In our 45th edition of the Donut Dollie Detail, Diane tells how the Korean bakers would make donuts for them, that returning to the U.S. after a year in Korea was a shock and how she met her future husband in Korea.

Please share the Donut Dollie Detail with family, friends and veterans you may know, and make sure to like/follow us on Facebook to learn when the next edition is posted. 

Please meet Red Cross Donut Dollie Diane Anderson Hunt…

What prompted you to join the SRAO (Supplemental Recreation Activities Overseas) program and want to go to Korea?

When I graduated from college, teaching jobs were difficult to find.  I always enjoyed listening to people who came back from foreign countries telling about their adventures.  My college placement director encouraged me to seek employment with the Red Cross or Girl Scouts.  Both were seeking employees for overseas jobs.  I applied to the Red Cross, got an interview and volunteered for Vietnam, however I was accepted for Korea. 

When and where were you stationed in Korea?  Did you go by a nickname?

From 1971-72 I was stationed at Ascom, Humphey and Camp Casey.  I did not go by a nickname.

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What was a routine day like in Korea?

Monday through Thursday we traveled by jeep, deuce and a half or helicopter to bases to do a program for soldiers with a Donut Dollie partner.  It depended how far apart the bases were on whether we would visit 1 to 4 bases in a day.  Donuts and coffee was the standard breakfast before we departed for the day.  Fridays we worked on programs and premiered a new program for the guys on our base.  Our Korean baker made chocolate frosted donuts on Fridays.  Evenings were spent socializing with the guys. 

Did you ever have any “close calls” either on base or in any vehicles?

Of course the Korean War was over when I was in Korea, so close calls were not an everyday occurrence.  However because Korea was an underdeveloped country at the time it was still considered a hardship tour. 

Were you ever injured while in Korea?

I was not injured in Korea, but I did get dysentery from the water, which put me out of commission for a few days. 

What was it like to visit the soldiers in the hospitals?

We did not visit soldiers in the hospital in Korea.

How was the transition returning home to the United States?

Returning to the States was a shock.  There was an airline strike when I returned, so I came back on a military cargo plane.  The windows were portholes too high up to look out of.  We sat in seats that were slid in on slats looking backwards at a huge net that contained all of our suitcases.  Nothing glamorous!

When I arrived in California, I had to fly standby to the midwest because of the strike.  I wanted to change clothes after the long flight from Korea before I started another day of traveling. The attendant in the restroom reamed me out for thinking I could use a restroom in an airport as a dressing room.  I had just read “The Ugly American” and couldn’t have agreed more with how I found America.  I was crushed to be treated so poorly after spending a year supporting my country. 

I think everyone should spend time in an underdeveloped country.  It will have a positive affect on you for the rest of your life. 

What would you like people to remember and understand most about the women who served?

We were young college educated ladies that volunteered to support our troops.  We did not have to go, but we did to support those that were drafted to go to protect our freedom. 

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How do you feel Veterans think of your time having served with them?  Have any Veterans expressed their feelings to you directly?

I think the Veterans appreciated seeing a smile from home.  Yes, when they find out I spent a year in Korea.  

What are your fondest or most interesting memories of your time serving in Korea?

I remember landing in Korea and riding in a bus to Ascom from the airport.  It seemed I was watching a movie that was filmed years prior.  I had to pinch myself to realize the bus was going to stop and I was going to step out into this environment.  I was going to be living here for a year.   We were encouraged to take lots of pictures when we first arrived in country, because soon we would just accept our surroundings.  

On December 28, 1972 I married my husband, Leonard. We met in Korea. 

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In our 43rd edition of the Donut Dollie Detail, Jan tells how the Peace Corps’ loss was the Red Cross’ gain, that she had a close call with the VC and how she may have saved a young medic.

Please share the Donut Dollie Detail with family, friends and veterans you may know, and make sure to like/follow us on Facebook to learn when the next edition is posted.  

Please meet Red Cross Donut Dollie Jan Small Woods…

What prompted you to join the SRAO (Supplemental Recreation Activities Overseas) program and want to go to Vietnam?       

My plans to go into the Peace Corps fell thru so when I saw the ad in the Philadelphia paper I jumped at the chance to travel and maybe support our troops. 

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When and where were you stationed in Vietnam?  Did you go by a nickname?

I was at First Division my whole tour.  Not sure why (maybe the powers that be wanted me close to Saigon).  I was in Di An from November ’66 to April ’67.  I was TDY (temporary duty) in Lai Khe from April ’67 to May ’67 (our new hooch at Phu Loi wasn’t finished yet) and I was in Phu Loi from April ’67 to July ’67. 

No nickname with the troops (other than Jan), but I was given the name Jelly Donut from some of the reporters, because of my red hair.

What was a routine day like in Vietnam?   

Ha… no such thing as a routine day.  We tried to plan our helicopter trips to visit troops in the field, but often those plans would change depending on enemy troop movements.  In Di An, we had a very nice recreation center, so that was a little more “normal”.  We planned activities for the enlisted men at the center, sometimes even having little parties.

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Did you ever have any “close calls” either on base or in any vehicles?  

Quite a few actually.  Many times we would have to run to the bunker – sometimes stuck in there for long periods of time – sometimes with our Vietnamese mamasans.  One time we were lifting off from a forward base and I started to wave to some people down in the woods, it turned out they were VC and they started shooting at us.  I imagine the red hair and blue dress was a little noticeable.    Luckily the door gunner took care of the problem.

Were you ever injured while in Vietnam?  

I did fall into some concertina wire late at night, but that was my own fault.  I forgot that the guards put the wire around our “hooch” at night.  That was a painful and stupid mistake.

What was it like to visit the soldiers in the hospitals?      

These were very emotional times for us and I will never forget a GI I was talking to who was so upbeat and happy.  When I asked him why, he said because he was going home.  He had lost an eye and an arm, but he was happy?

How was the transition returning home to the United States?   

I went to NYC to study photography, as I wanted to go back and shoot the “true” war.  At that time in the summer of ’67 there were a lot of anti-war marches and it was very difficult to witness!!

What would you like people to remember and understand most about the women who served?   

Maybe we didn’t save the troops like the nurses did, but I truly do believe that we did a lot to  help with the mental aspect of these men.  I know personally that I “saved” one young medic who was losing it from being in the field for 8 months, so I went and made sure that his Captain got him on an R and R to recoup.  He later came to me to thank me for probably saving his life. 

How do you think the Veterans think of your time serving with them now?  Have any Veterans expressed their feelings to you directly?     

My ex-husband, who was a helicopter pilot in 1st Division, feels that women do not belong in a war zone – period!  So we never discussed the war.  The vet friends that I know on Facebook and from various conventions I’ve attended have all been supportive.   They realize our smiles made their day.   

What are your fondest or most interesting memories of your time serving in Vietnam?    

Visiting the troops in the field and making them laugh, visiting the orphanages run by the Catholic nuns, trips to Saigon to get my hair done and a good meal!!  

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PLEASE NOTE: THERE ARE 42 PREVIOUS EDITIONS OF THE DONUT DOLLIE DETAIL THAT CAN BE SEEN HERE, JUST SCROLL DOWN TO READ EACH (AT THE BOTTOM, YOU’LL SEE A LINK TO GO TO THE NEXT PAGE OF DONUT DOLLIE DETAIL FEATURES)