Vietnam Veteran With PTSD Helping Others in Arizona

Vietnam vet who briefed pilots helps those with PTSD
Arizona Daily Star
By Alexis Huicochea
November 3, 2015

Today, thanks to his faith and help from Veterans Affairs, Parker says his PTSD is manageable and he believes the events that occurred happened so he could serve others.

A.E. Araiza / Arizona Daily Star U.S. Air Force veteran Tom Parker served from 1968 to 1972, spending a year in Vietnam. Parker now helps other veterans who suffer from post-traumatic stress disorder.

More than four decades have passed since Tom Parker served in Vietnam, but he still feels the impact of his wartime experience.

The Air Force Buck Sergeant was sent to Vietnam in 1970, shortly after enlisting as a way to avoid the Army draft and, ironically enough, combat.

Serving in an intelligence role, Parker worked in forward air control, marking targets for fighters with smoke in the air, telling them where to drop bombs. On occasion, he went up in planes as an observer.

He also briefed pilots on what was happening in the area, advising them of where the enemy was and where they could safely land if needed.
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