I'm Ken Harbaugh, host of Warriors in Their Own Words.

In partnership with the Honor Project, we've brought this podcast back at a time when our nation

needs these stories more than ever.

Warriors in their own words is our attempt

to present an unvarnished, unsanitized truth

of what we have asked of those who wear our country's uniform.

Thank you for listening and by doing so honoring those who have served.

Today, in the first of a two-part episode,

we'll hear from Lieutenant Colonel Winston M. Rochet.

Lieutenant Colonel Rochay served in the National Guard during World War I.

He was 93 years old when he recorded this interview.

I'm retired Lieutenant Colonel Winston, Emerald O'Shea,

of the United States Army as 7th Engineers of the 5th Division, regular division.

I'm 93 years old, and I served in World War I for over 22 months. And then when they came out

after the armistice, I enlisted in the National Guard and retired in 1943.

All we had were a few regulars who were on the Mexican border, fighting the Mexican bandits,

who were continually sniping at Texas and those border states.

And I suppose that they had desires on getting California

and the West Coast back into their hands.

But they were rebels and they never lasted long.

They just were a continued nuisance.

They would come in over the border.

...