Christmas Eve, 1970. Where were you on Christmas Eve, 1970? Can you remember? I remember where I was on Christmas Eve, 1970. I was aboard the naval hospital ship USS Sanctuary AH-17 . That large white ship, with three huge, red Geneva crosses on each side, was at anchor in Da Nang Harbor, Vietnam, across from the airfield and out past the deep-water piers. She looked her name: a refuge, peaceful and calm. But behind her towering smokestack was a helo pad, and 30 medical evacuation copters a day would bring the ill and injured—military and civilian—to her proud decks. On this special day, the afternoon of Christmas Eve, 1970, we put the war on hold and prepared for the arrival of Bob Hope. The ship was scrubbed and polished and tarps were placed in front of the smokestack to ward off sun or rain. Chairs were moved from the galleys