Just before August 17, A-5 had lost both of its Navy corpsmen, and new replacements Alford L. Green and John L. Babbick Jr. arrived. August 17 was their first and last day of combat as our first replacements for "A" Company. I was their first customer. They quickly gave me a half grain of morphine in each arm.
We came to the red slash ditch and one held me against the side while the other pulled from the top. At the next ditch we tried the same method, but it seemed steeper. "Come on," said the man up on top. When I fell over the top, Green said, "Nice going, Luster. We can take you from here." I saw the big, shady, ash tree and one went for a litter. They headed to the road where the M-26 was parked. Babbick of Frisco asked Green of Colorado to stop to rest for a minute. "No," was the reply. Finally Green agreed to stop for a rest. One stood between the sun and me. It seemed a very short stop and then it was on to the tank.
It took a long time for the two corpsmen to get me off the ridge, and by that time I felt as if I knew them personally. Their vocabulary was so clean they could have been ministers. Those corpsmen never used profanity at all and I was impressed. Before their first day on the line was out, Corpsmen Green and Babbick were both hit hard. Babbick received a severe head wound (he lost half of his face), and died shortly thereafter near Obong-ni. Al Green was from Colorado and Babbick was from San Francisco, California.
From the memoirs of:
Herbert Richard "Lefty" Luster
We came to the red slash ditch and one held me against the side while the other pulled from the top. At the next ditch we tried the same method, but it seemed steeper. "Come on," said the man up on top. When I fell over the top, Green said, "Nice going, Luster. We can take you from here." I saw the big, shady, ash tree and one went for a litter. They headed to the road where the M-26 was parked. Babbick of Frisco asked Green of Colorado to stop to rest for a minute. "No," was the reply. Finally Green agreed to stop for a rest. One stood between the sun and me. It seemed a very short stop and then it was on to the tank.
It took a long time for the two corpsmen to get me off the ridge, and by that time I felt as if I knew them personally. Their vocabulary was so clean they could have been ministers. Those corpsmen never used profanity at all and I was impressed. Before their first day on the line was out, Corpsmen Green and Babbick were both hit hard. Babbick received a severe head wound (he lost half of his face), and died shortly thereafter near Obong-ni. Al Green was from Colorado and Babbick was from San Francisco, California.
From the memoirs of:
Herbert Richard "Lefty" Luster
Just before August 17, A-5 had lost both of its Navy corpsmen, and new replacements Alford L. Green and John L. Babbick Jr. arrived. August 17 was their first and last day of combat as our first replacements for "A" Company. I was their first customer. They quickly gave me a half grain of morphine in each arm.
We came to the red slash ditch and one held me against the side while the other pulled from the top. At the next ditch we tried the same method, but it seemed steeper. "Come on," said the man up on top. When I fell over the top, Green said, "Nice going, Luster. We can take you from here." I saw the big, shady, ash tree and one went for a litter. They headed to the road where the M-26 was parked. Babbick of Frisco asked Green of Colorado to stop to rest for a minute. "No," was the reply. Finally Green agreed to stop for a rest. One stood between the sun and me. It seemed a very short stop and then it was on to the tank.
It took a long time for the two corpsmen to get me off the ridge, and by that time I felt as if I knew them personally. Their vocabulary was so clean they could have been ministers. Those corpsmen never used profanity at all and I was impressed. Before their first day on the line was out, Corpsmen Green and Babbick were both hit hard. Babbick received a severe head wound (he lost half of his face), and died shortly thereafter near Obong-ni. Al Green was from Colorado and Babbick was from San Francisco, California.
From the memoirs of:
Herbert Richard "Lefty" Luster
We came to the red slash ditch and one held me against the side while the other pulled from the top. At the next ditch we tried the same method, but it seemed steeper. "Come on," said the man up on top. When I fell over the top, Green said, "Nice going, Luster. We can take you from here." I saw the big, shady, ash tree and one went for a litter. They headed to the road where the M-26 was parked. Babbick of Frisco asked Green of Colorado to stop to rest for a minute. "No," was the reply. Finally Green agreed to stop for a rest. One stood between the sun and me. It seemed a very short stop and then it was on to the tank.
It took a long time for the two corpsmen to get me off the ridge, and by that time I felt as if I knew them personally. Their vocabulary was so clean they could have been ministers. Those corpsmen never used profanity at all and I was impressed. Before their first day on the line was out, Corpsmen Green and Babbick were both hit hard. Babbick received a severe head wound (he lost half of his face), and died shortly thereafter near Obong-ni. Al Green was from Colorado and Babbick was from San Francisco, California.
From the memoirs of:
Herbert Richard "Lefty" Luster
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