Military
Women
Served with Pride
Unarmed and under fire: An oral history of female Vietnam vets
- Austin Bunn gets it right for Salon Magazine
And, of course, I was a novelty being a female soldier with
a diamond [for sergeant] on my arm. All the guys looked at me and said,
"She's got a diamond, that means there are women coming!"
My first night they started hitting us with mortar rounds.
The whole building shook. It was a horrible night. I just laid there. I was
paralyzed. And I figured I wasn't going to make it out. There were four or
five of us in the room. And they were saying don't worry about it -- the
Vietnamese are bad shots. I thought, Yeah, right.
"Observing
a fire in Vietnamese dwellings near her quarters, she hurried to the scene
to provide assistance. Without regard for her personal safety and in great
danger of serious injury or death from smoke, flames, and falling debris,
she assisted in rescuing several adults and children from the burning
structures. Without protective clothing or shoes she repeatedly entered
the buildings to lead children that had reentered their homes to safety.
She continued to assist the Vietnamese residents in removing personal
property and livestock, although danger increased until fire-fighting
equipment and personnel arrived. Specialist Five Offutt's heroic action
reflects great credit on herself, the United States Army, and the United
States mission in Vietnam."
"When it came
time for the presentation, they pulled me aside and said they didn't
give the (Soldier's Medal) to women," Offutt said. "I was
naive and young. And I didn't think I was a hero anyway."
"'All of my children appeared
healthy at birth and it wasn't until they were toddlers that something
appeared wrong,' Offutt says.
Justin was born with cancer of the
kidney, Wilm's Tumor. Kevin had ADHD, Attention Deficit
Hyperactivity Disorder, bone and teeth deformities, and fainting spells.
Kristin had Grand Mal Epilepsy."
One night we had a human mass attack on all four corners at
Long Binh. We had mortar attacks that could have landed on our compound and
killed all of us. Did we have anything to protect us? No, all we had was
prayer. And I did a lot of that.
Apparently in 1968 military intelligence had gotten a
document off a North Vietnamese that they were offering a $25,000 reward for
a white American female. Our own government gave us life insurance which was
worth only $10,000. We laughed about it, because, boy, we were worth more to
the NV.
My first band was called "Phase 3," because there
are four phases before you die. If you're out in the field, you're in phase
3. You're hanging on -- you may make it and you may not.
I asked myself why they weren't listening. I just came up
recently with the reason they didn't believe me: They weren't prepared for
me. They didn't know how to look beyond the WAC, black woman in military
intelligence.
If a man had problems with me, I mostly ignored it. I
tried not to take an abrasive approach to anything.
I really didn't think about Vietnam until much later in
years. I just put it in the back of my mind. The only time I would mention
Vietnam is when I was in uniform. And people would say, "How come
you're wearing a Vietnam patch?"
We would go out on our off-time -- we would go to the NCO
(non-commissioned officers club) and meet up.
I had three or four pieces of shrapnel in my leg, and some
in my back. Not much, but if you're wounded at all from enemy fire, you can
get a Purple Heart.
One time, I was coming downstairs into the hotel lobby to
get my ride to work. We took machine gun fire and everybody hit the floor.
We just got into the elevator and went up to the eighth floor, because we
didn't have any weapons.
The military changed the rules real quick after that,
changed the policy on single parents adopting kids while you're in the
military. Now, you can't do it.
Vietnam Memories
Photos of female enlisted, staff and line officers on a website dedicated
to those women. Are you on their Sister Search list?
Volunteering
For Risk: Black Military Women Overseas during the Wars in Korea and Vietnam
- Dr.
Judith Bellafaire, Curator WIMSA
"Many of the
individual stories above come directly from the Register of the Women in
Military Service for America Memorial Foundation."
Vietnam;
WAC Strength; WAC Standards
Official Army report with
photographs
Attitudes
" . . . we were lying flat on the ground, just really glad I'm a 32 no-cup, laying
just as flat as I could get and that stuff's commin' in explodin' all over the place. That
was the moment I realized `My God, I could get killed over here'. And I said to the
Captain, `I don't understand this...aren't we behind the lines here?' and the Captain
said, `Lady, this is Vietnam...there is no behind-the-lines here.'"
Vietnam:
A Soldier's Story II, Women at War"
Watch for rebroadcasts on
"The Learning Channel"
"It
is a wonderful film. One we can all be proud of and recommend to students,
educators, and anyone who wants to learn and try to understand why we
went, what we did, and why it mattered...and matters still."
~Ann Kelsey, Librarian with Special Services,
Vietnam
Unfortunately "The
Learning Channel" has removed the website associated with this show.
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Miscellaneous
Photos |
| Saigon,
South Vietnam....Staff Sergeant Ermalinda Salazar, a woman Marine, has
been nominated for the 1970 Unsung Heroine Award presented annually by the
Ladies Auxillary to the veterans of foreign wars. Staff Sergeant Salazar,
determined to help the children of the St. Vincent de Paul Orphanage in
Vietnam in her off-duty hours, holds two of the youngsters. |
The
first five enlisted women in the Air Force (WAF) and the fourth WAF
officer to be assigned to Vietnam arrive at Tan Son Nhut Air Base, South
Vietnam. The women (left to Right) are: Lt Col June H. Hilton, A1C
Carol J. Hornick, A1C Rita M. Pitcock, SSgt Barbara J. Snavely, A1C
Shirley J. Brown, and A1C Eva M. Nordstrom. |
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United States
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United Kingdom
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Germany
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France
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Women in Vietnam
