Mr. Hutchins is a native of Coffee County, Tennessee. He spent four years in the ROTC Program while enrolled at Middle Tennessee State University in Murfreesboro, Tennessee. Upon his graduation from MTSU, he received a commission as a second lieutenant in the infantry branch.
He was with the 101st Airborne for two years, from 1964 to 1966. He spent one year at Ft. Campbell, Kentucky, and two years in Vietnam.
He flew to Vietnam on a C124 cargo plane, and his was the second troop unit to go into Vietnam. This was the summer of 1965. He was part of an advanced party to prepare the rest of the brigade to come into Vietnam.
Much of his experience in Vietnam was left untold, but he stated that his unit never left any of their men behind. This included the dead.
After his two years of service in Vietnam, Mr. Hutchins returned to Murfreesboro and taught ROTC at MTSU for two years.
From the summer of 1968 until the summer of 1969, he was with the 1st Air Calvary Unit. From the summer of 1969 until his release in 1970, he was stationed at Ft. Bragg, North Carolina, with the Special Forces Unit.
The interview with Mr. Doug Hutchins was conducted in historical Murfreesboro, Tennessee,by Janie Bogus on October 29, 2010.
