Carl Little - Home - Mickey Strand - Veterans Series

Mickey Strand - Veterans Series

The Veterans Portrait Series

Mickey is a retired Navy Photographers Mate, Chief Petty Officer, and was the Leading Chief of the Navy's elite Combat Camera Group Pacific. Mickey's current focus is the Veterans Portrait Series, which documents veterans' stories of service. He is focused on our Worlds' Greatest Generation. The veterans of World War II. 

Mickey interviews each Veteran, collecting and writing their service stories, archiving these notable historic figures and their stories for generations to come. Mickey has collected and displayed images and stories from over 100 warriors that at one point, signed the dotted line when our country needed their sacrifice of service most.  Mickey continues to collect Veterans from all services for the Veterans Portrait Series. In 2019 this body of work was displayed at the Palm Beach Photographic Centre Museum from Nov 11, 2019 — to March 1, 2020.

Mickey and the project were in the national spotlight, featured on the Sunday Today Show with Harry Smith Today Show Link to YouTube.  See the Google 360 Virtual walk through from the Palm Beach Museum Exhibit. Enjoy, and thank you for your help with this project. In 2022 Mickey has photographed over 25 more WW2 Veterans and will be hosting a print show in San Diego in November with an open house on Veterans Day.

Featured Veteran

James Forrester
US Navy
FC1 - CDR
World War 2

James Forrester was born November 21, 1920, and served as a Fire Controlman during WW2. James enlisted in 1939 and served in the US Navy for 30 years.

He is a survivor of the sinking of the aircraft carrier USS Wasp CV-7. James was a plank owner onboard and served aboard from her commissioning day, 25 April 1940, to the day she was sunk on 15 September 1942 by three torpedoes from the Japanese B1 type submarine (I-19) at the Battle of Guadalcanal.

James, an FC1 at the time, remembered the Captain declaring abandoned ship over the 1MC "Public Address system" about 30 min after the strikes. He donned his Kapok life vest and jumped into the water on the port side. He was separated from his shipmates while swimming away from the sinking ship until late at night. James recounted, during the night, while praying and making his peace with God, when he saw the light of a motor whaleboat. He caused a lot of noise, splashing and yelling until the coxswain saw him. The small boat was already full of survivors, but James grabbed the trail line with three other men and was towed back to the USS Farenholt DD-491.

The Farenhold saved 143 Wasp Sailors, including James. James returned to San Diego for survivors’ leave and still gets emotional about the day he pulled back into San Diego, realizing he would be okay. Four destroyers pulled the survivors out of the Pacific that night, with the Wasp losing 193 of her over 2100 sailors.

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

Where can I donate?

I have created a way to accept donations to grow the project, use the WWII Veterans Portrait Series
  Go Fund Me.

Where are you located?

I live in the San Diego area but have traveled to many locations to interview and photograph Veterans.


How Long is an Appointment?

Appointments usually last 1 hour. But please free up time for Mickey to set up lights and cameras, hold the interview, and take some photographs for the project.

Do you accept reservations?

Yes is the simple answer to the question.  Each appointment is set up as an individual session. Group sessions have been set up when I visited a senior living facility or many of the California Veterans Homes.

Copyright © 2023 Mickey Strand – Veterans Series
Carl E. Little was born on Mary 2nd, 1928, and grew up on a farm leaving at 15 to work at a family bakery in Ohio. One day, a man visiting the store asked if he was interested in working at the Airbase at Wright-Paterson, Ohio. He apprenticed as a Hydraulics specialist at the Air Base, having lied about his age to be able to work at the Hydraulic shop until the Army drafted him thinking he was 18. He was shipped off to boot camp on 1 April 1945 at the age of 16 to Camp Robbins, Little Rock, Arkansas, for boot camp, learning that Germany had surrendered a week before graduation. He was scheduled to ship-out to tank driving school when he reported to his Sargent that he had yet to be paid. There were no records for PVT Little, so the Army started a new one. His sergeant discovered his past specialty and discovered there was a need for a Hydraulics specialist, so Carl was diverted to Borinquen Army Airfield, Aguadilla, Puerto Rico, a place Carl had never heard of. After working as the shop supervisor for a while, Carl requested a transfer and was reassigned to become an MP. He stood guard at the gates and performed Town patrol, ensuring service members returned to base at curfew. He served in Puerto Rico for three years, transferring to Detroit and then Bolling Field in Washington, DC, to finish his service obligation. He served as an MP and was on active duty when the US Air Force was separated from Army. He was separated as a CPL in Nov of 1948 after four years. Carl had many jobs over the following years and was offered to join the Navy in the summer of 1951 to serve again during the Korean War. He attended boot camp at Great Lakes Ill, and reported to the USS Windless ARD-4, a Gypsy-class salvage lifting vessel. Carl passed the diver test and went to UDT training, where he was involved in an accident during hell week and was forced to drop. He reported to the USS Rushmore LSD-14, serving for under a year until he received orders to Italy to work on a Criss Craft as a coxswain for the admiral's barge in Naples, Italy. When promoted, he transferred to the motor pool and worked there for the last of his three-year tour. He then served onboard the USS Northampton CLC-1. Carl served aboard USS Lenawee (APA-195), Amphibious Construction Battalion ONE, and CNIC Norfolk Va. as the MWR coordinator and the USS Bexar (APA-237) LPO of the boat division. Carl married Shirley, a mother of 4 Girls making him an instant father on day one. During Vietnam, Carl reported to Assault Craft Unit 1 (ACU1) onboard LCU-1481 for his first of three tours. They ran supplies and troop up and down the rivers and beaches. Carl reported as the Chief Boatswain at Nuclear Weapons Training Center Pacific in San Diego. Carl worked with the work-study group Norfolk and then at NTC San Diego as a Traffic Judge, retiring in March 1978, Serving for over 30 years.
Carl Little - Home - Mickey Strand - Veterans Series
Carl E. Little was born on Mary 2nd, 1928, and grew up on a farm leaving at 15 to work at a family bakery in Ohio. One day, a man visiting the store asked if he was interested in working at the Airbase at Wright-Paterson, Ohio. He apprenticed as a Hydraulics specialist at the Air Base, having lied about his age to be able to work at the Hydraulic shop until the Army drafted him thinking he was 18. He was shipped off to boot camp on 1 April 1945 at the age of 16 to Camp Robbins, Little Rock, Arkansas, for boot camp, learning that Germany had surrendered a week before graduation. He was scheduled to ship-out to tank driving school when he reported to his Sargent that he had yet to be paid. There were no records for PVT Little, so the Army started a new one. His sergeant discovered his past specialty and discovered there was a need for a Hydraulics specialist, so Carl was diverted to Borinquen Army Airfield, Aguadilla, Puerto Rico, a place Carl had never heard of. After working as the shop supervisor for a while, Carl requested a transfer and was reassigned to become an MP. He stood guard at the gates and performed Town patrol, ensuring service members returned to base at curfew. He served in Puerto Rico for three years, transferring to Detroit and then Bolling Field in Washington, DC, to finish his service obligation. He served as an MP and was on active duty when the US Air Force was separated from Army. He was separated as a CPL in Nov of 1948 after four years. Carl had many jobs over the following years and was offered to join the Navy in the summer of 1951 to serve again during the Korean War. He attended boot camp at Great Lakes Ill, and reported to the USS Windless ARD-4, a Gypsy-class salvage lifting vessel. Carl passed the diver test and went to UDT training, where he was involved in an accident during hell week and was forced to drop. He reported to the USS Rushmore LSD-14, serving for under a year until he received orders to Italy to work on a Criss Craft as a coxswain for the admiral's barge in Naples, Italy. When promoted, he transferred to the motor pool and worked there for the last of his three-year tour. He then served onboard the USS Northampton CLC-1. Carl served aboard USS Lenawee (APA-195), Amphibious Construction Battalion ONE, and CNIC Norfolk Va. as the MWR coordinator and the USS Bexar (APA-237) LPO of the boat division. Carl married Shirley, a mother of 4 Girls making him an instant father on day one. During Vietnam, Carl reported to Assault Craft Unit 1 (ACU1) onboard LCU-1481 for his first of three tours. They ran supplies and troop up and down the rivers and beaches. Carl reported as the Chief Boatswain at Nuclear Weapons Training Center Pacific in San Diego. Carl worked with the work-study group Norfolk and then at NTC San Diego as a Traffic Judge, retiring in March 1978, Serving for over 30 years.