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About the Author Mike McDermott served as an enlisted paratrooper before he was commissioned an infantry officer through the University of South Dakota’s ROTC program. After three years in combat with the 101st Airborne Division in Vietnam he transferred to Advisory Team 162 and joined the South Vietnamese army’s 5th Airborne Battalion. He was that unit’s senior advisor during the 1972 Easter Offensive and the dramatic and bloody battle for the city of An Loc. Among the last American soldiers to fight in Vietnam, Mike was twice awarded the Distinguished Service Cross, the nation’s second-highest award for valor. He also received the Silver Star and the Purple Heart as well as more than thirty other awards and decorations during a career that included returning to Southeast Asia for ten years as a military attaché. A Master Parachutist, Mike wore the Ranger Tab, the Pathfinder Badge, and the Combat Infantryman Badge with pride. A colonel when he retired, he then taught a high school alternative program, working with students focused on completing their graduation requirements. Mike and his wife, Chulan, are currently living the good life in Wyoming. ...

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