John Loudermilk was born to a Kentucky coal mining family in 1948. Following in the footsteps of two of his uncles, he enlisted in the Navy. He was 17 years old. After boot camp and Hospital Corpsman "A" School at Great Lakes, he spent six months working at Portsmouth Naval Hospital, taking care of Marines who had been injured in Vietnam. While it gave him some understanding of a corpsman's duties, as he says, “Nothing really prepared me for what I was going to see.” Loudermilk was assigned as a corpsman in the Fleet Marine Force (FMF) with the 1st Battalion, 5th Marines, on Hill 51 in I Corps, north of Da Nang. He discusses daytime patrols, nighttime ambushes, and daily mine-sweeping. He remembers one night in particular walking out with his platoon to set up an ambush, and instead being themselves ambushed between two rice paddies. It started with a crisscross device fashioned from 105 shells packed with homemade explosives. He received the Bronze Star for his actions that night. He also remembers vividly the nightmare that was the Battle for Hue City, the bizarre rules of engagement, the terrible losses, and delivering a child in the midst of the horror.