Korean War Legacy Project

Richard Houser (Wife)

Bio

Richard Houser was drafted into service a little after his marriage.  After he was sent to basic training, his wife was forced to move back into her parents house until he returned from service.  She was happy for his safe return, but did not enjoy having to move back into her parents house with squabbling siblings, and is quick to remind Richard that he was later getting back from service.  They have now been married for 60 years.

Video Clips

Life After War

In this clip Mr. and Mrs. Houser discuss what life was like after Mr. Houser had come back from his service.

Tags: Home front

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Why This Project is Important

Mrs. Houser describes why this project is important.

Tags: Home front,Pride

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Building a Future After War

In this clip Mr. and Mrs. Houser describe how Mrs. Houser saved all of Mr. Houser's military paychecks in order to buy a home.

Tags: Home front

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Video Transcript

0:00okay well thank you for taking the time

0:03to sit with us we appreciate it so you

0:07are the wife of mr. Houser yes and he

0:11told me that you two were married about

0:14a month you a year before he shipped out

0:19to Korea what was it like when you found

0:23out he was going to be leaving kind of

0:27scary mm-hmm so you didn’t know what was

0:33gonna happen to him I guess but he came

0:37home for you late late but he did yeah

0:43so it is probably in his mind the whole

0:46time he said I’m gonna get through this

0:47so I can come home to my wife and he

0:52discussed some of the letters that you

0:53exchanged was that a good way to keep in

0:56touch throughout the war while he was

0:58there that’s when you know yeah it was

1:03the only way they did have a system at

1:06one time you could make a call it was so

1:13expensive it took so long he just

1:18wouldn’t give you the time to the one

1:20makeup on home so how was it what was it

1:26like being apart from him during the

1:29time that he was in Korea it was kind of

1:32hard not knowing what to do

1:37try to keep busy yeah working yeah

1:42did you have support from family and

1:44friends

1:46yes move back in with my parents

1:55she ascends that we do things together

2:01to keep busy what was the coverage of

2:06the war wall during you know while he

2:09was in Korea I guess mr. Hauser spoke to

2:12the fact that not many people talked

2:15about it the media didn’t cover it very

2:17much is that kind of your experience as

2:20well that no one really discussed it

2:25seemed to want to forget and wished it

2:32wasn’t really so

2:43no there is Apollo my dad used to follow

2:47me boy your father yeah my mother kept

2:53jacking 80 she was afraid on that plane

2:55playing career strange to know that was

2:58on it the plane of soldiers planeload

3:04crashed it started calling Red Cross and

3:09everything well that must have been a

3:14relief yeah for him at least I wasn’t

3:18thinking so what was it like when he

3:22finally came home okay yeah except you

3:31didn’t come right home and get that

3:34people never let him get it fast but I

3:37never never get out of my way home safe

3:44and sound in the father really nice

3:45right yes you guys were reunited you had

3:49a happy life yep so 16 years yeah well

3:56congratulations that’s amazing just this

3:58July that’s great well I hope there’s a

4:02big celebration we’ll see so what was it

4:10like when he came back maybe the

4:12difference in your relationship or with

4:15family and friends with was it kind of

4:17back to normal or grin shine yeah

4:20there’s a long time different ways so

4:23many things to think about yeah because

4:28of the time apart from each other or

4:29maybe yeah we’re just getting getting

4:32back is making your life again you know

4:35you live in a regimented life mr. Baig

4:40and you can do what you wanted

4:43well she could have given you orders

4:45yeah yeah yeah um what was the biggest

4:54impact of the war just being apart from

4:56her work so it’s hard to go back home

5:05fighting there’s your sisters and

5:08brothers all right so I guess the last

5:13question that I have you know I asked

5:17your husband what this whole project

5:19means to him and he explained that it’s

5:23important that people understand and are

5:26educated more about the korean war in

5:27general and for students to actually

5:29learn about it how did how do you feel

5:32about him participating in the project

5:34and us doing this project in general I

5:37think it’s good that the young people

5:43today understand that you talked to him

5:48in since Korea who I what’s Korea try to

5:53explain it to them what happened but

5:56down I know the sunny things for them to

5:59do today that kind of goes suicide yeah

6:07okay well thank you very much we

6:09appreciate you coming here you didn’t

6:10have to come up on stage but you did

6:11yeah we appreciate that Ram one thing

6:15you did she say oh my laughs at checks

6:20it went to her we bought a house really

6:25wow received it that’s great fighting

6:30for the future not many people save

6:33these days well thank you very much it’s

6:38good

Photos

Richard and his Wife

This is a photograph of Richard and his wife outside of her grandmothers house.

Richard and his Wife

Mistake

Mistake