Vietnam: In Their Own Words

Nancy Jurgevich

Was the Women’s Army Corps (WAC) Company Commander at Long Binh, Vietnam from October 1968 til October 1969. She extended her tour for a Staff Job at First Logistical Command from November 1969 until December 1970. She is an Army Veteran with 26 years of service.  She is currently President of Vietnam Women Veterans (VWV), Non-Nurses.  The purpose of the group is to foster, encourage and promote the improvement of the condition of all line and staff female veterans of all branches of the Military.  One of her Personnel Goals is to make known to the public the contributions our women made in Vietnam.

Marcia Snow

Immediately following graduation from the university of North Carolina at Greensboro in 1965, she entered the army with a direct commission as a Second Lieutenant. She joined the Army specifically to be enrolled in the Army physical therapy program at the Medical Field Service School, Fort Sam, Houston, Texas. Overseas tours were in Japan and Vietnam. With a combination of active duty, break in service and army reserve duty Marcia Snow retired in 1994.

Rose Mary Burke

Rose Mary was raised in northwest Pennsylvania, graduated from Columbia Hospital school of nursing in Pittsburgh PA in August 1967. Enrolled in the Army student nurse program in August 1966 with a 2 year obligation of active duty when graduating. She was assigned to a 1300 bed Cantonment hospital at Fort Gordan GA in March 1968. And in Feb 1969 assigned to the 71^st evac hospital in Pleiku Vietnam. Utilizing the GI bill she received a BSN and MPH in nursing. The last 13 years of a 45-year nursing career were spent as an adult nurse practitioner and occupational health specialist. Rose Marie also served 20 years in the US Army reserve, retiring as a LT Colonel. She is currently volunteering at a VA medical clinic on a weekly basis.

Audrey Berstresser

A native of Fleetwood PA, Audrey enlisted in the Women’s Army Corps on April 29, 1966. She completed Basic and AIT at Fort McClellan, Alabama. In September 1967 she completed a one-year assignment as a clerk at Kirk Army Hospital, APG, Maryland. In September 1967 she received orders for duty at SHAPE, Belgium. At the end of her tour and enlistment she was informed that she was accepted for voluntary assignment to the Republic of Vietnam. Audrey arrived in Vietnam on Thanksgiving Day 1969 through the port of Cam Rahn Bay and was ferried via C-130 to Saigon.  After in processing she was bussed to Long Binh, headquarters for U.S. Army, Vietnam (USARV). She was assigned as a clerk typist to ACTIV – Combat Action Team, Vietnam. This assignment involved her in research and development projects going through field testing in Vietnam. Three of the projects were quite memorable: 1) use of night vision goggles by pilots and ground forces, 2) Mounting Xeon searchlights on helicopters to locate the enemy during night patrols and operations, and 3) introduction of Kevlar vests as body armor. She extended her tour at the end of her first tour and was assigned to USARV G3. After promotion to Staff Sergeant, she was appointed NCOIC of the Classified Repository. This position gave her the opportunity to hand deliver the classified redeployment plans from USARV to MACV. Huey helicopters flew her and the briefcase to Hotel-3 (chopper pad) in Saigon. On January 26, 1972 Audrey left Vietnam. She retired as a Sergeant Major on June 12, 1989.  She is a life member of Vietnam Veterans of America, VFW, AMVETS, and the American Legion She is also a member of Vietnam Women Veterans (non-nurses) and Women Veterans of Berks County.

Hannah Jacobson

She is a Wisconsin native and a Marine Corps veteran. She served on Marine Corps Air Station, New River in North Carolina for five years before moving to north to attend the University of Maryland in College Park. While in the Marine Corps, Hannah was a CH-53E heavy-lift helicopter crew chief, martial arts instructor, and teacher of various subjects. After leaving the military, Hannah studied Neuroscience and Kinesiology at UMD for a dual undergraduate degree. She is now the head trainer at her local gym and filling the training and health literacy gap for pre-, peri-, and post-menopausal women by standing up online training and support groups for women who fall into these categories.

Miranda Summers Lowe

She is a soldier, historian, and writer currently serving as the historian for the Army National Guard. Previously, she worked as a military history curator for Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History. She has deployed twice with the Army, serving as a supply sergeant and helicopter door in Iraq and a public affairs officer in the Horn of Africa. Her other assignments include serving in the Army Congressional Fellowship, as a speechwriter for the Director of the Army National Guard, and as a member of the Chief of Staff of the Army’s Operation Enduring Freedom Study group. She has a bachelor’s degree from The College of William and Mary and master’s degrees from Brown University and The George Washington University.