Snakes were also commonly used traps inside these tunnels. This restoration was pivotal as it enabled some of the key successes enjoyed by the Viet Cong. Richard Flaherty, was certainly a standout. One Viet Cong technique was to slit a mans throat or garrotte him as he came up through a connecting trap door; this often did not phase the men. Capt. This is a dangerous condition that can lead to serious complications for the fetus or even death. To learn more or comment about Captain Flaherty please visit The Giant Killer Facebook page. Americans often carpet bombed areas under suspicion to try flushing out the enemy. Doctors from Stamford Connecticut's Regional Hospital worked intensely to save the newborn as his mother wasn't aware of her blood group of Rh-negative. With a passion for historical learning and historical education, her writing interests include social history, and war history, especially researching obscure facts about the Second World War. The shortest soldier to fight in Vietnam was a Green Beret. During the Second World War, the Vietnamese first constructed underground tunnels to fight Japanese invasion. Photo credit: Funker530. each comment to let us know of abusive posts. Many American men were trying to avoid serving the U.S. military in the 1960s and 1970s. His unit in the 101st was ambushed as it passed a hidden North Vietnamese bunker. In hindsight, listening to the Viet Cong talk about their experiences in these tunnels, it appears more training certainly would have benefitted the American cause. Medically speaking, Richard would be considered a proportionate dwarf. Upon graduation he was assigned to the 3rd Special Forces Group (Airborne) as a Special Forces Operations Detachment A (SFODA) Commander in Company A of the 3rd SFG in Thailand. Nobody ever knew where these guys were coming from they pointed out in jungle school that there was a tunnel system we had numerous tunnel rats, but we never knew exactly where or how extensive or where the entrance was. He enlisted that same year, finishing basic training, qualifying for Officer Candidate School, and deploying to Vietnam as a second lieutenant. The objective is to promote history on Medium and demonstrate the value of historical writing. None of these wars were longer than the Afghan war, anyway.] He was an American hero of great stature. TIMES STAFF WRITER. Under Lieutenant Flahertys astute direction and leadership, the enemy bunker was swiftly destroyed, enabling his platoon to advance and continue its devastating attack against the enemy.. He showed his fearsome warrior spirit during the Vietnam War, and later entered the roster of the Army's elite task . We can imagine that it may have had something to do with his Vietnam combat experiences. Equally, these countries failed to understand how difficult it would be to detect and neutralize such networks. That medically makes you a dwarf (little person). Yuzuk had started to look into his friends story well before his death and discovered that hed worked as an undercover agent for federal authorities during the 1980s. His ODA was tasked with training the Royal Thai Army in counterinsurgency operations and prepare them for a deployment to Vietnam. We often look at college students as punk kids, lazy frat guys or any other kind of social stereotype. Captain Flaherty's incredible life story was captured in the Amazon #1 Best Selling book, "The Giant Killer" available on Amazon as a Paperback, eBook, & Audiobook, and the award-winning documentary, "The Giant Killer Finding Flaherty" available worldwide on Amazon, Google Play, YouTube, iTunes, and Tubi. Current standards for men is 60-80 inches tall. Similarly, one soldier recalls how an encounter with the biggest rat he had ever seen led him to continually fire his gun. The two began meeting more frequently, and Yuzuk became so fascinated with Flahertys story that he asked permission to tell it in the form of a documentary. Just 10 days before Flaherty's death, Flaherty told Yuzuk his story. Flaherty and Yuzuk were friends for roughly 15 years before he felt he could share his story with the officer. A Soldier's Thoughts. Not only was he the shortest Green Beret to serve in Vietnam, he was also the shortest US serviceman in history. These homeless veterans deserve more from us. We had built the runway surface with 2 ft by 12 ft Marston Mat aluminum planks with interlocking grooves along each edge. It was a horrendous ordeal to face and brought even the toughest of men to tears. If you look at all of the things the radio operators were tasked with, it becomes abundantly . Threats of harming another It turned out to be a lot. Neither family, nor friends know why. #1 New York Times bestselling author Doug Stanton- "You are holding in your hands an amazing journey into a world of puzzles, intrigue, and mystery. The technical storage or access is strictly necessary for the legitimate purpose of enabling the use of a specific service explicitly requested by the subscriber or user, or for the sole purpose of carrying out the transmission of a communication over an electronic communications network. One of his men got stung and came out screaming, refusing to ever go into a tunnel again. This meant naturally handguns were most commonly chosen. In the 1940s Ho Chi Minh, one of the founders of the Viet Cong, stated You can kill ten of my men for every one I kill of yours. *The appearance of U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) visual information does not imply or constitute DoD endorsement. Twenty-year-old Mike . Pictured left to right: Topsy, Fatty, Cotton (killed fitty men and got his shins blowed off), Brooklyn, Stinky, and Fatty. A twenty-two year old U.S. Army Lieutenant finds himself in the fight of his life on his birthday. When it came to Americans, however, some found it difficult to kill when they were face-to-face with the enemy in such tight confines. You could not help but notice him. Sometimes, they would smear the tip of the stakes with urine, feces, poison, or other contaminants to infect the wound when it penetrated the skin. Lieutenant Flaherty immediately called a 90 Millimeter recoilless rifle team to his position after having spotted an enemy bunker position to his front, which was delivering automatic weapons fire on his platoon. [7] Flaherty was buried at Forest Memorial Park in Milton. There is a story about a fiancee who died in a car accident, and another about Flaherty doing undercover work for the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms (ATF). How does he get kicked out due to reduction of force? . A heavier tunnel-exploration kit may also include nylon rope, body-armor vests, grappling hooks, work gloves, kneepads, and earplugs. They are our brothers and sisters. God only knows what that experience and so many other combat experiences did to Flahertys mind. Lauri Trni (Larry Thorne) in his three military uniforms. An average Liberian woman is 155.66cm (5 feet 1.28 inches) tall. Captain Flaherty's Irish lineage is traced back to his grandfather Joseph Patrick Flaherty who was born in the Aran islands and his grandmother Bridget Smythe was born in the village of Feakle next to the Sliabh Aughty Mountains. Abandoned by the CIA, Flaherty locates a smuggling ring stealing tons of explosives including a classified weapon from inside a U.S. Army base, and signs on to work the investigation undercover with the Federal law enforcement agency the ATF (Alcohol, Tobacco & Firearms). Soon after, Flaherty is killed by a hit-and-run driver. Reports state the soldier in question had no time to scream or to unsheathe his knife, the snake had already knotted tighter around his neck and badly bit his face. limit, but he could do nothing about the height part. ", People dont know about Cotton and it shows. He says of Flaherty, I think that Vietnam tortured Richard.. 1968 the A Shau Valley of South Vietnam. New comments cannot be posted and votes cannot be cast, Press J to jump to the feed. High 64F. Photo credit: USMC Archives. The technical storage or access that is used exclusively for anonymous statistical purposes. Tho claims the Viet Cong prepared both the necessary troops and assembled the supplies needed in these tunnels to conduct the Tet Offensive of 1968. He left the Army in 1971 at the rank of captain due to a reduction in force. He came home from Vietnam after his second tour and moved to Hallandale, Florida, where he worked for a time with the U.S. Despite the superior firepower of the American military, the determination of the Viet Cong was on another level entirely. Yuzuk started digging and discovered that Flaherty had worked undercover with the Feds during the 80s. He located witnesses and found documentation in a storage unit that revealed that even while homeless, Flaherty was still conducting clandestine missions around the worldCambodia, Iraq, Jordan, Venezuelabut who was he working for? Bob Roberts, who was photographed when Jakob Nacken was captured, has been awarded France's highest military honour, the Legion d'Honneur, by the French . This way, they smelled the same as the GIs and the dogs became unable to locate the enemy. Why they volunteered varied person to person, but one American soldier speculated volunteers were trying sometimes to make up for problematic lives back home or to prove their manhood in truly testing conditions. The same soldier noted that once rats conquered their fear, assuming they survived, some even came to like their work for the rats, the light at the end of the tunnel was usually a VC with a candle.. These tunnels hugely impacted American morale as it was difficult to comprehend that the enemy could be hiding just feet away yet were undetectable and unreachable. When the Vietnam War heated up, Flaherty volunteered for the Army. There is an average of five names per line. Punji stake traps found in the tunnels highlight one of the most disgusting and feared examples of Vietnamese booby traps. You can view the full DCAS record for an individual named in the list via the Access to Archival Databases resource, or AAD. If possible they also used gas to disorient, scare, and suffocate tunnel rat soldiers. Overcast. Standing at 4 feet, 11 inches, Popoca may be the shortest Soldier during missions, but she has a "tiny but mighty" mindset, she said. Thank you! When it comes to headgear, some soldiers wore a helmet or a visored cap along with a microphone and/ or transistor radio attached. That medically makes you a dwarf (little person). He deployed with the Screaming Eagles to Vietnam and served as a platoon and recon platoon leader. After college David moved to Miami and became a 19-year veteran of the Aventura Police Department working as a uniformed road patrolman, undercover officer, and detective. The action took place on April 20, 1968, when Flahertys platoon was ambushed and came under withering enemy fire. These soldiers made punji stakes out of heated and sharpened wood or bamboo. Consenting to these technologies will allow us to process data such as browsing behavior or unique IDs on this site. I didnt know.. Clothing-wise, it was a good idea to wear tight waterproof items to stop clothing from snagging on obstructions, leather gloves, and, if possible as mentioned knee pads to assist with crawling around. Be Nice. Lance Corporal Robert A. Bishop explores a Viet Cong tunnel complex found by Leathernecks of the 2d Battalion, 26th Marines. Press question mark to learn the rest of the keyboard shortcuts. We offer our condolences to his family and to his friends. All rights reserved. A soldier holding a small but venomous snake. lkunl/Shutterstock. 22. Related: See what its like to jump out of a C-17 with the Armys 82nd Airborne. During that 13-month tour to Vietnam, Flaherty received the Silver Star and two Bronze Stars for valor, respectively, the third and second-highest award for bravery under fire, and was wounded three times. One tunnel rat claimed that the booby traps and Viet Cong did not frighten them as much as encountering the local ants. Of course, the local Vietnamese population designed the tunnels with their own size in mind. Overall, the Vietnamese were very quick to restore damages and continue as if nothing happened. person will not be tolerated. Whitesides was killed, and Thompson was taken prisoner; he would ultimately spend just short . Tunnel rat soldiers often used flashlights to guide the way and thus warned the enemy of their presence. Vietnam, 1967. Again, those inside suffocated. At 4-foot-nine-inches tall and 97-pounds he was the. These guerrillas were fighting the colonial power of France. There is a story about Flaherty being involved in a federal investigation that ended in the arrest of two Green Berets in the 1980s. But many of the soldiers who went were drafted into the service, ineligible for a student deferment because they had never been to college. A young German soldier, 1944. He returned to the US at the end of his tour and attended Special Forces Officer Course at Fort Bragg. A former TV Reporter. One soldier would crawl about five meters behind the other to minimize the chance of death or injury if their leader activated a trap or a mine. or anything. Somewhere along his path, Flaherty became homeless. The two maintained a long friendship. Naturally, there were only first chances, never second, so some simply killed as they had to. Vietnam Vet Richard Flaherty Was 'The Giant Killer', A Second Member of the Worlds Biggest Music Group Joins the Army, A Netflix Movie About WWII's Legendary 6888th Postal Battalion Starts Filming, Best War Movies Streaming Right Now on Netflix, Arnold Schwarzenegger Is 'FUBAR' in Upcoming Spy Series. Yuzuk came to know Richard Flaherty, not just as a homeless man, but as a man of intelligence and goodness. top . Yes, somehow he became lost and fell through the cracks of a societal structure that did not understand, or know how to care for the veterans coming back from Vietnam with their nightmares, and their troubling inability to fit back in with the rest of society. However, only about 20 percent of those served in generally recognized 'combat' roles. Putting people in that situation changes them. he said. The incompatibilities in the blood caused hormonal imbalances and stunted his growth. Postal Service. Yuzuk used his own funds and a crowdsourcing campaign to produce The Giant Killer, an 80-minute documentary available on Amazon Prime and iTunes, released late last year. At the time, Yuzuk was a police officer and Flaherty was a member of Aventuras homeless community, camping under a palm tree off one of the citys main boulevards. 20002023 The Veterans Site and GreaterGood. Copyright 2023 Irish Studio LLC All rights reserved. He was awarded a Silver Star, two Bronze Stars, and two Purple Hearts during his service. I just tell them Im 35 pounds of muscle, 14 pounds of dynamite and one pound of uranium-238, and it gets a lot of laughs.. And, is this general or do several different troop branches have different requirements? Have the latest local news delivered every afternoon so you don't miss out on updates. Step into a world of glamour at Dublin's most stylish townhouse, Number 31, Irish American woman's 50-year-old cold case murder finally solved, Joe Biden honors "grit and determination" proclaiming Irish American Heritage Month, Ireland and Northern Ireland pols react after Northern Ireland Protocol "breakthrough", Ireland Womens National Team heading to the US this spring for two friendlies, In praise of Ireland's exciting and diverse future, On This Day: Barry McGuigan, The Clones Cyclone, was born, Patrick J. Kennedy to receive Sober St. Patrick's Day award, Irish Americans continue to maintain strong bond with Irish roots, survey finds. This offensive is commonly seen by historians as a turning point for American involvement in the Vietnam war. Flaherty served with the 101st Airborne during Vietnam. Although the driver fled the scene, they were eventually caught. He had a few run-ins with the law before becoming a confidential informant for the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms. Low near 45F. Several Viet Cong members knew the American soldiers had boots with plated soles to help prevent injury to their feet. Col. Floyd J. Thompson, who endured nearly nine years of torture, disease and starvation in Vietnam as the longest-held prisoner of war in American history, has died. 4' 9" 97lb Vietnam War Vet Green Beret Captain Richard J. Flaherty was the smallest US soldier to ever serve in the military. During his first tour in Vietnam, Flaherty is placed in command of the Airborne's Delta Platoon. Photo credit: Rare Historical Photos websites. An example of a classic punji booby trap. When he finally got past the 100-pound mark, he petitioned his Congressman to obtain a waiver for the Armys height restrictions. All rights reserved. By 1990, the US Army veterans was homeless and living in Aventura, Florida. The idea, of course, was to scare the men so much that they did not continue to search the rest of the tunnel. Anness, who died in 2005, was the daughter of an Army captain, and traveled the world with her military family before settling in Miami, where she earned an MBA at the University of Miami and worked as a consultant. Photo credit: American Yesteryear Metal Signs. He also discovered that, while homeless, Flaherty was secretly traveling to places like Jordan, Iraq, Thailand, Vietnam and Venezuela. Flaherty was the shortest of these elite soldiers, standing at only four feet, nine inches tall. Jeremiah Purdie (center) is led past a stricken comrade after a fierce firefight for control of Hill 484. Answer (1 of 27): Back in the days of siege wars, artillery would be used to blow a hole in the defence walls. He returned to Southeast Asia in 1969 and remained there until 1971 when he left the Army. His stint with the CIA came to an end when he was arrested for possessing silencers. By signing up you agree to our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy, MIGHTY NETWORKS, 2023 ALL RIGHTS RESERVED, Mandalorian recap before Season 3: Everything you need to know, serving the U.S. military in the 1960s and 1970s, He returned to the U.S. that same year to attend the Army Special warfare School. Talking of booby traps, Lt. Jack Flowers recalls how the Viet Cong used tripwires to release boxes of scorpions into the tiny confines of the tunnels. Some even fled to Canada to escape conscription. A few years later, we started talking. Owing to the need for a flashlight, it was essential that soldiers could aim and fire their weapon with one hand. The Veterans Site is dedicated to helping to provide awareness to the problem of homelessness among our veterans. As a result, sending a soldier underground, known as a tunnel rat, was often a final measure if all other methods had failed. What we do know comes to us from a Hallandale police officer, David Yuzuk. Since tunnel rats extensively used explosives to collapse tunnel entrances and destroy what they found inside, combat training was particularly valuable. More from us: Phil Bucklew: The Father of US Naval Special Warfare. The US army now sought alternate measures. racist or sexually-oriented language. Myanmar 159.52cm (5 feet 2.80 inches) The Temples of Bagan in Mandalay, Myanmar. Huge bees, gigantic rats, centipedes, spiders, snakes, bats, and fire ants (to name a few) plagued these tunnels. In 1970, Flaherty was reassigned to the 10th Special Forces Group, where he commanded another ODA and then an Operational Detachment Bravo (ODB), a headquarters element. Consequently, given the average smaller size of Vietnamese men, tunnel rat soldiers, by necessity, were the shortest, skinniest, and most limber men in the army: a maximum height of 1.58 meters. Thus, when Richard was born, he was different. By the time RichardFlaherty graduated from high school in 1966, the US was already heavily involved in Vietnam. Captured U.S. pilot major Dewey Waddell is guarded by a militiawoman with a gun and a bayonet on a rice field. Some of these men were career military officers. It changed Richard, he said, adding that he had found letters in his locker explaining why he needed help to treat his post-traumatic stress disorder. Start Reading. In September of 1966, Rep. Donald J. Irwin of Connecticut got in touch with the U.S. Army Surgeon General, who recommended a waiver for Flahertys height. Once his weight had increased enough, he petitioned his Congressman, Rep. Donald J. Irwin (D-CT), to fill out a waiver to allow him to enlist, despite his short stature. Create an account to follow your favorite communities and start taking part in conversations. The Marines have adopted a new program as of January 2017. Females have other settings, but still, they're also not allowed when not being tall enough). Remote-controlled explosive charges and small smoke grenades kits were primarily to signal exit locations to fellow comrades. A young man emerging from his journey in a Viet Cong tunnel. Flaherty was the shortest of these elite soldiers, standing at only four feet, nine inches tall. An average Liberian man is 163.66cm (5 feet 4.43 inches) tall. According to studies conducted during the war, after one year of service, the hearing and smell of a typical tunnel rat became sixty percent better than that of an average man. Team Mighty. Yuzuk also found papers showing that Flaherty had paid a deposit for a burial plot in Miltons Forest Memorial Park, with a request to be buried near Lisa Davis Anness, whom the Vietnam vet described as the love of his life. What are we doing that causes the disease of homelessness? While many draft-age males of that era sought ways to avoid being among the 385,000 troops sent to the beleaguered Southeast Asian nation that year, Flaherty was working the angles to find a way in. He also weighed less than 100 pounds, further disqualifying him from serving in the Army. He was later reassigned to the 10th Special Forces Group at Fort Devens, Massachusetts. At the end of him career he had such bad PTSD that he pretty much couldn't function in a normal way and spent for the most part the remainder of his life homeless. He led a charge, which succeeded in pushing out the enemy. They helped conduct military operations on behalf of communist forces. Later that year, he was reassigned to the 10th Special Forces Group at Fort Devens. The Viet Cong also made use of explosive booby traps and pressure detonated mines. Richard Flaherty had to get a waiver to join the Army during the Vietnam War. Although he is the subject of a new documentary available on Amazon Prime and iTunes and a soon-to-be-released book, the full story of Capt. Richard J. Flaherty with two classmates at Officer Candidate School in 1967 (Photo: David Yuzuk / Laptrinhx.com ). As mentioned previously, tunnel rat soldiers were a last-ditch attempt and not the usual go-to solution. If the army located an entrance and needed it explored, the team lowered a tunnel rat into the area to scout out the surroundings. The Tropic Lightning Tunnel Rat School at Cu Chi base camp provides an example of this. Here, leaders forced soldiers into specific chambers and made to recite their name, rank, and service number. On the other stood a 5ft 7in (170 . On January 27, 1973, the Paris Peace Accords were signed, officially bringing to an end the American war in Vietnam. Published March 04, 2022 06:48:08. Richard James Flaherty was born on November 28, 1945. Finally, some of the unique training centers would provide tunnel system replicas. Join IrishCentrals Book Club on Facebook and enjoy our book-loving community. The Viet Cong were experts at creating very sophisticated tunnel systems that would sometimes be so large that they could be used as company-sized staging areas for hiding and for rest, even for hospital facilities. Invalid password or account does not exist. This page is to honor the memory of Green Beret Captain Vietnam veteran Richard Flaherty. *Warning: Some people may find these pictures disturbing.*. Marines who score 250 or higher on BOTH the PFT and CFT are given an additional 1 percent body fat. Flaherty was born to a mother who, unknown to her, had a blood type that made her second-born son vulnerable to oxygen deprivation in his infancy, which stunted his growth. Mai Chi Tho, brother of Le Duc Tho (a prominent Hanoi Politburo member) highlights how they used the tunnels to infiltrate Saigon. Greek Army veteran (National service with 575th Marines Battalion and Army HQ). To provide the best experiences, we use technologies like cookies to store and/or access device information. (Petty Officer 2nd Class . "The true story of the smallest Green Beret soldier who became a war hero-only to be killed homeless and alone, whose life and death are shrouded in mystery." He served as an SFODA Commander in companies A and B. Because of this, they often targeted their legs instead. The Viet Cong, with their lack of funding, was more skilled in this area given the necessity of their style of warfare. Richard Flaherty, was certainly a standout. An Army Infantryman (MOS 11B) currently has the shortest amount of time in AIT at four weeks. You have permission to edit this article. March 28, 2022 Local Vietnam veterans showcase . SS recruiters for the division accepted boys as young as 14 into the . Flaherty is buried in an unmarked grave in Milton, West Virginia. His investigation raised more questions than it answered. After being removed from the CIA, Flaherty helped catch a smuggling ring at Fort Bragg, North Carolina and worked undercover for the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives as an informant. Id known him for 15 years, and this was the first time he ever mentioned the military. Reach Rick Steelhammer at rsteelhammer@wvgazettemail.com, 304-348-5169 or follow. Commemoration of the war must account for these servicemen who underwent so much hardship for their nation. In 1980, recognizing the cruelty of such devices, the Geneva Convention banned them as weaponry. Some volunteered to go to Vietnam. Many American men were trying to avoid serving the U.S. military in the 1960s and 1970s. Not until 1995 did Vietnam release its official estimate of war dead: as many as 2 million civilians on both sides and some 1.1 million North Vietnamese and Viet Cong fighters. He is believed to have worked as a military contractor throughout Africa and most notably in Rhodesia and Angola. Flaherty was tasked with training the Royal Thai Army in counterinsurgency, in preparation for being sent to Vietnam. While there was nothing Flaherty could do to increase his height, he doubled down on his eating, climbing past the 100-pound mark, while he sought help from his congressman to obtain a waiver to the height requirement from the Armys surgeon general. When you used to stack bodies, but your 15 yo great grandson keeps calling you "Piper Perri" and you don't know why. The openings to these tunnels were very small and those tunnel rats who went into them did so armed only with a flashlight, a K-bar (knife), and a .45 pistol. In 1968 he was sent to Vietnam in the famous 101st Airborne Division, the "Screaming Eagles". He becomes a mystery to family and friends alike. Archives held in Texas revealed this happened to one unfortunate soldier. Richard Flaherty was just a kid I knew briefly in high school. February 24, 2023. The Lone . . Share with Us. He served as both an A and B detachment Commander. PLEASE TURN OFF YOUR CAPS LOCK. Still, his skills, tenacity, and leadership can tear down an entire enemys. He was a Special Forces Green Beret Captain and was awarded the Silver Star, 2 Bronze Stars, and 2 Purple Hearts for his actions in Vietnam. A particular Special Forces member, Capt. After this, he refused to ever go into a tunnel again. Upon graduation, he was assigned to the 3rd Special Forces Group and assigned to the 46th Special Forces Company in Thailand. These story remain nothing more than bits and pieces of a life that seems to have become shrouded in anonymity. Richard James Flaherty (November 28, 1945 May 9, 2015) was a captain in the United States Army who served in the Vietnam War.Due to his small stature (he was just 4 feet 9 inches (1.45 m) tall), he was known as "The Giant Killer". Giant Killer: The incredible mysterious life of the shortest US soldier A dwarf, a Vietnam hero, a CIA operative, and a homeless man the almost unbelievable life of Richard James Flaherty. Her research focused on military, environmental, and Canadian history with a specific focus on the Second World War. One of the other problems soldiers faced is the deafening sound of gunshots echoing through the tunnels. As a 2nd Lieutenant and a platoon leader, he proved to be a fierce defender of his men. [But] They were the ones you never killed. But knowing a little bit more about his story now makes me wish I had known him better. Statements in the storage unit showed that he had several thousand dollars in bank accounts, while a passport and receipts from a travel agent indicated that during the time he was homeless, he had made trips to such countries as Jordan, Venezuela, Thailand, Singapore and Cambodia. Photo credit: Funker360. Here are 10 of the most dangerous: 1. The primary focus of his time in the CIA was supplying the Nicaraguan Contras in Nicaragua. It was only after a determined effort, which included the involvement of his local Congressman, that he managed to acquire a waiver. On November 28, 1945, doctors in Stamford Connecticut's Regional Hospital intensely worked to save newborn Richard James Flahertys life. 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