♪ ♪ >> WE WERE NOT HAVING SOME KIND OF WAR GAMES, WHAT WE'RE HAVING RIGHT NOW IS WAR GOING ON WHILE WE'RE SITTING HERE AND THAT'S THE WAY IT'S BEEN SINCE THIS COUNTRY WAS FOUNDED.

THE MEN AND WOMEN THAT MADE IT SO WE HAVE THE THINGS THAT WE HAVE TODAY STARTED BACK IN DECLARING THIS COUNTRY FREE AND FOUNDING IT BACK IN 1776.

THAT'S WHEN THIS COUNTRY STARTED.

AND ALL ALONG THE LINE, THERE ARE LIVES THAT HAVE BEEN SNUFFED OUT BECAUSE NECESSITY STOOD UP FOR OUR GREAT COUNTRY.

>> WELCOME TO THIS SPECIAL ONE-HOUR EDITION OF "DAKOTA LIFE."

I'M YOUR HOST, MICHELLE VAN MAANEN.

FORMER GOVERNOR JOE FOSS IS PROBABLY SOUTH DAKOTA'S BEST-KNOWN VETERAN.

HIS HEROIC EFFORTS HAVE MADE HIM FAMOUS NATIONWIDE AS WELL.

BUT FOSS ISN'T THE ONLY HERO TO COME HOME FROM A WAR.

TODAY, ACROSS SOUTH DAKOTA, THERE ARE THOUSANDS AND THOUSANDS OF VETERANS.

THEY MAY NOT SEE THEMSELVES AS HEROIC, BUT IF YOU TAKE THE TIME TO LISTEN TO THEIR STORIES, IT IS CLEAR THERE ARE HEROES AMONG US.

IN 1961, 18-YEAR-OLD GRADY RENVILLE OF SISSETON ENLISTED IN THE ARMY AND SPENT 13 MONTHS IN KOREA AS A CLERK/TYPIST.

HE THEN WAS ASSIGNED TO THE 72ND SIGNAL BATTALION IN ARIZONA.

HE FINISHED HIS FIRST SERVICE IN 1964 WITH A GOOD CONDUCT DISCHARGE.

AFTER TRYING COLLEGE AND MANUAL LABOR JOBS, HE DECIDED TO JOIN THE NAVY IN 1965.

SOON AFTER, HE WAS ASSIGNED AS A MEDICAL CORPSMAN TO THE MARINES.

EVENTUALLY HE ENDED UP ASKING TO BE SENT FROM JAPAN, WHERE HE'D BEEN STATIONED, TO VIETNAM.

>> WELL, I DIDN'T REALLY VOLUNTEER, BUT, YOU KNOW, WHEN YOU'RE YOUNG-- I NEVER-- I NEVER THOUGHT ABOUT, YOU KNOW, DYING OR, YOU KNOW.

I'M NOT SAYG I WAS-- I'M BRAVE OR ANYTHING LIKE THAT, BUT FEAR WASN'T A FACTOR.

THE OVERPOWERING FACTOR, I GUESS, WAS CURIOSITY.

YOU KNOW, I WANTED TO GO.

I REMEMBER WHEN I FIRST WENT TO KOREA IN 1961, I WAS IN OAKLAND ARMY TERMINAL, CHRISTMAS EVE, FIRST TIME AFROM HOME.

I WASN'T SCARED OR ANYTHING.

I CALLED HOME AND MY DAD WAS CRYING.

BUT IT WAS AN ADVENTURE, YOU KNOW?

IT WAS SOMETHING, YOU KNOW, FOR 18-YEAR-OLD KID TO BE STANDING IN KOREA, AND, YOU KNOW, AND THE SAME WAY WITH VIETNAM.

IT WAS A WAR GOING ON AND IF I HAD A CHANCE TO BE THERE, WELL, YOU KNOW, I WANTED TO BE THERE.

AND THAT'S THE WAY IT WAS.

>> WHEN YOU WERE DOING YOUR DUTIES AS A CORPSMAN, DID YOU EVER A PATRIOTIC FEELING?

WHAT WAS KNEW THAT MADE YOU GET UP EVERY DAY AND DO THE BEST THAT YOU COULD DO?

>> WELL, I DON'T THINK PATRIOTISM PLAYED ANY PART IN IT.

NOT THAT I WAS ANTI-AMERICAN OR-- I WASN'T ANTI-WAR, I JUST-- I ASKED FOR IT.

I WANTED TO BE THERE.

YOU KNOW, NOT EVERY SINGLE MOMENT, YOU KNOW, BUT I-- BUT IT WAS EXCITING IN A WAY.

AND I DON'T MEAN TO SOUND LIKE I WAS FEARLESS OR ANYTHING LIKE THAT, I MEAN, BECAUSE THERE WERE SOME TIMES, YOU KNOW, THAT I'M A LITTLE EMBARRASSED TO SAY THIS I COULDN'T WAIT FOR MORNING TO COME ON SOME OCCASIONS.

SEEMED LIKE NIGHT WAS THE SCARIEST, AND-- BUT I THINK THE THING THAT MOTIVATED ME, PROBABLY, WAS THEY DEPENDED ON US, NAVY CORPSMAN, AND I WANTED TO DO A GOOD JOB.

ONE OF THE THINGS ABOUT WAR IS THE UNCERTIFICATE FEE OF WHETHER YOU'RE GOING TO LIVE OR DIE.

THAT'S WHERE THE REAL FEAR IS.

NOBODY KNOWS-- I GUESS IT'S LIKE GETTING UP EVERY DAY IN THIS COUNTRY, YOU DON'T KNOW WHETHER YOU'RE GOING TO LIVE OR DIE.

BUT THERE'S A LOT OF THINGS, YOU KNOW, THAT IN AMERICA HERE, WE'RE PRETTY CERTAIN WE'RE GOING TO LIVE.

BUT IN A WAR ZONE, YOU KNOW, ONE OF THE THINGS IS THE UNCERTAINTY.

I REMEMBER THE FIRST TIME WE WERE GETTING SHOT AT.

IT WAS THE FIRST NIGHT I WAS IN VIETNAM.

WE WERE GETTING MORTARRED, AND IT WAS SURREAL, DREAM-LIKE.

I MEAN, I COULD NOT BELIEVE-- AS A LITTLE KID PLAYING ARMY, USED TO PLAY A LOT OF ARMY WHEN WE WERE KIDS, AND THERE I WAS GETTING-- SOMEBODY OUT THERE WAS TRYING TO KILL US, AND I JUST COULDN'T BELIEVE IT.

YOU KNOW, I JUST KEPT SAYING-- I WAS CURSING BUT I WAS OH-- COULDN'T BELIEVE, YOU KNOW, THAT SOMEBODY WAS TRYING TO KILL ME.

YOU KNOW, IT WAS JUST SCARY BUT EXCITING.

OF COURSE, A CORPSMAN, YOU KNOW, ONCE THE SHOOTING GETS OVER, THEN THE CORPSMAN DUTIES KICK IN AND THEY START BRINGING IN CASUALTIES AND STUFF LIKE THAT.

AND THAT'S SCARY, YOU KNOW, MID EM OF THE NIGHT, YOU KNOW, YOU DON'T KNOW WHAT'S GOING TO COME THROUGH THE DOOR.

I HAVE A BROTHER THAT WAS THREE YEARS YOUNGER THAN ME, AND I WAS IN THE SERVICE AND HE WAS GOING TO A NORTHERN-- I THINK HE WAS ALMOST THE LAST QUARTER SENIOR, SO HE REALLY DIDN'T HAVE TO GO TO VIETNAM, BUT ONE DAY HE CAME HOME AND TOLD MY DAD, HE SAID HE WAS GOING TO GO IN THE SERVICE, AND I DON'T KNOW IF IT WAS BECAUSE OF ME, BUT HE WAS AN ARMY MEDIC.

AND HE WENT TO VIETNAM AND HE WAS KILLED ON APRIL 24TH, 1968.

HE SERVED WITH THE FIRST INFANTRY DIVISION.

AND I REMEMBER WHEN I GOT WORD THAT HE HAD GOT KILLED, I WAS GOING TO SCHOOL IN OKLAHOMA THEN, AND I CAME HOME, AND I REMEMBER COMING INTO THE BACK DOOR OF THE HOUSE AND MY MOTHER GRABBING ME AND CRYING, AND SHE SAID THAT I ALWAYS THOUGHT, YOU KNOW, YOU WOULD HAVE BEEN THE ONE TO GET KILLED IN VIETNAM.

BUT ONE OF THE THINGS, YOU KNOW, THAT I'VE THOUGHT ABOUT, IT SOUNDS LIKE A CHRICH SAY, BUT SEEMS LIKE THE GOOD DIE YOUNG.

THE ONES THAT I KNOW, THE PEOPLE THAT I KNEW PERSONALLY THAT GOT KILLED IN VIETNAM WERE SOME OF THE NICEST GUYS THAT YOU WOULD EVER WANT TO MEET.

I HAVE A PICTURE ON MY WALL OVER THERE THAT I'M HONORING A NAVY CORPSMAN, HIS NAME WAS PHIL VALDEZ, HE WAS FROM NEW MEXICO, AND HE WAS ONE OF THE NICEST GUYS.

I THINK MOST PEOPLE THAT NEW MY BROTHER WOULD AGREE THAT HE WAS JUST A REALLY GREAT GUY.

>> SOME PEOPLE HAVE SAID THAT WHEN AMERICA GOT INTO THE WAR, THAT WE THOUGHT IT WAS GOING TO BE EASIER THAN WHAT IT WAS, THAT MORALLY AND TECHNOLOGICALLY, WE FELT WE WERE SUPERIOR TO THE FORCES THAT WE WERE WAITING.

WHEN YOU WERE THERE, DID YOU HAVE ANY PERSONAL THOUGHTS OF HOW YOU THOUGHT THE WAR WAS GOING, WHETHER YOU THOUGHT IT WOULD BE CUN OR IT WAS IMPOSSIBLE?

>> WHEN SOMEBODY SAID, WE WERE WINNING WHEN I LEFT.

BUT, YOU KNOW, SERIOUSLY, I THOUGHT-- I THOUGHT WE WERE-- EXCUSE ME LANGUAGE OR PHRASEOLOGY HERE, BUT I THOUGHT WE WERE KICKING ASS.

AT LEAST FARCE THE MARINES AND THE ROCK MARINES, REPUBLIC OF KOREA MARINES.

THE AREA OF OPERATION THAT WE WERE IN, YOU KNOW, WE WERE DOING SOME SERIOUS DAMAGE ON THE ENEMY.

>> DO YOU FEEL LET DOWN BECAUSE OF THAT, THAT THINGS CHANGED AFTERWARDS OR MAYBE THAT POLITICS CHANGED THINGS?

>> WELL, LIKE I SAY, DIDN'T HAVE ANY CLEAR-CUT OBJECTIVES AND ONE OF THE THINGS THAT I PROBABLY SHOULD TALK ABOUT FRUSTRATION IS THAT THEY WOULD TAKE AREAS, KEEP THEM FOR A WEEK, DAY, AND THEN MOVE ON.

THE ENEMY WOULD REOCCUPY THEM AND NEXT MONTH YOU'D BE BACK IN THERE TRYING TO CLEAR THEM OUT AGAIN.

IT WAS THAT KIND OF A WAR.

VERY FRUSTRATING FOR THE, YOU KNOW, INFANTRY, THE GRUNT.

THE VIETNAMESE, OR THE VIET CONG, EXCUSE ME, THEY FOUGHT ON THEIR TERMS AND THEY DID A LOT OF DAMAGE PICKING ON YOU.

LIKE MOSQUITOS, YOU KNOW, PICKING, PICKING, PICKING, YOU KNOW, AND WOUNDING YOU AND MAIMING YOU Y SOLDIERS, YOUR PEOPLE, AND JUST SEEMED LIKE WE, FOR SOME REASON, YOU KNOW, THERE WERE-- SOMEBODY WAS HOLDING THE REINS.

I DON'T KNOW WHO OR WHY, BUT I THINK THE AVERAGE INFANTRYMAN OR SOLDIER, HE PROBABLY, YOU KNOW, WANTED TO GO IN THERE AND GET IT DONE AS FAST AS HE COULD, OBVIOUSLY, BUT FOR SOME REASON THAT WASN'T HAPPENING.

>> YOU'RE VERY ACTIVE IN YOUR COMMUNITY, AND IT SOUNDS LIKE YOU'RE ACTIVE IN YOUR VETERAN COMMUNITY, AS WELL.

DO YOU SEE ANY DIFFERENCE BETWEEN YOUR MEMORIES AND THE MEMORIES OF OTHER VETERANS THAT MAYBE A KOREAN VETERAN OR WORLD WAR II, DID THEY SHARE THINGS IN A DIFFERENT WAY THAN THE VIETNAM VETERANS?

>> I THINK THERE'S A LOT OF COMMONNALITY NO MATTER WHICH WAR YOU'VE SERVED IN.

I THINK WAR IS HELL, NO MATTER WHETHER IT WAS IN FRANCE OR IN GERMANY OR IN THE SOUTH PACIFIC OR IN VIETNAM.

IT'S AMAZING HOW MANY WAYS YOU CAN GET KILLED, HOW MANY WAYS YOU CAN GET MAIMED.

I DON'T THINK THAT EVER CHANGES.

I THINK ONE THING THAT I'VE GIVEN SOME THOUGHT TO, YOU KNOW, BECAUSE SOMETIMES I THINK, YOU KNOW, THAT-- ON ONE HAND, I THINK VIETNAM VETERANS DIDN'T GET THE SAME RECOGNITION THAT, YOU KNOW, VETERANS OF OTHER WARS, AND I THINK KOREA PROBABLY, TOO, BUT NOT THAT I HAVE ANY BAD FEELINGS ABOUT THAT.

YOU KNOW, I THINK MOST VETERANS-- VIETNAM VETERANS WILL TELL YOU, THEY DON'T WANT A PARADE, YOU KNOW.

OR ANYTHING LIKE THAT.

I THINK WE-- THOSE OF US WHO, YOU KNOW, SURVIVED AND CAME HOME, YOU KNOW, I THINK-- THAT'S ENOUGH.

I'VE NEVER ASKED FOR-- AND I DON'T KNOW OF ANY OTHER VETERANS THAT ASKED FOR ANY SPECIAL GRATITUDE, RECOGNITION, YOU KNOW.

I-- WHERE I PUT MY FOCUS ON VETERANS AFFAIRS IS THAT BEING A NATIVE AMERICAN, I TRIED TO DO WHAT I CAN TO TELL THE NEXT GENERATION, I GUESS, THAT WE DID OUR PART.

AS BEST WE COULD.

AND TO NEVER LET THAT DIE, NEVER LET THE MEMORY OF MY BROTHER, ART RENVILLE, BE IN VEIN.

THAT GOES FOR ALL THE VETERANS, YOU KNOW.

CERTAINLY NATIVE AMERICANS WEREN'T THE ONLY ONES THAT SERVED, YOU KNOW.

I THINK THE PEOPLE WHO NEVER HAVE BEEN EXPOSED TO COMBAT SHOULD UNDERSTAND THAT, AND I THINK THIS COUNTRY DOES A PRETTY GOOD JOB OF THAT BY, YOU KNOW, HONORING THEIR VETERANS.

>> HOW DO YOU FEEL ON MEMORIAL DAY AND VETERANS' DAY?

WHAT DO YOU THINK ABOUT THOSE OBSERVATIONS AND HOW DO YOU OBSERVE THOSE DAYS?

>> WELL, WHEN I WAS YOUNGER, I DIDN'T THINK TOO MUCH ABOUT IT, BUT AS I GET OLDER, IT BECOMES MORE MEANINGFUL.

I GET A REAL DEEP FEELING, MELANCHOLY FEELING ABOUT ALL VETS WHO GAVE THEIR LIVES, OR EVEN THEIR SERVICE.

ONE OF THE THINGS THAT I THINK ABOUT THAT'S PROBABLY A LITTLE PECULIAR IS THAT AT LEAST IN MY WAR, VIETNAM, YOU KNOW, THE OTHER WARS THEY TALK ABOUT FIGHTING FOR FREEDOM AND ALL THAT KIND OF STUFF.

I DON'T THINK ANYBODY'S FREEDOM WAS AT STAKE IN VIETNAM, YOU KNOW.

YOU CAN SAY THE VIETNAMESE, YOU KNOW, BUT I JUST DON'T THINK THAT WE SHOULD HAVE BEEN THERE.

AND I GUESS WHAT I'M SAYING IS THAT ALL OF US WHO WENT, THOUGH, DESERVED TO BE HONORED BECAUSE THEY ANSWERED THE CALL, YOU KNOW.

IRREGARDLESS OF THE POLITICS OF THE WAR, THE RIGHT OR WRONG OF IT, THEY DID THEIR DUTY, AND THAT I RESPECT.

THAT I HONOR.

NOT SO MUCH THE REASON WE WERE THERE.

>> RENVILLE HAS BEEN AWARDED NUMEROUS MEDALS INCLUDED THE PRESIDENTIAL UNIT CITATION, THE VIETNAM SERVICE RIBBON AND THE VIETNAMESE COMBAT OPERATIONS IN SIGNIA.

>> I DON'T, YOU KNOW, DESERVE ANYTHING, AND I JUST WAS DOING MY DUTY LIKE EVERYBODY ELSE, OR MOST EVERYBODY ELSE THAT WENT.

AND I NEVER WOULD HAVE SAID THIS 30 YEARS AGO, BUT NOW, IN RETROSPECT, I CAN SAY I'M GRATEFUL FOR THAT, EVEN THE POSTTRAUMATIC STRESS DISORDER, ALL THE PAIN AND SUFFERING I HAD WENT THROUGH, I COULD FINALLY SAY AFTER 30 SOME YEARS THAT I'M GLAD I WENT THROUGH THAT.

I DIDN'T APPRECIATE IT IF THE BUT I'M GLAD IT WENT THROUGH IT BECAUSE I THINK IT MADE ME A LITTLE BIT BETTER HUMAN BEING, WHATEVER THAT MEANS.

>> MOST PEOPLE WOULD SAY THAT MEANS THAT YOU'RE QUITE A HERO FOR THE COUNTRY, IF YOU SEE-- DO YOU SEE YOURSELF AS A HERO?

>> NO.

NO.

NO.

NO, I DON'T.

SPEAKER THINK THERE'S A LOT OF PEOPLE THAT WOULD DISAGREE, THAT WOULD SAY YOU ARE.

>> NO.

>> IN MY WAR, THE HEROES ARE THE 58,000 NAMES.

THOSE NAMES OF THE MEN WHO DIDN'T COME BACK.

>> ORIGINALLY FROM FAIRBURN, SOUTH DAKOTA, AND NOW OF MIRANDA, WILLIAM KENNEDY WAS IN VIETNAM DURING THE WAR, FIRST AS A MEDICAL CORPSMAN, AND LATER, IN CIVILIAN LIFE, AS A CONTRACT COORDINATOR.

BY THE TIME MR. KENNEDY ARRIVED IN VIETNAM, HE'D HAD A GREAT DEAL OF WAR EXPERIENCE.

IN THE KOREAN CONFLICT, HE FOUGHT IN THE BATTLES OF HEARTBREAK RIDGE AND PORK CHOP HILL.

BUT HE BEGAN HIS MILITARY CAREER IN WORLD WAR II.

IN 1944, THE WAR WAS WELL UNDERWAY WHEN KENNEDY, JUST 20 YEARS OLD, WAS DRAFTED AND BECAME A NAVY CORPSMAN ASSIGNED TO THE MARINE CORPS AT PEARL HARBOR.

THERE HE BECAME PART OF A MYSTERIOUS INCIDENT THAT WAS KEPT FROM WIDESPREAD PUBLIC KNOWLEDGE FOR NEALRY 50 YEARS.

>> THE INCIDENT WAS ON THE 21ST OF MAY, 1944.

THERE WAS A BUN OF L.S.T.

'S, I THINK ELEVEN OF THEM, TIED UP AT WEST LOCK.

>> R.S.T.'S?

>> YEAH, THOSE ARE LIGHT SHIPS, TRANSPORT.

AND THEY WERE TIED UP THERE AND WE WERE LOADING AMMUNITION ON THEM, AND WE HAD BEEN FOR OUR LAST RUN FOR OUR AMMUNITION AND IT WAS 4:00 IN THE AFTERNOON SO WE COULDN'T GO OUT -- GO BACK FOR MORE AMMUNITION.

SO WE HAD GONE DOWN IN THE GALLEY AND THEY HAD SOME CAKE THAT WAS LEFT OVER FROM LUNCH, SO WE GOT SOME CAKE AND WENT UP ON THE DECK, AND WHILE WE WERE UP THERE, DOING NOTHING EXCEPT VISITING AND EATING SOME CAKE, THAT'S WHEN THE EXPLOSION STARTED.

AND IT WAS A REAR MAGAZINE ON THE ONE THAT I WAS ON, AND THEN IT BOUNCED FROM THE REAR TO THE FRONT MAGAZINE WHERE THE AMMUNITION WAS STORED, AND THEN BACK AND FORTH, AND THERE WAS 11 L.S.T.

'S THERE AND I THINK THERE WAS 10 OF THEM-- 9 OR 10 OF THEM THAT WENT TO THE BOTTOM.

>> INCLUDING YOURS?

>> YES.

AND EATING THE CAKE WAS ALL I REMEMBER, AND I WAS BLOWN OFF THE SHIP THERE, AND WHEN I REALIZED WHERE I WAS AT, OR WOKE UP, I WAS AT THE HOOITSZ HOSPITAL, WHICH IS THE HOSPITAL IN HONOLULU, CLEAR UP ON TOP OF THE MOUNTAIN.

SOMEBODY HAD DRUG ME OUT OF THE WATER AND HAULED ME UP THERE, AND THAT'S THE FIRST THING I REMEMBER.

>> DO YOU HAVE FIND OUT WHO SAVED YOU FROM THE WATER?

>> NO.

NO.

THERE WAS SO MANY PEOPLE KILLED AND INJURED, THEY-- THE MILITARY DIDN'T WANT TO LET THIS GET OUT BECAUSE THEY WAS AFRAID THE JAPANESE WOULD HIT THEM AGAIN, SO NOBODY TALKED ABOUT IT AND WE DIDN'T DO ANYTHING ABOUT IT.

WE JUST KEPT QUIET.

HAD TO.

IT WAS HEADLINES IN THE PAPER LIKE THAT NEWSPAPER THERE, HEADLINES IN THE PAPER THAT DAY, THAT AFTERNOON, A SPECIAL CAME OUT, AND THEN THE NEXT DAY IT WAS A LITTLE CLIPPING IN THE NEWSPAPER ABOUT LIKE THAT, IT WAS A VERY SMALL CLIPPING, AND YOU COULDN'T FIND OUT ANYTHING.

NOBODY TALKED ABOUT IT AND YOU SURE DIDN'T TELL ANYTHING BECAUSE YOU DIDN'T KNOW.

>> HOW BADLY WERE YOU WOUNDED?

>> WELL, I HAD BOTH MY EARDRUMS BUSTED AND I HAD BACK PROBLEMS AND FEET PROBLEMS.

AND MY FEET, I STILL HAVE BAD FEET.

>> DID THEY SEND YOU BACK INTO SERVICE, THOUGH?

>> THEY SENT ME TO THE HOSPITAL, 128 NAVY HOSPITAL, 128 PEARL HARBOR AND I WAS IN THERE FOR 10 DAYS, AND THEN THEY TOOK ME OUT OF THE HOSPITAL AND PUT ME BACK IN THE DIVISION, AND I WENT TO SAIPAN FOR THE INVASION.

SO I WAS IN THE HOSPITAL 10 DAYS.

AND THEN I WENT TO SAIPAN FOR THE INVASION, AND I GOT WOUNDED IN SAIPAN.

I GOT SHRAPNEL ON MY FACE AND HEAD, AND SO I WAS ONLY THERE-- I WAS IN THE THIRD WAVE THAT HIT SAIPAN, AND THEN AFTER I GOT WOUNDED, THEY PUT ME ON THE SHIP AND SENT ME BACK TO PEARL HARBOR.

I WAS ONLY ON SAIPAN THREE DAYS.

>> JUST ENOUGH TO GETS WOUNDED.

>> YEAH.

AND THEY SENT ME BACK TO PEARL HARBOR AND I WAS PUT IN THE HOSPITAL AT PEARL HARBOR, AND I STILL HAD VERY LITTLE HEARING, AND MY FEET WERE BAD AND MY NECK WAS BAD, AND I STAYED IN THE HOSPITAL AT PEARL HARBOR UNTIL THE FIRST OF DECEMBER.

THEN THEY PUT ME ON A HOSPITAL SHIP FROM PEARL HARBOR TO OAKLAND NAVAL HOSPITAL FOR FURTHER REHABILITATION, AND THEN FROM THAT HOSPITAL, THEY SENT ME TO SAN DIEGO TO OAKLAND NAVAL HOSPITAL, AND I STAYED THERE UNTIL THE NEXT JUNE, AND ON THE 7TH OF JULY, 1945, THEY DISCHARGED ME FROM THE NAVY.

WHEN WE WENT OVERSEAS, I WENT OVER ON THE USS WASP, AN AIR FORCE CARRIER, AND WE HAD 177 PLANES ON THERE, AND WE HAD TO CONTINUE-- THE CREW ON THE AIRCRAFT CARRIER WAS 335 MEN, AND I WAS IN A BATTALION, WHICH IS 1200 MEN OF NAVY CORPSMAN GOING TO THE DIVISION IN PEARL HARBOR, AND I GUESS THE REAL FIRST FEELING I HAD OF-- THIS IS WAR WAS ONE MORNING, THE SUN WAS UP REAL BRIGHT AND ALL THE BIG GUNS ON ONE SIDE OF THE AIRCRAFT CARRIER STARTED SHOOTING, AND WE THOUGHT, WELL, WE'RE GOING TO GO DOWN, YOU KNOW.

AND FINALLY, WE REALIZED THAT IT WAS AIRPLANE PULLING A SLEEVE AND IT WAS TARGET PRACTICE.

BUT IT SHOOK EVERYBODY UP.

I MEAN, REALLY, WE THOUGHT, WELL, YOU COULDN'T HAVE POSSIBLY HAVE LIVED IF THEY'D HAVE SUNK THE SHIP, COULDN'T POSSIBLY HAVE LIVED BECAUSE THERE'S SO MANY PEOPLE ON THERE.

AND AIRPLANES AND EVERYTHING.

>> WHAT WASES THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THAT MOMENT AND THE FIRST MOMENT WHEN YOU WERE ACTUALLY INVOLVED IN A REAL BATTLE?

>> TERRIBLE FEAR.

YOU WAKE UP IN THE MORNING AND YOU WONDER, AM I GOING TO SEE LUNCH OR DINNER OR AM I GOING TO BE ABLE TO COME BACK HERE AND GO TO BED OR WHAT?

AND IT WAS CONSTANT FEAR ALL THE TIME.

AND ANYBODY THAT SAYS THEY WEREN'T AFRAID, THEY WERE NOT TELLING THE TRUTH.

>> TELL ME A LITTLE BIT MORE ABOUT SAIPAN.

GETTING THAT LOCATION UNDER OUR CONTROL.

>> IT WAS PART OF THE MARSHAL ISLANDS AND THIS IS ONE OF THE STEPPING STONES TO JAPAN.

AND WE HAD TO-- A LOT OF PEOPLE-- I DON'T REMEMBER HOW MANY THEY KILLED BUT SEEMS TO ME LIKE IT WAS ABOUT 6,000 JAPANESE THAT THEY KILLED IN ORDER TO TAKE OVER THE ISLAND, AND WE HAD-- I WAS IN A DIVISION AND THEY HAD THE SECOND DIVISION AND THEY HAD ARMY DIVISION AND WE ALL MADE A LANDING, AND THERE WAS THREE WAVES OF MILITARY PEOPLE THAT WENT ASHORE BEFORE THEY DREW ANY FIRE FROM THE JAPANESE.

AFTER WE GOT A LOT OF PEOPLE ON THE SHORE, THEN IS WHEN WE STARTED DRAWING FIRE FROM THE JAPANESE.

THEY HAD A BUNCH OF US ON THE SHORE AND THAT'S WHEN THEY STARTED DUMPING ARTILLERY ON US AND THAT'S WHEN A LOT OF PEOPLE GOT KILLED OR HURT.

>> AS A CORPSMAN, DID YOU HAVE TO DEAL WITH THE CASUALTIES OR DID YOU TAKE COVER RIGHT AWAY OR HOW DID YOU HANDLE THAT?

>> YOU DO WHAT YOU HAVE TO DO AND IF THEY'RE FIRING AND GETTING CLOSE, WHY, NATURALLY YOU TAKE CARE OF YOURSELF, SELF-PRESERVATION.

IT'S ALL SELF-PRESERVATION.

>> DID YOU FIND THAT YOUR NATURAL INSTINCTS HELPED YOU GET THROUGH THOSE SITUATIONS OR WAS IT YOUR TRAINING?

>> IT WAS THE TRAINING.

I MIGHT ADD THAT WHEN I WENT INTO THE NAVY, I WAS IN BOOT CAMP IN SAN DIEGO AND THE FIRST DAY OF OUR NAVY TRAINING, WE WERE PUT IN A BIG AUDITORIUM THAT WAS ABOUT 3,000 OF US IN THIS AUDITORIUM, AND THIS MAN CAME OUT AND HE HAD ALL KINDS OF SCRAMBLED EGGS ON HIS CAP AND LOOKED ALIKE HE WAS JUST UNDER THE PRESIDENT, AND AS FAR AS POWER WAS CONCERNED, AND HE COME OUT AND WALKED BACK AND FORTH AND FINALLY HE STOPPED IN THE MIDDLE OF THE STAGE AND HE SAID, SOME OF YOU MEN ARE GOING TO DIE.

HE DIDN'T SAY ANY MORE.

HE LET IT SOAK.

AND AFTER WE IT LET IT SOAK FOR A LITTLE WHILE, AND YOU COULD HEAR A PIN DROP IN THERE, 3500 MEN IN THERE, YOU COULD HEAR A PIN DROP.

THAT'S HOW QUIET IT WAS.

NOBODY-- AND THEN HE WENT ON TO SAY, I'M JUST-- I'M GOING TO QUALIFY MY STATEMENT, AND THIS IS-- WE'RE GOING TO TRAIN YOU FOR SELF-PRESERVATION.

AND HOW TO TAKE CARE OF YOURSELF AND YOUR BUDDIES, BUT IF YOU DON'T TAKE THIS TRAINING SERIOUSLY AND DO WHAT YOU'RE SUPPOSED TO DO WHEN YOU GET THE TRAINING, THEN YOU WILL DIE.

>> WHERE WERE YOU WHEN V.J.

DAY HAPPENED?

>> WHEN I FIRST HEARD ABOUT IT, I WAS RIDING ON A STREET CAR IN LOS ANGELES.

WHEN THEY-- IT FINALLY GOT OUT.

>> DID IT COME OVER THE RADIO OR WORD GET PASSED BY WORD OF MOUTH?

>> IT CAME OVER THE RADIO.

IT WAS TOTAL CHAOS.

EVERYBODY WAS CELEBRATING, EVERYBODY WAS DRINKING AND DOING EVERYTHING THEY SHOULDN'T HAVE BEEN DOING.

>> AFTER THE WAR, HE WAS RAN OF COURSE SOUTH OF RAPID CITY AND A RESERVE MINNEAPOLIS OF THE 109TH ENGINEER BATTALION OF THE NATIONAL GUARD.

RANCHING WASN'T GOING WELL SO KENNEDY DECIDED TO JOIN THE REGULAR ARMY AND WAS SENT TO KOREA IN JANUARY, 1951.

HE SOON FOUND HIMSELF WORKING AS A MEDIC AND LEAVING IN A BUNKER ON HEART BREAK RIDGE, A MAJOR BATTLEGROUNDS EARLY IN THE CONFLICT.

>> WHEN YOU MADE THE DECISION IN THE COURSE OF A BATTLE OR IMMEDIATELY AFTER A SKIRMISH ABOUT WHO TO TREAT AND HOW TO TRUTH THEM, WHAT WAS GOING THROUGH YOUR MIND AT THOSE TIMES?

>> YOU JUST-- YOU HAVE TO DO IT AND FORGET IT, IMMEDIATELY, BECAUSE IF YOU START GOING BACK OVER THE PEOPLE THAT WERE HURT IN THE PAST FEW DAYS OR SOMETHING AND YOU ALWAYS WONDER, DID I MAKE A RIGHT DECISION.

AND IF YOU DIDN'T, WHY, IF SOMEBODY DIED AND IF YOU MADE THE RIGHT DECISION, WHY, MAYBE YOU SAVED SOMEBODY.

SO IT WAS A TOUGH THING TO DO BUT YOU HAD TO DO IT AND DO IT ON THE SPUR OF THE MOMENT AND MOVE ON.

>> HOW DID THE MARINES IN THE COMPANIES TREAT YOU AS A NAVY CORPSMAN WHO WAS IN THE MARINE COMPANY?

WERE YOU-- DID YOU HAVE GOOD COMRADE DEBETWEEN THE MEN?

>> WE WERE JUST LIKE THEIR MOTHER, EVERY ONE OF THEM.

WHEN WE WERE TAKING TRAINING, NAVY TRAINING, OR MARINE CORPS TRAINING, WHY, WE WERE BEDPAN JOCKEYS AND ALL KIND OF NAMES, BUT WHEN WE GOT ABOARD SHIP, THEN, IF YOU WANTED A CIGARETTE, THERE WOULD BE TWO GUYS THERE TO LIGHT IT FOR YOU.

THEY LOOKED AFTER US, REALLY LOOKED AFTER US.

THIS MEANT THEIR LIFE.

THEY HAD TO LOOK AFTER US TO PROTECT US BECAUSE WHEN THEY GOT HIT, WHY, THEY NEEDED SOME HELP, AND IF WE WERE KNOCKED OUT, WHY, THEY WOULDN'T HAVE IT.

>> HOW DID YOU FEEL WHEN YOU KNEW IT WAS SOMEONE WHO YOU HAD BEEN FRIENDS WITH OR AN ACQUAINTANCE WITH AND THEIR LIFE WAS IN YOUR HANDS?

>> IT'S TOUGH.

EVERY DAY WE SAW IT.

THERE'S NOTHING YOU CAN DO ABOUT IT.

JUST LIKE AFTER YOU GET OUT OF THE WAR, AFTER IT'S OVER, WHY, THEN YOU FEEL IT DAY TO DAY, AND CERTAIN THINGS HAPPEN AND THAT BRINGS IT BACK.

OF COURSE, I'M GETTING OVER THAT STAGE NOW, I'VE BEEN OUT SO LONG, BUT I TRY TO PASS IT OFF AND GO ON ABOUT MY LIFE.

>> WHAT KIND OF THINGS REMIND YOU OF THOSE DAYS?

>> WELL, WHEN I CAMP BACK FROM WORLD WAR II, I THREW A BOOT-- THREW A TELEVISION, WATCHING TELEVISION AND THEY FLASHED THE JAPANESE THROUGH IT AND I THREW A BOOT THROUGH IT BEFORE I KNEW IT.

YOU CAN'T FORGET IT.

>> THAT SURVIVAL INSTINCT WAS STILL THERE.

>> YEP.

AND MANY, MANY PEOPLE DONE THAT, THROW SOMETHING THROUGH GLASS OR THROUGH A WINDOW OR SOMETHING LIKE THAT, JUST-- YOU JUST EXPLODE LIKE THAT.

>> WHAT WERE YOUR FEELINGS ON THE DAY THE PEACE TREATY WAS SIGNED?

>> WHEN THAT WAS SIGNED, I WAS ON A TLAN GOING FROM TAJON TO TAIGU, AND WE STOPPED THE TRAIN AT A CROSSING BECAUSE THERE WAS A LOT OF TROOPS OUT THERE AND EVERYTHING, AND WE COULDN'T FIGURE OUT WHAT WAS HAPPENING, AND THEY SAID THEY'VE SIGNED A PEACE TREATY.

I WAS ON MY WAY HOME.

I'D BEEN THERE SINCE JANUARY, '51, AND THIS WAS IN AUGUST OF '53, AND I WAS ON MY WAY HOME.

I HAD ALL MY EARTHLY BELONGINGS IN A BAG AND I WAS ON MY WAY HOME.

I WAS GOING TO TAIGU AND ON MY WAY HOME.

>> SO REGARDLESS OF WHETHER THE PAPER WERE SIGNED, YOU WERE OUT OF THERE.

>> YES, YOU BET.

>> HOW DID IT FEEL TO GO HOME THAT TIME?

>> COULDN'T WAIT.

>> BY THAT TIME, KENNEDY HAD TWO SMALL CHILDREN WAITING AT HIM-- FOR HIM AT HOME.

TO SUPPORT THEM, THIS TIME HE DECIDED TO STAY IS IN THE MILITARY BUT AFTER SERVING IN TWO DIFFERENT CONFLICTS, HE DIDN'T EXPECT TO FIND HIMSELF BACK AT WAR IN 1962.

>> I DON'T REMEMBER THE DATE BUT I WAS IN 8TH ARMY HEADQUARTERS, THE MEDICAL SECTION.

I WAS SERGEANT MAJOR OF THE MEDICAL SECTION, 8TH ARMY HEAD QUARTERS IN SEOUL, KOREA, AND I WENT TO WORK ONE MORNING, AND MY BOSS, WHICH WAS A FULL COLONEL, SAID THAT GET YOUR BAG AND BAGGAGE, AND YOU'RE GOING TO TAKE A TRIP.

I SAID, WHERE AM I GOING?

HE SAID YOU CAN OPEN YOUR ORDERS WHEN YOU GET TO SEA.

AND SO I WENT, AND THEY PUT ME ABOARD SHIP.

I WENT ABOARD SHIP, AND WE TOOK THIS HOSPITAL UNIT WITH US, AND WHEN WE GOT OUT TO SEA, WHY, THE TROOP COMMANDER ON THE SHIP, SAID, WELL, COME ON IN.

HE SAID, WE'LL LOOK AT WHAT WE ARE GOING TO DO, AND SO WE WENT IN.

I HADN'T OPENED HIS ORDERS, EITHER.

SO HE OPENED HIS ORDERS AND I OPENED MINE AND IT SAYS, VIETNAM.

>> AFTER HIS TOUR OF DUTY, KENNEDY DECIDED TO GET OUT OF THE MILITARY BUT RETURNED TO VIETNAM IN 1967 AS A CIVILIAN, TO COORDINATE THE BUILDING OF POWER PLANTS AMONG OTHER THINGS.

>> NOW, YOU WERE THERE IN SOME PRETTY TURBULENT TIMES AS A CIVILIAN, EVEN.

DID YOU HAVE THAT SAME SCIENCE OF FEAR THAT YOU HAD AS A MEMBER OF THE SERVICE?

>> I HAD A TERRIBLE SENSE OF FEAR.

I WOULD TRAVEL SOMETIMES BY AIR, SOMETIMES BY JEEP, AND ANY WAY THAT I COULD GO, AND SOMETIMES YOU WOULD SEE A HOLE-- I'VE SEEN AS HIGH AS 40 VIET CONG STACKED UP LIKE CORD WOOD STACKED ALONGSIDE THE ROAD, THEY'D LEAVE THEM THERE, AND IN THE NIGHT, THE FAMILIES WOULD COME AND GET THEM, THE BODIES.

THE NEXT MORNING, YOU'D BE IN A DIFFERENT PART OF THE ROAD AND HERE WOULD BE ANOTHER TEN, 20 OR SO VIET CANG STACKED UP, WHERE THEY'D STACK THEM UP ALONGSIDE THE ROAD.

SO IT WAS A TRY MAT PARTICULAR THING.

-- TRAUMATIC THING.

IN WORLD WAR II, WE HAD WHAT WE CALL THE 90-DAY WONDER.

THIS WAS AN OFFICER THAT HAD BEEN TO SCHOOL FOR 90 DAYS, AND HE WAS TRAINED TO LEAD MEN.

WELL, HE REALLY DIDN'T HAVE THE EXPERIENCE BUT HE GOT HIS EXPERIENCE ON THE BATTLEFIELD.

AND THEN IN KOREA, THEY HAD MORE EDUCATION.

THEY HAD MORE-- THEY TAKE 6 MONTHS OR 9 MONTHS TO BECOME AN OFFICER, AND THEN AS THEY COME INTO VIETNAM, WHY, THEN THEY HAD THE ACADEMY, THE NAVAL ACADEMY, THEY HAD THE AIR FORCE ACADEMY, AND THEY HAD THE ARMY ACADEMY, AND THEY WERE SHELLING OUT OFFICERS AND THEY WERE TRAINED.

THEY DIDN'T HAVE ANY BATTLE TRAINING BUT THEY'D GET THAT IN A HURRY.

SO EVERY TIME, EVERY CONFLICT WE WERE IN, THEY HAD A HIGHER CLASS OF PEOPLE BECAUSE THERE WAS MORE PEOPLE THAT WERE EDUCATED.

>> WHAT DO YOU THINK ABOUT ON MEMORIAL DAY AND VETERANS' DAY?

>> I HOPE TO GOD MY CHILDREN NEVER HAVE TO DO IT.

>> DO YOU THINK THAT THERE'S PROPER RECOGNITION FOR ALL THE EFFORTS THAT YOU AND OTHERS HAVE GIVEN?

>> YEAH, BECAUSE MOST OF US DON'T WANT ANY RECOGNITION.

WE'VE DONE OUR JOB AND WE HOPE THAT THEY NEVER HAVE TO DO IT.

>> UNFORTUNATELY, MORE AMERICANS HAD YET TO SERVE THEIR COUNTRY IN BATTLE.

RICKY OLSON IS A NATIVE OF WINNER AND NOW LIVES IN PIERRE.

HE SERVED THREE YEARS IN THE ARMY IN THE EARLY '80S BUT DECIDED TO JOIN THE NATIONAL GUARD TO COMPLETE HIS SERVICE.

OLSON DIDN'T EXPECT TO END UP IN A WAR ZONE WITH OTHER SOUTH DAKOTANS AS PART OF THE 730TH MEDICAL COMPANY.

>> WE WENT FROM TWO-FOOT OF SNOW IN WISCONSIN TO LIKE 80 DEGREES AND 100% HUMIDITY IN DURAN.

GEEZ, JUST THE TEMPERATURE CHANGE ABOUT KILLED YOU.

THEN WE WERE PUT IN THESE TOWER APARTMENTS LIKE YOU PROBABLY SEEN ON THE NEWS, THE FIRST NIGHT WE WAS THERE, WE WERE THERE AND AFTER--.

>> YOU WERE UNDER FIRE THE VERY FIRST NIGHT YOU WERE THERE?

>> YEAH.

I IT WAS UNDER FIRE.

FIRST THING YOU HEAR, YOU KNOW, WE DON'T KNOW-- YOU'RE IN THESE DEALS AND YOU HAVE THEM TAKE YOUR APARTMENT WINDOWS, YOU'RE IN THESE WEIRD APARTMENTS SO THE GLASS DON'T BREAK.

FIRST THING YOU HEAR IS LIKE A SONIC BOOM AND THAT'S THE MISSILE.

THEY CREATE A SONIC BOOM WHEN THEY GO OFF, THEY'RE GOING SO FAST.

THEN YOU HEAR THE EXPLOSION OF THEM HITTING THE SCUDS.

YEAH, IT WAS KIND OF TRAUMATIC, GOING TO A DIFFERENT CLIMATE, GETTING SCUDED THE FIRST NIGHT YOU'RE THERE, I MEAN, AND IT WAS KIND OF DIFFERENT.

>> OLSON SOUND FOUND-- SOON FOUND HIMSELF IN A FIELD IN A TENT, IN SAUDI ARABIA, AND THEN IN IRAQ, WHERE LIVING CONDITIONS WERE LESS THAN IDEAL.

>> DURING THE WAR TIME, ALL YOU EAT IS MEALS FROM THE-- BUT THEY'RE ALL RIGHT.

WE HAD ARMY COOKS, IT WAS FAIRLY GOOD.

USUALLY-- DEPENDS WHERE YOU WAS AT.

SOMETIMES YOU'D GET ONE GOOD MEAL, SOMETIMES IF YOU WERE SET UP IN A GOOD PLACE, YOU GOT THREE.

BUT SLEEPING IS HOT AND THEY HAD THESE STORMS OVER THERE, THEY'RE CALLED MICHAEL BURSTS, LIKE.

I CAN'T REMEMBER THEIR WORD FOR SQUALLS OR SOMETHING.

WHAT THEY DO IS COME THROUGH AND THERE'S SUCH A LOW PRESSURE-- LIKE IN OUR TENT THAT NIGHT, ALL OF A SUDDEN, YOUR TENT WOULD SUCK CLEAR IN AND THEN JUST, BOOM, BLOW UP.

IT WOULD RIP YOUR TENT.

YOU'RE OUT IN THE MIDDLE OF THE NIGHT WITH HORRENDOUS WINDS AND WINDS BLOWING VERYWHERE.

VERY SCARE RYE YOU'RE LIVING IN A TENT, NO MATTER HOW YOU'RE SAND-BAGGED IN.

IT'S A LOW PRESSURE JUST LIKE A HOUSE, THE TORNADO, THEN JUST BLOWS UP, AND THERE'S NO PLACE TO HIDE, YOU KNOW, NO PLACE TO GO.

YOU KNOW THEY'RE COMING A LOT OF TIMES THE ARMY HAD WEATHER PEOPLE AND THEY'D TELL YOU THEY WERE COMING SO YOU JUST SAT THERE AND WAIT OR YOU'D GET THE WIND STORMS FOR ABOUT TWO, THREE DAYS, AND EVERYWHERE YOU WALK IN, SAND EVERYWHERE YOU GO AND EVERYTHING YOU EAT IS SANDY.

IT'S A LOT DIFFERENT.

IT WAS KIND OF WEIRD OVER THERE.

THEY HAD WHAT THEY CALL THESE WOLF BURGER STATIONS, THEY'D SET UP A PORTABLE HAMBURGER LIKE PLACE IN THE MIDDLE OF NOWHERE.

USUALLY THEY SET THEM UP-- NCI, ALL THESE PLACES, SET UP PHONE PLACES IN THE MIDDLE OF THE DESERT.

GET A FREE HAMBURGER, SOME RICH PERSON WOULD DONATE THIS AND THEN YOU'D GO AND MAKE A PHONE CALL.

THAT WAS ANOTHER THING.

FOR A WAR, YOU CAN CALL HOME A LOT OF TIMES-- NOT SO MUCH IN IRAQ, BUT IN SAUDI ARABIA OR SOMETHING, AND YOU HAD YOUR LITTLE RADIO AND YOU COULD HEAR CNN AND YOU KNEW WHAT WAS HAPPENING IN THE WAR, YOU KNOW.

LIKE WHEN WE WAS GETTING SCUDDED, IT WOULD COME OVER THERE WERE SKUDS LAUNCHED AND THEY'D TELL YOU IT WAS ISRAEL OR YOU.

SO YOU KNEW BEFORE THE SIRENS WENT OFF.

IT WAS KIND OF DIFFERENT.

>> TELL ME ABOUT GULF WAR SYNDROME AND HOW POSSIBLY IT'S AFFECTED YOU OR PEOPLE CLOSE TO YOU.

>> AFTER I COME BACK, OH, PROBABLY THREE MONTHS AFTER I SERVED, A LOT OF NAUSEA AND DIARRHEA AND A COUPLE MONTHS LATER, A LOT OF FATIGUE.

IF HE WOULD SO TIRED, DIDN'T WANT TO GO TO WORK, DIDN'T WANT TO DO ANYTHING.

COULDN'T UNDERSTAND IT.

JUST FELT LOUSY, AND I JUST ATTRIBUTED IT TO, WELL, I'M COMING BACK, YOU KNOW.

IT WILL GO AWAY, YOU KNOW.

AND JUST NEVER WENT AWAY.

THEN ALL OF A SUDDEN, I STARTED READING OTHER PEOPLE WERE HAVING THE SAME THING.

I WENT TO THE V.A.

THE FIRST YEAR AND THEY RUN BLOOD TESTS AND ALL THIS KIND OF TESTS AND COULDN'T FIND ANYTHING, SAID YOU'RE ALL RIGHT.

SO I HAD AN ONGOING DEAL WITH THE VAV.A.

I'VE BEEN GETTING TESTS AND TESTS SINCE I COME BACK.

I STILL GO, THEY RUN TESTS.

I WENT TO HOUSTON V.A.

FOR THIS GULF WAR TEST WHERE YOU STAY THERE THREE WEEKS AND THEY RUN EVERYTHING THEY CAN THINK OF ON YOU.

I DON'T KNOW HOW MANY TESTS I'VE HAD AND THEY NEVER FOUND ANYTHING.

IT COMES AND GOES, IT'S ONE OF THOSE WHERE YOU FEEL GOOD FOR A WHILE.

I FEEL GREAT, AND IT COMES, MAY STAY A WEEK, THREE MONTHS, AND YOU FEEL TERRIBLE, ALL THESE SYMPTOMS.

IT'S REALLY AFFECTED MY LIFE, I MEAN.

A LOT OF THINGS I WANT TO DO WITH MY KIDS, I CAN'T DO, JUST PHYSICALLY CAN'T.

I KEEP WORKING AND TRYING TO MAKE IT TO WORK AND-- BECAUSE NOT THAT-- NOTHING EVER COMES OF IT AND YOU STILL HAVE TO PAY YOUR BILLS.

IF I JUST STAYED HOME AND DIDN'T GO TO WORK, AND... MAKES LIFE TERRIBLE.

THINGS PROGRESS, YOU KNOW, A LOT OF TIMES GET JOINT AND BONE PAIN, JUST REAL HARD AND TAKE DRUGS DOESN'T SEEM TO AFFECT IT.

I'M FRUSTRATED.

THEY'VE SPENT MILLIONS OF DOLLARS ON STUDIES AND THEY HAVEN'T FOUND ANYTHING.

THEY'RE TRYING A COUPLE MORE THINGS NOW, SO THE DOCTORS-- LIKE THE DOCTOR I SEE AT FORT MEAD, SHE TRIES TO TREAT THE SYMPTOMS BUT THAT DOESN'T SEEM TO HELP.

YOU HEAR ALL THE STUFF THERE IS IN THE GULF WAR SYNDROME.

I KNOW SO MANY PEOPLE COME BACK AND HAD THIS AND I SEE PEOPLE SO MUCH WORST THAN I AM, YOU KNOW.

LIKE PEOPLE EVEN HERE, YOUNG GUYS 24 YEARS OLD, ALL THESE JOINTS WENT TO LIKE A 60-YEAR-OLD, THEY TOLD ME, AND HIS TEETH WERE FALLING OUT.

I CAN'T BELIEVE THAT IT WASN'T SOMETHING.

I DON'T KNOW IF IT WAS A BUG OVER THERE, SOME CHEMICAL OR COMBINATION OF ALL THE PILLS AND SHOTS WE TOOK.

I DON'T KNOW, BUT IT WAS SOMETHING.

I FELT GOOD BEFORE I LEFT.

WHEN I COME BACK... AND I WAS-- JUST A CURE WOULD BE THE BEST THING IN THE WORLD FOR ME, BUT AFTER IT WENT ON SO MANY YEARS, AND I FILED A LOT OF CLAIMS FOR COMPENSATION, AND THEY FIGHT IT HEAD AND TOE.

I STILL HAVEN'T GOT ANYTHING OUT.

I'D RATHER HAVE A CURE, BUT IT JUST MAKES ME SO MAD THAT THEY FIGHT COMPENSATION SO BAD, TOO.

CONGRESS, PASSED ALL THESE GOOD LAWS BECAUSE THEY COULDN'T CURE IT AND THEN THE V.A.

SHOOS US DOWN ON EVERY CLAIM FOR LITTLE STUFF.

THE SAME MONEY, BUT WILL SPEND BILLIONS OF DOLLARS ON A STUDY OR SOMETHING.

THEY'RE REALLY NOT GOING THE VETS GOOD, THEY'RE NOT.

>> STILL FEELS LIKE YOU'RE FIGHTING AND SACRIFICING.

>> RIGHT.

THE MEDICAL SIDE IS REALLY GOOD.

THE DOCTORS BELIEVE YOU AND TRY TREATING YOU.

THE V.A.

SIDE IS-- THE CARE IS GOOD, WHERE I'VE BEEN, BUT THE OTHER SIDE, A-- THE ADJUDICATION, TO COMPENSATE YOU FOR YOUR ILLNESS OR IS, THEY FIGHT YOU TOOTH AND NAIL.

IT WAS A DIFFERENT WAR.

SHORT, A LOT OF THE PEOPLE FEEL-- WORLD WAR II VETS AND STUFF THAT YOU REALLY DIDN'T DO ANYTHING, BUT SOMETIMES YOU THINK THAT, TOO.

SHOULD HAVE DONE MORE.

A LOT OF PEOPLE FROM THAT WAR, YOU KNOW, A LOT OF PEOPLE WERE SUPPOSED TO BE HEROES AND-- I DON'T KNOW, BUT, YEAH, I-- IN THE SAME CIRCUMSTANCES, I'D GO AGAIN.

I DON'T KNOW.

>> FIGHT THE SYNDROME AND HEALTH PROBLEMS AND... >> RIGHT.

I WOULD.

I JUST KNOW IT WAS SOMETHING I HAD TO DO.

>> RICKY OLSON'S FEELINGS OF DUTY WEREN'T NEW TO SOUTH DAKOTANS.

OVER 70 YEARS BEFORE OLSON LEFT FOR THE PERSIAN GULF, 25-YEAR-OLD JOSEPH SCHMIDT OF SCOTLAND WAS DRAFTED TO SERVE HIS COUNTRY IN WORLD WAR I.

BORN ON MARCH 31, 1893, SCHMIDT WAS A FIRST-GENERATION AMERICAN.

HIS PARENTS WERE GERMAN IMMIGRANTS.

SCHMIDT FOUGHT WITH THE 355TH INFANTRY REGIMENT IN THE SO-CALLED "GREAT WAR" FROM APRIL, 1918, TO MARCH, 1919.

>> LIKE A NUMBER OF SOUTH DAKOTA'S WORLD WAR ONE VETS, HE WAS RECENTLY AWARDED A MEDAL FOR HELPING TO LIBERATE FRANCE DURING WORLD WAR I, AND A SPECIAL DAY WAS DECLARED BY GOVERNOR JANKLOW.

HE CELEBRATED HIS 106TH BIRTHDAY.

IT WAS SAID WORLD WAR 1 WAS THE WAR TO EARNED ALL WARS, BUT AMERICANS WOULD BATTLE IN MANY MORE.

>> STEVE VETTER OF BISON WAS WORKING IN A COAL MINE WHEN HE WAS DRAFTED INTO THE ARMY DURING WORLD WAR II.

HE LEFT FROM LEMMON ON A TRAIN WITH NEARLY 50 OTHER YOUNG MEN, INCLUDING 5 OTHERS FROM BISON.

VETTER SOON FOUND HIMSELF IN COMPANY K OF THE ARMY INFANTRY IN A BATTLE ON THE PHILIPPINE ISLAND OF LEYTI.

AFTER ITS LIBERATION, VETTER WAS THROWN FROM THE FRYING PAN INTO THE FIRE WHEN HE LEFT LEYTI AND WAS TRANSFERRED TO OKINAWA, THE HEART OF THE WAR IN THE SPRING OF 1945.

>> THE MARINES AND US WENT IN SIDE BY SIDE, AND THE MARINES WENT ONE WAY AND WE WENT THE OTHER WAY.

OF COURSE, THE MARINES GET ALL THE CREDIT.

I SHOULDN'T SAY THAT, BUT THEY DID.

BUT, I MEAN, THEY LEAVE US OUT PRETTY MUCH, BUT WE DONE SOMETHING, I THINK, ANYWAY.

>> IT'S BEEN SAID THAT OKINAWA WAS ONE OF THE SLOWEST AND COSTLIEST BATTLES IN THAT AREA.

DID IT SEEM, WHEN YOU ARRIVED, THAT THINGS WERE GOING WELL OR HOW DID YOU FEEL ABOUT HOW YOU THOUGHT THE BATTLE WAS GOING?

>> WE THOUGHT IT WENT REAL GOOD BECAUSE WE WENT IN IN ADVANCE, CLEAR ACROSS THE ISLAND, FIRST DAY THAT-- WE GOT TO GIVE CREDIT TO SOME OF THE OTHER GUYS THAT'S EM BAUMD IN THE SHIPS AND ALL.

THEY LOOSENED THEM UP PRETTY WELL WHEN WE GOT THERE AND WHEN WE STARTED SPREADING OUT, BY THAT TIME THE JAPANESE WERE BACK AT US AGAIN, THEN, AND THEN IT GOT TOUGH ALL THE WAY THROUGH.

>> YOU COULD SEE THE ENEMY PRETTY CLEARLY?

>> OH, YEAH, PRETTY GOOD SOMETIMES.

NOT ALL THE TIME BUT YOU COULD SURE SEE THEM, AND YOU KNEW WHEN THEY WAS AROUND.

THEY KNEW WHERE WE WERE ALL THE TIME.

>> WHAT WAS IT ABOUT THAT ISLAND?

>> CLEAR AIR FIELDS TO GO TO JAPAN ITSELF.

>> WERE YOU IN A FOXHOLE AGAIN, ONCE AGAIN?

>> ALL THE TIME.

JUST GET OUT OF IT AND DIG ANOTHER ONE, OR FIND ANOTHER ONE.

WE HAD A LOT OF THEM DID YOU GO BY THE JAPANESE ALREADY.

>> ON OKINAWA DIDN'T THEY HAVE SOME DUNES AND THINGS LIKE THAT, ALSO?

DID YOU SEE ANY OF THAT?

>> WE SEEN PLENTY OF THAT.

THEY WERE HID IN THEM ALL TOMBS PRETTY DEEP, BUT-- I DON'T KNOW IF I SHOULD SAY THAT, BUT WE THROUGH PHOSPHOROUS GRENADES IN THERE BECAUSE THEY'D PULLED STUFF ON US SO MANY TILES, THEY WOULD SIT THEIR KIDS OUT WITH BOMBS ON THEM THAT WOULD KPLOILD IN OUR WAYSES-- FACES AND STUFF.

SO WE HAD ORDERS TO THROW DEGREE BADS IN EVERYTHING WE CAME TO.

>> TELL ME ABOUT THE DAY WHEN YOU GOT WOUNDED, WHAT THE SITUATION WAS AND HOW LONG YOU WERE UNDER FIRE AT THAT POINT.

>> WELL, WE HAD TAKEN THIS KIND OF A HILL THAT WAS THERE, WE HAD TAKEN IT, AND WE WENT DOWN AND THEY'D START FIRING AT US PRETTY HARD AND THROWING GRENADES AND STUFF, AND WE PULLED BACK A LITTLE.

OF COURSE THE ARTILLERY-- THEY TRIED TO THROW IT 100 YARDS OVER OUR HEAD, SEE, AND SO WHEN WE WERE SHOOTING AT THEM, THEN WE'D ADVANCE; SEE?

OF COURSE, WE WERE PRETTY MUCH IN A STRAIGHT LINE ACROSS, AND OF COURSE WHEN I-- WHEN WE GOT DOWN OVER THERE, FINALLY, THEN THEY STARTED SHOOTING OVER OUR BACKS SO WE COULDN'T GO BACK, AND WE JUST HAD TO SIT THERE IN OUR HOLES AND KIND OF BATTLE IT OUT.

THE LINE WAS QUITE A WAYS ACROSS THERE, AND I COULD TELL THEY WAS PICKING THEM OFF ALL THE WAY DOWN, OUR GUYS, PRETTY MUCH.

AND THEN THEY GOT MY ASSISTANT, THAT I CALLED-- HE WAS MY BUDDY, AND THEY GOT HIM.

AND I KNEW I WAS NEXT, AND-- BUT I'D SEEN TWO JAPS TAKE OFF RUNNING, SEE, THEY WERE BACK ABOUT, I SUPPOSE, 50 YARDS FROM ME IN SOME BRUSH AND STUFF.

THEY STARTED RUNNING.

I TOOK MY SHOT AND EMPTIED THE CLIP.

OF COURSE, THAT'S WHERE I MADE MY MISTAKE, AND I WENT DOWN IN THE HILL AND PUT ANOTHER CLIP IN AND OF COURSE I WAS GOING TO MAKE SURE THEY DIDN'T GO ANYWHERE.

I DID ONE OR TWO SHOTS BEFORE THEY GOT ME.

THEN THERE WAS ONE SITTING THERE WAITING FOR ME, YOU KNOW, SO HE HIT ME THERE THEN.

>> AS SOON AS YOU RAISED UP--?

>> I WAS SHOOTING AGAIN, BUT HE MISSED ME.

HE GOT ME IN THE ARM AND HE WAS SHOOTING FOR MY RIBS, AND I WAS SHOOTING ACROSS, BUT THEN THAT HE BESIDE THE POINT, I GUESS.

>> HOW BADLY WERE YOU WOUNDED?

>> BOTH OF MY ARMS WAS-- THIS HAND HERE WAS THE FINGERS HUNG DOWN THIS WAY, EVERY BONE IN THERE WAS GONE, AND THIS ONE HERE, THEY JUST CUT OFF ALL THE NERVES AND EVERYTHING IN THAT, IT'S STILL DEAD.

IT STILL AIN'T GOT NOTHING MUCH, CLIPPED THE NERVES OFF.

>> DID YOU KNOW RIGHT AWAY THAT YOU WERE SERIOUSLY HURT?

>> OH, YEAH, BECAUSE I COULDN'T MOVE NOTHING, SO-- BUT THAT'S WHY I RUN BACK AND I-- AND I-- THEY WANTED TO KNOW IF I COULD STILL RUN, AND I SAID, I COULD A LITTLE.

HE SAID, I'LL THROW A GRENADE OUT TOWARD THEM, THAT WILL-- THEY DIDN'T LIKE PHOSPHOROUS, SO HE THREW A GRENADE AND HE SAID IT MIGHT GET US BOTH, AND I SAID, I DON'T CARE, I AIN'T GOT NOTHING TO LOSE.

SO HE THREW IT AND WE TOOK OFF RUNNING.

I RUN UNTIL-- I LOST ALL MY BLOOD, SEE, AND HE HELPED ME GAINS THE BANK AND WENT IN.

WHEN I WOKE UP, I WAS LYING THERE AGAINST THE BANK AND HE-- THE IMMEDIATIC WAS GIVING ME BLOOD, AND FROM THEN ON, WHY, IT WASN'T LONG-- THEY CARRIED ME ON A STRETCHER AND GOT ME ON-- DOWN THROUGH THE BRUSH AND GOT ME ON THE JEEP AND HAULED ME OVER TO THE-- WHAT THEY CALLED THEIR HOSPITAL BACK THERE, WAS AN OLD SCHOOLHOUSE AND WE WAS IN THERE, THEN.

THEY LAID-- FIRST THEY LAID US OUT ON THE-- SHOULDN'T SAY LAWN OR WHATEVER IT WAS, BUT THERE WAS ABOUT 100 OF US, AND THEY WAS WRAPPED IN BLANKETS, KIND OF LIKE, YOU KNOW, AND THEN THEY HAD MEDICS RUNNING AROUND, CHECKING THEM OUT, GIVING THEM BLOOD.

AND THEY COME AND PICK THE WORST ONES FIRST, TOOK THEM WHERE THEY HAD THE HOSPITAL AND WORKED ON THEM FIRST, AND OF COURSE IT WAS 10:30, 11:00 AT NIGHT BEFORE THEY GOT TO ME.

THEY HAD ME ALL PATCHED UP BUT, I MEAN-- AND THEN THEY GOT ME IN THE HOSPITAL THAT NIGHT.

THE NEXT MORNING I WOKE UP, I FELT SOMETIME DURING THE MORNING, IN A TENT, AND THEY-- I TRIED TO LOOK AND SEE IF I HAD MY ARMS AND THEY WAS LAYING THIS WAY AND I COULDN'T RAISE MY HEAD HIGH ENOUGH TO EVEN TELL.

THE GUY NEXT TO ME TOLD ME, YEAH, THEY WERE STILL ON THERE, AND I DIDN'T BELIEVE HIM, BUT HE TOLD ME THEY WERE STILL THERE.

AND THEY WERE.

BUT... >> WHAT DID YOU THINK AT THAT POINT?

>> WELL, I REALLY JUST WAS GLAD I WAS BACK THERE FAR, BUT I KNEW I WAS-- THEY WERE TAKING CARE OF ME THERE, ANYWAY, AND THEY WERE REALLY GOOD.

AND THEM MEDICS WAS REALLY GOOD THAT CARRIED ME UP THERE.

THEY WERE BUSY GUYS.

>> THANKS TO THE ARMY MEDICS AND DOCTORS, HIS ARMS WERE SAVED BUT HE WAS PERMANENTLY DISABLED AND WAS SENT BACK TO THE STATES IN EARLY MAY, 1945.

AT HOME, HIS YOUNG BRIDE WAITED FOR WORD FROM HER HUSBAND.

>> THERE WERE NO TELEPHONES OR NOTHING, ANYWAY, AND I COULDN'T HAVE PHONED, ANYWAY.

I HAD A LOT OF GUYS WHEN I WAS LAYING OVER THERE, THEY WROTE SOME LETTERS FOR ME, AND THEY HAD-- MY BUDDY TOLD THEM-- TWO OF THEM WROTE FOR ME AND THE NURSES IN THERE, THEY WROTE LETTERS.

ALL I HAD TO DO WAS GIVE THEM SOME JAPANESE MONEY, THEY-- THEY HAD A LOT OF-- THEY WANTED SOUVENIRS AND I HAD A LOT OF THAT.

>> TELL ME ABOUT SOUVENIRS, YOU HAVE JAPANESE MONEY AND A PHOTO OF A JAPANESE SOLDIER.

TELL ME ABOUT HOW YOU ACQUIRED THOSE.

>> OH, WELL.

IT'S A-- IT ALL HAPPENED ONE NIGHT, WHY, WE WAS ON GUARD, AND I WAS SLEEPING AND MY GUARD, HE WAS UP AHEAD, AND PRETTY SOON MY TIME WAS UP TO GO GUARD, SO WE SWITCHED AND HE SAID, LOOK OUT, HE SAID, THERE'S SOME DARN NOISE OUT THERE.

I KNOW THERE'S SOMEBODY OUT THERE BUT I CAN'T SPOT THEM.

SO HE SAID BE CAREFUL.

OF COURSE THAT RILED ME RIGHT UP, YOU KNOW.

SO I GOT UP THERE AND I REALLY LOOKED, AND EVERY ONCE IN A WHILE, THEY'D SHOOT UP A FLARE.

AND I THOUGHT THERE WAS A BANANA TREE THERE BUT AFTER A WHILE, HE WAS OVER THERE.

AND SO I REALLY GOT MY EYES ON HIM, AND WHEN ONE OF THE FLARES WENT UP AND HE HAD HIS BAYNOET HELD UP THERE AND THERE WAS A LITTLE FLASH AND I KNEW THAT'S WHAT IT WAS.

BUT HE HAD BANANAS TIED ON HIM SO HE WOULDN'T BE NOTICED.

OF COURSE, AS SOON AS THAT FLARE WENT DO YOU KNOW, I JUST OPENED UP ON HIM, AND OF COURSE THAT'S WHERE I GOT THAT PICTURE.

I DON'T KNOW IF IT'S HIM OR NOT, BUT HE WOULDN'T HAVE BEEN CARRYING IT IF I WENT.

I-- IF IT WASN'T.

I DIDN'T LOOK AT HIM THAT CLOSE.

HE HAD A PIGEON, I EVEN SHOT THE CARRYING PIGEON, NOT INTENTIONALLY, BUT HE WAS-- HE HAD 20 ROUNDS THAT I SHOT AT HIM AND OF COURSE IT HIT HIM ALL OVER.

BUT HE WASN'T OVER 50 FEET FROM ME, I DON'T SUPPOSE.

>> HOW DO YOU FEEL ON MEMORIAL DAY AND VETERANS' DAY EACH YEAR, DO YOU FEEL... >> FEEL PRETTY LOW ON SOME OF THEM, YEAH.

IT'S-- BECAUSE, I MEAN, THERE WERE SO MANY, SO MANY MUCH WORSE THAN THAT, THAT'S JUST A-- YEAH, THAT'S THE WORST PART OF IT.

THERE'S SO MANY WORSE, AND THOSE THAT GOT KILLED AND ALL THAT, YOU KNOW.

SURE, I CONSIDER MYSELF AWFUL LUCKY THAT I MADE IT HOME EVEN IF I AM CRIPPLED UP, BUT STILL ALIVE.

>> THOSE DAYS BRING BACK PRETTY TOUGH MEMORIES?

>> UH-HUH.

A LOT OF TIMES.

>> DO YOU GO TO THE MEMORIAL DAY SERVICES AND THE VETERANS' DAY RECOGNITION?

>> WE USUALLY HAVE ONE HERE IN TOWN, YOU'RE-- I'VE BEEN THERE, I GUESS, EVERY YEAR, 50 YEARS, 55WEARS, SOMETHING LIKE THAT.

AND I WENT TO-- DOWN THERE TO PIERRE THAT ONE WHEN THEY HAD THE 50-- WAS IT 50 YEARS, WAS THAT THE ONE THEY HAD DOWN THERE?

WE WENT DOWN TO THAT ONE, ME AND THE WIFE.

>> SO IT'S HARDER FOR YOU TO THINK ABOUT THE BUDDIES YOU HAD AND... >> UH-HUH.

YES, IT IS.

>> ANDHE LOSS THAT THEY'VE HAD?

>> YEAH.

IT'S JUST LIKE YOU THINK IT'S PART OF YOU AFTER YOU WAS WITH THEM FOR SO LONG.

ONE LOOKING OUT FOR THE OTHER, YOU MIGHT SAY.

>> IT'S BEEN SAID THAT IN WORLD WAR II, IS THE GOOD WAR.

WHAT DO YOU THINK?

>> WELL, MIGHT HAVE BEEN GOOD FOR SOMEBODY BUT NOT FOR THE PEOPLE THAT... >> PRETTY PROUD TO BE AN AMERICAN?

>> OH, YOU BET.

DARN PROUD OF IT.

>> WOULD YOU DO IT AGAIN?

>> WELL, NOT NOW, ANYMORE, I COULDN'T, BUT IF I HAD TO, YES, I WOULD HAVE DONE IT AGAIN.

BE DIFFERENT, I SUPPOSE, NOW, THOUGH, BUT OF COURSE WHEN I WENT IN, I WAS JUST A YOUNG DUMB KID, FARM KID AS THEY SAY.

BUT THEN I GUESS I LEARNED FAST.

>> MOST AMERICANS CONSIDER ALL VETERANS TO BE HEROES BUT I WANT TO KNOW WHO YOU SEE AS A HERO IN WORLD WAR II.

>> THE LIFE ONES, I SUPPOSE-- PROBABLY THE DEAD ONES PROBABLY THE MORE HEROES THAN THE LIVE ONES, AND THEIR FAMILIES.

THEY DON'T GET NO CREDIT, MUCH, YOU KNOW, BUT THEY SURE GOT IT A'COMING.

I KNOW IN MY AS CASE, IT DOES.

>> ANYONE SPECIFICALLY WHEN YOU THINK--.

>> MY WIFE BECAUSE SHE'S HAD TO TAKE CARE OF ME FOR ALL THESE YEARS, BUTTON MY SHOES, SHIRTS, EVERYTHING FOR ME.

>> WE WOULD LIKE TO THANK ALL THOSE UNASSUMING SERVICEMEN WHO SHARED THEIR STORIES.

WE'VE YET TO MEET A VETERAN WHO FELT THEY PLAYED THE PART OF A HERO IN WARTIME.

BUT IT IS CLEAR THAT IN TIMES OF WAR, AVERAGE SOUTH DAKOTANS, PEOPLE JUST LIKE YOU, CONTINUE TO STEP UP TO THE CALL OF DUTY AND SERVE THEIR COUNTRY SO THAT WE CAN MAINTAIN THE QUALITY OF OUR "DAKOTA LIFE."

FOR SOUTH DAKOTA PUBLIC TELEVISION, I'M MICHELLE VAN MAANEN.

THANK YOU FOR WATCHING.

♪ ♪ CLOSED-CAPTIONING BY PARADIGM REPORTING & CAPTIONING; LISA RICHARDSON, RPR, CRR.