During the height of the Vietnam War, a Warsaw resident spent it doing her part to support the troops.
In September 1968, Eugenia Fulkerson headed to Vietnam as a Red Cross "Donut Dolly."
The Donut Dollies was a Red Cross program for women who were college graduates and had a desire to increase troop morale.They were airlifted and dropped into isolated combat zones throughout Vietnam.
They often visited soldiers in the field, wearing signature powder blue dresses, and offered the soldiers a brief respite from the war.
Without special training or protective gear, the Donut Dollies would bring games to soldiers or just provide someone to talk to.
Now with the release of a documentary titled "A Touch Of Home" by Arrowhead Films, Fulkerson conducted a program called "A Touch of Home in a Combat Zone" Tuesday at the Honeywell House, Wabash.
Of the footage in the 48-minute documentary, some footage came from Fulkerson, who chronicled some of her time in Vietnam with a Super 8 movie camera. The program also included an 11-minute short film by Fulkerson.
Fulkerson said the goal of the program was to get people, especially veterans, to talk about their experiences during war time.
Fulkerson hopes to be able to conduct the program locally.
The Vietnam War during the late '60s was a topic of conversation for everyone, and Fulkerson said she hopes to bring people from varying viewpoints together to discuss it.
Fulkerson said in her family there were pro-war and staunchly anti-war points of view.
"The Vietnam War was fought every morning at the breakfast table," said Fulkerson.
She said she was inspired to join the "Donut Dollies" while she worked as a reporter for the Lafayette Journal and Courier.
After graduating from Indiana University, she went to work there and was given an array of assignments. One of those assignments was to interview that year's Miss Purdue.
During the interview, Miss Purdue mentioned that she was going to Vietnam to work as a Donut Dolly. That sounded like something Fulkerson wanted to be involved with.
"When she told me about the program I thought, 'Women can do this?' And I wanted to go as well," said Fulkerson.
Tuesday's program wasn't limited to Vietnam veterans. Two World War II and Korean War veterans were also on hand.
The program reminds Fulkerson of that year she spent in Vietnam.
"It was the most intense, wonderful year of my life," said Fulkerson.
