A Minnesota PBS Initiative
The Guard Saved My Life
Kevin Ryan was an Army helicopter pilot with the 101st Airborne Division in 1969. He was 8 years out of the Army before he joined the Minnesota National Guard, which he says saved his life and gave him direction.
I'd been out of the service for 8 years. Life was going nowhere... I got back in the military, I started flying again, and it was kinda like a breath of fresh air.
Kevin's story was captured with the help of TPT's Minnesota Remembers Vietnam team.
Story Themes: 101st Airborne Division, 1969, A Shau Valley, Army, ARVN, Career Military, Hamburger Hill, Kevin Ryan, Marine Recon, Marriage, National Guard, Phu Bai, Power Of Storytelling Interviews, PTSD, Special Forces, Survivor's Guilt, Watch