Interview Questions

My Grandfather, Jack Cocchi, was never deployed to war, although he trained at Fort Ord in Monterey, California. He has told me some stories about his time in the Army, but i have never gone in depth. I plan on discussing with him what it is like for someone to be mentally and physically prepared for war, but never deployed. I am sure many people have gone through a similar situation such as this, and I know that my Grandfather’s time spent in the army has greatly impacted his life.

Questions in mind for interviewing:

Where were you born?

What were your parents names, did you have a good relationship with them when growing up?

Do you have any childhood friends that stick in your memory?

What was your first job?

Where did you go to college, what did you study and what other activities did you do outside of school?

What initially made you decide to enter the Army?

What were your thoughts about war before entering the Army?

Do you remember your first day? What was it like, was there anyone that you met that you stayed good friends with? Was it what you expected training to be like?

What were you feeling during training, before you knew you would not be deployed, surely you had some sense of what a war would be like, did it scare you? Excite you?

Was there any particular event during training that sticks out to you in particular? Something you have carried with you?

Are you still in contact with any of your friends from camp, do you know if any of them were deployed?

What did your parents think of you joining the Army?

What ultimately happened for you not to get deployed?

Casting back to around 2008, When I came back over here for a visit when I still lived in Australia, We had a little argument about my future. I said I wanted to be a pilot for the Australian Air Force, and when you asked my why not the U.S. Air Force I said that I didn’t want to fight stupid wars. Feelings were obviously hurt, where did those feelings come from? Was it your involvement in the Army that made you proud of the United States Armed Forces, or something else?

Would you have done anything different, and if so, what?

Looking back are you glad you didn’t get deployed? Or was there ever a time you wish you got to fight?

Were you ever subjected to any kind of brutality during camp?

What were you treated like as an individual during training, were you ever subjected to things that tried to mentally break you down/ build you up a certain way?

Are there any particular events, sayings, rituals or practices that have stuck with you?

What was the experience like for others around you, did you talk to your friends about the things you were feeling during camp, was your experience different from other peoples?

Did you ever witness brutality? If so, what sort?