Mike Ahasic: A gut-wrenching experience

By Charlie Souhrada, Honor Flight Chicago Veteran Interview Volunteer

During his first two years of service, Army life was pretty good for Mike Ahasic. Everything changed during his third year, however, when he served in Vietnam. More than 50 years later, his emotions are still raw. 

An only child, Mike was born and raised in Aurora where his parents, William and Delight, helped run a family business – Aurora Laundry and Dry Cleaning. From a young age, he learned to embrace hard work. “Dad had me down there quite a bit watching and helping out,” he remembers. “It taught be how to be good with my hands and how to fix almost anything.”   

After graduating from West Aurora High in 1960, Mike earned a bachelor’s degree from Denison University in Ohio in 1964, and went on to Indiana University, Bloomington, where he earned an MBA in 1966 and met his wife, Deanna. “We used to hang out with the same group of friends and gravitated toward each other.” 

The Vietnam War was escalating, and rather than run the risk of getting drafted, Mike took a recruiter’s advice and committed to enter the Army Medical Service Corps as an officer. “If you got drafted, you didn’t know what you were going to do. I thought it would be better to take a chance as an officer and see what happens. Luckily, I did.” 

After making the commitment and completing graduate school, Mike returned to Aurora, went back to work in the family business and waited. In June 1967, a brown envelope arrived in the mail with orders to report for basic training at Fort Sam Houston, San Antonio. There, due to his flatfeet, the Army couldn’t find boots to fit him. “I tried to get out of the service because of the problem … it didn’t work!” Instead, Mike wore brown civilian shoes all through basic training. 

His next step was the Army’s five-week Finance School course at Fort Benjamin Harrison near Indianapolis. Then, after finishing finance school, he took his first duty assignment at Fort Totten, a small base near Queens, New York, where he worked in the Medical Equipment Research and Development Laboratory (MERDL) which developed products for battlefield medical care.  

While he was stationed at Fort Totten, Mike and Deanna were married in October 1967, and lived on the base until June 1969, when he was ordered to report to Vietnam. Deanna and the couple’s first-born daughter, Kathy, moved in with Deanna’s parents, while Mike took a series of civilian flights to Vietnam. There, he served as the adjutant/detachment commander of a Medical Unit, Self-contained, Transportable (MUST) hospital in Lai Khe, northwest of Saigon. 

According to VAVeteran.org, the MUST was a Vietnam era replacement for MASH units used during the Korean War. The system was a series of inflatable, air-conditioned shelters, some equipped with surgical and patient care facilities comparable to a permanent hospital. “We were the first stop. If things were really bad, they bypassed us and went straight to Saigon.” 

Mike’s unit was aligned with the Army’s 1st Infantry Division, the “Big Red One,” and situated near a rubber tree plantation. In addition to hospital facilities, the unit was equipped with an airfield, truck depot, and separate shelters for barracks, mess, maintenance, officers club, enlisted men’s club, and administration. 

There, working under a commanding officer, Colonel Wesley Grimes Byerly Jr., a civilian surgeon who volunteered to serve, Mike helped run the unit’s operations which included supply and registration officers, more than 90 enlisted men, seven doctors, two surgeons, two orthopedic surgeons, one radiologist, one anesthesiologist, and eight nurses. 

In one of his letters home, Mike humbly reported that he “signed a lot of papers.” Unfortunately, his responsibilities also included awarding Purple Hearts to servicemen and that experience is still raw more than 50 years later. 

The U.S. Department of Defense notes the Purple Heart is a solemn distinction that recognizes service members who have “greatly sacrificed themselves, or paid the ultimate price, while in the line of duty.” More than 350,000 Purple Hearts were awarded during the Vietnam War. In keeping with protocol, the Purple Heart was awarded to all wounded who stayed at the MUST unit for 24 hours. Mike’s role involved recording the event and presenting the award – a gut-wrenching experience. “My first two years of service were fine, but then I had to give out those Purple Hearts. It may sound strange, but it was tough,” he says. “I saw the worst of the worst and it still hurts.”  

In early 1970, Mike’s unit received orders to pack up the MUST. When those efforts were complete, he was awarded the Bronze Star and transferred to Cam Ranh Bay to command an ambulance unit. “Cam Ranh Bay had some of the most beautiful beaches in the world,” he remembers. “It was just like you weren’t in any kind of a war.” 

In June 1970, Mike returned to the U.S., settled in Aurora with Deanna, and rejoined the family business. Over time, the couple welcomed three more children, Daniel, Rebecca and Margie. In 2013, Mike and Deanna moved to their current home in Sugar Grove. Three years later, the family business was sold, and Mike picked up a series of consulting jobs until the pandemic hit. “Covid ‘retired’ me,” he says. Nowadays, Mike spends time working in his woodshop, and meeting up with fellow Model A Ford owners.   

Mike looks forward to his Honor Flight, which he plans to enjoy with his son, Dan, an Aurora paramedic/fireman, serving as his guardian for the day. “I’m excited about it and the opportunity to enjoy the experience with Dan. I can’t wait!” 

Thank you for serving our country, Mike! We can’t wait for you to enjoy your Honor Flight!