interview of Billy Krisvelt

00:01 Hi, this is Destiny Hughes and today I'm with Billy Kreisfeldt Jr We're going to be talking a little bit about how he spent time overseas while serving and a little bit before in boot camp. Okay, so what was your first thought whenever you got to boot camp and kind of how you dealt with that?

00:25 My first thought when I got to boot camp was just, I guess a little bit of a culture shock is what I call it. As in, you know, it's completely new, something. Something in some place completely different. So it's. It was a little bit of a shocking and a little bit of a scary, you know, feeling, but at the same time, I was very excited about it. You know, I was excited to try something new and. And, you know, serve my country.

00:55 Okay. Okay. So whenever you were overseas, what were you feeling whenever you first got, like, drafted out?

01:03 When I first got orders to go to Iraq, it was 2008, and it was just a couple months after getting out of boot camp. So I graduated boot camp September 12, 2008, and I was in Iraq, Mosul, Iraq, with 3rd Armored Cavalry Regiment. November 18, I believe is when I got there. So the feeling of that was pretty scary because the unit that I was with or that I joined, they were already on a 15 month deployment. And I was just being sent there because they needed numbers due to losing a few guys because of casualties, which is what, you know, kia Killed in action. And of course they. They needed replacements to replace them. So that's what I was.

02:08 So you're kind of basically someone who was like a rookie put into that position and you had to get.

02:12 And go correct. It was. It was, hey, you got orders to go here. You gotta go here, get all this stuff, you gotta do this training. You're leaving quick.

02:23 Dang. Okay, well, the next question I was gonna ask is, was there any. Any place that kind of stuck out to you and, and why.

02:34 While overseas?

02:35 Yes. While. While you were serving?

02:37 Yes, while I was overseas. My second deployment, which was a, I believe is total 11 months, I didn't quite hit the 12 month mark. Why? I'm not sure, because they sent orders to send me home. But I got to experience two pretty amazing places. And the one I most enjoyed was the ruins of Babylon. I was able to go and see the actual big gate, and, you know, it's large and blue, and I got to see the large concrete stone lion, you know, on the walkway, the pathway.

03:20 That's gotta be cool.

03:21 So it was a pretty, pretty amazing experience there. And then the Second one would have to be one of Saddam Hussein's palaces. That was near the ruins of Babylon, I believe. It's where the garden and everybody went on tourists buses and stuff from other countries and other parts of Iraq to go there and see it. But I got to experience walking through the large garden and everything while, while on a mission for our country.

04:09 I think the next question I had for you was on your way back, what were you kind of feeling like your last time? Last time back?

04:21 When I finally came back from Iraq from my second tour, I was prepared, excited. I had my daughter Brianna was born November 10, 2010. And I was able to be there for her birth, which was a pretty exciting time for me. But then I had to go back to Iraq and when I came back, she was already nine months old. So it was, it was kind of a. I was excited to be back and to spend time with my daughter.

04:59 I bet that was definitely happy time when you first seen her back.

05:01 It was, it really was.

05:04 I ever have any. Oh, what was your favorite vehicle to ride in?

05:10 My favorite vehicle would always and will always be the Abrams tank.

05:17 The Abrams tank.

05:18 Yeah, that was, that was, that was one fun machine. It's something that I loved and, you know, not, you know, obviously the Abrams tank. World is a small, is a small world when it comes to, in the, in the Army.

05:36 I believe you said, you told me and Hayden before that you had been in one. And it's kind of like riding in a boat almost inside of it.

05:44 It really is. It's the way that they roll and everything. It's like riding in a big, a big boat. Almost like an old, you know, 50s or 60s sedan car. You know, you just, it almost feels like you're floating and. Yeah, so it would have to be the tank.

06:04 Okay. I think the last thing I could probably ask for you is if you had any, any long, long term life advice for someone, what would it be if they came up to you and said, hey, I'm having kind of troubles, troubles with this and wanting to get back in a sense. I mean like someone kind of from the army as well.

06:25 Okay. What I would say on that is it's a term that we always use. You know, you keep your head up, you, you always look at the brighter side. You always try to stay positive even in the worst situations. You never give up, you never surrender. You keep moving one foot in front of the other.

06:50 I used to have older military relatives say the never give up, never surrender. And they would always say that if they were having a hard time, but I believe a lot of people can use that. Definitely. And thank you for sharing and giving me a little bit of insight on your story.

07:11 You're welcome. Thank you.

07:12 All right, that will wrap it up. And Today's date is November28. 2022cars, motorcycles.