first GM job is in Denver, Colorado, at the University Club, which I never thought I'd move back to the East Coast from Colorado. But I did. Yeah, right. When I got headhunted to go to the Union League at at age 30. So good times. [00:03:20][24.1] Ed Heil: [00:03:21] Guess, you know, at age 30. What did the Union League see in you at that age, especially looking back now? I mean, what's it like looking back now and, you know, knowing what you were like then? I mean, what do you think they saw in you that time? [00:03:34][12.4] Jeff McFadden: [00:03:34] Well, I think in in reality, I think I was the fifth person they offered the job, too. So, you know. [00:03:40][5.2] Ed Heil: [00:03:40] You sort of you I wish I got I got a vet that won out. But yeah. [00:03:44][3.5] Jeff McFadden: [00:03:45] You know, right place, right time, situation. It just worked out well. The league was struggling in the late eighties, 1990s, as Philadelphia was struggling quite a bit before Ed Rendell, who was a gregarious mayor, wind up becoming governor of Pennsylvania. Just a terrific leader, inspirational type of person. So, you know, when I was young enough, probably dumb enough and not experienced enough to know what I was getting into. And the the more senior statement statements in the club industry probably looked at the league and said, I don't want to touch it. Right. It's it had sort of had terminal cancer. At the time it wasn't bankrupt, but it was very close to bankrupt. But I saw that it had great bones as well. It had a great foundation. You know, at 30, you think you can change the world? I think I've done well in changing the league. And it was just being again at the right place at the right time for the right situation. And we made a bad decision or a mistake. We were young enough to outhustle the mistake or the bad decision. Right. [00:04:57][71.7] Ed Heil: [00:04:57] That's interesting. So what has made you successful for so many years? I mean, if you just take the years alone, that's an incredible achievement in in the private club space to be at one place for 25 years. What do you think has made you successful in that role? [00:05:13][15.8] Jeff McFadden: [00:05:13] Well, I think the way we acquired and operate the club as sort of, you know, being an innovative type organization. Now, when I did my independent study at Cornell, I studied close to 5000 city clubs throughout the world. It was from the 15 person City Club to the to the club that had 5000. And you needed three things. You needed to have parking, you needed to know, because I gave members assurance coming in from the suburbs that they had a place to park. As you get older, you have more net worth to spend. You get a little worried about where you're going to park. The data showed that that was a huge part of being a successful city club. Yeah. So we bought a parking garage right when I got there, and then we just doubled our revenues in in less than one year. While the number two thing at the greatest city clubs in the world shared was they never sold their land and built the site skyscraper and put their club at the top of the building because eventually the I guess after the data shows after three days that you went away and then the elevator became a barrier to entry, there were a few clubs in New York, Manhattan and Tokyo that buck that trend. Windows on the World, that was a public restaurant. There was a small private club component of Windows on the World. But truly, if you were successful, members had to walk into your club, right? So the league had that as well. And then you need overnight rooms. You have all the expenses running a club, marketing, administration, engineering, you name it. If you add some overnight rooms to the equation, the profitability or the surplus that they could throw off departmentally, you know, $0.60, $0.70 on the dollar really were work well. So I was able to. Run those three things when I first got there and then reinvest into the club with incredible dining business centers, cigar bar, you know, fitness centers, that sort of thing. And so for if I look at my 25 years, the first ten or 15 was taking that incredible foundation that the league was all about. Investing in that. Growing, growing the institution. And then after ten or 15 years, we use the profitability or the surplus that was gained to really have a longer strategic plan that we entitled "Building Your Granddaughter's Club". Yeah. And and that was you know, that was sort of a light bulb moment, like, okay, are we just going to be the greatest 1965 club in 2005? Right. Or, you know, in in 2025, were we going to be what your granddaughter and great granddaughter are going to want in a private club? You know how to how do they socialize? How do they use it? You know, we started asking ourselves all those questions. [00:08:13][179.3] Ed Heil: [00:08:13] I love that. I want to come back to that next, but if we just step back to you being 30 years old, when you took that job and, you know, you come in and, you know, buying the parking structure and then you started, it sounds like, you know, in the first ten years, there's a lot of innovation and things moving forward. And I know that some of the games that will pay attention to our conversation, they're younger. There's definitely a trend towards a lot of younger jobs or it seems that there is. How did you get their trust, at that you know, I mean, and what was the mindset of the board? Were they just like, hey, we've done our homework, We know Jeff's the right guy, let him go do it. But, you know, there are a lot of clubs out there who are like, Yeah, we'll get him in there, but we'll just tell him what to do. I mean, how do you know what I mean? How do you get in there and earn their trust and really go like that? [00:09:06][52.7] Jeff McFadden: [00:09:07] So and is fortunate enough to be in the right place at the right time, as I said, because of their how they were struggling financially. But with that said, you can't go in and change the world overnight. You need to start small, you need to show a small victory and then capitalize on each of those victories. You know, as they say, having, you know, having, you know, one bite at a time, you know, you just that's way you have to do it. I think we we had, you know, coming in in 1998 on the heels with Ed Rendell being the mayor of the Republican National Convention, was held in Philadelphia in 2000. We had a tradition as a Republican club. So that was really, you know, helped us springboard into reinvesting in our facilities. But I convinced them to do little things, that the garage was a big thing. But we had already started putting new carpeting, new wallpaper, you know, one dining room at a time, hiring younger, more robust, enthusiastic, vibrant servers and studying what people wanted on food menus and that and so forth. And we just basically started with one dining room and then did another dining room and then did a bar and then bought the parking garage. And the parking garage was, was a struggle. We it was a first assessment we had at the league in 50 years. We did not have a lot of support for it. Yeah. So we, we did wind up getting about 67%, 68% in favor of it. Yeah. And, and I figure just a quick story. I was very transparent because I was I was very young at that time. So I shared everything. I still and I still am as transparent as they come. I just don't lead with my chin. Right. What's actually going on in things? [00:11:01][113.7] Ed Heil: [00:11:01] I gotta remember that. [00:11:01][0.6] Jeff McFadden: [00:11:02] Yeah. You know, it makes talking so much or sharing so much as being transparent. I know that's not necessarily people want to be let right. Need to be led and you want to be transparent in everything you do. You just don't need to tell everybody everything every minute of the day. Right? [00:11:19][17.4] Ed Heil: [00:11:20] Right. Yeah. No doubt. [00:11:21][1.1] Jeff McFadden: [00:11:21] With social media and, you know, it just seems that's what the next generation is doing. Right. So we were we were we were trying to figure out we needed to do an assessment. It was very was it very much about $2,000 a member. And we you know, they were hemming and hawing about paying that. And and one member said, could I get my money back at a town hall meeting? And I said, Mr. Grossman, you are absolutely brilliant. That's a great idea. We're going to make your assessment refundable. All you have to do is propose a new member. And it was like a light bulb went off and we ran with that. You had actually proposed two members you got $1,000 back for your first member, 1000 for your second. I love it. This is back in 1999. And basically all the naysayers and we still had it still 30 to 33% of the people voted against it. I would say to them, I said, you don't have any friends or colleagues or business people that you could propose to become a member of the league to help us out, to make sure, you know. And that was on top of all the importance of parking, obviously. Right. And then we were about a $7 million operation. We bought the parking garage. And I think the next year after it opened, we were 21, $22 million operations. Wow. Doubled, tripled what we were doing. And all it is is take the you know, the folks from the mainline or from South Jersey who are uncomfortable coming into an urban environment. Yeah, we just assured that they had parking. Right. We just said we have valet parking. It's right next to the club. [00:12:59][97.8] Ed Heil: [00:12:59] Yeah. Safety and convenience. [00:13:00][1.1] Jeff McFadden: [00:13:01] Yeah. [00:13:01][0.0] Ed Heil: [00:13:02] Exact easiest things. [00:13:02][0.8] Jeff McFadden: [00:13:03] Wow. So and so. I rode that pony for a long time,Ed, the parking garage. You know, work magic for me for the next ten years. [00:13:11][8.5] Ed Heil: [00:13:11] Yeah, no doubt. I love that. Let's talk about building your granddaughter's club. When did you come up? When did you, like, come up with that phrase that I love that I read that one of the articles. [00:13:20][8.6] Jeff McFadden: [00:13:21] Yeah. It just, you know, obviously being a men's club for so long, over 125 years of the men's club, we allowed women in 1986. The idea is there's there's so much connotation in that phrase granddaughter building your granddaughters time, meaning that we're becoming progressive more, you know, more forward thinking, more inclusive. And I also got everyone thinking not about themselves, but about the next generation and the generation after them. So I think that's almost more important than than the gender identification of saying building your granddaughters club the to show and to get the culture of our members to think that yes, we've been here 162 years, we're going to be here another hundred and 62 years. Let me not get tied up in minutia of today, but think about tomorrow and you see this and golf clubs and country clubs where they fight over a new irrigation system, you know, an 80 year old to say, hey, I don't want to pay for the new irrigation system. I'm not going to be here. Right, right, right. And you say to that person, well, you're not paying for the new irrigation system, you're paying for the irrigation system you consumed over the last 30 years. Right. And and and that's the sort of the mindset that we started to and now people are like they're proud when we build we have built into their views a capital do structure but they're proud with the the advancements that we have made, the investments that we've made and they don't they don't think of it as for them. They think, Wow, my granddaughter and my grandson are going to love this place. And it's just a little nuance, a little change. [00:15:05][104.6] Ed Heil: [00:15:06] But I've not heard people position it like that. What has been your overall philosophy, you know, and how do you share that as far as like keeping people thinking forward? Like, is there an overarching sort of, I don't know, almost like value or belief that you have that you sort of, you know, live by that way? [00:15:24][18.3] Jeff McFadden: [00:15:25] That's a it's a great question. Yeah. I think it's it's always thinking about the future. And I and I and I tell members and a lot of clubs do not do this. We have $54 million in debt, which people are like, Oh, oh, that's a lot of money. And then I don't know. And we also have $20 million in the bank, right? And if we had saved a dollar per member per month since our inception in 1862, yeah, we'd have $1,000,000,000 in the bank. And when you tell stories like that to members and you know it resonates and it gets to them that, you know, you're you're not just here to enjoy the club, but you are a steward of the club. You are a steward of the institution. You know, you need to think of it in that capacity. And for 100 years, clubs never did. Right? Right. They matter of fact, to this day, your investment income of a 501c7 is taxable. So I'm trying to tell people that they need to start a foundation to do a charitable set aside for their foundation. Do you know, do well by doing good in your community and people? Some of the greatest clubs. And I'll say, Jeff, we don't have any investments, we don't have any investment yet. I said, What do you mean? You're Aronomik, you're Marion Golf, you're Pine Valley, you don't have investment income. Like now we don't have any debt, We don't have any savings. We live hand to mouth, right? And then we assess for when we want to build something. I said, I just don't think that's the right way to run the railroad. I think, you know, you you boil the frog slowly, you add capital dues monthly into your regular dues, and you always plan for the future. You don't you don't pay off your mortgage without saying without saving for your kids college education. Right. It's right. It's not rocket science. [00:17:26][121.7] Ed Heil: [00:17:27] Yeah, well, but why don't more ask why is it so commonsense? You But I mean, so many clubs operate exactly how you just explain it. [00:17:35][7.3] Jeff McFadden: [00:17:35] Because they let emotion get in the way. You know, they bail They they you know, we're all self-serving, though, don't get me wrong. I'm self-serving as well. But, you know, if you don't have the mentality that you're part of a greater good. You know, you can easily get into. You know? You know, what are we spending today and how can I have the best results and the best experience at the least cost and. And group think happens, very quickly, you know, great leaders, you know, can change culture quickly and then you can get into the abyss quickly as well. In that group thinking and psychology of pricing, whether it's dues or golf fees, food and beverage, menu prices, whatever is important to understand because people want value, right? They still want value, and yet they're going to do that. And we're trying you know, we're trying to ride the wave, tap into a new way of thinking, a new way to run finances and hopefully don't take off. [00:18:37][61.9] Ed Heil: [00:18:38] And I mean, what you're saying just makes so much sense. But let me throw a wrinkle in on this where it's like a lot of times people will join committees of clubs, they'll join boards and clubs because they have something they have an agenda that they are pushing, right. And they want to get one. I get that. I'll make sure this gets done. How do you how have you been able to manage that? Because that's like that's such a reality that people struggle with. [00:19:03][24.8] Jeff McFadden: [00:19:03] Well, that takes investment, believe it or not. And here's the investment. The answer is yes. Now ask me the question, says a club professional. You have to have the ability to take no off the table. Not that you can say yes to everything, but a lot of people get into committees and committee services because they haven't been satisfied by the team or by the professional folks they weren't listened to. More often than not, it's not one or the other, right? It's not, you know, should we have sesame seeds on our bun or should we not have sesame seeds on it? But by the way, I've had that conversation at the board level, which is idiotic. You know, you have to believe the right thing. So love it, right? We always tell folks, don't waste your time getting on a committee, because the answer is yes. What do you need? What do you want? We're here for you. And I train everyone never to say no. Even if you know it's impossible. You always say, Let me figure it out. Let me see if I can get back to you and come up with a couple of solutions that may not get you all the way to yes, but takes no off the table. Sure. The other thing we do with committees, which I think is brilliant and I thought it because I stole it from the Missouri Athletic Club and it's worked really well, is that we don't allow anyone to serve on a committee unless they have proposed successfully proposed amendment. Interesting. So one of the things you have, I mean, if you get in a very domineering type member who wants to get on committees and has very strong opinions about something. Nine times out of ten, they have not proposed a member because they usually have a bombastic attitude or they're so aggressive. Nobody wants you know, they're just they're a bull in a china shop. And so we put that qualification in that you have to successfully propose the member to serve on a committee. You need to answer a whole bunch of questions, fill out an application and send us your CV, which is another high hurdle to get over. And then we limit our committees just to 3 to 5 people with two professionals. So the total committee will be 5 to 7 and the two professionals have a vote and we only put on committees those who have an expertise and whatever the committee is doing, you know, which drives me nuts when you have the dentist, you know, as chair of the Green committee, you know, and the gardening and all of a sudden he's an expert on agronomy. [00:21:35][151.7] Ed Heil: [00:21:36] Right, Right. [00:21:36][0.4] Jeff McFadden: [00:21:36] Yeah, right. So we'll have that. Instead. We'll have the person that owns the garden center. Right? That's the excuse me. That's the national alert. We were talking about getting a. You know, we want to make sure. So on our food and beverage committees, we have restaurateurs, we have hotel people, we have staffing h.r. Directors who staff for hotels. So we we're pretty smart. We try to put the right people in the right, in the right position. We try to push decision making down to the subcommittee level as best we can. And then quite frankly, the answer is yes. And it defuzes a lot of that tension that you have between members. And then if you couple that with a capital dues at party or regular dues, you don't have to ask for assessments where you could get the tennis racket players fighting against the golfers and the golfers fighting against the wine, people on the wine, people fighting gets the fitness people and the older folks fighting against the younger folks who have kids. And you're putting money into child care and baby pools and that sort of thing. Yeah. So by building the capital into it, into the, you know, you hopefully can trigger projects that are the right decision at the right time. I have a woman right now who is a member, I love her to death, you know, a part of our ten year master plan. We have we are not going to build a outdoor family pool at one of our locations until 2029. And she looked at me and she goes, Jeff, I have an eight year old, ten year old and 12 year old building in 2018. 2019 is not going to serve me a purpose, right? Yeah, exactly. So, yeah, you know, so I have to understand that I have rationalized that over. [00:23:26][110.4] Ed Heil: [00:23:27] The course of the last. Gosh, what since you've been there in the last 25 years, you've the club has purchased restaurants and golf clubs, and for a city club you don't hear city clubs doing that often. What, what was behind this and what is behind it? And is this just part of the mission and what you see going forward, you know, for years to come? [00:23:49][22.2] Jeff McFadden: [00:23:50] So we were studying city clubs for a while and you know, back in 1967, we served 2500 lunches a day. Right? It was it was, if you remember, the old movie Trading Places with Eddie Murphy. That was the Union League, right? It was Mortimer and Randolph. Duke and Duke. Yeah. And so lunch was losing. You know, the urban downtown environments were changing, becoming much more residential. The younger kids were moving in and we started to think long term, how is your granddaughter going to use the club versus your grandfather? And we and we just we really started to just think and do some studying about trends and and thought patterns. And it really dawned on us that these younger generation wanted more experiences. Right? They didn't they didn't do the same thing over and over and over. Their grandfather would dine at the same table, you know, every Saturday night, 50 weekends a year, right at Philly Country Club and sort of have the same menu item. Their grandfather had five friends. Their granddaughter now has 500 friends. Right. So the way he or she socializes in a club is totally different than the grandfather, though you typically would find the grandfather on the board making decisions. Right? [00:25:10][80.2] Ed Heil: [00:25:10] Right. Totally. [00:25:11][0.4] Jeff McFadden: [00:25:12] We had to kind of think through that. And they and then we thought, you know, the granddaughter only eats out at her favorite restaurant three or four times a year where the grandfather again, a 50 times that is her, right? Yeah. At their favorite restaurant, you know, And then they saying that the granddaughter wants a condo in Manhattan and a condo in Manhattan Beach and it has more of a lock and load mentality, experience driven versus a $10 million house. You know, we're in Grosse Pointe with ten bedrooms on ten acres, and the next generation just doesn't want that. [00:25:51][39.2] Ed Heil: [00:25:52] For sure. [00:25:52][0.2] Jeff McFadden: [00:25:52] So we started to to to to think about what could the league become and we started to think a lifestyle club. So can we get them in? It's not just a city social lunch club, but it could be more of a lifestyle club offering more experiences, more amenities. At the same time, we realized that because we had increased our revenues by so much with the parking garage and some of the smaller investments we've made, we realized scale was important. So not only was the next generation changing how they wanted to use the the club and socialize within a club environment, we realized scale is important because clubs have just gotten downright expensive to operate 100, 125 years ago, in the golden age of private clubs, immigration was inexpensive, labor was cheap. There was no environmental laws. There was no. Health care. So you. You know. Tom, Dick, Harry, Sally could start a club back in the early 19th century or 20th century and be very well and be very successful at it. If you look at Detroit or Boston, Westchester, New York, Philadelphia, there are a lot of clubs that were started from 1890 to 1920, the Golden Age. And so that that hit us like like, like a sledgehammer. We needed to increase our top line because our expenses were more were very high. But we also started small. I don't want to anybody think we had this grand strategy or, you know, we have three country clubs now. We'll soon have 81 holes of golf, two independent restaurants that are members only that are really cool, tony type restaurants that you you can't eat in unless you're a member. But it didn't start that. It was very slow. As you said, I've been there 25 years. And people say, Jeff, what you've done to the league overnight is incredible. Like time. It's been like the Bataan Death March in some respects, though, obviously we respect veterans and everyone who gave their life for this country. You know, a quick story about our first acquisition was this little 100 seat restaurant in Stone Harbor, New Jersey, a block from the beach called the Bungalow. And it was just truly accidental brilliance and luck. And we started very small in branching out from from Center City, Philadelphia. I was down staying down the shore with a board member of the league. My wife and I were staying there and we were playing golf. It was July when Philadelphia was just completely empty because everybody goes down to the shore. And I figured that out. You know, I didn't realize it at the time. I figured out shortly after this new swanky hotel called the Reeds, it was just built in on the harbor of Stone of Stone Harbor. So the board members, let's go over, have a drink. After topside went over their back deck overlooking the water with all the boats. And I run into like 20 members. I'm like, Oh, Mr. Turner. Mr. Smith. Oh, man. It was like, Oh, and it was great. Brand new. They put like, you know, 80 million into this place and it was fantastic. They said to Jules, my wife, I said the next night before we go to dinner, let me, let's, let's go show you the reeds and we go back to The Reeds, back to the back bar on the deck overlooking the harbor. And I run into like 20 more members that were magnificent. The numbers are around on Friday, and I'm like, Wow, A light bulb went off. Yeah, where everybody's at. And so we quickly did some data analytics realize that over 65% of our members spent two or more weeks at the Jersey Shore. We then did some zipcode analysis. We found that most of the wealth was moving from Atlantic County, which is home of Atlantic City, little north of Cape May, down to Cape May County, the Avalon Stone Harbor, Cape May area, Ocean City area. Yeah. And we bought a $600,000 restaurant that was in a fire sale because there was a tax lien on it, put about another 600,000 in. So it was a million to investment. And it just took off. We had we had it. And it not only took off as a great place to eat because you can't get into a restaurant down there. Plus, you as a restaurateur, you wouldn't start a restaurant there because the season is so short. So it was a real conundrum. You couldn't get. There were enough restaurants seats from July 4th through Labor Day. But you couldn't make enough money as a restaurant tour to open a restaurant because there was only a ten week season. Right? We had 500 net new members join the league because of the bungalow. [00:30:56][303.8] Ed Heil: [00:30:57] Wow. [00:30:57][0.0] Jeff McFadden: [00:30:58] So what I said and then with an equity focus group, the whole bunch of them, we found out that they they loved the Union League in Center City, Philadelphia, but they just didn't get there enough to use it. But now you couple the bungalow down the shore in a marketplace, you can't go out to eat because you can't get a reservation and all of that, except I'm willing to join the league, pay dues because you have Center city. And the Bungalow brought us to buying Torresdale buying Sand Barrens which became Union league National. Buying the Ace Golf Club and Chubb Conference Center and buying the guardhouse in Gladwin. So we just kind of over the next ten years, kept adding properties that grew our membership, our net membership. And if you think about layering that onto the thought process that your your grandchildren are going to have 500 friends. And you need scale because clubs are expensive. It just started to click win, win, win win, Right. You know, and and and these cranky old small clubs that the kids don't want to belong to. They all want to belong to the league now. And we just changed our strategic plan to be called from 28 to 88. And that the concept is not only are we a great club, but we want to be a great club that you're a member of for six years. Yeah. So we get you we get you in Center City when you move in after university in college, we keep you when you move out and have kids. And when your parents die, you inherit the house down the shore. We have we have two properties down there to keep you until you're 88. Wow. That's the concept. [00:32:45][106.8] Ed Heil: [00:32:46] That it's remarkable. I mean, and so far, no regrets. [00:32:50][3.2] Jeff McFadden: [00:32:50] No, no regrets. It's just it's a it's not fun for me or not as rewarding for me as much as when you operate one location. You know, I got into hospitality, pealing potatoes at the age of ten and sort of never look back on it when I talk at universities across the country. So how did you decide to get into hospitality? Well, I never did. I just started working and just never stopped working. Right. I just I didn't I didn't conscientious like, think I was going to stay in hospitality. The one regret, though, is that, you know, we have 1200 employees now. We're over 100 million in annual revenue. I miss the satisfaction of day to day operations and people. Jeff, you have the greatest life. You know, you're not responsible. But yeah, but you don't realize, you know, it's the intrinsic value you get from. [00:33:44][53.8] Ed Heil: [00:33:46] That intimacy. [00:33:46][0.2] Jeff McFadden: [00:33:46] Location. Right? And one one. So I miss that. [00:33:50][3.1] Ed Heil: [00:33:50] Yeah, for sure. Interesting. What a machine, though. It's amazing. I got to call you on this show because you've used the term accidental brilliance and luck in a somewhat different spot here. At some point, it's no longer an accident, and it's probably not luck either. But what I'm wondering is, you know, 28 to 88, you know, that is something that I think that a lot of clubs would aspire to be, you know, to say or to to be able to pull off. And yet it's also very difficult for whatever reason, you know, for the reasons you've talked about as far as like appeasing the, you know, just two different generations or maybe three different generations in many cases, for people who are listening to this podcast who are like, you know, you don't have as well. Yeah, well, McFadden has this or he's done that or, you know, somebody who knows you have to. It starts with a vision. It starts with a belief. It starts with great membership, obviously, and, and visionary people. But for people that are listening, that are struggling with how to how to make changes to their club, to appeal to a younger membership, but also engage their aging membership. What what do you say to them? [00:35:05][75.0] Jeff McFadden: [00:35:06] Well, you got to figure out how to bring those two groups together, right? If you want people to live longer, you've got to surround them with younger people. Right. And that's the easy part. The hard part is getting the young folks to value older folks. So we look at multiple activities that an eight year old and now being very, what your eight year old can do that, an 80 year old. So that's them. But things like bowling. Right. I mean, as silly as that is, it's a thing that a young person can do. An old person do pickleball. Young person can do and an old person can do. Yeah. You know. Lectures and education. Social programs are real important to bring in those young, young people. Go. I try not to think of serving a younger market. I'm serving an older market. I'm serving a club market and try to bring the two generations of three generations together and then keep things lighthearted and fun. The crankiest old guy, you know, will respond with the young folks surrounded around them in an enjoyable environment. You know, cranky, cranky old club members make more cranky old club members. So you have to just stop that cycle, right? You got to you got to put everybody together and try to get them to enjoy each other's company in light hearted activities that everybody can do. You also have to be, as I say, you can't be all things to all people, but you have to offer enough niches at your club to satisfy multiple generations, right? You need to have. You need to be adding pickle at the same time. You're putting Padel in, you know. You need to have a resort style pool. You know, at the same time, you need an Olympic or half Olympic lane pool. So people in their seventies can stay limber and flexible. So it's not one or the other. The answer more, more often than not, is both. [00:37:12][126.4] Ed Heil: [00:37:13] You kind of create like a win win in that environment. I mean, is that. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. It just that is one of those those challenges I think so many people are perplexed with is the do I have to make a decision of one over the other instead of saying, is there a way that you can actually kind of make both parties happy? But like you said, you're never going to please everyone all the time. We all know that, too. [00:37:41][28.0] Jeff McFadden: [00:37:42] Right. Yeah. And that's the hard part. But with the manager, you know, one of the one of the things that I always tell tell members or other managers is, is I never write a member newsletter. You never see my face in our newsletter. I am not, you know, I hope I'm the like the little I am little short and fat, my wizard behind the curtain. I want I want other I want other folks and basically the president of the club to take all the glory, to be the mouthpiece and so forth. So I think being are 25 years and part of my success of being here 25 years is that I'm not front and center. I am I'm sort of front and center on the professional side, but certainly not on the membership side. You'll never I have never written a column and newsletter. I never write an email from from the CEO or from the general manager. It's always from the president or or from a department head or from a vice president or standing committee chair. You'll never see anything from myself to the membership. [00:38:46][63.5] Ed Heil: [00:38:46] Awesome. Well, last question for you. With so many clubs doing so well, is this I'm going to ask you a question. I probably feel like I know what you can say, but is this the time to really say, let's invest? Is this the time to take some chances? Is this a time with clubs healthier maybe than they were for sure before the pandemic, to maybe look at some things and making changes and having a little more courage? Or is it, what's your general mindset, especially for those clubs that maybe aren't as healthy and those that are, you know, really trying to figure out how best to take advantage of this time? That is better than it was before the pandemic? [00:39:27][40.7] Jeff McFadden: [00:39:28] I think the time is right to create the right strategy of constant improvement. I don't think it's the right time to do major, major improvements unless you desperately need it. You know, sometimes you just need to knock a clubhouse down to rebuild it because you're going to spend, you know, good money after bad money, so to speak. But I do think the strategy at all private clubs needs to be we are going to have constant improvement over the next ten, 15, 20 years. We're going to continue to change and adapt and better our product. If you spent if your budget over ten years was $100 million, but that's obviously ridiculous to say your budget was 10 million over ten years. If you spent all that 10 million in year one by year three, your members would say, What are you doing for me now? Right. So I think good leadership will put a strategy in that recognize this is the best of times or one of the best. And it's important for us to realize that we need to have constant improvement. And that's the right strategy. So don't give them it's like your kids. Don't give them everything right out of the bat, you know? Give it to him a little at a time. Keep them excited. You know, don't. If you're going to build some paddle courts, you know, don't build paddle, pickle, padel, hydro, clay courts all in the same year. Now you say, Well, Jeff, it might be easier. Well, do the master plan and then, you know. Dole it out a little bit at a time. Keep people excited about, you know, make sure you have something going on for multiple generations, you know, for the old folks, the middle folks, the young folks. I don't think clubs because we always relied on assessments every 10 to 12 years to do major projects. I think if we get in that we should be constantly improving each and every year and share that with them. And I think you'll keep members and members will enjoy your club so much more. [00:41:33][124.9] Ed Heil: [00:41:34] Jeff, thanks so much. It's so much fun talking to you today and hearing your perspective on what you've done in the industry in general. [00:41:40][6.5] Jeff McFadden: [00:41:41] I appreciate that. You're doing a great job. Thanks for having me on. [00:41:43][2.6]

2 young American prisoners of war – Norm Thenell and Dick Watt – lived through the Bataan Death March, only to enter a literal hell on earth – Camp O'Donnell. Daily life at O'Donnell was marked by disease, malnutrition, and uncertainty and became yet another of Japan's WW2 atrocities. Watt and Thenell were lucky, though – they formed an unbreakable group, which was, perhaps, the only reason they endured the horrors of this Japanese internment camp in the Philippines. But could they survive the rest of the war?   You'll find images and maps about Dick Watt and Norm Thenell's story at: - Instagram: @leftbehindpodcast   -- www.instagram.com/leftbehindpodcast  - Left Behind Facebook: www.facebook.com/people/Left-Behind-Podcast/100092698653154/  - Left Behind Website (includes sources): https://leftbehindpodcast.com/watt

On April 12, 1942, Japanese forces dishonored themselves – by massacring more than 350 unarmed, bound Filipino officers and non-coms, who had surrendered the day before. It became known as the Pantingan River Massacre. Relying on survivor testimony and later interviews with Japanese soldiers who participated in the “dishonorable deed,” this episode uncovers the details of this largely unknown war crime, which occurred during the Bataan Death March.   You'll find images and maps (not graphic or including massacre images) about the Pantingan River Massacre at: - Instagram: @leftbehindpodcast   -- www.instagram.com/leftbehindpodcast  - Left Behind Facebook: www.facebook.com/people/Left-Behind-Podcast/100092698653154/  - Left Behind Website (includes sources): https://leftbehindpodcast.com/massacre

In late 1945, a just-liberated POW named Jack Aldrich discovered something: his brother Bobby – who Jack thought was dead – had also survived imprisonment. 5 years earlier, Jack and Bobby joined the US army – together; Bobby lying about his age to get in. They trained together at Ft. Bliss, Texas, and fought together on Bataan. They then – together – marched the Bataan Death March and experienced the atrocities of Japan's POW camps in The Philippines. Only then, they were separated – and their true struggles for survival began. This is their survivors' story.   You'll find images and maps about the Aldrich brother's story at: - Instagram: @leftbehindpodcast   -- www.instagram.com/leftbehindpodcast  - Left Behind Facebook: www.facebook.com/people/Left-Behind-Podcast/100092698653154/  - Left Behind Website (includes sources): https://leftbehindpodcast.com/Aldrich

On April 9, 1942, three American prisoners of war, their hands bound behind their backs, were photographed by a Japanese soldier. That photo has become the most iconic of Bataan Death March photographs. In this episode, discover the lives and fates – and the story behind the photograph – of these three American men.   View the photograph: - Instagram: @leftbehindpodcast   -- www.instagram.com/leftbehindpodcast  - Left Behind Facebook: www.facebook.com/people/Left-Behind-Podcast/100092698653154/  - Left Behind Website (includes sources): https://leftbehindpodcast.com/photo

In 1942, US Army dental officer, Roy L. Bodine, became a POW when Bataan surrendered to the Japanese.  He spent 41 months as a POW - surviving the Bataan Death March, POW camps, Hell Ships, and labor camps. One month after VJ Day, he was liberated from a labor camp in Korea. Throughout his captivity, he kept a diary which was later used as evidence in war crimes trials after WWII. To discuss Bodine's POW experience and later life, MacArthur Memorial Archivist Jim Zobel interviewed Major General Patrick Sculley (USA, Retired). General Sculley knew Bodine and has spent many years researching Bodine's POW experience.   Follow us on:Twitter: @MacArthur1880; @AEWilliamsClarkFacebook: @MacArthurMemorialwww.macarthurmemorial.org

We are finding it increasingly vital to share the stories of our WWII Veterans, as we are losing them so quickly. After all, legacy is the essence of this project. The popularity of our Memorial Day social media post on Medal of Honor Recipient Woody Williams made us realize this even more. "The Greatest Generation" is the term they are known by, and this particular podcast on Alfred Haws' harrowing experience during the Bataan Death March serves as a great reminder of why. You can read the story at the link below or follow along on Instagram and Facebook as we share his story daily. This podcast was narrated by our founder, Tim K.

“We are all ghosts now. But once we were men.” — Anonymous POW from Cabanatuan camp“Never in history had the United States Army been called on to rescue such a large number of POWs from so deep in enemy territory.” — William Breuer“We were in the best shape of our lives, and with this mission we understood why he had driven us so hard.” — Alvie Robbins speaking about Henry Mucci's physical training “As far as we were concerned, they were gods.” — Bob Body about the Rangers who rescued him and his fellow POWs. “Nothing in this entire campaign has given me so much personal satisfaction.” — General MacArthur“I'll be grateful for the rest of my life that I had a chance to do something in this war that was not destructive. Nothing for me can ever compare with the satisfaction I got from helping to free our prisoners.” — Robert PrinceThis is the tale of one of the most daring missions in the history of WWII. After being defeated by the Japanese in 1942, by 1945 American forces were back in the Philippines ready to retake the islands. But their very success may have spelled doom for some survivors of the Bataan Death March, who had spent nearly three years as prisoners of the Japanese. Plenty of evidence, in fact, suggested that Japanese guards were ready to kill them all rather than letting them be freed. The only way to stop this imminent massacre was for a newly formed unit of Rangers, along with Filipino guerrilla fighters, to travel 30 miles behind enemy lines, face off with numerically superior forces, and rescue the POWs. By every logical metric, this had suicide mission written all over it. And ye, the Rangers and guerrilla, all volunteered. Rarely are war stories feel-good stories. But this may be the exception to the rule. If you feel generous and enjoy History on Fire, please consider joining my Patreon at https://www.patreon.com/historyonfire to access plenty of bonus content. Bison is some of the healthiest meat you could possibly eat. Get yours at https://dakotapurebison.com/ History on Fire listeners get a discount by using the code HOF10 at checkout. This episode is sponsored by HelloFresh, America's # 1 meal kit. Go to https://www.hellofresh.com/hof16 and get 16 free meals plus free shipping! Also, thank you to Hillsdale College for sponsoring this episode. Checkout Hillsdale.edu/historyonfire to have access to free online courses.

Dark Windows Podcast ep. 243: Don't let the title fool you, we are not reviewing the newest death metal album to hit streaming services. Even though some of the stuff that Nieves Fernandez made Japanese troops do sounds like it's straight out of some death metal songs... Consider that she was a tiny school teacher it's even more brutal what she's about to do... https://pdcn.co/e/traffic.megaphone.fm/AOR9363652775.mp3?updated=1687540401 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

New York Times bestselling authors TOSCA LEE and MARCUS BROTHERTON join BOOKSTORM Podcast to discuss the The Long March Home! This incredible novel shines a light on an aspect of WWII about which few people have deep knowledge: the Bataan Death March. This story is alternately heartbreaking and heartwarming. What talk about what these young soldiers experienced. We talk about the small memories that kept them going, even in the face of despair and pain. What keeps us moving forward?  A favorite car, a beloved pet, a sweet time with a loved one? We discuss courage, sacrifice, and love ... always love. You will be encouraged! Join us!You can find more of your favorite bestselling authors at BOOKSTORM Podcast! We're also on Instagram, TikTok, Facebook, and YouTube!

Christian Historical Fiction Talk is listener supported. When you buy things through this site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Become a patron and enjoy special perks and bonus content.Tosca Lee is my guest this week, and we chatted about the book she co-authored with Marcus Brotherton, The Long March Home. This amazing WWII novel set in the Philippines is a story of friendship and endurance. We talk about the extensive research they both did, what it was like to work with a co-author, and some of the other jobs Tosca has had along the way. Patrons get to hear more about her time as Mrs. Nebraska and how that helped her in her writing.The Long March Home by Tosca Lee and Marcus BrothertonJimmy Propfield joined the army for two reasons: to get out of Mobile, Alabama, with his best friends Hank and Billy and to forget his high school sweetheart, Claire. Life in the Philippines seems like paradise--until the morning of December 8, 1941, when news comes from Manila: Imperial Japan has bombed Pearl Harbor. Within hours, the teenage friends are plunged into war as enemy warplanes attack Luzon, beginning a battle for control of the Pacific Theater that will culminate with a last stand on the Bataan Peninsula and end with the largest surrender of American troops in history. What follows will become known as one of the worst atrocities in modern warfare: the Bataan Death March. With no hope of rescue, the three friends vow to make it back home together. But the ordeal is only the beginning of their nearly four-year fight to survive. Inspired by true stories, The Long March Home is a gripping coming-of-age tale of friendship, sacrifice, and the power of unrelenting hope.Get your copy of The Long March Home.Meet Tosca Lee:Tosca Lee is an award-winning, New York Times bestselling author.She is the recipient of two International Book Awards, Killer Nashville's Silver Falchion, ECPA Book of the Year in Fiction, and the Nebraska Book Award. Her work has finaled for the High Plains Book Award, the Library of Virginia Reader's Choice Award, two Christy Awards, and a second ECPA Book of the Year. The Line Between was a Goodreads Choice Awards semifinalist for Best Mystery/Thriller of 2019. In addition to the New York Times, her books have appeared on the IndieBound bestseller list, and Library Journal's “Best Of” lists..Tosca received her B.A. from Smith College and lives in Nebraska with her husband, three of four children still at home, and her 160-lb. German Shepherd, Timber.Visit Tosca's website.Meet Marcus BrothertonMarcus Brotherton is a New York Times bestselling author and coauthor dedicated to writing books that inspire heroics, promote empathy, and encourage noble living. His commendations include the Christopher Award for literature “that affirms the highest values of the human spirit.” Born in British Columbia, Marcus earned a bachelor's degree from Multnomah University in Portland, Oregon, and a master's degree from Biola University in Los Angeles, where he graduated with high honors. He lives with his wife and their three children in the Pacific Northwest.Visit Marcus's website.

After much anticipation, we are finally releasing our episode with Tosca Lee and Marcus Brotherton! I talked to Tosca and Marcus about their latest book, The Long March Home, which features three friends from Alabama fighting in the Philippines during World War II. This conversation makes a spectacular finale to season five. Here's a description of the novel from Revell: Born and raised in Mobile, Alabama, Jimmy “Propper” Propfield is determined to leave his home behind and see the world with his best friends Billy Crockett and Hank Wright. The Army is his way out. Plus, it will help him forget his high school sweetheart, Claire. At first, life in the Philippines seems like paradise—until the morning of December 8, 1941. Within hours of bombing Pearl Harbor, Japanese Imperial forces turn their attention to the Philippines. For the next four and a half months, the three friends are plunged into a battle for control of the Pacific theater that ends with the largest surrender of American troops in history. Jimmy, Billy, and Hank are rounded up and marched sixty miles up the Bataan Peninsula en route to Camp O'Donnell in what will become known as the Bataan Death March. With no hope of rescue, the three friends vow to make it back home together. But the ordeal is only the beginning of their nearly four-year fight to survive heat, disease, hunger, and life as POWs. The Long March Home is a riveting coming-of-age tale of friendship, courage, sacrifice, and love as three friends struggle to survive unthinkable odds. Purchase The Long March Home on Amazon (affiliate). Check out Tosca's website and follow her on Facebook and Instagram! Check out Marcus's website and follow him on Facebook and Instagram! Subscribe to my mailing list to receive free book recs and samples of my writing! Attend the Montrose Christian Writers Conference where I'll be teaching this summer! Join my community and help support the show on Patreon! Join the Historical Fiction: Unpacked Podcast Group on Facebook! Be sure to visit my Instagram, Facebook, and website. Follow the show on Instagram! Purchase Alison's historical novel, One Traveler (affiliate). Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links. If you click them and make a purchase, you help support my work without paying any more for the product. Thank you for your support!

Tosca Lee is the award-winning, New York Times bestselling author of The Line Between, The Progeny, Firstborn, Iscariot, The Legend of Sheba, Demon: A Memoir, Havah: The Story of Eve, and the Books of Mortals series with New York Times bestseller Ted Dekker.She is the recipient of two International Book Awards, Killer Nashville's Silver Falchion, ECPA Book of the Year in Fiction, and the Nebraska Book Award. Her work has finaled for the High Plains Book Award, the Library of Virginia Reader's Choice Award, two Christy Awards, and a second ECPA Book of the Year. The Line Between was a Goodreads Choice Awards semifinalist for Best Mystery/Thriller of 2019. In addition to the New York Times, her books have appeared on the IndieBound bestseller list, and Library Journal's “Best Of” lists.Marcus Brotherton is a New York Times bestselling author and coauthor dedicated to writing books that inspire heroics, promote empathy, and encourage noble living. His commendations include the Christopher Award for literature “that affirms the highest values of the human spirit.”Four of Marcus' books are New York Times bestsellers, five are national bestsellers, four have been optioned for movies, three have received Booklist starred reviews, one received a Publisher's Weekly starred review, and one is an international bestseller. His books have also appeared on USA Today, Publisher's Weekly, Wall Street Journal, and ECPA bestseller lists.Together they have written The Long March Home.Inspired by true stories, The Long March Home is a gripping coming-of-age tale of friendship, sacrifice, and the power of unrelenting hope from two New York Times bestselling authorsJimmy Propfield joined the army for two reasons: to get out of Mobile, Alabama, with his best friends Hank and Billy and to forget his high school sweetheart, Claire. Life in the Philippines seems like paradise—until the morning of December 8, 1941, when news comes from Manila: the Japanese have bombed Pearl Harbor. Within hours, the teenage friends are plunged into war as Japanese warplanes attack Luzon, beginning a battle for control of the Pacific Theater that will culminate with a last stand on the Bataan Peninsula and end with the largest surrender of American troops in history. What follows will become known as one of the worst atrocities in modern warfare: the Bataan Death March. With no hope of rescue, the three friends vow to make it back home together. But the ordeal is only the beginning of their nearly four-year fight to survive.#ToscaLee #MarcusBrotherton #Author #TheLongMarchHome #WW2 #Writer #Author #Screenwriter #WritingProcess #Interview #BookLovers #Veteran #CreativeWriting #InspiringConversations #SuccessStory #ThePacific #BandofBrothers ______________________________________Find out more: www.TheWritingCommunityChatShow.ComTHE WCCS – TOGETHER AS ONE WE GET IT DONE!If you would like to advertise your #book on the show, to enroll in a book launch interview, or to have a WCCS social media shout out, visit here: https://www.buymeacoffee.com/TheWCCSFOLLOW US► Our website – https://www.thewritingcommunitychatshow.com► Universal link – https://linktr.ee/TheWCCS► Buy the show a coffee – https://www.buymeacoffee.com/TheWCCS► Use hashtag TheWritingCommunityChatShow or TheWCCS on social media to keep us current. This show will only succeed with your support!► Support us through Patreon – https://www.patreon.com/join/TheWCCS ► For our FIVERR affiliate link click here (we will earn a little from you signing up through our link and more if you use the service. We back this service and have used it with great results! – https://fvrr.co/32SB6cs► For our PRO #WRITING AID affiliate link click here – https://prowritingaid.com/?afid=15286Hey! We have spent 3 years using StreamYard. You can see how much we love its features, and how we can make it look great for live streaming. We are huge fans and they are constantly improving their service. Check it out with our link and we could earn from referrals!https://streamyard.com/pal/4835638006775808This show is part of the Spreaker Prime Network, if you are interested in advertising on this podcast, contact us at https://www.spreaker.com/show/5445493/advertisement

When I saw the latest book out by Tosca Lee, The Long March Home, I was both excited and confused. I knew her as an author of Biblical/Ancient fiction and a bit of suspense. I didn't know she'd written dystopian, too... and here she was with a new WWII novel about three friends who went through the war together--including the Bataan Death March. Listen in to learn about this upcoming release, co-written with author Marcus Brotherton!   Note: links may be affiliate links that provide me with a small commission at no extra expense to you. What Unexpected Stories Will You Read in This Exciting New Novel? Coming out on Tuesday, May 2, 2023, The Long March Home is actually a split-time novel with the past and  "current" stories of three friends from Mobile, Alabama and their experiences in the Pacific Theater (beginning with cool stuff in the Philippines) in WWII. One of the most fascinating bits of information I got just from the conversation as how that some US servicemen stationed in Manila had done their boot camp training in the Philippines instead of before they shipped out! Additionally, I loved learning about the collaboration between Tosca Lee and Marcus Brotherton. A combined twelve years of work went into this project, and the research sounds fascinating! If that's not enough to grab you and shake you by your lapels... Tosca then throws out a preorder special that has me drooling all over the place! Guys! You can get not only an exclusive epilogue that isn't actually in the book, but also the audiobook if you send in your purchase receipt!  Learn all about that at https://thelongmarchhomebook.com. (and this is where you enter your proof of purchase). To get the best deal on the book, you can go to Baker Book House for 40% off AND Free Shipping! (That's what I'm going to do! I thought I had, but it says not. So, like on tests when you were in school, definitely go for the FIRST answer that comes to mind. ;)  ALSO!  They have a lot of books at 50% off right now, so check that out while you're there! The Long March Home by Tosca Lee and Marcus Brotherton Jimmy Propfield joined the army for two reasons: to get out of Mobile, Alabama, with his best friends Hank and Billy and to forget his high school sweetheart, Claire. Life in the Philippines seems like paradise--until the morning of December 8, 1941, when news comes from Manila: Imperial Japan has bombed Pearl Harbor. Within hours, the teenage friends are plunged into war as enemy warplanes attack Luzon, beginning a battle for control of the Pacific Theater that will culminate with a last stand on the Bataan Peninsula and end with the largest surrender of American troops in history. What follows will become known as one of the worst atrocities in modern warfare: the Bataan Death March. With no hope of rescue, the three friends vow to make it back home together. But the ordeal is only the beginning of their nearly four-year fight to survive. Inspired by true stories, The Long March Home is a gripping coming-of-age tale of friendship, sacrifice, and the power of unrelenting hope. Learn more about Tosca Lee on her WEBSITE and Marcus Brotherton on his WEBSITE. Also, don't forget to submit your proof of purchase HERE. Like to listen on the go? You can find Because Fiction Podcast at: Apple  Castbox  Google Play Libsyn  RSS Spotify Stitcher Amazon and more!

Paying our respects to a recently identified, brave WWII soldier. The Bataan Death March. Anti-communism trumps all because it's the only thing that matters. Helping the NYT tear itself apart. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Ben Steele, American is a documentary podcast limited series inspired by the book "Tears in the Darkness - The story of the Bataan Death March" by Elizabeth and Michael Norman and is hosted by Alec Baldwin.  In episode 7, Ben is transported on a hell ship to Japan to work in a coal mine as a slave laborer. Listen to Ben Steele, American on the iHeartRadio app or wherever you get your podcasts. https://www.iheart.com/podcast/1119-ben-steele-american-98570427/ Produced by Jan Thompson, Zach McNees, and Alec Baldwin. Jan Thompson is our writer and editor.  Zach McNees is our mixer, and post production supervisor. Ben Steele American is inspired by the book Tears in the Darkness by Elizabeth and Michael Norman. The cover art for each episode features original art by Ben Steele himself with graphic design by Ben Dunmore. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Ben Steele, American is a documentary podcast limited series inspired by the book "Tears in the Darkness - The story of the Bataan Death March" by Elizabeth and Michael Norman and is hosted by Alec Baldwin.  In episode 8, Ben goes home and, after a difficult period of adjustment, establishes himself as a celebrated artist. Listen to Ben Steele, American on the iHeartRadio app or wherever you get your podcasts. https://www.iheart.com/podcast/1119-ben-steele-american-98570427/ Produced by Jan Thompson, Zach McNees, and Alec Baldwin. Jan Thompson is our writer and editor.  Zach McNees is our mixer, and post production supervisor. Ben Steele American is inspired by the book Tears in the Darkness by Elizabeth and Michael Norman. The cover art for each episode features original art by Ben Steele himself with graphic design by Ben Dunmore. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Ben Steele, American is a documentary podcast limited series inspired by the book "Tears in the Darkness - The story of the Bataan Death March" by Elizabeth and Michael Norman and is hosted by Alec Baldwin.  In episode 5, Ben and those on the death march reach Camp O'Donnell, which would come to be known as the Andersonville of the Pacific. Listen to Ben Steele, American on the iHeartRadio app or wherever you get your podcasts. https://www.iheart.com/podcast/1119-ben-steele-american-98570427/ Produced by Jan Thompson, Zach McNees, and Alec Baldwin. Jan Thompson is our writer and editor.  Zach McNees is our mixer, and post production supervisor. Ben Steele American is inspired by the book Tears in the Darkness by Elizabeth and Michael Norman. The cover art for each episode features original art by Ben Steele himself with graphic design by Ben Dunmore. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Ben Steele, American is a documentary podcast limited series inspired by the book "Tears in the Darkness - The story of the Bataan Death March" by Elizabeth and Michael Norman and is hosted by Alec Baldwin.  In episode 6, Ben volunteers for a work detail to escape Camp O'Donnell. This work detail is considered to be one of the worst in history. Listen to Ben Steele, American on the iHeartRadio app or wherever you get your podcasts. https://www.iheart.com/podcast/1119-ben-steele-american-98570427/ Produced by Jan Thompson, Zach McNees, and Alec Baldwin. Jan Thompson is our writer and editor.  Zach McNees is our mixer, and post production supervisor. Ben Steele American is inspired by the book Tears in the Darkness by Elizabeth and Michael Norman. The cover art for each episode features original art by Ben Steele himself with graphic design by Ben Dunmore. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Ben Steele, American is a documentary podcast limited series inspired by the book "Tears in the Darkness - The story of the Bataan Death March" by Elizabeth and Michael Norman and is hosted by Alec Baldwin.  In episode 3, we learn the fate of Ben Steele and the Filipino and American defenders when they are attacked by imperial Japan. Listen to Ben Steele, American on the iHeartRadio app or wherever you get your podcasts. https://www.iheart.com/podcast/1119-ben-steele-american-98570427/ Produced by Jan Thompson, Zach McNees, and Alec Baldwin. Jan Thompson is our writer and editor.  Zach McNees is our mixer, and post production supervisor. Ben Steele American is inspired by the book Tears in the Darkness by Elizabeth and Michael Norman. The cover art for each episode features original art by Ben Steele himself with graphic design by Ben Dunmore. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Ben Steele, American is a documentary podcast limited series inspired by the book "Tears in the Darkness - The story of the Bataan Death March" by Elizabeth and Michael Norman and is hosted by Alec Baldwin.  In episode 4, we hear from Ben Steele and other survivors of the Bataan death march. Listen to Ben Steele, American on the iHeartRadio app or wherever you get your podcasts. https://www.iheart.com/podcast/1119-ben-steele-american-98570427/ Produced by Jan Thompson, Zach McNees, and Alec Baldwin. Jan Thompson is our writer and editor.  Zach McNees is our mixer, and post production supervisor. Ben Steele American is inspired by the book Tears in the Darkness by Elizabeth and Michael Norman. The cover art for each episode features original art by Ben Steele himself with graphic design by Ben Dunmore. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Ben Steele, American is a documentary podcast limited series inspired by the book "Tears in the Darkness - The story of the Bataan Death March", hosted by Alec Baldwin.  American forces were unprepared for what lay ahead in their looming battle with the Japanese Imperial Army. What were the historical influences that made the Japanese soldier such a terrorizing force? Did Americans even know what had happened to the Chinese in Nanjing? Listen to Ben Steele, American on the iHeartRadio app or wherever you get your podcasts. https://www.iheart.com/podcast/1119-ben-steele-american-98570427/ Produced by Jan Thompson, Zach McNees, and Alec Baldwin. Jan Thompson is our writer and editor.  Zach McNees is our mixer, and post production supervisor. Ben Steele American is inspired by the book Tears in the Darkness by Elizabeth and Michael Norman. The cover art for each episode features original art by Ben Steele himself with graphic design by Ben Dunmore.  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Ben Steele, American is a documentary podcast limited series inspired by the book "Tears in the Darkness - The story of the Bataan Death March", hosted by Alec Baldwin. Many people today are unfamiliar with the story of what happened to American servicemen on the Bataan Peninsula in April of 1942. Our podcast is entitled Ben Steele American. Ben Steele survived the misery of his captivity and went on, almost unbelievably, to live to be 98 years old in his native Montana, pursuing his passion as an artist. Listen to Ben Steele, American on iHeartRadio app or wherever you get your podcasts. https://www.iheart.com/podcast/1119-ben-steele-american-98570427/ Produced by Jan Thompson, Zach McNees, and Alec Baldwin. Jan Thompson is our writer and editor.  Zach McNees is our mixer, and post production supervisor. Ben Steele American is inspired by the book Tears in the Darkness by Elizabeth and Michael Norman. The cover art for each episode features original art by Ben Steele himself with graphic design by Ben Dunmore. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Ben Steele, American is a documentary podcast limited series inspired by the book "Tears in the Darkness - The story of the Bataan Death March" and is narrated by Alec Baldwin.  A boy from rural Montana, sent to the Philippines, Ben Steele became a prisoner-of-war within the first five months of the outbreak of World War II. He survived the infamous Bataan Death March and other horrific events. He was given last rites three times in the prison camp and miraculously survived. While recovering in the prison hospital he began to draw with the charcoal from the fire pit. Drawing helped keep Ben sane for the duration of his imprisonment. After a 62 -day trip on a hell ship Ben ended up in Japan as a slave laborer in a coal mine. After the war he studied art with several famous artists such as John Teyral, Jack Levine, Hans Mueller and George Grosz. Ben taught art at a college in Billings Montana and had a particular empathy for, and influence on, students who had suffered traumas in their own lives. Ben thought of himself as just a regular guy. But he was a talented artist, wonderful teacher and mentor and a wonderful human being admired by everyone who met him. This is the story of Ben Steele; the best of human beings in the worst of times. Ben Steele, American has first person interviews with over thirty former prisoners-of-war including numerous Bataan Death March survivors. The podcast has interviews with notable history scholars from around the world. Interviews with Ben Steele were acquired over a span thirty years. Listen to Ben Steele, American on the iHeartRadio app or wherever you get your podcasts. https://www.iheart.com/podcast/1119-ben-steele-american-98570427/ See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.