“It’s Going To Be Ok, Mom”: Service With The WACs In Vietnam

Lidia “Marty” Contreras joined the Army in August, 1958, for a job. Basic Training at Ft. McClellan, Alabama, was a culture shock, and it was followed by Advanced Training at Ft. Sam Houston, Texas, where she trained as a telephone operator. During the Cuban Missile Crisis, she was stationed in Germany as the Cold War heated up. At the beginning of January, 1968, she landed at Tan Son Nhut Airport in Vietnam, on the way to joining the WAC (Women’s Army Corps) Detachment there. She was met at the airport by 1SG Crawford and SFC Benson, and was assigned to work with the JAG (Judge Advocate General) as a stenographer. She was serving as CQ (Charge of Quarters) and remembers February 18, 1968, the night the ammo dump blew up at Long Binh. She also recalls riots at the Long Binh Jail. While she was deployed, her mother frequently mailed packages, and her favorites were the ones containing Baby Ruth candy bars, and Mexican food.