My Red Cross Girl

Company A

227th Assault Helicopter Battalion

1st Cavalry Division (Airmobile)

My Red Cross Girl
by Robert Kelly

A/227 and D/227
June 1967 - June 1968
Dedicated to CW2 Ernie Kramer

This story begins at LZ Betty, on the outskirts of Phan Thiet in Viet Nam.
I was flying slicks with A/227 1st Cavalry Division. From time to time our AO (Area of Operation) was visited by Red Cross Girls, known to the troops as Donut Dollies. Several times I flew the girls out to our firebases. It was fun to watch the girls play games with the grunts and artillerymen. I never did see a "real donut" but they had plenty of games. Even though some of the games seemed silly, you could see how happy it made the guys. Their eyes were brighter and smiles larger as the war faded away for a few hours. And to be with an American woman topped it all off. Time came to crank up and fly to another destination. The fun began again. These girls were assigned to the 1st Cav and traveled to our different AO'S.
Fast Forward to 1992:
Ernie Kramer and I decided the time was right to visit the wall. The Gulf War had ended and I was especially proud of our Vietnam vets and our fallen. Norman Schwarzkopf and Collin Powell ran a good war due to their Vietnam experiences. The press, some politicians and some citizens were relentless in their call to start the ground war. Because of their command experience in Vietnam these calls were resisted. Norman Schwarzkopf and Collin Powell were systematically destroying the enemy's tanks, artillery, AAA, Republican Guard and other targets of opportunity. They invaded when they were ready, not when the press or politicians were ready. The results of this were minimal coalition casualties. In my opinion, there are many Gulf War veterans alive today because of experiences learned in Vietnam. Those whose names are on the Vietnam Memorial Wall died for Duty, Honor, Country and Freedom. Their deaths also saved many Gulf War Veterans. I was finally free to visit the wall.
I flew from Texas to Chicago where Ernie Kramer lived. Ernie was also an A/227 and D/227 pilot. We were good friends having been through flight school together, were in A/227 and D/227 together and both IP's at Fort Wolters. After a day we headed out in Ernie's' van on this new adventure not knowing where it would take us. The following day we arrived at D.C. and stayed at a motel at the west end of the subway. Three different people told us not to go to the wall at night. They claimed it was dangerous. I told Ernie I was going at 1 a.m. and if he did not want to go I would take his van. Then I prepared for my visit to the wall with some trepidation. A rucksack filled with a large thermos of coffee, flashlight, writing pads, a lightweight jacket and a list of friends with their location on the wall.
I did not go to sleep and woke Ernie at midnight. He decided to go but parked on the road about 100 yards away with his .38 pistol and stayed in the van. For me it was the perfect night. Mild weather, and nice sky. I sat on a bench at the end of the wall, poured some coffee and contemplated the war and the service men and women on the wall. Then it was time to write my letters. I did so one at a time. After finishing a letter, I walked from my bench to that friend's name. This was repeated many times throughout the night.
To my surprise I remembered many good times with these soldiers and friends. I saw them in my mind's eye, with me, laughing about things we had done. Of course I also laid down a few tears through this journey. I did not see one person all night. I was walking the wall saying my goodbyes and feeling very peaceful. My journey to the wall had been very successful. Just as I started to leave I heard footsteps and found myself looking at a young lady setting up a camera on a tripod. It was now first light. We talked briefly. She was a photographer with the Washington Post and was taking a picture of the reflection of the Washington Monument on the wall. I asked her if she would mind sending me a picture. (This was for Memorial Day 1992 - Ernie and I went a week early to avoid the crowds). Sure enough I got the picture that donned the front half page of a section of the Washington Post. This picture is a good souvenir and remembrance.
I headed to the van for breakfast and a nap. When I woke, Ernie and I decided to go to the wall and see it in the daylight. It was very crowded, lots of people and bus loads of kids. I could never have gotten my work done in such a chaotic atmosphere. There were people everywhere. Ernie was down at the wall finally getting a look. There was a bluff facing the wall and that is where I stood. After 5 or 10 minute went by a woman my age came up to me. She introduced herself as a volunteer and wanted to know if she could help with a rubbing, find someone, anything. I declined and told her I had been out all night. Seeing my CAV hat she told me she was a Red Cross Girl attached to the CAV from June 1967 till Tet, when she transferred to the Marines. I asked her if she had been to Phan Thiet and excitedly said 3 or 4 times. We really had a good time talking. Naturally, whether true or not, we decided that I had flown her around the Phan Thiet AO many times. . We talked for over an hour. She recalled her experiences at Phan Thiet and talked of other places she had been. She was from Alaska and volunteered every year from November through May. This was going to be her last year.
So that is my story of "The Red Cross Girl". I was living in Texas and she resided in Alaska. We met in Vietnam in 1967 and 22 years later at our beloved Wall. I cannot remember her name. I have a picture of the two of us in front of the Wall and the memories of our second encounter.