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Marva Gray [detail from video interview]

Veterans History Project Service Summary:

  • War or Conflict: Iraq War, 2003-2011
  • Branch of Service: Army
  • Unit of Service: 261st Ordnance Company; 266th Ordnance Company
  • Location of Service: Iraq
  • Highest Rank: Sergeant
  • Collection Number: AFC/2001/001/93346

View full service history

"I'd like new veterans to know, whether you feel like you need the help or not, as soon as you step off the plane home, find your veterans hospital and walk in the door." (Audio Interview, 49:57)

As a newly single parent raising her son in Charleston, West Virginia, in the late 1980s, Marva Gray looked to the military as a source of stability and career advancement. Enlisting in the National Guard offered her the chance to pursue new opportunities and still care for her son. Her unit was activated shortly after the September 11 terrorist attacks, and she deployed to Iraq in early 2003. The two years she spent there, weathering shelling and IEDs, took a toll. Upon her return home, she found herself jumpy and plagued by insomnia. In her oral history interview, she encourages all returning combat veterans to seek care from the VA.

Interview / Recording

More Resources

Marva Lucille Gray Collection
Interview / Recording

About this Item

Title

  • Marva Lucille Gray Collection

Names

  • Gray, Marva Lucille
  • West Virginia Veterans Home
  • Douglas, Eric

Home State

  • West Virginia

Headings

  • -  Gray, Marva Lucille
  • -  Iraq War, 2003-2011 -- Personal Narratives
  • -  United States. Army.

Form

  • CD

Extent

  • 1 item

Repository

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

Gender

  • Female

Race

  • Black or African American

Status

  • veteran

Service History

  • Iraq War, 2003-2011

    • Branch of Service: Army
    • Unit of Service: 261st Ordnance Company; 266th Ordnance Company
    • Location of Service: Iraq
    • Highest Rank: Sergeant
    • Dates of Service: 1987-2011
    • Entrance into Service: Enlisted
    • Military Status: veteran

Materials

  • Audio: CD [1 item] -- Oral history interview (collected 2012-11-30; 2012-11-30)

Collection Number

  • AFC/2001/001/93346

Cite as

  • Marva Lucille Gray Collection (AFC/2001/001/93346), Veterans History Project, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress

Online Format

  • audio
  • image
  • video

Additional Metadata Formats

Wars & Conflicts

Service Branch

Location of Service

Battles & Campaigns

Service Unit

Highest Rank

Service Entrance

Discharge Status

Gender

Race

Home State

Interviewee

Interviewer

Organization/Affiliation

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:

Gray, Marva Lucille, West Virginia Veterans Home, and Eric Douglas. Marva Lucille Gray Collection. 1987. Personal Narrative. https://www.loc.gov/item/afc2001001.93346/.

APA citation style:

Gray, M. L., West Virginia Veterans Home & Douglas, E. (1987) Marva Lucille Gray Collection. [Personal Narrative] Retrieved from the Library of Congress, https://www.loc.gov/item/afc2001001.93346/.

MLA citation style:

Gray, Marva Lucille, West Virginia Veterans Home, and Eric Douglas. Marva Lucille Gray Collection. 1987. Personal Narrative. Retrieved from the Library of Congress, <www.loc.gov/item/afc2001001.93346/>.