For those Navy Hospital Corpsmen who served in the United States Navy and/or the United States Marine Corps.
Hats Off to All my fellow Corpsman!
This is my first day on here and I am so pleased and proud to find it.I spent my time 1969-1974 active, from Orlando Boot to San Diego Corps School, CHELSEA Naval Hospital, Senior Corpsman of Ward 14, Dirty Orthopedics and then Camp Lenjeune 2nd Amtracs, Force Troops, Camp Lejeune.Have been in healthcare ever since as a Registered Respiratory Therapist. I gave my first breathing treatment in 1970......Thank you All for your Service!!!Curt Hiller, HM3
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Greetings. Request permission to come aboard.
Just joined the group and glad to have run across some of my brothers in arms and mates. I enlisted in June 1968 "Hospital Designated" which meant I had no choices except Corps School or Dental Tech School. Went to boot in San Diego and Corps School at Balboa graduating in Jan '69. From there to NAV Hosp Chelsea MA.
Worked originally on a medical ward (12 days on 2 off) and then in the delivery room down in the dependents wing. Got orders to the 3rd MAR Div for August '69, then amended to 1st Mar Div for December, then amended to 3rd Marine Amphibious Force arriving in Vietnam Jan '70 and assigned to the Combined Action Program (CAP).
In country we went through 3 weeks of guerrilla warfare and counter-insurgency training, Vietnamese language school, qualified on m-16, m-60, m-79, PRC 25 radio, orienteering with map and compass, demolitions and general explosives. Corpsmen trained right along with the Marines and passed all of the same tests.
I was assigned to CAP 2-7-2, 2nd Combined Action Group out of Hoi An. Our CAP was assigned to a village with 4 hamlets. We were supposed to have 14 Marines and 1 Corpsman, but there were usually only 10-12 Marines due to illness, wounds or R&R. We lived in the bush with no rear area or down time except for wounds, illness or R&R. I was wounded twice - only one counted for a purple heart. Spent 302 days in the bush and was pulled out in Jan 71 to work at 1st Med BN for 3 weeks until I rotated home.
Spent my last year at Nav Hosp Bremerton WA. Got out and less than a year later reenlisted and came back home. Back at Bremerton, I applied for the NENEP program and was selected and went on PCS orders to the University of Washington for four years and graduated in 1977. Immediately was commissioned as an Ensign in the Nurse Corps, made LT in 3 years and hated the politics. I did not fit in with the female dominated branch as they were very covetous of the higher ranks since at that time the only path to admiral for a woman was the Nurse Corps. They didn't like a mustang LT with more combat ribbons than the Master Chief. So, at the urging of an old Vietnam buddy, I jumped ship and transferred to the Army Nurse Corps with the promise of grad school and education as a Trauma Nurse Specialist. Dressed in green once again, I felt truly back at home.
During my Army time I was stationed at Fitzsimmons AMC in Denver, Brooke AMC, San Antonio, 121st Evac Hosp in Korea, and Madigan AMC at Ft Lewis Wa. I retired in 1990 having trained the nurses who would staff the triage areas at the 41st Combat Support Hospital before they deployed to Desert Storm.
I then worked as a trauma nurse and flight nurse (rotor) for several great trauma centers in California, Texas and Washington. I retired fully in 2004 as the multiple surgeries on my shoulder to repair damage from a grenade in Vietnam caught up with me. I wrote a book inspired by my experiences and now spend time with family. My one regret is that my military career, from E-1 to O-4 took me away from my family too much of the time.
I still have issues with pain and decreased mobility in my shoulder from the nerve damage and attempts at surgical correction but at least they kept me wired together long enough to fulfill my career. Still have some issues with PTSD but it does get better with time.
So I'm half Navy, quarter Marine and quarter Army.
Stephen, did you know John Hetrick who worked in decedent affairs? John and I were at the hospital at the same time. We served together three times during our navy career. He now lives in Beaufort, SC and I live in Summerville, SC and occasionally get together. I became a Medical Technologist and worked for HCA for 18 years until I retired in 1998. I then volunteered in the ER for 10 years.
Greetings from N. Atlanta. Hope all is well. 1971-1974. 2 Med cruises.
Mike
The 91 year old WW2 vet that I posted a blog about running across the country, Ernie Andrus was a Corpsman! He was one of the original 30 vets (avg age 72 at the time) that sailed their LST-325 back from Greece in 2000!
Check out his FB page:
https://www.facebook.com/pages/Coast2coastruns/451518878297515
I need to retire!. There is a perfectly good battleship in Long Beach that needs an HM. All I need is time.
Ron, don't despair. If San Diego can have a dry land ship, USS Recruit then you can have one in Arizona. If I recall, there was a German POW camp outside of Phoenix in WWII. The prisoners were planning and escape and got hold of a local map. Story is they were building a boat to cross the Salt River. I wonder if anybody saved it.
Stephen M. Miland : I was a HM1 in the blood bank at NSA Hospital 69-70.
yes we do, and NAS Pensacola, 45 miles east.
Stephen, you have the USS Turner Joy up in Bremerton and L.Wayne you have a Battleship!