Vietnam veteran shares heartfelt story

Combat veteran Jim Hodges will share what it is like to return to American soil as a veteran of an unpopular military conflict. Hodges will talk about his experience as a combat soldier in Laos during the Vietnam War.

Hodges presentation, “Eye of the Warrior: Stories from the Vietnam War,” is sponsored by Grand Valley State University’s Hauenstein Center for Presidential Studies. It will be held July 1, at 7 p.m., at the Gerald R. Ford Presidential Museum, 303 Pearl St. NW, Grand Rapids. The event is free and open to the public.

“We are thrilled to have Jim Hodges come back to West Michigan,” said Gleaves Whitney, director of the Hauenstein Center. “He is a Vietnam veteran who has come to grips with his war experience. The two previous times he has addressed audiences in Grand Rapids, he moved other veterans and their families to tears with heartfelt stories about returning home after the war.”

MEDIA NOTE: This event is being held in conjunction with LZ Michigan, a “welcome home” celebration to honor Vietnam Veterans for their service and sacrifice Saturday, July 3, at Fifth Third BallPark.

Since 1967, Jim Hodges has served in a variety of roles as a covert intelligence operator and military combat veteran of the Vietnam War. He is a highly decorated police detective known as “the chameleon” by his street adversaries. Hodges is currently the director of safety and training for ISSC Security in Houston. He is a member of the Association for Intelligence Officers and a life member of the Veterans of Foreign Wars.

For more information call the Hauenstein Center for Presidential Studies at (616) 331-2770 or visit www.allpresidents.org. For more information about LZ Michigan visit www.lzmichigan.org.