Our third screening of The Donut Dollies at the Palm Springs International Film Festival on Sunday was sold out!  Prior to entering the theater a few of the Donut Dollies handed out donut holes to those waiting on line. 

The Donut Dollies in attendance for this screening were: Dorset Anderson (Vietnam ‘68-69 – featured in our film), Cindy Broyles (Vietnam ’68-69), Karen Millar (Vietnam ’68-69), Linda Pelegríno (Vietnam ‘67), Cathie Rubins (Korea ’72) and Judi Stewart (Korea ’70-71).  

Following the film, Jessica Eskelin of PSIFF led a Q&A session with Donut Dollies Dorset, Linda, Cathie, Karen and Judi.  During the Q&A, Karen shared that although the Donut Dollie’s experiences were unique, the film encapsulated their experience and Cathie stated that the film brought back so many memories.  Judi said that now people who didn’t know about the Donut Dollies will know they were for real.

We thank the staff, volunteers and supporters of the Palm Springs International Film Festival for allowing us to share the Donut Dollies story with nearly 800 people.  We also thank all of the Donut Dollies, veterans and audience members who joined us in making this a memorable experience.   

The Donut Dollies Documentary screened to a sold out crowd on Tuesday (Jan 6th) at the Palm Springs International Film Festival and we were honored to have six Donut Dollies in attendance, they are (L-R): Judy Odenbreit (Vietnam ’65-66), Linda Cranor (Korea ’70-71), Linda Pelegríno (Vietnam ‘67), Dorset Anderson (Vietnam ‘68-69 – featured in our film), Mary Cohoe (Vietnam ‘68-69) and Larry Hines (Vietnam ‘68-69).

The Q&A following the screening included (L-R) Jess Hill (producer), Norm Anderson (director), Dorset Anderson (Vietnam ‘68-69 – one of the Donut Dollies featured in our film) and Doug Bradley (Vietnam veteran and author).  While the photo below shows an animated moment during the Q&A session, following the screening a young woman who had recently served our country approached us to say that she hadn’t heard of the Donut Dollies before, but was glad to have learned about these women.  We are honored to know that the Donut Dollies story reaches across the years and can connect with a wide audience. 

We thank everyone who attended this screening and our heartfelt thanks go out to Judy, Linda, Linda, Dorset, Mary and Larry!

We had the first screening of our film at the Palm Springs International Film Festival and we were honored to have five Donut Dollies in attendance, they are (L-R): Larry Hines (Vietnam ‘68-69), Lou Rundle (Vietnam ’71-72), Dorset Anderson (Vietnam ‘68-69 – featured in our film), Mary Cohoe (Vietnam ‘68-69) and Linda Pelegríno (Vietnam ‘67).

During the Q&A session following, the responses from each of the DD’s were emotional and moving. This was a first time viewing for four of the Donut Dollies and they stated that the film represented their experiences accurately, with one explaining that the film provided a sense of healing and allowed her to feel comfortable in sharing her own story. One of the highlights came from Mary Cohoe, who is the only Native American woman who served as a Donut Dollie, and she presented a greeting to the audience in her Navajo Indian Language.

We thank everyone who attended this screening and our heartfelt thanks go out to Larry, Lou, Mary, Linda and Dorset!