AUSTIN, Texas— Today, Texas Land Commissioner and Veterans Land Board (VLB) Chairwoman Dawn Buckingham, M.D., is proud to introduce the next installment of the series highlighting the VLB's Voices of Veterans oral history program. This week, we highlight the service of Lieutenant Commander (LCDR) James Bernsen who served in the U.S. Navy During the Iraq/Afghanistan War.
Bernsen said he "grew up in the Cold War and always in mind was [that] America was a threat, America needs defenders." He was in high school when the Cold War broke down, and the Berlin Wall fell, which were two influential moments for him. "I was in Austin when the Tiananmen Square massacre happened, and so, I associated the March of Liberty and the dangers it faced with what was going on in my life."
Bernsen said he attended college at Texas A&M but "didn't join the Corps of Cadets" while there and didn't consider joining the military at all because "it mainly looked like there was going to be an era of peace and the need was not there." Instead of the military, he received a degree in a journalism from Texas A&M and went to work for numerous newspapers both in America and overseas before moving into public relations.
Bernsen's career path would take a turn following the September 11, 2001 terrorist attack in New York City. "I was working for U.S. Senator Phil Graham as his Deputy Press Secretary [...] I watched the second tower strike live on TV before I went into the office, then went into the office and as the day progressed, the concern grew that there might be other targets out there. We decided to evacuate the Dallas office but they evacuated everybody but me."
Bernsen said he stayed behind to send out press releases and to answer media inquiries that could come in. He said it was that solitude that allowed him the space to think "about America and the threat we were under." He explained "It was then that I decided I wanted to consider joining the military. I was 29 years old which was a pretty steep hill to do at that point, so I pursued this over the next couple of years."
Bernsen said he would learn about a special program with the United States Navy where he could join and go straight into the reserves, which he did at 32 years old. Bernsen got his orders to deploy and did so on a day he said hit home for him.
"I did deploy and did so on September 11, 2007. Six years after the attacks, I arrived in Baghdad," he explained. "I was there from September 11 to July 4, returning home on the 4th of July. So, it was very meaningful times."
While in Baghdad, Bernsen said he served at the Joint Operations Center and was assigned to an Army unit, even though he was in the Navy. He said "As an Intelligence Officer, you get told where you're to go and you go." He mentioned in a ground war that the Navy "might loan out people and if you have a sea war, the Army might loan out people."
Bernsen said his role as an Intelligence Officer afforded him the opportunity to contribute "efforts against our enemies."
"There's a lot of critical analysis that happens for Intelligence Officers [...] and it was a good fit," he said. "I was 32 at the time I joined I was not going to be at the head of a column of troops and kicking in doors, it really wasn't the role that was designed for me. It was a good fit. It allowed me to start out serving while still doing my career in the civilian world."
Bernsen said that when it came to his day-to-day duties at the Joint Operations Center, he was "sitting right behind the Chief of Operations who was the guy day-to-day that was running the war and we were providing quick analysis for him." For more complex analysis, Bernstein explained that they had a cell of guys that would do more of a deep-dive into things.
When asked to give an example of the work he did, Bernsen recounted the steps he and his team would take to help extract a pilot who crashed due to a mechanical failure.
"Usually what would happen is the nearest unit on the ground would try and secure the scene but we would have to plot a plan to extract the pilot, the helicopter, all of these things, and the Chief of Operations would want to know what threats there were, what are the safest routes," he explained. "So, we would quickly provide him our knowledge with the reports we had.
To listen to LCDR James Bernsen tell his story, click the button below:
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Veterans can email VoicesofVeterans@glo.texas.gov to tell their stories. Please note that the Veteran must be a resident of Texas at the time of their interview.
Voices of Veterans is a state agency's first Veteran oral history program. It records the stories of Texas Veterans through their time in service and after returning home from combat.
The VLB records interviews with Veterans over the phone or in person. Their interviews are then permanently archived in the Office of Veterans Records at the GLO, where they join the historical documents of other Texas heroes such as Sam Houston, Davy Crockett, Jim Bowie, and William Barret Travis.
Veterans' interviews are also available to researchers, historians, genealogists, and the public. These precious records inspire future generations and remind us of our Veterans' sacrifices.
To listen to the over 500 archived stories of Veterans documented through the GLO's Voices of Veterans oral history program, click the button below:
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Texas Land Commissioner Dawn Buckingham, M.D., brings a lifetime of experience to the Texas General Land Office (GLO). In 2016, she became the first Republican elected to the Texas State Senate from Travis County and the first woman to represent Texas Senate District 24. She made history again in 2022, winning a statewide election to become our state’s first female Land Commissioner.