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Veasna Roeun [detail from video]

Veterans History Project Service Summary:

  • War or Conflict: Afghan War, 2001-
  • Branch of Service: Army
  • Unit of Service: Detachment 1, 1st Battalion, 102nd Infantry Regiment, 29th Infantry Division; Connecticut Army National Guard
  • Location of Service: Bosnia; Laghman Province, Afghanistan; Fort Bragg, North Carolina; Fort Benning, Georgia
  • Highest Rank: Staff Sergeant
  • Collection Number: AFC/2001/001/67612

View full service history

"Anyone who tells you they are not scared is lying to you." (Video interview, 21:30)

Unsure of his direction in life, Veasna Roeun decided to join the Connecticut National Guard as a way to both continue his education and serve his adopted country; he had emigrated from Cambodia when he was young. Roeun eventually deployed to Afghanistan as a staff sergeant with the 29th Infantry Division, Army National Guard. Predominately based in Laghman Province in Afghanistan, Roeun and his unit conducted highly stressful missions, causing Roeun to consistently feel apprehension about the safety of his soldiers and the mission at hand. Like many people serving during conflict, Roeun suffered the loss of soldiers who had become friends, but also found joy in morale-boosting experiences with his unit. Describing his relationship with his military service as bittersweet, in his oral history interview, Roeun discusses the complexity of his feelings toward his adopted country.

Interview / Recording

About this Item

Title

  • Veasna Roeun Collection

Names

  • Roeun, Veasna
  • Central Connecticut State University
  • Christie, Jeanne Marie
  • McGuckin, Briana

Home State

  • Connecticut

Headings

  • -  Roeun, Veasna
  • -  Afghan War, 2001- -- Personal Narratives
  • -  United States. Army.

Repository

  • Veterans History Project, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress

Gender

  • Male

Race

  • Asian

Status

  • veteran

Service History

  • Afghan War, 2001-

    • Branch of Service: Army
    • Unit of Service: Detachment 1, 1st Battalion, 102nd Infantry Regiment, 29th Infantry Division; Connecticut Army National Guard
    • Location of Service: Bosnia; Laghman Province, Afghanistan; Fort Bragg, North Carolina; Fort Benning, Georgia
    • Highest Rank: Staff Sergeant
    • Dates of Service: 1998-2008
    • Entrance into Service: Enlisted
    • Military Status: veteran

Materials

  • Video: DVD [1 item] -- Oral history interview (collected 2009-01-14; 2009-01-14)
  • Photograph: Digital print [18 items] -- Photograph (collected 2006)

Collection Number

  • AFC/2001/001/67612

Cite as

  • Veasna Roeun Collection (AFC/2001/001/67612), Veterans History Project, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress

Online Format

  • image
  • video

Additional Metadata Formats

IIIF Presentation Manifest

Rights & Access

Using VHP Material in Publication or Exhibition

The Veterans History Project (VHP) at the Library of Congress collects, preserves and makes accessible the firsthand recollections of U.S. military veterans who served from World War I through more recent conflicts and peacekeeping missions, so that future generations may hear directly from veterans and better understand what they saw, did and felt during their service. The Veterans History Project Collection includes oral histories along with documentary materials such as original letters, diaries, photographs, and memoirs.

Veterans and interviewers contribute these materials to the Library for scholarly and educational purposes, retaining any copyright they may hold. Therefore, permission must be obtained before using the interview or other materials in exhibition or publication. Researchers or others who would like to make further use of these materials should contact the Veterans History Project for assistance.

As a publicly supported institution, the Library generally does not own rights to material in its collections. Therefore, it does not charge permission fees for use of such material and cannot give or deny permission to publish or otherwise distribute material in its collections. Responsibility for making an independent legal assessment of an item from the Library’s collections and for securing any necessary permissions rests with persons desiring to use the item.

Please contact us with questions.

Obtaining Copies of VHP Materials

In order for VHP materials to be duplicated, we must receive written permission from the interviewee for you to obtain a copy of the recording unless the proposed use is limited to personal use, research, or other uses permissible by copyright law. If the interviewee is deceased, their next-of-kin may grant written permission.

Please contact VHP for assistance if you need to contact a veteran for permission to use their materials in exhibition or publication, or if you have received permission from the veteran and need access to high-resolution copies of VHP collection materials.

Citing VHP Materials

Please use the following formats when citing Veterans History Project materials (substituting the appropriate name and collection ID number).

Materials as a whole:

  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/[VHP collection]), Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.

Manuscript material:

  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/[VHP collection]), Memoirs (MS02), Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.
  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/[VHP collection]), Transcript (MS04), Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.
  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/[VHP collection]), Correspondence (MS01), Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.

Recording:

  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/[VHP collection]), Audio recording (SR01), Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.
  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/[VHP collection]), Video recording (MV01), Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.

Photograph:

  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/[VHP collection]), Photographs (PH01), photographer unknown, Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.
  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/[VHP collection]), Photographs (PH03-PH14), Ralph Williams photographer, Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.

Computer file:

  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/[VHP collection]), Computer file (CF01), Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.

Artifact:

  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/[VHP collection]), Artifact (AR01), Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.

Cite This Item

Citations are generated automatically from bibliographic data as a convenience, and may not be complete or accurate.

Chicago citation style:

Roeun, Veasna, Central Connecticut State University, Jeanne Marie Christie, and Briana McGuckin. Veasna Roeun Collection. 1998. Personal Narrative. https://www.loc.gov/item/afc2001001.67612/.

APA citation style:

Roeun, V., Central Connecticut State University, Christie, J. M. & McGuckin, B. (1998) Veasna Roeun Collection. [Personal Narrative] Retrieved from the Library of Congress, https://www.loc.gov/item/afc2001001.67612/.

MLA citation style:

Roeun, Veasna, et al. Veasna Roeun Collection. 1998. Personal Narrative. Retrieved from the Library of Congress, <www.loc.gov/item/afc2001001.67612/>.