# @americanredcross on Instagram

- **Type:** Image
- **Original URL:** https://www.instagram.com/p/DDfNQYSxp4b
- **Gondola URL:** https://gondola.cc/posts/72589271-americanredcross-instagram
- **Thumbnail:** https://img.gondola.cc/tr:w-,h-,fo-auto/postThumbnails/89a0ed2fb9.jpg
- **Posted:** 2024-12-12T18:01:12.000+00:00
- **Account Owner:** American Red Cross (@americanredcross) — https://gondola.cc/americanredcross

## Caption

When she was 21 years old, Terry Farish spent a year in Vietnam supporting the U.S. Army 25th Infantry Division as a Donut Dollie. She firmly believes the experience shaped the course of her life.

"I was recruited on my college campus near the primary helicopter training school in Denton, Texas. So many people I knew were deploying to Vietnam. I went there for a year — a year that would affect my entire life.

One of the hardest times at the base was at the landing zone. The commanding officer said to us, ‘These men have just returned. Can you spend some time with them?’

We walked in, and they were all on cots. They were visibly traumatized. Some were awake, and some were not. We were told it would help them if we could just come through and say hello. 

I remember kneeling beside their cots, introducing myself and saying I was with the Red Cross. We would talk about what we missed back at home. If they weren’t able to do that, I would just sit with them for a while.

I realized that these men didn't necessarily need conversation. They simply didn't want to be alone.

When people are forced to leave their homes, everything that was their culture — their social ways of living with each other — are broken. My experience shaped my understanding of migration due to war or political exile.

Many Vietnamese women worked in the base camps. They didn’t speak English, and we didn’t speak Vietnamese, but we established a relationship using gestures and our own invented English/Vietnamese slang. My connection to that local community has been a part of my life ever since.

The troops and community appreciated us. Even the people who never saw us over there have thanked me for being there.”

Terry Farish was one of the hundreds of Red Crossers on the front lines with service members during the Vietnam War, bringing a piece of home to them.

Donut Dollies collectively flew two million miles across the Vietnamese jungle to provide recreational activities, games and comfort to U.S. troops. Their legacy lives on in the many ways we support our veterans and service members today, and we're so grateful to Terry for sharing her story. #StoriesThatInspire #GiveWithMeaning

## Stats

- **Views:** 0
- **Likes:** 395
- **Shares:** 0
- **Comments:** 6

## Tags

storiesthatinspire, givewithmeaning

---
Copyright (c) Gondola