Retired U.S. Army Colonel Robert “Bob” Helvey was born and raised in Charleston, West Virginia. His mother was a nurse and his father was a mechanic & blacksmith. As a “Distinguished Military Graduate” of the Reserve Officer Training Program at Marshall University he received a direct commission in the U.S. Army in 1962. Following initial training at the Infantry Officer’s Basic Course and Airborne school in Fort Benning, Georgia, his first assignment was with the 7th Cavalry in Korea. Helvey went on to serve two tours in Vietnam; the first as an ARVN advisor with Advisory Team 3 (1965-1966), and the second was as a company commander in the 2d Battalion, 12th Cavalry (1967-1968). For combat actions during those two tours he earned three Silver Star medals and the Distinguished Service Cross medal – the U.S. Army's second highest award for extreme gallantry and risk of life in actual combat. Of the three Purple Heart medals he earned he says, “I was probably the luckiest guy in the world. No bullet wounds.” His wounds were from shrapnel. He speaks candidly about leadership and his experiences in combat. A soldier’s soldier, a consistent theme throughout this interview is that Colonel Helvey respected and cared for those soldiers under his command.

Key Words : ROTC, “White Mice”, Arc Light, combat trains (logistics), Starlight Scope; Martha Raye, Johnnie Unitas