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Stephen Collins on USS Kearsarge [2003]

Veterans History Project Service Summary:

  • War or Conflict: Iraq War, 2003-2011; Afghan War, 2001-
  • Branch of Service: Marine Corps
  • Unit of Service: Company A, 8th Tank Battalion, 4th Marine Division; Weapons Company, 3rd Battalion, 23rd Marine Regiment, 4th Marine Division; Marine Corps Reserve; Company E, 4th Tank Battalion, 4th Marine Division
  • Location of Service: Fort Knox, Kentucky; Camp Dwyer, Afghanistan; San Diego, California; Baton Rouge, Louisiana; Fort Knox, Kentucky; Nasiriyah, Iraq; Camp Shoup, Kuwait
  • Highest Rank: Staff Sergeant
  • Collection Number: AFC/2001/001/11615

View full service history

"Whatever my country would ask me to do, I would do it, just as a moral obligation I had, to my country, to the Marines, and just to the guys in my unit." (Audio Interview, 14:52)

At the time of the September 11 terrorist attacks, Staff Sergeant Stephen M. Collins, Jr., was a Marine Corps reservist and a medical student. Suddenly he had to balance the demands of his educational pursuits with his military obligations and the possibility of deployment. Though many of his colleagues and fellow students asked if he would leave the Marine Corps to focus on medical school, he says he felt a moral obligation to serve his country. He was called to active duty in 2003, and deployed to Iraq and Kuwait as a tank commander with the 8th Tank Battalion in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom. In an interview conducted for VHP just a few months after he returned from his deployment, Collins reflected on his experience, and shared a straightforward view of his service, saying "I did my job. I did the best that I could do, and I made it back."

Stephen M. Collins, Jr. Collection
Interview / Recording

More Resources

[ Statement of Service NAVMC 11501A ]
[ Letter from a child, Christopher Lautt, to "Marines" [2/14/2003] ]
[ Card from Senator Jim Bunning's staff [03/25/2003] ]
[ Letter from Debra L. Kellinghaus with homemade card from her son and classmates [4/1/2003] ]
[ Letter from Judy Hezlep [4/1/2003] ]

About this Item

Title

  • Stephen M. Collins, Jr. Collection

Names

  • Lugar, Richard
  • U.S. Senate/Richard Lugar
  • Huffman, Emmy
  • Collins Jr., Stephen M.

Home State

  • Kentucky

Headings

  • -  Collins Jr., Stephen M.
  • -  Afghan War, 2001- -- Personal Narratives
  • -  United States. Marine Corps.
  • -  Iraq War, 2003-2011 -- Personal Narratives
  • -  United States. Marine Corps.

Repository

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

Gender

  • Male

Race

  • Black or African American

Status

  • veteran

Service History

  • Afghan War, 2001-

    • Branch of Service: Marine Corps
    • Unit of Service: Company E, 4th Tank Battalion, 4th Marine Division
    • Location of Service: Fort Knox, Kentucky; Camp Dwyer, Afghanistan
    • Highest Rank: Staff Sergeant
    • Dates of Service: 2011
    • Entrance into Service: Enlisted
    • Military Status: veteran
  • Iraq War, 2003-2011

    • Branch of Service: Marine Corps
    • Unit of Service: Company A, 8th Tank Battalion, 4th Marine Division; Weapons Company, 3rd Battalion, 23rd Marine Regiment, 4th Marine Division; Marine Corps Reserve
    • Location of Service: San Diego, California; Baton Rouge, Louisiana; Fort Knox, Kentucky; Nasiriyah, Iraq; Camp Shoup, Kuwait
    • Highest Rank: Staff Sergeant
    • Dates of Service: 1993-2007
    • Entrance into Service: Enlisted
    • Military Status: veteran

Materials

  • Computer File: CD [1 item] -- Multiple types of electronic files (collected 2003; 2003-11-09)
  • Audio: CD [2 items] -- Reference copy (collected 2003-09-08; 2010-07-21)
  • Computer File: CD [1 item] -- Multiple types of electronic files (collected 2003; 2004-06-03)
  • Computer File: CD [1 item] -- Multiple types of electronic files (collected 2003; 2004-03-26)
  • Computer File: CD [1 item] -- Electronic file of photograph (collected 2003; 2004-01-05)
  • Manuscript: Clippings [1 item] -- Typewritten document (collected 2003-09-26)
  • Manuscript: Correspondence [4 items] -- Mixed (handwritten and typewritten documents) (collected 2003)
  • Manuscript: Military papers (orders, personnel/201 files, etc) [1 item] -- Typewritten document (collected 2013-01-07)
  • Manuscript: Unit histories [9 items] -- Typewritten document (collected 2012)
  • Photograph: Original photographic print [35 items] -- Photograph (collected 2012)
  • Computer File: CD [1 item] -- Electronic file of photograph (collected 2012; 2017)
  • Manuscript: Correspondence [5 items] -- Typewritten document (collected 2002-2003)
  • Manuscript: Periodicals [1 item] -- Typewritten document (collected 2003-05-06)
  • Manuscript: Civilian papers (certificates, forms, wills, etc) [1 item] -- Typewritten document (collected 2003-03-24)
  • Photograph: Original photographic print [15 items] -- Photograph (collected 1994-2003)
  • Audio: Audio Cassette [1 item] -- Oral history interview (collected 2003-09-08)

Collection Number

  • AFC/2001/001/11615

Cite as

  • Stephen M. Collins, Jr. Collection (AFC/2001/001/11615), Veterans History Project, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress

Online Format

  • audio
  • image

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:

Lugar, Richard, U.S. Senate/Richard Lugar, Emmy Huffman, and Stephen M Collins Jr. Stephen M. Collins, Jr. Collection. 2011. Personal Narrative. https://www.loc.gov/item/afc2001001.11615/.

APA citation style:

Lugar, R., U.S. Senate/Richard Lugar, Huffman, E. & Collins Jr, S. M. (2011) Stephen M. Collins, Jr. Collection. [Personal Narrative] Retrieved from the Library of Congress, https://www.loc.gov/item/afc2001001.11615/.

MLA citation style:

Lugar, Richard, et al. Stephen M. Collins, Jr. Collection. 2011. Personal Narrative. Retrieved from the Library of Congress, <www.loc.gov/item/afc2001001.11615/>.