James C. Donahue joined the Marine Corps when he was seventeen years old and served with the Corps through the 1962 Cuban Missile Crisis. After being discharged, he enlisted in the Army and volunteered for Special Forces. As a Green Beret, he served with the 6th and 7th Special Forces Groups (Airborne) at Fort Bragg, North Carolina, and with the 5th Special Forces Group (Airborne) in Vietnam. His awards and decorations include the Silver Star, three Bronze Stars, the Purple Heart, two Air Medals, the Combat Medical Badge, and the Vietnamese Cross of Gallantry.
Jim was seriously wounded on July 18, 1967, and he returned to the States where he earned a bachelor’s degree in anthropology and a master’s in social sciences. In 1983 AMVETS selected Donahue as the “Outstanding Civil Servant” in the nation. He has written two other books: Mobile Guerrilla Force, and Blackjack-33. He and his wife live in Lakewood Ranch, Florida, and have two grown children.
