A Minnesota PBS Initiative
Everywhere We Went, We Walked
Willie Pargo joined the Marine Corps as part of the Delayed Entry Program while he was still in high school. Six months after joining, he was sent to Vietnam, and he was shocked to learn how different Vietnam was. Upon coming home, Willie turned to alcohol to self-medicate and treat what would later be diagnosed as PTSD. Now, he urges all veterans to take advantage of social services for treatments, saying "veterans make America great."
You have to wake up and decide what you're going to do. Are you gonna live as a casualty for the rest of your life, or are you gonna cast that cloak off and live?
Willie's story was captured with the help of TPT's Minnesota Remembers Vietnam team.
Biographical Details
Submitted From: Brooklyn Park, MN
Primary Location During Vietnam: Marble Mountains, Vietnam 
Story Subject: Military Service
Military Branch: U.S. Marine Corps
Dates of Service: 1966 - 1969
Veteran Organization: Military Order of the Purple Heart
Story Themes: Addiction, African American, Bloomington Picnic, Boot Camp, Brooklyn Park, Combat, Coming Home, Da Nang, Delayed Entry Program, Drugs and Alcohol, First Impressions, Marble Mountains, PTSD, Terrain, The VA, Watch, Willie Pargo
Show Comments