Oral+History+Questions

Topic: Soldier in Vietnam Interview Subject: Mike Gehl (My dad’s cousin)
 * Interview Questions **

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1. What was your life like before you were enlisted for the army? Did you have a job? If so what job? He was in college at the time and decided to sign up for the Reserve Officer Training Core (ROTC). He knew that the Vietnam War was just heating up, and that he would probably be drafted if he didn’t enlist. =====

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4. What were your family’s initial reactions to you being drafted into the army? His parents were concerned for his safety. His father had served in WWII and he was very accepting that he was enlisting in the war and thought it was a good idea. His fiancé did not like the idea of him enlisting in the army, she went to school at University of Madison and this is where the hotbed of protesting against the war was. =====

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6. What training did you have to do before entering the war? Since he was going to be an Artillery officer he had to learn how to use artillery and so for three months he went to Fort Sill Oklahoma and he also learned how to lead people. He felt that it was like college almost. Went to school for 3 months Fort Sill Oklahoma all the artillery things were, learned everything to know about artillery learned how to lead people, going to college almost. =====

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7. What was your life like in the army? He spent seven months in Germany doing training exercises before going to Vietnam. While in the army he felt that at times it could be boring but others he thought were exciting and fun. He was in charge of younger people, people from broken homes, and also was in contact with older people. He had to learn how to communicate and lead people. In the army there was no hot food, the conditions were bad, and he had many new experiences. =====

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8. What impact did fighting in the Vietnam War have on you? He said Vietnam gave him perspective on what things are really important in life. What things you should really worry about and what things you shouldn’t worry about. Biggest thing worrying about was staying alive. When dealing with personal discomforts you had to set those aside because you had bigger things to deal with. His experience also helped him a lot in college, knew that things weren’t so tough and there were bigger problems. =====