The Good Life – July-August 2020

LOCAL HERO | MIKE GRUCHALLA
working in the operating room.
Gruchalla saw firsthand how much of what the medics
learned in Vietnam was put into practice on American
soil.
“It was a slow process, but it went from ambulances
basically being a meat wagon ... to someone riding in the
ambulance able to initiate medical treatment. And, with
that, the use of helicopters to transport because we found
out in Vietnam that we only had basically an hour before
things would permanently die,” said Gruchalla.
“When I first came home, the VFWs and the American
Legions called me ... they both told me they didn’t want
me. ‘Vietnam was not a war ... we don’t want the Vietnam
vets’,” said Gruchalla.
Many years later, prompted by the positive change in
the public’s view of Vietnam veterans, Gruchalla joined
the VFW, AM Vets, Disabled American Veterans, and
Vietnam Veterans of America.
Gruchalla helps the Vietnam Veterans of America with
their 5K and 10K races as a crossing guard and is involved
“My Lives as a Medic”
At the consistent urging of a VA doctor and Gruchalla’s
now-wife, Gruchalla authored a book outlining the stories
he carries from the Vietnam War. He was reluctant at
first, in part due to his dyslexia which made the writing
process challenging, though he’s glad now that he wrote
it.
“My Lives as a Medic: A Soldier’s Journal in Vietnam”
provides a raw, honest memoir of Gruchalla’s experience
in the Vietnam War.
Giving Back Today
Gruchalla wasn’t always involved - or invited - into veterans
organizations.
46 / THE GOOD LIFE