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.
“When you’re on patrol with a Ruff- Puff squad get your will in order and get close to God.”
Col. Donald Boose – Army, 1962, Infantry. First assignment was Korea, went to Vietnam as an advisor in 1966.
Image courtesy of U.S. Army Heritage and Education Center
Don Boose received his commission as an Infantry officer in the Regular Army in 1962. After his initial post in Korea, he was assigned to a training company at Fort Gordon, Georgia, providing Advanced Infantry Training and preparing troops to go to Vietnam.
“They all knew for sure that they were going to Vietnam,” he said. “Not only that, they knew they were going to be replacements for Airborne units. We had soldiers who had been enlisted, and we had some who were drafted and turned out to have a real aptitude for soldiering and enjoyed it.
“But we had a lot of guys who were not all that enthusiastic about going to an Infantry unit in Vietnam,” he added. “There were some discipline problems, not widespread, but some. This was the ’60s, but it was the pre-Tet ’60s. So demonstrations had begun, but it wasn’t until I came back that they became so intense and the anti-war sentiment became so strong. Before I went, it was just getting started.”
(Read more stories from this veteran and others at: Voices of Service )
BACKGROUND IMAGE: Don Boose sits with several of his Vietnamese aides, their gear and the Jeep in which they traveled.
PHOTO TO LEFT : Capt. Don Boose, right, poses with Sgt. First Class Baker in Cau Ngan, Vietnam.