More About Diane Carlson Evans
- Diane Carlson Evans, a nurse who served in Vietnam and embodies the spirit of resilience and strength that we all strive to emulate.
- Diane arrived at the 36th Evacuation Hospital in Vung Tau in the summer of 1968 and started immediately, treating soldiers with a range of wounds from bullets to malaria.
- Six months later, she transferred to the 71st Evacuation Hospital in Pleiku, where doctors and nurses operated in helmets and flak-jackets as the sky rained enemy fire.
- Diane and her fellow nurses worked six days a week, 12 or more hours a day, sometimes on duty 24-36 hours straight, making gut-wrenching decisions on who could and couldn’t be saved.
- When the time came for Diane to leave Vietnam, she was unprepared for the hostility she encountered from Americans opposed to and disgusted by the war.
- Diane fought tirelessly for almost 10 years to have the Vietnam Women's Memorial built in Washington, D.C., a poignant and moving statue of two nurses and a wounded soldier.
- More than twenty-five years later, the memorial remains as a legacy of healing and hope for all Vietnam Veterans.
- Diane has continued to serve her country as an advocate for veterans, especially the women who paved the way for a new generation serving today.
