Correspondent photo / Amanda C. Davis Mickey Nuzzo, 75, of Boardman, goes through some old military papers recently at his home. Nuzzo, a 1966 graduate of Struthers High School, served two tours in Vietnam as an Army combat medic.

BOARDMAN — When Mickey Nuzzo returned to the area in 1971 after a second tour in Vietnam, one of the first things he wanted to do was get a pizza at The Elmton in Struthers.

The 75-year-old former Army combat medic missed the comforts, security and familiar foods of home, but said when he returned, he realized the people and places he knew had changed — just like he had.

The grit and determination he developed growing up in small-town Struthers served him well overseas, he said, but explained that coming home was a difficult transition at first.

“Nothing seemed to be the same,” he said. “A lot had changed, and people had changed.”

The one thing that stayed the same was the pizza. “It hadn’t changed, and it still hasn’t,” Nuzzo said.

He enlisted in 1969 and left Struthers a young man who hadn’t ventured far from this area and couldn’t stand the sight of blood. He said he returned a few years later with a new career path and memories he doesn’t talk about often.

He graduated from Struthers in 1966 and worked at Youngstown Sheet & Tube and had a couple of years at what was then called Youngstown University. He had planned to be a teacher and coach, but said life had other plans for him.

He left for Vietnam in 1969 and said he spent time in the mountains, stationed on the Demilitarized Zone between North and South Vietnam. As a medic, he treated American and South Vietnamese soldiers who were wounded in combat. He was exposed to Agent Orange during his time there and said he’s experienced various health problems since. The herbicide was used by the U.S. military to control vegetation and has been linked to various cancers, heart problems and neurological issues.

Nuzzo, a sergeant, earned two Bronze Stars, along with numerous other awards, for his service and conduct in Vietnam. Though he had hoped to be stationed in the U.S. when he enlisted, Nuzzo said his stint overseas prepared him for life, scary as it was.

“It was very traumatic leaving home for the first time,” he said. “I never thought I’d make it back.”

He recalls being scared at night, having a hard time sleeping and taking “cat naps” when he could fit them in. One highlight was traveling to Australia for “R&R,” military slang for “rest and recuperation.” He met his best friend there, a man named Bruce from Atlanta, with whom he has kept in touch.

When he returned in 1971, Nuzzo went to Cuyahoga Community College for a surgical assisting program and worked again for Youngstown Sheet & Tube.

He finished his degree at Youngstown University and worked for more than 20 years as an extracorporeal profusionist at St. Elizabeth Hospital. There, he was responsible for running the heart-lung machine during surgeries or procedures that required artificial support for a patient’s circulatory or respiratory function. He finished his career in medical sales.

Nuzzo spends his time volunteering with Disabled American Veterans, Mahoning County Chapter 2, to honor the sacrifice men and women made in the military. He said he understands their needs because he knows what they went through.

“I respect anybody who’s in any branch of the service,” he added.

He also spends time with family and works out three times a week at the YMCA downtown. He’s also into classic cars and has an impressive model train display.

Nuzzo said he doesn’t often talk about his years of service but occasionally still has nightmares about that time.

“You were always thinking every day could be your last,” he said. “It never leaves you.”