AUSA’s Army Matters Podcast

Latest Episodes:

Set up for Failure? These WWII Black Women Warriors Overcame Jun 07, 2023

Show notes

In early 1945 a predominantly all-black, all-female battalion was sent to Europe to do the impossible: ensure delivery of 17 million pieces of mail to aid morale across the continent. They succeeded, but it took over fifty years – and the work of many – for the exploits of the “Six Triple Eight” to be recognized. Hosts LTG (Ret.) Leslie. C. Smith and SMA (Ret.) Dan Dailey sit down with Col (Ret.) Edna Cummings to discuss her efforts to bring attention to the 6888, the glass ceilings she burst through in her own 25-year Army career, and what it was like to witness the 6888’s leader Charity Adams honored in the recent naming of Fort Gregg-Adams.

Guest: COL (Ret.) Edna Cummings, Army Reserve Ambassador-Maryland, Six Triple Eight Congressional Gold Medal Champion, and Documentary Producer

Coming Soon: Six Triple Eight Exhibit at the Army Women's Museum, Fort Gregg-Adams. https://awm.lee.army.mil/

Video Citation: "LTC Charity Adams, Oral History, 1990." U.S. Army Women's Museum. January 31, 2018. Video, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L3snVXlW5ng&t=7s.

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.

Finding Purpose in Hunting War Criminals and Honoring Heroes May 24, 2023

Show notes

MSG (Ret.) Darrell Utt has overseen many brave missions in his life, from ones as a young child that put food on his family’s table to tracking down war criminals as a Green Beret. Today he oversees the operations of the in-progress National Medal of Honor Museum in Arlington, TX. Hosts LTG (Ret.) Leslie C. Smith and SMA (Ret.) Dan Dailey sit down with MSG (Ret.) Utt to discuss the importance of teamwork, what makes him so driven to complete the Medal of Honor Museum, and how to put together a honeypot operation.

Guest:

MSG (Ret.) Darrell Utt, Chief of Operations, National Medal of Honor Museum Foundation

If you are interested in supporting AUSA’s educational programs, such as this podcast, please visit www.ausa.org/donate.

As SMA Dailey asked in the episode: How are we doing? Email us at podcast@ausa.org.

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What’s in a name? Well, everything. May 10, 2023

Show notes

When the Department of Defense decided to examine the renaming of its bases in 2020, it turned to Brigadier General (Ret.) Ty Seidule to vice-chair its Naming Commission. Not only is BG (Ret.) Seidule Professor Emeritus of History at West Point Academy, but also a southerner. He grew up in awe of Confederate General Robert E. Lee, but eventually had to reevaluate who should be honored as a hero. Hosts LTG (Ret.) Leslie Smith and SMA (Ret.) Dan Dailey sit down with BG (Ret.) Seidule to discuss the process of renaming military bases, the importance of history, and give shout-outs to a number of heroes that more people should be aware of.

Guest:

BG (Ret.) Ty Seidule, U.S. Army

If you are interested in supporting AUSA’s educational programs, such as this podcast, please visit www.ausa.org/donate.

Recommendations for future topics are welcome via email at podcast@ausa.org.

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Love, Art and an Inspired Baby Name Apr 26, 2023

Show notes

Actress Jill Wagner (Teen Wolf, Wipeout, numerous romance films), was raised in a military family, and reunited with an old boyfriend, Major David Lemanowicz, while on a USO Tour in Afghanistan in 2015. It was just one of multiple meet-cutes for the couple, eventually leading to their marriage, and upcoming spy thriller Paramount+ TV series, Lioness, co-created by MAJ Lemanowicz, Jill Wagner, and Taylor Sheridan. Hosts LTG (Ret.) Leslie Smith and SMA (Ret.) Dan Dailey sit down with the couple to discuss their romance, how service has defined their lives, the upcoming series… and the story behind the unique (and patriotic) name they gave their first-born child.

Guests:

Jill Wagner, Actress and T.V. personality
MAJ David Lemanowicz, U.S. Army

If you are interested in supporting AUSA’s educational programs, such as this podcast, please visit www.ausa.org/donate.

Recommendations for future topics are welcome via email at podcast@ausa.org.

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Lessons on Being Bold from the Next Generation Apr 12, 2023

Show notes

What does the next generation think about the world today? About service? About their own anxieties? Well, perhaps the best place to start is to chat with this year’s Boys and Girls Clubs of America’s Military Youth of the Year Award recipient, right? Hosts LTG (Ret.) Leslie Smith and SMA (Ret.) Dan Dailey sit down with award-winning speaker Ahsha B. – as well as Boys and Girls Clubs President and CEO Jim Clark – to talk about what the organization is doing to help today’s young people, how the club helped Ahsha B’s own personal confidence, and what advice they’d give to other people (as well as our podcasting team …)

Guests:

Ahsha B., Military Youth of the Year, Boys & Girls Clubs of America
Jim Clark, President & CEO, Boys & Girls Clubs of America

If you are interested in supporting AUSA’s educational programs, such as this podcast, please visit www.ausa.org/donate.

Recommendations for future topics are welcome via email at podcast@ausa.org.

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Blazing a Trail - and Flight Path - for Army Women Mar 29, 2023

Show notes

Brigadier General (Ret.) Anne Macdonald is an Army trailblazer in all senses of the word: part of the first gender-integrated class at West Point Academy, the first active-duty combat arms (aviator) female to be promoted to General Officer, and the current President of the Army Women’s Foundation. Hosts LTG (Ret.) Leslie Smith and SMA (Ret.) Dan Dailey sit down with BG Macdonald to talk about the glass ceilings she’s busted, her powerful experience visiting an Afghan women’s prison and what she misses most about the U.S. while living in Abu Dhabi.

Guest: BG (Ret.) Anne F. Macdonald, President, Army Women's Foundation

If you are interested in supporting AUSA’s educational programs, such as this podcast, please visit www.ausa.org/donate.

Recommendations for future topics are welcome via email at podcast@ausa.org.

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How to Build a Strong Army Marriage Mar 15, 2023

Show notes

When people think about the stressful and difficult parts of Army service, home life isn’t always given a great deal of thought. And yet, finding a balance between your unit and family is perhaps the most important part of a Soldier’s life. Host LTG (Ret.) Leslie C. Smith and his very special guest co-host—his wife, Vanedra Smith—talk with California Army National Guard LTC Chris Elson and his wife, Gina Viscusi-Elson, on how to make an Army marriage strong, provide tips on ways to survive the difficult moments, and challenge each other with a round or two of “The Not-so-Newlywed Game.”

Guests:
LTC Christopher Elson, Director of Discovery Challenge Academy and Public Affairs Officer, 40th Infantry Division, California National Guard

Gina Viscusi-Elson, Owner, Viscusi Elson Interior Design and Spouse, California National Guardsman

If you are interested in supporting AUSA’s educational programs, such as this podcast, please visit www.ausa.org/donate.

Recommendations for future topics are welcome via email at podcast@ausa.org.

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The Satirical Site that Keeps the Army Laughing Mar 01, 2023

Show notes

In 2012, former USMC Sergeant Paul Szoldra started a website satirizing the military. Over the last eleven years that site – The Duffel Blog – has entertained hundreds of thousands of people both within and outside the military. Hosts LTG (Ret.) Leslie C. Smith and SMA (Ret.) Dan Dailey sit down with Szoldra to talk about the effectiveness of satire, some of their favorite Duffel Blog articles, and a certain SMA ranking story from years ago…

Guest: Former Sgt. Paul Szoldra (USMC), Duffel Blog, Founder and Editor in Chief

If you are interested in supporting AUSA’s educational programs, such as this podcast, please visit www.ausa.org/donate.

Recommendations for future topics are welcome via email at podcast@ausa.org.

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“Getting to Know the Country I Served” Feb 15, 2023

Show notes

After thirty years of heroic service, Colonel (Ret.) Kenny Mintz decided to undertake an epic adventure in 2022 – a walk across the United States, going from Washington, D.C. to southern California. The path allowed him to retrace the route he and his single mother drove when he was a child moving across the country. Hosts LTG (Ret.) Leslie Smith and SMA (Ret.) Dan Dailey sit down with COL Mintz to talk about how football led to his career in the Army, what drew him closer to his mother, and how it’s in our DNA as humans to walk and move.

Guest: COL (Ret.) Kenny Mintz, Independent Entrepreneur, Kenny Walks, LLC

If you are interested in supporting AUSA’s educational programs, such as this podcast, please visit www.ausa.org/donate.

Recommendations for future topics are welcome via email at podcast@ausa.org.

Disclaimer:

The Black Musician Who Befriended the KKK Feb 01, 2023

Show notes

For the past forty years, Daryl Davis has befriended members of the Ku Klux Klan and convinced (directly and indirectly) over 200 to quit the organization. How has he accomplished this? And how can everyone apply this technique to their own life? Hosts LTG (Ret.) Les Smith and SMA (Ret.) Dan Dailey sit down with Mr. Davis - along with Chaplain (MG) Thomas Solhjem - to chat about the power of conversation, the beauty of music, and how the Army uses Mr. Davis' experience to help soldiers take care of their health, fitness and well-being.

Guests:
CH (MG) Thomas L. Solhjem, Chief of Chaplains, United States Army

Daryl Davis, Race Relations Expert and Musician, Actor and Author, Lyrad Productions

Recommendations for future topics are welcome via email at podcast@ausa.org.

If you are interested in supporting AUSA’s educational programs, such as this podcast, please visit www.ausa.org/donate.

Music Credits:

Going Back To The Country, Karen Lee, and One Foot In The Graveyard; Written and performed by Daryl Davis; Courtesy of Lyrad Music and BMI Publishing.

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