8 minute read
MIKE GRUCHALLA
Original publish date:
September-October 2019
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Where is he now?
Nearly a year has passed since Vietnam Combat Medic Mike Gruchalla’s story was published in the September-October 2019 issue of The Good Life.
Gruchalla was scheduled to go on the April 2020 Honor Flight as a volunteer, but the trip was canceled due to coronavirus restrictions.
A dedicated gardener, Gruchalla understands the importance of seasons of rest. As such, he is allowing the garden to rest this year and isn’t sure if he’ll be doing any canning this fall. His current focus is on the herbs he’s planted. All in all, Gruchalla maintains that life is still good despite the coronavirus.
MIKE GRUCHALLA From the midwest to Vietnam and back, Mike Gruchalla’s focus has always been doing his job well and fiercely serving others
WRITTEN BY: ALEXIS SWENSON • PHOTOS BY: URBAN TOAD MEDIA
When Mike Gruchalla arrived in Saigon, Vietnam on January 11, 1970, he hit the ground rolling - literally.
“As soon as we touched down at the airport base ... the Viet Cong started mortaring us. The airplane got to the end of the runway, started taxiing back, lowered the back ramp on the airplane ... we exited while the airplane was still taxiing ready to take off. So, I hit the ground rolling,” explained Gruchalla.
Merely seven months prior the 19-yearold had been drafted to serve in the Vietnam War.
“I drafted and then I enlisted [in the Army] because my older brother had gone AWOL. I figured that if I enlisted and volunteered to be a medic and got sent to Vietnam, it would keep my brother out of Vietnam,” said Gruchalla.
Gruchalla volunteered to be a medic simply because he knew they were needed and assumed it would send him to Vietnam. basic training followed by Advanced Individual Training (Gruchalla’s medic training) in Fort Sam Houston, Texas. After the abbreviated training, Gruchalla went home for Christmas leave and arrived in Vietnam on January 11, 1970.
Life in Vietnam
Gruchalla felt life at base camp was far less appealing than getting out in the field and often volunteered for patrol with any group that wanted a medic.
“I didn’t like being at base camp where I had to have spit-shine shoes, a pressed uniform; I wanted to do my job,” said Gruchalla.
This willingness to go out with anyone — Koreans or other allies — exposed Gruchalla to extremely dangerous situations. In the course of nearly 2 years, Gruchalla found himself in 15 different tunnels, being shot, surviving four helicopter crashes, and being run over by a tank.
Earning the Combat Medical Badge Medal
Most memorably, Gruchalla cites the event that earned him the Combat
Medical Badge Medal, because, “there were only 2,231 combat medic badges awarded in Vietnam.”
“On July 2nd, I was sent out to a firebase ... The night of the 2nd, we got attacked. When the attack started the enemy was playing Johnny Cash, Charlie Pride, and other country songs over loudspeakers in the jungle. Over a period of five or six hours, we threw everything at them we had. We even lowered the guns and fired beehive rounds (155 howitzer with seal darts), said Gruchalla.
“... I was dragging a wounded soldier into the command bunker with the help of another guy. A satchel charge went off in front of us, blew me into the tunnel, and as soon as I got into that tunnel, they blew it. That sealed the entrance.
“There were 38 of us in the bunker and we called in an A-B52 strike on our position. When it was all done, 63 GI’s died. 38 of us got off. I was number 38.
“When we got dug out, it was my job to tag and bag the 63 guys. The first guy that I tagged and bagged was the guy that was helping me with the wounded man. He had the flag from that firebase inside his shirt. And, I have that flag today,” said Gruchalla.
According to the American War Library, the Combat Medical Badge Medal was established to recognize medical personnel who experienced combat while providing medical assistance to wounded personnel.
“That badge says I did my job. I think I did it well. I wish I could have saved more, but there’s only so much you can do,” said Gruchalla.
Gruchalla’s Medals Gruchalla also received a Purple Heart Medal, a Bronze Star Medal, and a Silver Star Medal, but the only paperwork he has is for the Combat Medical Badge Medal.
“When I came home from Vietnam, it took me 4 months to get my things … They were going through and taking things out ... because they made references to where I was,” explained Gruchalla.
because he carried out some of his work in Cambodia and Laos – a direct violation of international law.
“We weren’t supposed to be there,” said Gruchalla.
Per military rules, an individual is allowed to wear their medals if they have paperwork to verify earning them. As such, Gruchalla continues to be denied from wearing the medals. Initially frustrated, he has now reached a resolve of sorts.
“It hurt at first, but it doesn’t matter now. My dad saw my medals and that’s all that counts,” said Gruchalla.
Coming Home
Despite diligently doing his job to help fellow soldiers, Specialist Spc. 4 Gruchalla’s homecoming was characterized by a negative public perception of Vietnam veterans.
“... On the flight from Minneapolis to Fargo, the only seat that was available was first class. There was a guy sitting in the window seat next to me. As soon as the plane took off, he went and sat with the stewardesses; he didn’t want to sit by a Vietnam vet. When we landed in Fargo, nobody got off the plane until I did. They all waited at the back of the baggage claim area until I got my bag and walked out the door,” said Gruchalla.
In the following weeks, Gruchalla determinedly attempted to register for college.
“I dressed the part – bell-bottoms, shirt with puffy sleeves, the beads, the whole thing. But, I went up to the registrar's office and pretty much got chased off of Moorhead State. I had short hair, I was a Vietnam vet, I was a ‘baby killer’, said Gruchalla.
“I went home. I spent four months in my folks’ basement growing out my hair. I didn’t go out for anything because I didn’t know if I would be accepted for having medium length hair,” said Gruchalla.
A Continued Medical Career
Eventually, Gruchalla acquired a job in the medical field, continuing to care for hurting people. For 10 years, he worked at Dakota Hospital for orthopedic surgeons. Then, he spent the next 27 years at the Fargo VA Hospital
working in the operating room.
Gruchalla saw firsthand how much of what the medics learned in Vietnam was put into practice on American soil.
“It was a slow process, but it went from ambulances basically being a meat wagon ... to someone riding in the ambulance able to initiate medical treatment. And, with that, the use of helicopters to transport because we found out in Vietnam that we only had basically an hour before things would permanently die,” said Gruchalla.
“My Lives as a Medic”
At the consistent urging of a VA doctor and Gruchalla’s now-wife, Gruchalla authored a book outlining the stories he carries from the Vietnam War. He was reluctant at first, in part due to his dyslexia which made the writing process challenging, though he’s glad now that he wrote it.
“My Lives as a Medic: A Soldier’s Journal in Vietnam” provides a raw, honest memoir of Gruchalla’s experience in the Vietnam War.
Giving Back Today
Gruchalla wasn’t always involved - or invited - into veterans organizations. 46 / THE GOOD LIFE “When I first came home, the VFWs and the American Legions called me ... they both told me they didn’t want me. ‘Vietnam was not a war ... we don’t want the Vietnam vets’,” said Gruchalla.
Many years later, prompted by the positive change in the public’s view of Vietnam veterans, Gruchalla joined the VFW, AM Vets, Disabled American Veterans, and Vietnam Veterans of America.
Gruchalla helps the Vietnam Veterans of America with their 5K and 10K races as a crossing guard and is involved
with the Fargo Moorhead Vietnam Veterans Week in May.
Furthermore, for the past four years, Gruchalla has volunteered with the Veterans Honor Flight of ND/MN, a nonprofit created solely to honor America’s veterans for their sacrifices. He assists in Honor Flight fundraising events and has been the cook for the past 2 years.
Helping with the Honor Flight is a rewarding experience for Gruchalla, and his favorite part is “just seeing the veterans as they see the memorials.”
The Good Life
“In spite of being diagnosed with cancer and having a stroke, I’ve had a good life. And, most people would say a good life ... with friends and family. ... I have associations and acquaintances because in Vietnam I learned that you don’t want to be friends with anybody because when friends die, it hurts. When we acquaintances die, it’s not as bad,” said Gruchalla.
Undoubtedly, the Vietnam War played a large role in Gruchalla’s life although he’s not solely defined by his years serving. Rather, his life in whole is a greater representation of his values.
When looking at Gruchalla’s experiences, it is evident that in enlisting to protect his brother, working as a Combat Medic, 37 years in the medical field, writing a book, and volunteering with veterans organizations, his primary focus has always been caring for others.
“... I wouldn’t change a thing. It was meant to be. And, like I said, it’s been a good life,” said Gruchalla. •
“My Lives a Medic: A Soldier’s Journal in Vietnam” can be purchased by emailing: pmatsonr@hotmail.com
