Preserving The Oral HistorIES of Combat Veterans
4:35 | Before he wanted to be a Marine, Joseph Nguyen wanted to be a firefighter. When he had enough of the killing, he made that first dream happen in a Texas town. (Caution: strong language)
Keywords : Joseph Nguyen Iraq firefighter Dallas TX reunion
His family had fled Vietnam after the fall of Saigon and settled in Texas. Joseph Nguyen recalls that his father never spoke of his time as a naval officer for the South. The younger Nguyen chose the Marines when his time came because he didn't want to be an enlisted man in the Navy.
When Joseph Nguyen volunteered for a second tour in Iraq, his mother couldn't believe it. But there he went and on his very first patrol in Fallujah he got into a firefight.
The mission in Fallujah was demanding and non-stop. Joseph Nguyen was getting very little sleep and trying to mentally process the fact that little kids were being recruited to throw grenades at the Marines. IED's were a big problem and he survived eight blasts before the tour was over. (Caution: strong language)
The last IED was the worst. Joseph Nguyen had seen something at that spot in the road but nothing happened the first time they passed over it. It was on the return trip that it was triggered. Two of his buddies would not be going home. (Caution: strong language)
In what little down time there was the Marines could gamble or have goofy challenges like drinking a gallon of milk. As a Vietnamese-American, Joseph Nguyen was very aware of the comparisons of the Iraq war to the Vietnam war. His heart went out to the kids playing in the horrific streets of Fallujah. (Caution: strong language)
Coming home was both good and bad. Good because you were there but bad because other guys didn't make it. For Joseph Nguyen, the psychiatrists were no help at all. Volunteering for Toys For Tots went a lot further in helping him cope. (Caution: strong language)
