This week’s Tango Alpha Lima podcast features special guest former Vietnam POW Lee Ellis, who talks about his captivity, leadership lessons he learned and more.
A former POW from the Vietnam War talks about leadership and team building lessons he learned during his five years of captivity, as well as throughout his military service and his 25 years as a leadership coach on this week’s American Legion Tango Alpha Lima podcast.
Retired Air Force Col. Lee Ellis, who had flown nearly 70 previous combat missions, describes the incident on Nov. 7, 1967, when he was shot down, captured and held as a prisoner of war until March 1973.
“Those first few months were really hard and we were all tortured,” said Ellis, a member of American Legion Post 307 in Cumming, Ga. “They wanted to get some information and they wanted to break us so we would collaborate with them and cooperate.”
After repatriation, Lee returned to flying duties with increasing positions of leadership. His assignments included duty as a T-38 instructor pilot, flight commander and section commander. He retired as a colonel on Feb. 1, 1990, completing 25 years of service. Among his decorations are the Silver Star with one Oak Leaf Cluster.
Ellis also talks about his books, “Leading with Honor,” where he writes about captivity and 14 key leadership principles; and “Captured by Love,” which features the real love stories of 20 Vietnam POWs. Learn more about his books, leadership coaching and more at his website.
He developed his leadership philosophy on three principles — character, courage and commitment. “When you listen to your people, they feel more valued, more important,” he said. “You don’t have to do what they say, but you might learn something. And they will feel more important and confident in their performance.”
Also, co-hosts Stacy Pearsall, Adam Marr and Joe Worley:
• Riff on Project Iceworm, a top-secret U.S. Army program of the Cold War.
• Chat about when it’s appropriate to take down Christmas lights.
• Look ahead to the centennial celebration of American Legion Baseball. Learn more and share your stories here.
Check out the nearly 300 Tango Alpha Lima podcasts available in both audio and video formats here. You can also download episodes on Apple Podcasts, Spotify other major podcast-hosting sites. The video version is available at the Legion’s YouTube channel.
- Podcast