Lynn Kohl: Experiences of a Nurse in the Vietnam War

Marathon County Historical Society is proud to welcome Lynn Kohl to the Woodson History Center on Sunday, July 13 at 2 pm. She will be sharing her experiences as a nurse during the Vietnam War.

Kohl served as an operating room nurse in 71st Evacuation Hospital in Pleiku, the Central Highlands of Vietnam. She arrived in June 1969 and served there until June 1970. She was 22 years old. During her time in Vietnam she served as a nurse in the operating room, generally as a circulator who gets patients started and retrieves the needed supplies. However, she often ended up assisting with surgery when 100 or more wounded soldiers would arrive at a time; including helping to amputate a soldier's arm within minutes of her arrival at the hospital.

This presentation is part of a continuing series of programs presented in coordination with our current exhibit Marking Time: Voyage to Vietnam. This traveling exhibit, which features items left by soldiers aboard the troopship U.S.N.S. General Nelson M. Walker, will be on display at the Woodson History Center through February 15, 2015. The graffiti left on the bunks of the berthing unit are displayed and give an intimate look into the thoughts of the soldiers heading to fight in Vietnam in the late 1960s. For more information about the exhibit and the troopship visit vietnamgraffiti.com

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