This audio is an oral history interview conducted by The Army Heritage Center Foundation to preserve the memories of Soldiers’ and their Families, honor their service, and help educate the American public about the Army’s and its Soldiers’ contributions to the Nation.
“What the hell have I gotten myself into?”
Dennis O’Conner – Army 1970 – 1985, Maintenance
Dennis O”Conner: Image courtesy of U.S. Army Heritage and Education Center
Dennis O’Connor knew he was going to be drafted.
“In March of 1970, a friend of mine who was draft 254 got drafted. My number was 256, so on May 27, 1970 I enlisted because I figured my number was up.”
“I didn’t even think about Vietnam until I got out of AIT (Advanced Individual Training) and then my whole class went to Vietnam… They were short of 76 Tangos. I was pretty surprised to get assigned to Vietnam. They kept us in a holding company for two weeks waiting for one guy to turn 18 because they couldn’t send a 17 year-old to Vietnam. As soon as he turned 18 we got on the bus.”
(Read more stories from this veteran and others at: Voices of Service )