|
Dear Editor,
I would like to tell you that I really enjoy, "The Screaming Eagle". I would also like to share an experience with you and the members of the 101st Airborne Division Association. It began on the evening of 9 June, 1969 in the A Shau Valley. I was on fire support base Currahee and was WIA during a mortar attack. I was evacuated to the Army hospital at Phu-Bai and after being there for several days, was transferred to DaNang. I ultimately was placed in an Air Force medical facility (22nd Casualty Staging Facility) that I had a very touching and meaningful experience. It was there that I encountered a very kind and gentle nurse. I did not know what to expect when we arrived at the 22nd CSF, as it was an Air Force facility. When the nurse entered our ward accompanied by an Air Force corpsman I noticed a great warmth and caring in her eyes as she surveyed the patients who had just arrived. She was a captain and had the wings of a flight nurse on her shirt. We had just settled into our new surroundings, when the corpsman entered our ward, and asked, "is there anyone here from the 101st". I raised my left arm to indicate I was from the 101st. Apparently I was the only one in our ward from the 101st. I was suddenly gripped by an uneasy feeling. I knew there had been other casualties during the mortar attack and maybe someone in my unit in another ward had perished as a result of their wounds. As I lay there wondering why this corpsman had asked if anyone was from the 101st then had abruptly left the ward without saying anything I could only expect the worst. A few moments later, the corpsman and the nurse came into the ward with a food cart. It was loaded with chocolate cake and milk. The nurse and corpsman began passing out the treat to everyone in the ward. I was the last patient to be served, this very lovely nurse smiled at me and gave me a very large piece of cake in comparison to what everyone else had gotten. A marine lying in the bed next to mine, looked at his very modest serving of cake then looked at mine. Hey what's goin' on here?", he asked. The nurse just smiled impishly and the corpsman said to the marine, "She lets the guys from the 101st shave her legs." The entire ward erupted into cat calls and wolf whistles and I was suddenly being heckled good naturedly about being in the 101st. This very unexpected attention made me feel pretty special but I think it provided everyone in the ward with an emotional lift. None of us had talked much and for the most part you didn't see that many smiles. But this nurse and corpsman had done something for everyone's moral especially - for mine. It was soon time for lights out in the ward and I couldn't help but think of the nurse who had looked at me with so much compassion when she had presented me with the piece of cake. I finally fell asleep and the next thing I remember was being aroused early the next morning as we were being evacuated to Japan. As I sat up in the bed I was very pleasantly surprised. This nurse had been at my bedside and she gently kissed me on the cheek as I sat up. Before I could say anything or react to this wonderful act of kindness she was gone. I just caught a glimpse of her heading for the nurses station at the other end of the ward. I knew that I had to say something to this very lovely and gentle person who had shown me affection. I got out of bed and limped toward the nurses station not really knowing just what I was going to say - probably just "Thanks Ma'am for everything and goodbye". I finally arrived at the nurses station and peeked over the counter. The nurse was seated, her back to me. She was slumped over her desk, I could tell by the rhythmic movement of her shoulders that she was crying. I just stood there stunned, not knowing what to do or say. The corpsman who was nearby apparently saw my confusion. He came up to me and very quietly and discretely told me that she was upset because she had seen so many casualties from the 101st Airborne Division, especially from Hamburger Hill, just weeks earlier. I realized then that I was trespassing and that she needed privacy and that there was nothing that I could of said or done. I quietly walked away knowing she had not been aware of my presence. I guess too, I realized just how heartbreaking the role of a Viet Nam nurse was. The years have passed and I have often thought of this nurse. Always remembering her kindness and always haunted at the sight of her crying. It was the day before Thanksgiving of 1988, that the memories of this special nurse simply overwhelmed me. I sat about trying to find her and am happy to say, that in February of 1989, I finally established contact with her. We have been in contact regularly since then and have developed a very nice friendshop. On 9 June of 1989, my twentieth anniversary of being wounded I sent this lady some roses and it felt good to give something back to this person. Her name is Dotty Sullivan, and she currently resides in Biloxi, Mississippi. She retired from the Air Force Nurse Corps in 1982. She is originally from Quincey, MA. She served as a flight nurse in Viet Nam from 65-67, and was stationed in DaNang, with the 22nd Casualty Staging Facility from 69-70. She told me during her tour as a flight nurse from 65-67, the 22nd CSF had not been built at the time, she said they flew in and picked the casualties up off the flight line. Dotty Sullivan, is still a very warm and caring person and someone who made a difference to at least one G.I. Finding her after twenty years was a great thrill. This lady who gave me the TLC while I was a patient in her ward did so all because I was in the 101st Airborne Division. I hope that says or means something to everyone who has worn "the Screaming Eagle" on their sleeve. If there is a chapter of the 101st Airborne Division Assn. in or near Biloxi, Mississippi, I just want it known there is a very wonderful and courageous former flight nurse, whom I feel deserves recognition from our association. I would also like to add that sometime during this year, the women who served in Viet Nam are supposed to get their memorial. In my search for Dotty Sullivan, I had to write and contact other former nurses who served in Viet Nam. I was amazed at the response I got from them and the very moving letters they sent me. All of them encouraged me not to give up my search and many of them said my story of Dotty Sullivan had brought tears to their eyes and had made them feel a little more appreciated. In conclusion I want to say, our women, especially our nurses did one HELL OF A JOB. They deserve and need the same recognition and dignity of any other veteran. Let's give them our love and our support, they need us now just as we needed them then.
Sincerely and Fraternally Yours, Mike Jones (A 2/319th Arty FA) 510 Locust Ardmore, OK 73401-1746 | ||
|
| ||
|
| ||