After Bringing Smiles to Troops in Vietnam, This ‘Donut Dollie’ Served at Valley Forge Hospital

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women looking at scrapbook
Images via the U.S. Department of Defense.
Connie Dugan Popel reflects on her yeas a Donut Dollie, inset.

After serving in Vietnam from September 1969 until November 1970, former Donut Dollie Connie Dugan Popel joined Valley Forge General Hospital in Phoenixville as a Red Cross recreation aide, writes Skip Vaughn for the U.S. Department of Defense.

Popel’s role at the hospital — which has since been closed and replaced by Valley Forge University — was to provide entertainment for troops returning from Vietnam. At the recreation center for the psychiatric ward, she kept the returning soldiers engaged through movies, games, readings, and songs.

Her role did not differ much from her days as a Donut Dollie. While in Vietnam, she was paired with another woman, and together, they would travel to the units and host recreation programs. For the troops, they represented a touch of home.

“I think my role (as a Donut Dollie) was to be myself,” said Popel, “I’m known for my smile, and I smiled and smiled and smiled. And I think that I represented maybe an American girl who cared, who hoped that I brought some kind of happiness for a second in a horrible, horrible war.”

Read more about Connie Dugan Popel from the U.S. Department of Defense.

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