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A Los Angeles Times series: Private wars

One returned from battle to a wife who didn’t recognize him. One watched his best friend burn and wondered if he was responsible. One hid his marriage behind a web of lies. All three Iraq war veterans came home transformed in unexpected ways. Here are their stories.

By Christopher Goffard and Rick Loomis
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Los Angeles Times series: Private wars

A TIMES SERIES

Private wars

One returned from battle to a wife who didn’t recognize him. One watched his best friend burn and wondered if he was responsible. One hid his marriage behind a web of lies. All three Iraq war veterans came home transformed in unexpected ways. Here are their stories.

Stories by Christopher Goffard

Photography and video by Rick Loomis

A SOLDIER'S WIFE

Her husband came home, and the war came with him.

September 8, 2013

Jonathan Warren attends a Vanguard University ceremony. He enrolled in psychology classes at Vanguard, hoping to understand his damaged mind.
(Rick Loomis / Los Angeles Times)

HEALING SGT. WARREN

On a hellish day in Iraq, he watched his friend burn. Should he have done more, he wondered?

October 6, 2013

Stephen Snyder-Hill, 43, an Army reservist who has served two tours in Iraq, is held by his husband Josh Snyder-Hill, 34, inside their Columbus, Ohio home. Stephen Snyder-Hill hid is sexuality for more than 20-years from the military and endured an often anti-gay climate while maintaining his secret. While serving his second tour of Iraq, Stephen Snyder-Hill submitted a question for the Republican presidential debate via YouTube that asked if any of the candidates would seek to reinstate the military's "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy regarding gays serving in the military. Some in the audience booed Snyder-Hill and his face became an icon for gays in the military. The couple have used the exposure to highlight their situation. The two were married in May of 2011 while Stephen was on leave from his tour of Iraq. ( Rick Loomis / Los Angeles Times )
Stephen Snyder-Hill, 43, an Army reservist who has served two tours in Iraq, is held by his husband Josh Snyder-Hill, 34, inside their Columbus, Ohio home. Stephen Snyder-Hill hid is sexuality for more than 20-years from the military and endured an often anti-gay climate while maintaining his secret. While serving his second tour of Iraq, Stephen Snyder-Hill submitted a question for the Republican presidential debate via YouTube that asked if any of the candidates would seek to reinstate the military’s “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” policy regarding gays serving in the military. Some in the audience booed Snyder-Hill and his face became an icon for gays in the military. The couple have used the exposure to highlight their situation. The two were married in May of 2011 while Stephen was on leave from his tour of Iraq. ( Rick Loomis / Los Angeles Times )
(Rick Loomis / Los Angeles Times)

THE HIDDEN MAN

America saw Stephen Hill's face for 15 seconds. It took him a lifetime to show it.

December 29, 2013

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Christopher Goffard

Christopher Goffard is an author and a staff writer for the Los Angeles Times. He shared in the 2011 Pulitzer Prize for the paper’s Bell coverage and has twice been a Pulitzer finalist for feature writing, in 2007 and 2014. His novel “Snitch Jacket” was a finalist for the Edgar Allan Poe Award for Best First Novel. His book “You Will See Fire: A Search for Justice in Kenya,” based on his Times series, was published in 2011.

Rick Loomis

Former staff photographer Rick Loomis was born in North Carolina, raised in Florida and graduated from Western Kentucky University before joining the staff of the Los Angeles Times in 1994. In addition to local coverage, Loomis has been on assignment in more than 25 countries. He’s been honored with the Pulitzer Prize, the Robert F. Kennedy award, the Sidney Hillman award and been the NPPA’s Photographer of the Year. He teaches photography and is a frequent guest lecturer.

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