“I’m trying to save his life … and keep some composure.”Ī week later the conscientious objector corpsman’s composure would be put to the ultimate test. “He’s singing ‘Happy Birthday,” remembers Kuklenski, a VFW Department of Texas member and retired businessman in suburban Dallas. Suddenly the critically-wounded Marine broke into song. Goss and Kuklenski tied off what was left to stop the bleeding, then administered morphine. One of the surviving Marines, a former athlete, had lost both legs below the knees. Already there was the company’s senior corpsman, Jim Goss. Kuklenski started out across it to render aid. It was a boot, and in it part of a lower leg. Almost simultaneously, he saw something tumble over his head. May 21, 1969: 19-year-old Navy Hospital Corpsman Michael Kuklenski was three weeks deep into his Vietnam tour - on patrol with Alpha Co., 1st Bn., 7th Marines, 1st Marine Div., when he heard a land mine go off. The scene could have come from the movies. Here are the first-hand accounts of three decorated “Docs” who provided life-saving aid in Vietnam. Beloved by their fellow grunts, corpsmen and medics are the first responders for Marines and soldiers wounded on the battlefield.
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