Vietnam Reporter Helen Musgrove Dies
Helen (Patches) Musgrove, a Vietnam War correspondent and registered nurse who operated a shelter for Chinese refugees, has died of pneumonia following a stroke. She was 70.
Mrs. Musgrove died last Tuesday at Humana Hospital in Westminster. She lived in Garden Grove.
She worked as a war correspondent in the late 1960s and early 1970s after persuading a Florida newspaper to hire her even though she had no newspaper reporting experience.
Her career in Asia began after the death of her husband, when she traveled to Hong Kong, opened a dress manufacturing plant and sold designer clothes to U.S. customers. She also opened a shelter for Chinese refugees in Hong Kong.
Mrs. Musgrove went to Vietnam in 1966 and became a correspondent after receiving the sponsorship of the Jacksonville (Fla.) Journal. For 6 1/2 years she covered the war, entertained U.S. servicemen and helped with medical needs.
For her activities in Vietnam, the Veterans of Foreign Wars awarded Mrs. Musgrove the 1988 True American Heroine Award for service. She was a member of American Legion and the Marine Corps Combat Correspondents Assn.
She also received the Lady Stetson Award for Outstanding American Woman of the Year in 1987.
Mrs. Musgrove has no survivors.
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