Former US marine John Hoysradt was dispatched to Việt Nam in 1966, four months after his 18th birthday, and stationed at Đà Nẵng airbase. Hoysradt saw combat in some of the fiercest battles in the central region during the Việt Nam War. He returned to Việt Nam in 2019 and again in 2022. Now, he helps in groups such as Veterans for Peace and assists children at orphanages.

The former US soldier told Việt Nam News reporter Công Thành about his journey back to central Việt Nam and his ambition to live happily ever after.

John Hoysradt and his wife join a tour in Hội An. He is happy with life in Việt Nam and helps needy people and children. Photo courtesy of John Hoysradt

Four months after my 18th birthday, in May 1966, I landed at the airbase in Đà Nẵng. From there, we were transported by truck to Chu Lai, a military base in Quảng Nam. I spent approximately one and a half months with the 1st Battalion, 7th Marines. I was then transferred north to Đông Hà Town, where I joined the 2nd Battalion, 1st Marines.

Around mid-July 1966 we went on the biggest military operation of that time. It was called Operation Hastings and lasted about three weeks. We were then ordered South, southwest of Đà Nẵng, to regroup and retrain.

Our battalion area was set up and remained there until sometime in November 1967. From Đà Nẵng we ran many operations out of there, including areas like Lộc Sơn Mountain and Gò Nổi Island. The latter was a very scary place, and if anybody who was there ever tells you they weren’t scared, they are not telling you the truth.

My section and I were attached to Fox Company, 2nd Battalion, 1st Marines sent to an outpost on a hill known as Lộc Sơn Mountain in mid-January of 1967.

On the morning of April 21, I watched a patrol go down the hill, walk across the rice paddies toward Bình Sơn and, as the patrol entered the tree line out of my sight, all hell broke loose.

From what I now understand, approximately two divisions of the North Việt Nam Army were in the process of trying to overrun us. The fierce fighting went on for two days, and I only remember parts of it. I remember one of my men with blood running down his forehead, another accidentally double fed a mortar tube.

I don’t remember leaving the hilltop, but we had to leave by chopper. It’s really something how the mind protects you and blocks things out that it doesn’t want you to remember.

These were a few of the operations we were involved in: Operation Oregon, Operation Deckhouse, and more, some of which I don’t remember the names of.

It was around November 1967 when we left Đà Nẵng and moved north to Cồn Tiên in Quảng Trị Province, where I stayed until mid-January 1968, approximately two weeks before the Tết Offensive broke out.

Post-war return

The former US marine poses with his wife. Photo courtesy of John Hoysradt

I returned to Việt Nam alone in 2019. I was looking for closure when I did so. During the war I was a marine, but really an 18-year-old kid, and you had to grow up fast.

I landed in HCM City. While back in the States, I had been corresponding with a Vietnamese woman for about four months, and then we met. She was beautiful, as all Vietnamese women are, she was intelligent, had a great personality and was fun to be around.

During the stay from March to October we dated and enjoyed Việt Nam by meeting new friends, both Vietnamese and foreigners, and taking trips, but then I had to go back to the US, planning on being there for maybe two months.

Unfortunately, the pandemic meant I did not return until almost two years later, in March 2022.

During those two years, we continued to correspond through texting and video calls. I fell in love with her. And upon returning to Việt Nam, I married her, but unfortunately it did not work out.

In September 2023, I decided I was going to move from HCM City. It’s a beautiful city but it’s becoming too crowded and expensive, and there is definitely too much smog. I had in mind Nha Trang or Đà Nẵng.

After several occasions of travelling back-and-forth between the two locations, I decided I was going to move to Nha Trang. I lived there for three months. It is very beautiful, but for me was just a little too boring, and so it was time to try and see what Đà Nẵng was like. I moved to Đà Nẵng in December 2023.

Members of Veterans for Peace with AO victims and children with disabilities at the Đà Nẵng AO Victims Centre. Photo courtesy of John Hoysradt

I had been in contact with a Vietnamese woman who wanted me to meet her husband, so the first night here I met with them and two other couples, the husbands were American and the wives were Vietnamese.

We went out to dinner and had a great time, and that was just the beginning. I got an apartment, made new friends and learned the culture. Then I started corresponding with a lady who lived in Đồ Sơn Town, in the northern city of Hải Phòng.

In March 2024, after a period of corresponding, we decided I would go to Hải Phòng and meet her and her family. We fell in love. A month later, we were married in Đồ Sơn Town. We just celebrated our first anniversary last month.

One thing about friendship with Vietnamese, they are very loyal, dedicated people, and definitely true friends. I’ve learned so much about the Vietnamese culture, especially their dedication to family.

Since moving to Đà Nẵng, I have tried to become more involved in helpful groups, such as Veterans for Peace and looking after children at orphanages. Being involved with them is a dream.

I think most foreigners who have lived here for any amount of time know that it is a safe place. So I think I have found a place that I can call home. I can enjoy life with my wife, and we want to continue to help the community, especially the children and the needy. VNS