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About the Book We are now two decades removed from the U.S. and allied victory in the Cold War, caused by the collapse of the Berlin Wall and the Iron Curtain. In Korea, Vietnam, and Afghanistan (for the Soviets) the Cold War became hot and bloody, rising to mid-intensity levels. For the most part, the Cold War was waged via standing forces and through the readiness of air defense and nuclear missile systems to defend or retaliate against any sudden attack. We tend to forget, though, that in the more than four decades of that conflict, the actions generally happened on the periphery away from the main front along the "inter-German border" in Europe, or the secondary front along the Demilitarized Zone in Korea. These actions often happened "in the shadows" along this periphery through intelligence and counterintelligence operations, and through U.S. and Soviet support for proxies in conflicts that might have begun over local or internal disputes. This support from both sides was generally both economic and military. The locations were in those areas of the world described variously as the Third World, the Lesser Developed Countries, or Developing Countries in Latin America, Africa, and Asia. This book explores one of those "shadow" battlefronts. It was the edge of the Cold War and America's last stand against communism right at our very doorstep. On March 22, 1986, initial reports filtered in about the Nicaraguan incursion. The Sandinista forces, over two thousand strong, had crossed into Honduras in hot pursuit of a force of contra rebels. The new Honduran president, Jose Azcona Hoyo, wanted American support to move his troops and artillery to the battlefield. Palmerola Air Base was in good shape to support him. The Honduran plan was essentially to isolate the area of the incursion and allow the Sandinistas and the contras to slug it out. Using American airlift, they moved several hundred of their infantry and a few pieces of artillery into a cordon around the penetration. The Sandinistas were smart enough not to force the situation. Unfortunately, for the communists, the contras slipped a force in behind them, cutting them off from Nicaragua. The battle lasted several days. Far from being the ineffective force portrayed in the media, the contras were kicking butt. About the Author Rick Waddell is a businessman currently living in Sao Paulo, Brazil. A native of Arkansas, he graduated from West Point in 1982, and holds advanced degrees from Oxford, Webster, and Columbia. He continues to serve in the U.S. Army Reserve.

About the BookAny veteran of the United States Navy knows about "sea stories." If you served in the Navy, it is almost a 100% certainty that you've heard one (probably many more). And maybe even told "one or two" yourself. "Sea stories" and the tellers of them have all the finest attributes of oral historians that preserve the tradition and lore specific to their society. In the service (all branches) older more experienced personnel share much of their knowledge in just such a way. In their finest sense, the story carries with it a lesson learned-a small slice of experience and specific circumstance. Often leavened with humor, sometimes touching on the tragic-the cold hard facts of the risks involved. Stories connect with our own existence and adjust our thinking based on what we learn from what we hear. Good storytellers have a single intent-to touch the listener in some way. Hank McKinney does that. For those who have served you'll see bits of your own service in these stories. And I would be surprised if some of them don't bring a smile in remembrance. You will also sense the pang of separation from family, an unavoidable price paid by those who serve and their families. For those who haven't served-you'll learn much you didn't know. You'll find stories that cover the gamut of experience and responsibility, from midshipman to admiral, told in a refreshing conversational tone. Come onboard and spend some time with Hank McKinney. You'll come away with a better understanding and appreciation for the "Silent Service" and the men and women who serve. I guarantee you will learn things that you never knew about what was essentially a critical component of our front line defense during the Cold War.About the AuthorRear Admiral Henry C. (Hank) McKinney, USN (Retired) is a native of La Grange, Illinois. He graduated from Princeton University in 1959 with a degree in Engineering and a commission as an Ensign through the Naval ROTC program. He earned a Master of Science degree in Statistics from Stanford University. Originally serving in the surface Navy, he volunteered for nuclear submarine duty and served onboard both SSNs and SSBNs throughout his career including command tours and as Commander of the Submarine Force, U.S. Pacific Fleet. He has been awarded the Distinguished Service Medal with two gold stars, the Defense Superior Service Medal, both the Legion of Merit and the Meritorious Service Medal with two gold stars and the Navy Achievement Medal. He is also a past President and Chief Executive Officer of the Navy Memorial Foundation. He now lives in Minnesota and along with his faithful golden retriever reports to his shore based commander, his wife Mary. Their son is commanding officer of USS Wyoming (SSBN 742) and their daughter is a Chemistry teacher in Maryland.

In World War II, the author's ship the USS Albuquerque PF-7 endured a fourteen month tour of duty in the Bering Sea performing unending patrols, escorts and emergency steaming to ships in distress to the point that some aboard Albuquerque feared that they had crossed the line, forgotten by the Navy and destined to roam the seas a ghost ship in company with the Flying Dutchman until Judgment Day. Author David Hendrickson, former historian for the Patrol Frigate Reunion Association seeks to preserve the memory of the patrol frigates of WWII and the Korean War. One hundred frigates were authorized for construction in December 1942, four later cancelled, seventy-five manned by the Coast Guard, twenty-one loaned to the British Royal Navy as Colony-class frigates. The American frigates, designed after the British River-class frigates, were designated Tacoma-class, all named for small American cities.The Coast Guard-manned frigates served in every theater from the North Atlantic to the South Pacific. In the North Atlantic many served as weather ships, others assigned escort duty across the Atlantic. Twenty-one frigates served with the 7th Fleet Amphibious Division on the march from New Guinea to Leyte in the Philippines. Near the end of the war, twenty-eight frigates were transferred to the Soviet Union under Lend-Lease at the secret transfer base, Cold Bay, Alaska. All but one returned to the US Navy at Yokosuka, Japan, in late 1949. Fifteen were recommissioned for Korean War duty. Britain returned the colony-class frigates in 1946. The majority of frigates were scrapped after WWII, many sold or given under treaty to nations around the world, only to disappear over the years. About the AuthorLeaving college after the fall semester 1942, David Hendrickson joined the US Coast Guard in the spring of 1943. Following basic training and seamanship school on Government Island, (now Coast Guard Island, Alameda, California) and Navy deck petty officer training on Treasure Island, he was assigned to the newly commissioned USS Albuquerque PF-7, in San Francisco in December 1943. Upon completing shakedown, Albuquerque deployed to the Bering Sea/Aleutian Islands for a fourteen-month tour as lead ship of Escort Division 27. Leaving Albuquerque to the Russians under Lend-Lease in August 1945, Hendrickson served aboard USCG FS-34 and lastly aboard USS Admiral E. W. Eberle AP 123, until discharge, April 1946.Returning to college in 1946 led to a master's degree in history and a thirty-year teaching career (history and geography) at Fresno City College, Fresno, California. During his teaching career, Hendrickson was twice a Fulbright exchange lecturer to Great Britain, 1966-67 and 1981-82, and president of the California Geographical Society 1978-79. He ended his teaching career, 1989-90, lecturing native teachers of the Pacific nation of Palau seeking the AB degree.

Since the early days of the American Republic, African Americans have been active participants in the military history of our nation. However, until the late 1940s, their experiences in the military, for the most part, occurred during the period of racial segregation, which often resulted in their being assigned to non-combat duties. Nevertheless, in spite of their status, they continued to exhibit loyalty to their country and served honorably.Students of American history are familiar with great military leaders whose heroic deeds during the military conflicts of the 19th and 20th centuries have become a part of our historical legacy. Much has been written about them as highly visible symbols of courage and leadership. Yet others, equally deserving remain unknown and have not received the same visibility in terms of public recognition. When I became aware of the life and career of General Roscoe Robinson, Jr., the first United States Army African American four-star general, I was surprised to learn so few people-even among my own generation of African Americans-had ever heard of him. Even in one of the most comprehensive history books about African Americans - From Slavery to Freedom, written by the well-known scholar, John Hope Franklin, Roscoe Robinson is not mentioned. In authoring this biography, I seek to fill this gap in our knowledge of this remarkable man who, from humble beginnings, rose to the pinnacle of military success through perseverance, discipline, and commitment to duty and country.Whenever I write something of an historical nature pertaining to the life and times of African Americans, I am always reminded of the admonition of one of America's most distinguished men of color - William E. B. Du Bois. It was he who-in a presentation in 1898 before the American Academy of Political and Social Science-advanced the notion that understanding black life in America required a systematic assessment of the influence of broad historical, cultural, social, economic, and political forces that shaped the times. There is no way of denying the subject of race in the military. It was an inescapable condition, which has riveted American social, cultural, and political systems before and during Robinson's time in the military. I have tried to convey that circumstance as accurately as possible. Indeed, in many respects, from his early childhood through his retirement years, Robinson lived through one of the most historic periods in race relations in this country - both within and outside the military.Today, men and women of all races make immense sacrifices to serve their country, defend our liberties, and protect our interests around the world; often without the gratitude and recognition, they deserve. It is my firm hope that this book will not only serve as an inspiration to all who read it, especially to the current generation of young African Americans (including my children and grandchildren) about whom General Robinson cared deeply, but that it will enable the readers to develop a greater appreciation for those who serve in the military.About the Author:Leon L. Haley, PhD, is a professor emeritus in the Graduate School of Public and International Affairs, University of Pittsburgh. Over twenty-five year tenure at the University, he served in a number of capacities, including an Associate Dean, Acting Dean, and a Vice Chancellor for Student and Public Affairs. With African American history as an avocation, in addition to The Quiet One, he is the author of From the Staunton to the Allegheny: an African American Family Journey. Specializing in strategic planning, he now serves as a consultant for nonprofit organizations.

When we entered Afghanistan airspace, the mountainous terrain full of snow reminded me of when I flew over them as an air force pilot.Where I live in the United States, I am close to a mountain range where it snows during the winter, but these mountains, of my native land, are very different. Seeing them took me back to another time in my life. It reminded me of the people who live around these mountains in the most primitive way of life with roots so deep and structured by tradition that they are perversely proud that the most powerful nation of the world, the United States, has difficulty understanding why they behave the way they do.We landed at Kabul International Airport. Things looked very different from what I remembered from forty years before. It did not look like the same country I left so long ago. Everything was filthy and broken. My wife, Fahima, and I couldn't hold back our tears. Through them we saw our country, which besides being primitive, was now ruined. The innocence of the country that I knew was gone. When we got out of the airplane, my cousin Mary (Mauree jan Ashraf) was waiting for us with a car. She warned me not to hug and hold her like we used to. Unlike the way she dressed while in the west, she was now covered from head to toe. The road to Kabul was totally different; many traffic circles and shack-like stores all around the street. Most buildings had barbed wire surrounding them for safety. One traffic circle named after the Soviet war hero Ahmad Shah Massoud (according to what I heard) was the most dangerous where suicide bombers (a tactic from Iraq) got close to a car they suspected was carrying foreigners, then blew up themselves and the cars around them. Check points by coalition and Afghan security forces were all around us. We headed toward the house where my cousin lived, which was next to the palace. I remembered the palace and the streets around it but I couldn't tell where I was. Most of the roads were barricaded and unrecognizable, barbed wire and guards were everywhere. To my disappointment I couldn't find my own home-where I was raised as a boy. The roads were blocked and when we got out of the car there were beautiful kids begging everywhere. As we passed by every corner, the flashback of my youth, my friends, our playgrounds; nothing matched-nothing I saw was the same.Fahima, and I cried for days for what was lost.I think it was at that point, even if only subconsciously at the time, when I knew I must write this story. It's largely about me and my family; where we came from, some of our past and present-and some about the future. Throughout it you'll find a message of faith and belief in one's self and in following your heart. And it's about doorways that we step through in life. It's been said, "When one door closes, another one opens." I believe this to be true-it has been so for me personally.It is sad that for Afghanistan those doors continue to lead to tenuous structures often without walls and ceilings; no roof, no stability. Just an opening that exposes its people to any number of outside influences and interference. To understand more of how and why that is so, in this story, I've included some of Afghanistan's past, present and thoughts on its future as well. I hope that you will sit for a while, read my story and even listen to the words and what they share with you. For the reader I promise that there are things you will glean from the reading and that you will learn about Afghanistan you did not know before.