The “Devil Docs” of Belleau Wood: Stories of valor and sacrifice

ByAndréSobocinski

U.s. Navy Bureau Of Medicine and Surgery

OnJune6,1918,Lt JoelBoone,Regimental Surgeon with the 6th Marines, watched as Major Thomas Holcomb and his Marine unit trudged through a waist-high wheatfield in Bouresches, on the edge of Belleau Wood.

“While I did not know it at the time, casualties began to occur among his men,” recalled Boone “Later I learned one of the first wounded Marines was Captain Donald F. Duncan, commanding one of the companies of the Second Battalion. LieutenantjuniorgradeWeeden[sic]E.Osborne, DentalCorps,U.S.Navy,whowasassignedto thatcompany,wenttotherescueofCaptain Duncan, and in the process of carrying him toward the rear where he thought it would be safe they both received a direct hit whichprovedfataltoeachofthem.

Osborne, a 26-year-old dentist from Illinois that Boone remembered as the “cleancut, blonde, rosy-cheeked young man,” was posthumouslyawardedtheMedalofHonor. He was the first military dentist to receive thisawardandthefirstNavycasualtyinthe epicbattleofBelleauWood

Today, the name Belleau Wood garners instant recognition from anyone who has worntheuniform,andnomoresothanU.S.

Marines This is where the Marine Corps first earned the moniker “Devil Dogs”— fiercewarriorswhoarealwaysreadyforthe fight. And this is a legacy that has endured eversince

From June 1 to 26, 1918, the 4th Marine Brigade (comprised of the 5th Marines 6th Marines and 6th Machine Gun Battalion) foughtthroughagauntletofthickwoodland, jagged rock and barbed wire, and against unrelenting machine gun fire, poison gas andaformidable,entrenchedforce Despite these seemingly insurmountable odds, these Devil Dogs seized Belleau Wood and successfullyturnedbacktheenemy’sSpring

Offensive

For Navy Medicine Belleau Wood is where our deep Greenside roots first took root and the developing concept of field medicine took that next formative step All alongtheway,thoseDevilDogswerejoined byGreensidephysicians,dentistsandhospitalcorpsmenwhosefocusonkeepingthem inthefightandrenderinglifesavingaidwas unwavering.Theyincludedthelikesof:

Pharmacist’s Mate Third Class Joseph Johnson of Elizabeth, New Jersey After crossing the wheatfields with the 5th Marines, Johnson worked “unceasingly in caring for and evacuating more than 200 wounded men while under unrelenting machinegunandshellfire

ChiefPharmacist’sMateGeorgeG.Strott of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. While serving withthe6thMarinesontheeveningofJune 6th,Strottfearlesslylefthissheltertorender assistancetopersonnelstruckby“fragments of a large calibre [sic] shell.” Despite poor visibilityandconstantshellbursts hehelped carrywoundedmenacrossadifficultterrain toadressingstation.

ThroughoutBelleauWood,Navymedical personneloperatedseveralmakeshiftdressing and aid stations anywhere that offered a modicum of protection—in wine cellars, farmhouses,andculverts

FromanoldfarmhouseoutsideofBelleau Wood,Lt Booneandhismedicalteamoperated a regimental aid station where they helped control hemorrhaging bandage the wounded and even performed extensive debridementby“flickeringcandlelight. To preventshock,theyusedmorphine(applied throughsyrettes)andkeptpatientsaswarm aspossiblewithblanketsand“cannedheat.”

There were no antibiotics or plasma, and wounds were often infected by contaminated soil and dirty clothing And although the Carroll-Dakin therapy was used to controlinfectionsatbaseandfieldhospitals, itwastypicallynotavailableonthefront Forseveralweekstherewaslittletimefor respite “These weeks in the Belleau Wood area had nearly exhausted me, for I had had very little sleep, very little food and no opportunity even to change my clothes or take them off,” Boone recalled. “I had lived many times in a steaming inferno and the stresses and strains on the nervous system wastremendous.”

Throughout this fight, many of these aid and dressing stations were subject to constantbombardment.Boone’saidstation received a series of direct hits from heavy shells on June 9th and 10th which took off partoftheroofandkilled10patients

On June 11, Lt Orlando Petty, a physician with the 5th regiment, was manning a dressingstationatLucy-le-Bocagewhenit came under heavy fire from German artillery including poison gas shells Among the casualties being treated by Petty in the attack was Captain Lloyd Williams, commander of the 51st Company, 2nd battalion, 5th Marines, and famous for answering a French soldier’s call of retreat with: “Retreat? Hell, we just got here!”

During the bombardment, Petty was knockeddownbyanexplodingshellwhich destroyedthedressingstationandrendered hisgasmaskuseless Hediscardedhismask and carried Williams through the shellfire andmustardgastosafety Despiteincurring severechemicalburnsandirreparablelung damage,Pettycontinuedtotreatcasualties until being evacuated to the rear

Casualties at Belleau Wood were significant. In total, some 616 members of the 4th Marine Brigade were killed in action at Belleau Wood with an additional 332 later dying from their wounds Some 2,468 werewoundedinactionandover900were exposedtopoisongas

Among the Navy medical personnel at Belleau Wood, two were later bestowed theMedalofHonor—physicianLt Orlando Petty and dentist Lt.(j.g.) Weedon Osborne (posthumously). And a total of nineteen physicians, dentists and hospital corpsmen receivedNavyCrossesincludingChiefStrott andPettyOfficerJohnson.

Dr Joel Boone was later awarded the MedalofHonorforheroicservicesatVierzy (in July 1918) After the war, he served as physiciantothreepresidentsandrosetothe rankofViceAdmiralbeforeretiringin1950.

While reflecting on the battle some forty years later, in 1958, Boone noted that the “Herculean achievements,” at Belleau Wood came at a “frightful cost of human life,” but this has given the Nation a “spirit and new sense of pride in the American soldier and Marine to fight not only heroically and determinedly, but most successfully.” And more importantly for Boone, it wasatBelleauWoodwheremedicalpersonnelprovedtotheMarinesthatregardlessof the fight they were always going to be “by their side, even in the most intense fighting experiences.”

For over 100 years since Belleau Wood this has remained true. And you can bet everywhere and anywhere a Devil Dog is serving in the future, a Devil Doc will not be far behind

Sources:

„ Andrews, John F. Biography of Orlando Petty Retrieved from: https://img1. wsimg.com/blobby/go/ebe1bf4e-4777439e-a419-ec7559788b4b/downloads/ ORLANDO%20PETTY%20BIOGRAPHY. pdf?ver=1598199621657

„ Boone, Joel T. Memoirs (Unpublished), LibraryofCongressWashington D.C. Boxes 44-46

„ Ferrebee R.A (Dec 11, 2014). “Retreat hell! We just got here. American Legion. Retrieved from: https://www.legion.org/ stories/other/retreat-hell-we-just-got-here

„ Miller, J.M. The 4th Marine Brigade at Belleau Wood and Soissons: History and BattlefieldGuide Lawrence,KS:University PressofKansas,2020

„ Strott George The Medical Department oftheUnitedStatesNaywiththeArmyand Marine Corps in France in World War I: its Functions and Employment (NAVMED 1197). Bureau of Medicine and Surgery (BUMED):Washington,D.C.,June1947

Military Sealift Command looks to keep the fleet “fit and ready”

ByHendrickDickson

USN Military Sealift Command

CivilServiceMariners(CIVMARs)arethe key to Military Sealift Command’s (MSC) success Nearly6,000CIVMARskeepMSC ships mission ready Whether they work in theengineroom,galleyorpilothouse,each and every one is invaluable and the reason MSC is able to provide continuous support tothejointwarfighters

Oneofthecriticalelementsofmaintaining readiness is keeping CIVMARs fit for duty

The healthofthe fleethas adirect impact on the ability to get ships underway Promoting healthandsafetywhileimprovingfit-for-duty statusisapriorityforMSC’sMedicalForce.

“From a readiness perspective, non-fitfor-duty(NFFD)statuseshurtourabilityto get CIVMARs relieved on time,” said MSC Pacific Medical Officer, Cmdr Jamie Vega. “The more CIVMARs we have who are not fit for duty the more people we have out thereonshipswhocan’tgetrelieved.

Vega says the command has 375 NFFD cases, and about 122 of them have lasted beyond six months The causes range from hypertension to sleep apnea and the most common, musculoskeletal issues, such as neck pain, shoulder pain, knee pain and otherjoint-relatedinjuries

“Currently our NFFD status is about 6.4 percent of our basic allowance,” said Vega. “What we’d like to do is to get that number down to 2.5 percent which is a lofty and ambitiousgoal,butwecandoitinanumber ofways.”

Vega saysone of the ways is to establish a consistent line of communication between medical and the CIVMARs that includes routine chart reviews better case management and working with the CIVMARs to ensuretheyaremeetingtheirappointments andstayingmedicallycompliant

“It is a team effort with the mariner and medical staff,” said Vega. “It is incumbent upontheCIVMARtoprovidetheirmedical documentstoussowecanreviewthem And important also that they provide updates routinelysothatwewillknowwhatwecan do to help end their non-fit-for-duty status orifweneedtoextendthem.

Establishing better dialogue between medicalstaffandCIVMARsisoneapproach toward getting current NFFD cases down, butVegabelievesMSCalreadyhasprograms inplacethatcanpreemptcasesbeforehand. MSC’sForceSafetyandHealthandPromotionsProgramsaretoolsthatMSCstaffand CIVMARs can engage with that will help their own health and fitness while keeping MSCmissionready

MSC’s Force Safety

Focuses on Creating Safe Work Environments

MSC’s Safety and Occupational Health (MSOH) Program promotes safe and healthy working conditions for personnel in order to enhance operational readiness

The program aims to reduce occupational injuries,illnessesordeathsandmaterialloss ordamagethroughawareness.

“Safetyhasadirectcorrelationwithreadiness,”saidSafetyandOccupationalHealth Manager Scott Muller “You can look at our program two ways One is preventive or being proactive and in front of the issues by looking ahead. Then we are also, fromtimetotime,reactive Whenthingsdo happen,wecollectinformationandcreatea mishapreportthatdocumentstheincident, eitherdamagetoequipmentorinjurytothe person, and we use what we learn to raise awareness.”

The safety program’s hallmark is sharing information with the MSC staff and CIVMARswiththehopethatitcanprevent future incidents. They produce quarterly newsletters discussing the latest safety trendsandpoliciesandhowtheyareimpactingmaritimesafety

“Learning from past instances and being betterawareandpreparedforfutureactivitiesandimplementingprotectiveactionsor riskassessmentsareallimportantfactorsin creating and maintaining a safe work environment,”saidMuller

Muller added that it is important that CIVMARs be willing to share information when mishaps happen Obtaining mishap reports from ships is vital to safety promotion,includingnearmissandhazardreports

By Navy policy MSC can only use reported information for safety purposes only and it cannot be used for enforcement action, we maintain confidentiality and do not share reported information with the U.S. Coast Guard Itisinvaluablethat

According to Force Medical, musculoskeletal injuries that make up 33 percent of the NFFD cases can be attributed to the waypeopleliftthings,movethingsaroundor evensitattheirdesks MSOHalsopromotes theergonomicstrainingthatshowsemployeeshowtoestablishandmaintainasafeand comfortable work environment that could helpsuppressinjuries.

“Ergonomics is really the study and the optimization of fitting the workspace to the worker To make it comfortable so that work can be more efficient. Like arranging chairs and desks to be conducive for the worker,” said Muller. “Making adjustments to the work environment can help prevent chronicconditionsfortheindividualsinthe longterm.”

An article in one of MSOH’s recent quarterlynewsletters,discussedthelinkbetween fitfordutyandsafety Fitfordutyisdefined as a combination of physical and mental factors thatenable peopletocarryouttheir jobs competently and safely The article listed the main causes of degraded fitness fordutyandhowsafetyifaffected:

FitforDutyCauses:

„ Misuseofalcoholandordrugs

„ Physicalinjury

„ Illness

„ Stress,worry,personalproblems

„ Mentalimpairment

Safetyisaffectedthrough:

„ Inabilitytoconcentrate

„ Confusion

„ Degradedsituationalawareness

„ Beingdistractedbyfeelingunwell

„ Poorphysicalcoordination

„ Fallingasleep

„ Communicationfailures

Mulleremphasizesthatsafetyisn’tabout one individual or one office Its impact on improving MSC’s fit-for-duty posture requiresculturalchange.

“Safety is everybody’s responsibility,” he said. “We want to make a shift to where safety is embedded in our overarching mission. We are sharing literature, lessons learned and knowledge so that safety will beinplayeverydaytopreventincidentsand keeppeoplehealthy.”

MSC employees can get the latest Safety newsletterandmoreinformationonMSC’s portal at https://navy.deps.mil/sites/msc/ Pages/MSCSafety.aspx

MSC Health and Promotions Program Offers Tools for Healthy Living

MSC’s Health and Promotions Program (HPP) gives MSC staff and mariners the toolsimprovetheirindividualhelpandputs themrightattheirfingertips.HPP’smission is to improve the health consciousness and health status of MSC employees in order to increaseoperationaleffectiveness,efficiency andsafety,andtheprogramsoffernumerous servicesthatcanhelpnon-fitdutymembers returntotheirships.

“CIVMARshaveavarietyoffreeservices and taking advantage of these services will not only enhance their physical and mental well-being but when they do take advantage, it tends to ripple down into all areas of lives, from enhancing their relationships with others to improving both their quality ofworkandqualityoflife,”saidMSCHealth

Promotion Coordinator Leighanne Gerstbrein HPP’s virtual classes are online and tailored toward encouraging healthy routines such as effective dieting, working outandmanagingmentalhealth:

„ Virtual Health Education Classes offer a new class monthly on a variety of topics such as, Meal Planning; Weight Management; Exercise Basics and more. (link: www.millenniumenterprises.net/ civmar-classes/)

„ Virtual Fitness Classes also monthly focusonfitnessworkoutssuchas 10-minute AbWorkout;20-minuteFullBodyWorkout; TurboKick and others (link: www.millenniumenterprises.net/civmar-class-type/ classes/fitness/)

„ Virtual Meditation Classes are mind and body practices that promote calmness and physicalrelaxation,improvedpsychological balance, coping with illnesses, and enhancing overall health and well-being. Available classes include: Introduction to Mindful Meditation;GratitudeMeditation;Labeling Thoughts Meditation. (link: www.millenniumenterprises.net/civmar-class-type/ classes/meditation/)

HPPalsohasscheduledeventsandinformative tools available for CIVMARs on the East and West Coasts These include newsletters that are routinely distributed to the fleet:

„ SHIPFITWorkoutsaredistributedquarterlytoallMedicalServiceOfficers,Medical Department Representatives and Masters and provide beginner, intermediate, and advanced level workouts for CIVMARs to do while underway The workouts require noequipmentandareintendedtobeableto bedoneanywhere,anytime

„ WeeklyWellnessNewslettersaredistributed to the fleet every Monday Often, the topic is in accordance with the monthly health observance, however input from CIVMARsandhealthriskassessmentfindings also contribute to the topic selection anddesignofthenewsletter

„ The MSC Resiliency Team which aims to build resilience and morale among the CIVMAR pulation to increase employee satisfaction and decrease employee burnout,stressandworkplaceconflict

„ HealthRiskAssessmentsgiveCIVMARs the ability to create their own free wellness profile at www.mhfwellnessportal.com. This provides them with access to a variety of resources such as sleep food, water physical activity and weight tracking and logging devices and feedback, mindfulness practices,recipestotry,interactivelearning, daily pursuits, a health library, social blogs, andafreehealthriskassessment.

„ HealthCoachingisacollaborativeprocess bywhichcoachandclientworktogetherto bring out the best in the client and help the client create and live the life they want to live

HPP recently launched a new Website that provides a “one-stop-shop” where CIVMARs could visit to learn about all of the HPP services and direct links to useful resources: https://civmar.sealiftcommand com/health-promotion-program.

“Our health impacts everything we do,” Gerstbrein said. “We can’t neglect it if we wanttoliveafull,richlife.Takingresponsibilityofitmeanstakingresponsibilityofour livesandputtingusinapowerfulpositionto getthemostfromlife.”

ByLt.j.g MartinCarey

Naval Special Warfare Group Two

VIRGINIA BEACH, Va East-coast based Naval Special Warfare Operators (SEALs) recently conducted a comprehensive training exercise focused on non-combatant emergency evacuation operations Thetraining,heldatnight,involvedtheuse of simulated munitions to better emulate real-lifescenarios.

The elite maritime special operations commandos, renowned for proficiency in executing high-risk missions embarked on thetrainingtofurtherenhancetheircapabilities and readiness in the event of humanitarian crises, natural disasters, or other contingencies that require rapid and effi- cientevacuations.

Under the cover of darkness, Navy SEAL elementsassembledatlocationsthroughout Southeastern Virginia where they meticulously planned and executed the exercise The scenario aimed to replicate the unpredictable and challenging conditions that SEALs might face in real-world situations, wherelivesareatstakeandtimeiscritical.

During the exercise, the Navy SEALs employed simulated munitions to create a high-intensityenvironmentwhileensuring the safety for all participants The realistic natureofthetrainingallowedthecommandos to develop and refine their skills in a controlledsetting,replicatingthestressand pressuretheymayencounterinactualevacuationsituations

The training encompassed evacuations fromhostileenvironments,rescuemissions in treacherous terrain, and transportation of non-combatants under extreme circumstances

CommodoreBillGallagher Commander, Naval Special Warfare Group TWO, expressed his appreciation for the dedication and professionalism exhibited by the SEALs and support personnel during the exercise He emphasized the importance of such training in ensuring the Navy SEALsremaintheworld’sleadingmaritime commandos.

“These exercises provide an opportunity for our operators and support personnel to hone their skills, coordinate with other units, and enhance their ability to conduct complex operations,” Gallagher said “It is critical for us to train under the most challenging conditions and thereby prepare ourteamsforwhattheywillfaceduringrealworldoperations.”

The recent withdrawal of the U.S. Embassy in Sudan underscored the importance of readiness to exquisitely plan and execute non-combatant emergency evacuation operations. The real-world event was a timely reminder of the critical role these elite commandos play in safeguarding lives duringcomplexinternationalcrises

TheNavySEALs’commitmenttoconstant training and refinement is a testament to theirreputationasthepremierglobalmaritimecommandos