“Dusty” Earl Trimmer has been a marketing professional for over forty years (1972 – 2013), representing billion dollar companies. He served in the 25th Infantry Tropic Lightning Division’s Bravo Company of the 3rd 22ndRegulars during the Vietnam War’s bloodiest years of 1968 – 1969 in South Vietnam’s Iron Triangle area near Cambodia. He served initially as a “grunt”, mostly as a pointman for the 1st Platoon of Bravo Company where he was a highly decorated combat infantryman. When his cuts and wounds from combat became so badly infected from the bacteria, Agent-Orange infested swamps of Vietnam, he was hospitalized with cellulitis of foot and leg. After recovering, he was re-assigned to the 25th Infantry Division’s Adjutant General’s office at Cu Chi base camp where he spent his last few months in country.
The author resides in northeast Ohio with his wife, Ginny and their Landseer Newfoundland, Bella.
BooksAndAuthor.com: Why did you write PAYBACK TIME?
Dusty: PAYBACK TIME ! was meant to be and is a sequel to my first book in November 2013 , CONDEMNED PROPERTY $ www.condemnedpropertybook.com
BooksAndAuthor.com: What year and age did you go to Vietnam?
Dusty: I entered the U.S. Army in October 1967, completer all of my training in October, November, December, January February. I landed Cam Rahn Airbase in mid March 1968 but was not assigned to and delivered to the 25 th Infantry Division until April 1 st or there about.
BooksAndAuthor.com: What health problems had from Vietnam? What concerns and problems have you had with the Department of Veterans Affairs ?
Dusty: Wounded in Vietnam, grazed head wound, knee and foot wounds. Infections and cellulitis set in on the knee and foot wounds.. I have severe PTSD from the war. Anxiety, hypertension, high blood pressure, nightmares, hallucinations, suicidal ideations, on and off and on again problems with alcohol, Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus and most recent an Ischemic Transient Brain Stroke (two of them actually)
BooksAndAuthor.com: What can the American people do to help?
Dusty: Concerns with the VA are too numerous to list or describe here and they have been ongoing for years.
BooksAndAuthor.com: Discuss your other book CONDEMNED PROPERTY.
Dusty: The American people have been recognizing us more in recent years. But, the damage done to us, to those of us who died over there and back home after the war can never me made up to us. If we could change the past highly erroneous media reporting of the war and their description of US that would help. This is one of the reasons I set out on my mission and wrote two books.....to try and present the truth about us , what happened over there, what happened when we came home and what is still happening to us today. I am afraid that the only solution is to reorganize and restructure the entire VA system.And, my brothers and I just have to keep telling our stories over and over and over again and again.
BooksAndAuthor.com: PAYBACK TIME is a great book and a great title - Did you write this straight from memory or were there's any journals you referenced back too?
Dusty: CONDEMNED PROPERTY ? was written almost entirely from memory with the help of several of my platoon brothers and other combat Vietnam War soldiers.It was a gritty, hard-core truthful book, written with an enormous amount of passion and anger...it had to be done that way and I offer NO apologies for it..It tells of the horrible living conditions we were forced to endure, the constant fear of a possible attack at anytime of the day or night. I talks of bravery and comrade that was equal to any American war of any era. Vietnam was a pure twilight zone that haunts mot who served there to this day.
BooksAndAuthor.com: What is NEXT?
Dusty: While both book's content came from actual experiences throughout the book, I did a lot of research and referencing throughout both books .Several qualified Vietnam veterans were quoted offering up some of the trials and tribulations they went thru.
PAYBACK TIME ! has only been available since the end of June so it has not had enough time to make much of an impact as CONDEMNED PROPERTY ? has on hundreds of Americans, Nam vets and others.