Carolyn Hisako Tanaka

Born: 15 December 1935, United States
Died: Unknown
Country most active: United States
Also known as: NA

The following is republished from the Library of Congress’s Forever a Soldier: Unforgettable Stories of Wartime Service oral history project. This piece falls under under public domain, as copyright does not apply to “any work of the U.S. Government” where “a work prepared by an officer or employee of the U.S. Government as part of that person’s official duties” (See, 17 U.S.C. §§ 101, 105).

Veterans History Project Service Summary:
War or Conflict: Vietnam War, 1961-1975
Branch of Service: Army Nurse Corps
Service Unit/Ship: 24th Evacuation Hospital
Location of Service: Fort Sam Houston, Texas; Fort Ord, California; Long Binh, Vietnam
Highest Rank: Captain

“I could not believe I was coming home to the same reception I received twenty-three years before, following World War II. This time I was not the enemy, but I was there saving lives, perhaps their loved ones.” (Memoir, page 59)

Nicknamed Road Runner for her unflagging energy and enthusiasm, Carolyn Hisako Tanaka served in Vietnam in spite of a scarring childhood memory. At the age of six, she saw her family evicted from their California home in the wake of Pearl Harbor and relocated to an internment camp in Poston, Arizona. When the family returned to California after the war, they found their home burned to the ground. In 1966, as an emergency room nurse, she decided to enlist in the Army, telling skeptical friends, “I have a skill that is needed in Vietnam, and I’m going there to do my duty for my country.” Ironically, she returned from that war to a “welcome” that brought back bitter memories.


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