This story came from the same interview with Bobby Loudy as The Tiger in the Tank.
BOBBY
Ladies and gentlemen, I want to take you back to a moment that changed the course of my life forever. It was the 1960s. I was just about to start my junior year of high school.
SFX
Doorbell
KENNETH
Hi Bobby, are you ready to go shopping for new school clothes?
YOUNG BOBBY
Sure, Uncle Kenneth.
KENNETH
This is my friend Tommy. He’s gonna come with us.
TOMMY
Nice to meet you.
MOMMA
You’re early, Kenneth. The stores aren’t open yet. Come inside and wait.
SFX
Door close
TOMMY
Thank you, Ma’am. Wow, that sure is a nice piano. Mind if I try it out?
BRETT
A couple of measures of a late 1960s song like “Moon River”
YOUNG BOBBY
Say, you’re pretty good. Do you know any others?
BRETT
Background music medley of songs like “This Land is Your Land”, “Puff the Magic Dragon”, or other late 1960s popular sing alongs
BOBBY
In those days, having someone play an instrument well was a treat. So we kept asking Tommy to play and we’d all sing along. It felt good to share this time with my family. But Momma had things to do before we went shopping.
MOMMA
You boys sing the next one without me. I’m going to brush my teeth.
BRETT
Medley continues
BOBBY
After a while, I wondered what was keeping Momma. I went to check and…
BRETT
End music with a crescendo
YOUNG BOBBY
Oh, no! Kenneth, we need help! Momma’s on the floor!
BOBBY
Between us, we got her comfortable, but she was struggling to breathe. I remembered my 4H first aid class, and got a spoon from the kitchen to hold her tongue down so she could breathe.
SFX
Ambulance siren
BOBBY
That was the moment in which I felt absolutely helpless. The doctors said she’d had a cerebral hemorrhage. There wasn’t anything they could do. I knew right then that never wanted to feel that way again. I decided I wanted a career in the medical field.
Only I wasn’t the kind of kid who liked to study, and I knew medical school was pretty long, so I chose community college. The Vietnam War was going strong and staying in school gave me an enlistment deferment. Then my draft classification got messed up and I was suddenly a 1-A. I knew I’d be drafted soon. Remembering my dad’s stories about his time as a paratrooper, I knew I didn’t want to be in the Army. I went to another recruiter, instead.
BRETT
A few measures from the Navy song ‘Anchors Aweigh’
NAVY RECRUITER
So, Bobby, are you ready to see the world? In the Navy, you’ll gain valuable skills, serve your country with pride, and experience adventures you never dreamed possible.
YOUNG BOBBY
Yes, sir. I want to be a medic. Can I get a job like that in the Navy?
NAVY RECRUITER
You bet. We’re always looking for medics. Just sign these papers and we’ll get you started with an aptitude test. If you get a good score, we’ll put you into medic training.
BOBBY
I took the test and waited for the results.
SFX
Clock ticking, then footsteps
NAVY RECRUITER
Well, Bobby, we’ve got your test results right here. I’m sorry, son. We can’t let you be a medic.
YOUNG BOBBY
Why not? Did I fail the test?
NAVY RECRUITER
(chuckles) Actually, no. Your scores are too high.
YOUNG BOBBY
Well…what career are you gonna put me into?
NAVY RECRUITER
How do you feel about the Intelligence division?
SFX
Sounds like the sonar pinging in a submarine or radio morse code
BOBBY
My heart raced and I started sweating. The thought of being stuck in a radio closet on a submarine made my claustrophobia kick in! I couldn’t imagine a life like that, no sir, so I immediately told that recruiter what came to mind. And then I remembered my manners.
YOUNG BOBBY
No, thank you. I don’t want to join the Navy.
BOBBY
The next day I went to another recruiter. But he wasn’t very helpful.
BRETT
A few measures of “Up and Away” (Air Force song)
AIR FORCE RECRUITER
I’m sorry, your aptitude test is shared amongst all the service branches. And your score was pretty high. But if you come back in six months we can retest you.
YOUNG BOBBY
I have to wait that long?
AIR FORCE RECRUITER
Yep. And here’s what you’re going to do when you retake the test.
SFX
whispering
BOBBY
When I went back to retake the aptitude test, I followed his advice. In fact, I followed it so well that my score was almost too low! But that’s how I started my career as a medic in the U. S. Air Force.
I loved that job, and I could tell you a lot of stories about the things I saw while in the service. But there was one experience I’ll remember forever. I was working in the emergency room at Bitburg Air Base in Germany when we got a phone call.
SFX
Old fashioned phone ringing
NURSE
We need an ambulance over at base housing. One of the wives is going into labor!
MEDIC
C’mon Bobby, let’s go!
SFX
Ambulance siren
BOBBY
It took a few minutes to get to the enlisted housing unit. When we got there, we quickly got her on a gurney. I did my checks and discovered the baby was just starting to come.
MEDIC
How’s she doing?
BOBBY
(calmly) We’ve got plenty of time. Is this your first baby ma’am?
WOMAN
(breathing hard) No, those two kids over there are mine…
MEDIC
They can’t come with us, Ma’am.
WOMAN
My neighbor will take care of them. Yikes! I think we’d better hurry!
MEDIC
(excited) Yes, Ma’am!
BOBBY
We loaded her into the ambulance and were driving to the hospital when she started heavy labor. I checked her again; the baby was definitely coming. I’d never seen a real birth before and I mentally started going through the steps that I’d learned for delivering a baby. We got Doctor Gettry on the radio just in time.
SFX
Radio crackle
DOCTOR
(through a radio) Stay calm and focused, you can do this.
BOBBY
The baby’s head is coming!
DOCTOR
(through a radio) Make sure the cord isn’t wrapped around it’s neck.
BOBBY
Okay, now what?
DOCTOR
(through a radio) Check her vital signs. Is she comfortable?
BOBBY
I did that, Doctor. She’s fine. Do I need to do anything with the baby?
DOCTOR
(not through a radio) Just support it’s head. Don’t pull, let the mother do the pushing.
BOBBY
It’s coming, Doc!
SFX
Newborn crying
BOBBY
What do I do now?
DOCTOR
Put the clamps on.
BOBBY
He kept taking me through the steps. I wrapped the baby up, cut the cord, and handed it to the mother. It was about then that I realized the doctor’s voice was loud and clear, not like a radio transmission. I turned around and…
BOBBY
How long have you been there?
DOCTOR
The ambulance pulled up to the emergency room right about the time you were doing the delivery.
BOBBY
I’d been so focused and so scared of doing something wrong, that I never realized we’d arrived at the hospital. I didn’t realize the doctor had been behind me the whole time! But that birth was the greatest thing that I’d ever seen. I felt privileged to help bring a new life into the world. I felt like I’d witnessed a miracle when I heard that first cry of life.
Now that I’m older, I’ve realized that the path I chose was guided by my desire to help others. When I got out of the Air Force, I went to ETSU and became a nurse. Then I joined the Army Reserve. I spent 21 years in the service, retiring as a Captain. It’s been an incredible journey, and I wouldn’t change a single moment of it.
