My Boys

Explicit content warning

11/02/21 • 31 min

Edie Meeks had two brothers, one who was serving in Vietnam and the other who was protesting the war. She loved them both but decided that if something happened to her brother in combat, she wanted him to have the best care. She volunteered for the Army Nurses Corps, one of 100,000 women who served in Vietnam during the war, working 12 hours a day, six days a week, fighting to save lives and haunted by those who died.

For more powerful memories from veterans, visit https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/american-veteran/, where you can also watch the American Veteran television series and digital short films. Learn more by using #AmericanVeteranPBS.

Previous Episode

She Never Knew

When the Japanese bombed Pearl Harbor, Frank DeVita wanted revenge. He enlisted in the Coast Guard, his quickest way into service. His mom figured he’d “patrol a beach on Coney Island.” Instead, on D-Day, he ended up on a landing craft transporting soldiers to the slaughterhouse that was Omaha Beach and ferrying back shocking numbers of dead and wounded. It was a story that he bottled up for seventy years.

Next Episode

My Double Life

When Brandon Anderson was young and homeless, selling drugs to stay alive, the Army gave him refuge and trained him for a real job. But as a queer serviceman in the era of “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell,” it also forced him to live a double life. His military career ended when his fiancé back home was shot by police. Anderson acknowledged his relationship and requested leave to be by his side. The army’s response would change his life, and his feelings about the military, forever.