New Mexico XXXIII

New Mexico, as you may know, is one of my favorite places. 

I have featured this memorial previously and today I am going to highlight and honor a few of the names remembered here.

The memorial is located in front of the Luna Mimbres Museum in Deming, New Mexico.

There are no names listed on this memorial but below are three of the heroes from the area lost in 'Nam.

Steve Duran

HN Steve Duran was a Nave Hospitalman who was lost in the Quang Tin Province on February 3, 1966. He was lost to "other explosive device...."

Clovis L. May

SGT Clovis L. May was lost at Quang Tin Province on May 22, 1969. He was lost to "rocket, mortar fire..."

Jimmy F. Nabours

WO Jimmy Nabours survived a helicopter crash but later died from his injuries. He was lost on June 30, 1970, in Cambodia.

Next time on 13th, we will return to New York, so join me there, as always, at 9 am.

If you are following along at all, you will have seen that a number of you, like Joan from Wisconsin, Tony from Texas, Mike from Maryland, Ron from Florida, Tim from Virginia, Molly from Florida, Colleen from Pennsylvania, Elli from Maryland, and Peg and Ray from Florida, among others, have responded to my request to send me memorials you have seen in your area or where you may have traveled. I even got one from Ireland! These submissions help expand the knowledge of how we have remembered the men and women who served and/or were lost in 'Nam, and you help to honor them. If you have any such photos, I would love to see them. Please send them along to the email at the left and I will gladly share them here. 

I hope all those listed here will encourage you to send along photos and join the group.

New Jersey XXXIV

I am choosing to write about a place from which I have no memorial today. Manasquan is a beach town I visited with my buddy Tony after receiving my draft notice. I knew I had 30 days before reporting and decided to make the best of them.

I am not from New Jersey but many of my family were born there many years ago. So, it has always held a spot in my heart. In fact, a relative was the last owner of the once famous Palisades Park. He hosted us for a bit while we were in the area and gave us free run of the park.

But, enough of that. What I do have is two heroes lost in 'Nam.

I cropped this picture from his ID as no other useable photos were available.

Robert C. Kugelmann was working in the Tay Ninh Province on the morning or December 12, 1967. He collapsed and was rushed to the hospital at Long Binh where he died the morning after, 12/13/67 of a ruptured aneurysm. This is a very rare happening, approximately 0.3 percent. He was 21 years old.

Richard C. Stewart

LCPL Richard Stewart was killed on February 2, 1966, at Quang Nam Province. He was a rifleman and was lost to "other explosive device." He was 19 years old.

Next time, on April 8th, we will return to New Mexico, to honor a few who were lost from the state, so join me there, as usual at 9:00 am. 

If you are following along at all, you will have seen that a number of you, like Joan from Wisconsin, Tony from Texas, Mike from Maryland, Ron from Florida, Tim from Virginia, Molly from Florida, Colleen from Pennsylvania, Elli from Maryland, and Peg and Ray from Florida, among others, have responded to my request to send me memorials you have seen in your area or where you may have traveled. I even got one from Ireland! These submissions help expand the knowledge of how we have remembered the men and women who served and/or were lost in 'Nam, and you help to honor them. If you have any such photos, I would love to see them. Please send them along to the email at the left and I will gladly share them here. 

I hope all those listed here will encourage you to send along photos and join the group.

Vietnam Veterans Day

I've been seeing a lot of misinformation on-line about Vietnam War Veterans Day.

There seems to be "disagreement" about when it is and when it was established etc.

For the record: VVWD was established on March 29th, 2012. Not the 30th as I have seen, not in 2017 as I have seen far too often. 

It was the beginning of 13-year acknowledgement of the service and sacrifice of nearly nine million 'Nam vets, in addition to their families and others impacted by the war and our service. The program, which is still celebrated around the country, (too often on the wrong day) officially ended in 2025.

It has been 14 years, surely, we can, please, get it right!

Ok. Had to get that off my chest.

Next time, on April 3rd, we will return to New Jersey, to honor a few who were lost from the state, so join me there, as usual at 9:00 am. 

If you are following along at all, you will have seen that a number of you, like Joan from Wisconsin, Tony from Texas, Mike from Maryland, Ron from Florida, Tim from Virginia, Molly from Florida, Colleen from Pennsylvania, Elli from Maryland, and Peg and Ray from Florida, among others, have responded to my request to send me memorials you have seen in your area or where you may have traveled. I even got one from Ireland! These submissions help expand the knowledge of how we have remembered the men and women who served and/or were lost in 'Nam, and you help to honor them. If you have any such photos, I would love to see them. Please send them along to the email at the left and I will gladly share them here. 

I hope all those listed here will encourage you to send along photos and join the group.

New Hampshire IX

 Running just a little late today, so this one will be quick.

For as much time as I have spent tin New Hampshire you might think that I had a whole bunch of memorials but, that is not the case.

So, today, we return to Dartmouth University where I found a memorial to 21 lost alumni. As previously posted the memorial had been covered for the winter, but the names were still available. I hope someday to return to see and photograph it when fully on display.

William Smoyer

2Lt William Smoyer was on patrol when another patrol was ambushed. He led his group to their aide and suffered multiple gunshot wounds as did many other Marines. He was lost in the Quang Nam Province on July 28, 1968. He was actually from Princeton, NJ.

Duncan B. Sleigh

2LT Duncan Sleigh was, also lost in the Quang Nam province but on a different day in a different tragedy. The following is taken from VVMF's The Wall of Faces. In part, it reads:

"...2LT Sleigh crawled to one casualty and lay huddled over him as a shield when another rocket-propelled grenade landed less than a meter away, instantly killing 2LT Sleigh. He absorbed most of the shock with his body, not only saving the life of one Marine, but also preventing injury to others near him...".

Duncan Sleigh was from Massachusetts.

Philip Dennis Barger

Captain Philip Barger was shot down on a mission north of Da Nang on November 11, 1968. His plane was hit by ground fire and crashed. He was from Dallas, Texas

These men were all from different states, but all were heroes. Their memory does Dartmouth proud as all attended the college. Dartmouth BTW is actually a university but retains its historical title.

Next time, on March 29th, we will return to honor National Vietnam War Veterans Day, so join me here, as usual at 9:00 am. 

If you are following along at all, you will have seen that a number of you, like Joan from Wisconsin, Tony from Texas, Mike from Maryland, Ron from Florida, Tim from Virginia, Molly from Florida, Colleen from Pennsylvania, Elli from Maryland, and Peg and Ray from Florida, among others, have responded to my request to send me memorials you have seen in your area or where you may have traveled. I even got one from Ireland! These submissions help expand the knowledge of how we have remembered the men and women who served and/or were lost in 'Nam, and you help to honor them. If you have any such photos, I would love to see them. Please send them along to the email at the left and I will gladly share them here.

I hope all those listed here will encourage you to send along photos and join the group. 

I know that I promised a post from New Hampshire for today, but decided, instead, to continue with my recognition of the women who served. In addition to the eight Nurses on The Wall, more than fifty others were lost in service to our efforts. This is a repost of March 25, 2022, regarding the brave and mostly unknown service and sacrifice of American women in Vietnam. For reasons I can't figure out it refuses to post in a readable way, so I am re-posting in the hopes that this version is readable, and these brave and selfless women are granted just a little of the respect they so deserve.

Something about the photos I tried to include is messing up the posting, so, for now I have removed them and if I get the problem corrected, I will re-post. The following is the text of that post, so, as always, I was looking for something to write about this time. I continue to search files for something of interest. As we are coming to the end of "Women's month" I wanted to include these valiant women once more.

But, here, is something I have not seen before, 20,000 (other reports say 11,000) civilian women that served in 'Nam and remind us, again, of their patriotism and sacrifice, especially the 56 who were lost, in addition to the 8 nurses listed on The Wall. I have spoken of these women in the past, but they deserve another salute, as we deserve another reminder.

American Red Cross

Hannah E. Crews Died in a jeep accident, Bien Hoa, October 2,1969.

Virginia E. Kirsch Murdered by US soldier in Cu Chi, August 16, 1970.

Lucinda J. Richter Died of Guillain-Barre syndrome, Cam Ranh Bay, February 9, 1971.

Army Special Services

Rosalyn Muskat Died in a jeep accident, Long Binh, 1968.

Dorothy Phillips Died in a plane crash, Qui Nhon, 1967.

Catholic Relief Services

Gloria Redlin Shot to death in Pleiku, l969.

Central Intelligence Agency

Barbara Robbins Died when a bomb exploded in front of the American Embassy, Saigon, March 30, 1965.

Betty Gebhardt Died in Saigon, 1971.

United States Agency for International Development

Marilyn L. Allen Murdered by US soldier in Nha Trang, August 16, 1967.

Dr. Breen Ratterman Died in a fall from a balcony in Saigon, October 2, 1969.

United States Department of the Navy OICC (Officer in Charge of Construction)

Regina "Reggie" Williams Died of a heart attack in Saigon, 1964.

Journalists

Georgette "Dickey" Chappelle Killed by a mine on patrol with Marines outside Chu Lai, November 4, 1965.

Phillipa Schuyler Killed in a firefight, Da Nang, May 9, 1966.

Missionaries

Carolyn Griswald * Ruth Thompson * Ruth Wilting: All 3 killed in raid on leprosarium in Ban Me Thuot during Tet February 1, 1968.

Betty Ann Olsen Captured during raid on leprosarium in Ban Me Thuot during Tet 68. Died in 1968 and was buried somewhere along Ho Chi Minh Trail by fellow POW, Michael Benge. Remains not recovered.

Eleanor Ardel Vietti Captured at leprosarium in Ban Me Thuot, May 30, 1962. Still listed as POW.

Janie A. Makil Shot to death in an ambush, Dalat, March 4, 1963. Janie was 5 months old.

Evelyn Anderson * Beatrice Kosin Both captured and burned to death in Kengkok, Laos, 1972. Remains recovered and returned to US.

Operation Babylift

The following women were killed in the crash, outside Saigon, of the C5-A Galaxy transporting Vietnamese children out of the country on April 4, 1975. All of the women were working for various US government agencies in Saigon at the time of their deaths with the exception of Theresa Drye (a child) and Laurie Stark (a teacher). Sharon Wesley had previously worked for both the American Red Cross and Army Special Service. She chose to stay on in Vietnam after the pullout of US military forces in 1973. (Source: August 13, 2000 The Baltimore Sun)

Barbara Adams * Clara Bayot * Nova Bell * Arleta Bertwell * Helen Blackburn * Ann Bottorff * Celeste Brown * Vivienne Clark * Juanita Creel * Mary Ann Crouch * Dorothy Curtiss * Twila Donelson * Helen Drye * Theresa Drye * Mary Lyn Eichen * Elizabeth Fugino * Ruthanne Gasper * Beverly Herbert * Penelope Hindman * Vera Hollibaugh * Dorothy Howard * Barbara Maier * Rebecca Martin * Sara Martini * Martha Middlebrook * Katherine Moore * Marta Moschkin * Marion Polgrean * June Poulton * Joan Pray * Sayonna Randall * Anne Reynolds * Marjorie Snow * Laurie Stark * Barbara Stout * Doris Jean Watkins * Sharon Wesley

Nevada IX

I thought today in honor of women's month that I would post the only memorial I have found that specifically singles out the Nurses killed in 'Nam from the men.

It happens to be in Nevada at the Northern Nevada Veterans Cemetery. It is 40 miles east of Reno.

Their names are hard to see here so, here they are: 

1st LT. Sharon Ann Lane USA

2nd LT. Carol Ann Elizabeth Drazba USA

Capt. Elinor Grace Alexander USA

2nd LT. Elizabeth Ann Jones USA

1st LT. Hedwig Diane Orlowski USA

2nd LT. Pamela Dorathy Donovan USA

LT. Col. Annie Ruth Graham USA

Capt. Mary Therese Klinker USAF

There are some interesting stories about some of these women and perhaps I will share them at a later date.

These heroes and the 59 civilian women who died in 'Nam are among the roughly 11,000 who served in the war. I wonder how many of us owe them a debt and how we repay that debt?

Next time, on March 20th, we will return to New Hampshire to honor a few who were lost from the state, so join me there, as usual at 9:00 am. 

If you are following along at all, you will have seen that a number of you, like Joan from Wisconsin, Tony from Texas, Mike from Maryland, Ron from Florida, Tim from Virginia, Molly from Florida, Colleen from Pennsylvania, Elli from Maryland, and Peg and Ray from Florida, among others, have responded to my request to send me memorials you have seen in your area or where you may have traveled. I even got one from Ireland! These submissions help expand the knowledge of how we have remembered the men and women who served and/or were lost in 'Nam, and you help to honor them. If you have any such photos, I would love to see them. Please send them along to the email at the left and I will gladly share them here.

I hope all those listed here will encourage you to send along photos and join the group. 

Nebraska XXI

Prospect Hill Cemetery is in Norfolk, Nebraska. I have featured it elsewhere on this site. 

Today, I will honor several of the fallen from the area.

As you may be able to see there are nine heroes remembered here. The first three are:

Sp4 Strube was guiding mortar track and strayed slightly off course. He hit a land mine and was killed by the blast. He gave his all on February 24, 1970, at Binh Thuan.

Buel E. Andersen

SGT Andersen was lost to "multiple fragmentation wounds" on April 21, 1969, at Binh Duong. I am sure, if you are a regular here, that you may be tired of my complaining about the lack of information available about these men and women who gave their all for their country.

James R. Schultz

Sp4 Schultz was lost to "other explosive device" on September 20, 1968, at Binh Duong.

If you read this or any other post here and know something more about the men and women I try to honor, please let me know. The available info is scarce, and we may be running out of time to do justice to them.

Next time, on March 15th, we will return to Nevada to honor a few who were lost from the state, so join me there, as usual at 9:00 am. 

If you are following along at all, you will have seen that a number of you, like Joan from Wisconsin, Tony from Texas, Mike from Maryland, Ron from Florida, Tim from Virginia, Molly from Florida, Colleen from Pennsylvania, Elli from Maryland, and Peg and Ray from Florida, among others, have responded to my request to send me memorials you have seen in your area or where you may have traveled. I even got one from Ireland! These submissions help expand the knowledge of how we have remembered the men and women who served and/or were lost in 'Nam, and you help to honor them. If you have any such photos, I would love to see them. Please send them along to the email at the left and I will gladly share them here.

I hope all those listed here will encourage you to send along photos and join the group.

Montana IX

Montana is one of the first states that I visited back in October of 2009. I visited my friend John in Missoula and visited the magnificent memorial in 'Rose Park. It has always been one of my favorite sites. You can see that post here.

It feels as if I have come full circle and it feels as if this is a never-ending journey.

I don't have many sites from Montana, and I believe that is because of the enormous size of the state. It is actually 15 times larger than the state I live in: so much territory to cross.

Today's heroes are honored on the memorial in the Capitol, Helena.

David J. Allison

Col. Allison was lost on August 12, 1966. He was shot down on a mission over North Vietnam. It is believed that he survived ejection from his plane. He has been listed as MIA, but I have also read that he was awarded some decorations posthumously. I could not find out if he was actually lost or is presumed . VVMF's Wall of Faces still has him listed as MIA.

George R. Anderson

SSGT Anderson is listed on the VVMF site as lost on October 6, 1968, to "non-hostile illness or accident," but on other sites as "mortally wounded" at Tua Thien. I have no way to verify one or the other. Regardless he is among our lost heroes. 

Bruce B. Backeberg

The following is taken directly from his Silver Star citation:

"...Private First Class Backeberg, while serving as the point for the company, discovered an enemy ambush. Immediately and without regard for his own safety, he rushed forward and engaged the first of the enemy in hand-to-hand combat. His instantaneous appraisal of the situation and immediate action pinpointed the enemy force and allowed the company to deliver effective artillery and air strikes on the enemy position. Later the same day, still serving as the company point, Private First Class Backeberg again discovered an enemy ambush. In the ensuing exchange of fire, he was felled, mortally wounded, by enemy rifle fire. His heroic actions in the early identification and attack on the enemy ambushes was directly responsible for the success of the company's mission and saving the lives of many of his fellow Marines. Private First Class Backeberg's inspiring initiative, courage and dedication to duty were in keeping with the highest traditions of the Marine Corps and the United States Naval Service. He gallantly gave his life for his country."

Next time, on March 10th, we will return to Nebraska to honor a few who were lost from the state, so join me there, as usual at 9:00 am. 

If you are following along at all, you will have seen that a number of you, like Joan from Wisconsin, Tony from Texas, Mike from Maryland, Ron from Florida, Tim from Virginia, Molly from Florida, Colleen from Pennsylvania, Elli from Maryland, and Peg and Ray from Florida, among others, have responded to my request to send me memorials you have seen in your area or where you may have traveled. I even got one from Ireland! These submissions help expand the knowledge of how we have remembered the men and women who served and/or were lost in 'Nam, and you help to honor them. If you have any such photos, I would love to see them. Please send them along to the email at the left and I will gladly share them here.

I hope all those listed here will encourage you to send along photos and join the group.

Missouri XII

So, as is happening far too often lately I am late with this post. Without trying to make excuses, I just have not felt very well since around New Years. Nothing major, just seemingly run down. Advancing age perhaps.

Anyway, today we return to Missouri to honor a few of her lost heroes.

Kirkland has two memorials. One to those who served and one to those lost. They differentiate on the one to the lost as to whether it was in combat or by other means. Not the details, per se, but grouped separately. In addition, MIAs are listed in a third grouping.

Today, a few of the lost from combat.

John W. Goeglen

Maj. Goeglen was a pilot on one of the several "Jolly Green Giants" famous throughout 'Nam. (IYKYK)

His chopper was shot down on a rescue mission in Laos. No remains were ever recovered. He was awarded the "Distinguished Flying Cross."

Martin Biondi

Sp4 Biond was lost on March 19, 1968, at Gia Dinh to "fragmentation" wounds. This is the sum total of what I can find. If you have further information or resources, I would love to know.

Jerome Rawlings

SP4 Jerome Rawlings and SP5 Manuel Moore were military policemen serving with the 4th MP Company. On April 30, 1968, they and two other MP’s were ambushed with small arms fire while conducting civil affairs duties in a supposedly friendly Montagnard village outside of Camp Enari in Pleiku Province, RVN. The following is a personal account of the incident by Michael P. May: On April 30, 1968, three months after the Tet Offensive, the NVA shelled Camp Enari. As usual, we grabbed our weapons, flak jackets, and steel pots and ran to the DTOC (Division Tactical Operations Center). Sometime after that, someone gave the all clear. As we walked toward the Company area, Jerome commented that even if we got hit again, he had made his last dash from there to the DTOC. He explained that he was going on his last civil affairs mission that day. He would then spend the next couple of days processing out of the MP Company and out of Vietnam which he was scheduled to leave for good on May 5, 1968. He never made it. That morning, April 30, Jerome left Camp Enari through its south gate accompanied by SP5 Manuel (Sweetpea) Moore and Curtis Spivey. They never made it to their destination, the Montagnard village whose people they were trying to help. They encountered an ambush. In the course of trying to help his Montagnards, Jerome Rawlings died. So did Sweetpea, with whom I traveled to Vietnam from Oakland Army Base. (Narrative by Michael P. May) [Taken from coffeltdatabase.org and thewall-usa.com]

I reprint this story because, as many of you know, I bitch all the time about the lack of information available about these fallen heroes, so when I actually find something, I want to tell their story.

Next time, on March 5th, we will return to Montana to honor a few who were lost from the state, so join me there, as usual at 9:00 am. 

If you are following along at all, you will have seen that a number of you, like Joan from Wisconsin, Tony from Texas, Mike from Maryland, Ron from Florida, Tim from Virginia, Molly from Florida, Colleen from Pennsylvania, Elli from Maryland, and Peg and Ray from Florida, among others, have responded to my request to send me memorials you have seen in your area or where you may have traveled. I even got one from Ireland! These submissions help expand the knowledge of how we have remembered the men and women who served and/or were lost in 'Nam and you help to honor them. If you have any such photos, I would love to see them. Please send them along to the email at the left and I will gladly share them here.

I hope all those listed here will encourage you to send along photos and join the group.

Mississippi XI

.I apologize for this being posted late

Every time I come around to write something from/about Mississippi, I feel as if a circle has completed. If you follow along here, you know that Mississippi was the very first state I visited back in 2009. It was not intentional at the time, but I happened to accompany my wife on a business trip she had for her work

We stayed in Biloxi and on her way to her destination she drove through Ocean Springs and saw the Mississippi state memorial and that was the beginning of a journey I had talked about for years.

I had hoped to get about three years out of the project and here I am 17 years later still trying to honor those who served.

If you click on Mississippi on the left side of this page you will see many pictures of those who were lost, but who are not properly identified. Now, with further research and new resources I can change that.

Today, I will feature a few heroes from Armory, MS and will be able to give them the honor they deserve,

Clyde Garth

PFC Garth, like so many, has very little info available. I have raged about this on many other posts, so will spare you today. He was lost to "small arms fire" in the Tay Ninh Province on October 26, 1968.

Roger Guest

SGT Guest was lost at Long An on August 26, 1969, to " hostile small arms fire."

David H. Harlow

Sgt Harlow was lost in the Quang Ngai Province on March 31, 1970.

while reading the very little I could find, I ran across a quote from a friend of Sgt Harlow's. She said, " My blind Americanism was never the same..." 

This struck a chord with me and made me wonder for how many of us is this a truth?

R.I.P to these and the 58,284 listed on The Wall.

Next time, on February 22nd, we will return to Missouri to honor a few who were lost from the state, so join me there, as usual at 9:00 am. 

If you are following along at all, you will have seen that a number of you, like Joan from Wisconsin, Tony from Texas, Mike from Maryland, Ron from Florida, Tim from Virginia, Molly from Florida, Colleen from Pennsylvania, Elli from Maryland, and Peg and Ray from Florida, among others, have responded to my request to send me memorials you have seen in your area or where you may have traveled. I even got one from Ireland! These submissions help expand the knowledge of how we have remembered the men and women who served and/or were lost in 'Nam and you help to honor them. If you have any such photos, I would love to see them. Please send them along to the email at the left and I will gladly share them here.

I hope all those listed here will encourage you to send along photos and join the group.

Minnesota XI

My heart just aches tonight as I try to honor some lost souls from Minnesota. Because as is all too often the case, I can find almost nothing about them. Young men, in this case, who put everything on the line, because our country asked then too. Made a bet that they could see it through and lost that bet.

I get very tired of what is probably not really disrespect, but only lack of respect.

All of the following are from the Stillwater, Minnesota area. You can see my post from Stillwater here.

Brian C. Brown

CPL Brown was lost to "non-hostile.... ground casualty...air crash..." That it is it. That is what I can find. He was lost on February 19, 1967. CPL Brown's place of loss was "unknown" WTF!

Gary D Graber

PFC Graber was lost on August 20, 1967, in the Quang Nam Province to "hostile... small arms fire..."

James Russell Hicks

This was taken directly from the VVMF's Wall of Faces. If I wasn't saddened already tonight, this would have done the trick.

SSgt James R. Hicks was a security policeman serving with the 366th Security Police Squadron, 366th Combat Support Group, 366th Tactical Fighter Wing, 7th Air Force, at Da Nang Air Base in Quang Nam Province, RVN. Hicks, who arrived in December 1970, provided security and base defense with other Air Force security police, protecting aircraft, the POL (fuel & oil) sites, ordnance storage areas, runways, and base perimeter. On March 6, 1971, he died at mortar station at Da Nang where it was reported he took his own life. A postmortem examination and subsequent death certificate confirmed Hicks died by his own hand; however, when the Air Force provided a final report on his loss, it was inexplicably coded an accidental homicide. Hicks was 21 years old. [Sourced at coffeltdatabase.org]

Rest in Peace to all. You are not forgotten.

Next time, on February 16th, we will return to Mississippi to honor a few who were lost from the state, so join me there, as usual at 9:00 am. 

If you are following along at all, you will have seen that a number of you, like Joan from Wisconsin, Tony from Texas, Mike from Maryland, Ron from Florida, Tim from Virginia, Molly from Florida, Colleen from Pennsylvania, Elli from Maryland, and Peg and Ray from Florida, among others, have responded to my request to send me memorials you have seen in your area or where you may have traveled. I even got one from Ireland! These submissions help expand the knowledge of how we have remembered the men and women who served and/or were lost in 'Nam and you help to honor them. If you have any such photos, I would love to see them. Please send them along to the email at the left and I will gladly share them here.

I hope all those listed here will encourage you to send along photos and join the group.

Michigan XVIII

Sorry about today's post time delay, sometimes things just don't go as planned. Hope to better next time!

Michigan, as previously mentioned, is one of several states with, at least, two major "Official" memorials. One is located in Ann Arbor near the Capitol and the other is in Mt. Pleasant. Each is worthy of a visit. 

You can preview them here, here, and here.

Today, however, I am going to highlight some of Michigan's heroes from a smaller site: Freedom Hill County Park in Macomb County.

Leonard Michael Ackerman

EO3 Ackerman was transporting Marines between sites in Quang Nam Province when the truck he was driving hit a 100lb land mine. He was lost on March 20, 1970, and all 13 of his passengers were wounded.

 

 

Charles Leroy Baldwin

Capt. Baldwin was lost on August 27, 1969 at Phouc Long. His loss is attributed to "Hostile small arms fire." Once again, I decry the lack of information available about these men and women who gave their lives to this war. They deserve more and the lack of information just seems disrespectful to me. Just for one example, I have spent a couple of hours today trying to track down this story and you see above everything I have found.

 

Robert Charles Benoit

 

SGT Benoit was lost in the Binh Long Province on September 7, 1969. He was lost to"explosive device" as is all too often the case this is all I can find about ANOTHER who gave all for very little remembrance.

 

And, while I am whining about this stuff, what is with so many of the photos? Many are not good. Don't I remember the Army marching us all over for "Official" photos ? Surely, they are available.

 

Next time, on February 10th, we will return to Minnesota to honor a few who were lost from the state, so join me there, as usual at 9:00 am. 

If you are following along at all, you will have seen that a number of you, like Joan from Wisconsin, Tony from Texas, Mike from Maryland, Ron from Florida, Tim from Virginia, Molly from Florida, Colleen from Pennsylvania, Elli from Maryland, and Peg and Ray from Florida, among others, have responded to my request to send me memorials you have seen in your area or where you may have traveled. I even got one from Ireland! These submissions help expand the knowledge of how we have remembered the men and women who served and/or were lost in 'Nam and you help to honor them. If you have any such photos, I would love to see them. Please send them along to the email at the left and I will gladly share them here.

I hope all those listed here will encourage you to send along photos and join the group.

Massachusetts XXXVII

The last time I posted from Massachusetts, I featured a memorial in Boston that I had spent many years trying to track down, only to discover that my nephew lived directly across the street from the park in which it stands. Less than a five-minute walk from his home. You can see that post here.

Today, I return there to honor just a couple of the many who are honored here.

Frederick V. Arens

FN Frederick Arens was lost on May 24th, 1968 in Go Cong Province. He was considered MIA and was suspected of having drowned. His body was recovered.

Linwood L. Baker

SSGT Baker was killed by small arms fire. His record says "accidental homicide" with no further information. He was lost on July 26, 1971 after being injured several days previous and is listed as a "Ground casualty." He was lost in Vinh Long Province.

Thomas Evans Bennett

WO Bennett was about to land his chopper, about 20 feet off the ground, when a small explosion was heard and the chopper dropped straight down. All seven on board were lost. The reason seems to have never been determined. He and the crew were lost on February 24, 1971 in the Binh Long Province.

These men are among the many from Boston listed on this and various other memorial throughout the area.

Next time, on February 5th, we will return to Michigan to honor a few who were lost from the state, so join me there, as usual at 9:00 am. 

If you are following along at all, you will have seen that a number of you, like Joan from Wisconsin, Tony from Texas, Mike from Maryland, Ron from Florida, Tim from Virginia, Molly from Florida, Colleen from Pennsylvania, Elli from Maryland, and Peg and Ray from Florida, among others, have responded to my request to send me memorials you have seen in your area or where you may have traveled. I even got one from Ireland! These submissions help expand the knowledge of how we have remembered the men and women who served and/or were lost in 'Nam and you help to honor them. If you have any such photos, I would love to see them. Please send them along to the email at the left and I will gladly share them here.

I hope all those listed here will encourage you to send along photos and join the group.

Maryland XLVII

Something just a little bit different today.

Today, I want to honor three of the lost from Maryland, this is not unusual.

The fact that I went to school with all three of them is.

I went to elementary school with all three and high school one of them.

Frank Morris Streeks

PFC Frank Streeks was known by his schoolmates as "Trippy." There are a couple of stories as to why, but I cannot confirm any of these. He attended Northwood for High School.

He was lost on September 22, 1967, in Quang Tri Province. Rest in Peace, he was lost to artillery, explosive device, or rocket fire during a combat mission.

John C. Liverman

LCPL Liverman was the brother of my classmate Bob. I did not know him well, but I certainly knew who he was as he was only one year behind us.

The following was related to me many years later, so I cannot verify its veracity or if I have the facts exactly right. Here goes, anyway.

Johnny was lost on December 11th, 1968, at Quang Tri. His brother, my classmate Bob was in 'Nam at the same time and was assigned to escort him home. Their plane stopped somewhere in country to refuel and when Bob attempted to reboard the plane, he had misplaced his orders. Sent back to get them, he returned to the waiting area and in the meantime the plane took off without him. 

The plane was shot down: all were lost.

One more thing that I know is true: John and Frank Streeks, honored above, were next door neighbors as kids.

To John's brother Bob. We spoke by email a couple of years back regarding the Montgomery County Vietnam memorial, if you happen to ever see this, I would appreciate knowing if I have done John's story justice? I have lost track of your email.

Kevin Mark Coyne

LCPL Coyne and I shared 12 years in the same schools. I remember him as smart, serious, and quiet.

He was lost at Quang Tri on June 7th, 1968 along with 22 other Marines and 2 Navy personnel.

We all lived within walking distance of each other.

In preparing this post I found a memorial plaque at my High School that honors Kevin and three others who were lost. I did not know the other three.

Listed below their names were listed quite a number of other grads who served. I was surprised to find my name listed as I have had zero contact with the school since I graduated in 1965. I wonder how they knew.

Next time, on January 31st, we will return to Massachusetts to honor a few who were lost from the state, so join me there, as usual at 9:00 am. 

If you are following along at all, you will have seen that a number of you, like Joan from Wisconsin, Tony from Texas, Mike from Maryland, Ron from Florida, Tim from Virginia, Molly from Florida, Colleen from Pennsylvania, Elli from Maryland, and Peg and Ray from Florida, among others, have responded to my request to send me memorials you have seen in your area or where you may have traveled. I even got one from Ireland! These submissions help expand the knowledge of how we have remembered the men and women who served and/or were lost in 'Nam and you help to honor them. If you have any such photos, I would love to see them. Please send them along to the email at the left and I will gladly share them here.

I hope all those listed here will encourage you to send along photos and join the group.

Maine XXIII

 In the Statehouse in Augusta there are a couple of memorial plaques that reference Vietnam. 

There are only three names singled out for additional recognition. 

They all were recipients of the Medal of Honor.

Today, I honor them here.

Brian Buker

Sgt Buker was lost on April 5, 1970. He was awarded the Medal of Honor posthumously.

Medal of Honor award citation:

The President of the United States of America, in the name of Congress, takes pride in presenting the Medal of Honor (Posthumously) to Sergeant Brian Leroy Buker), United States Army, for conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty while serving with Detachment B-55, 5th Special Forces Group (Airborne), 1st Special Forces, in action against enemy aggressor forces at Chau Doc Province, Republic of Vietnam, on 5 April 1970. Sergeant Buker distinguished himself while serving as a platoon adviser of a Vietnamese mobile strike force company during an offensive mission. Sergeant Buker personally led the platoon, cleared a strategically located well-guarded pass, and established the first foothold at the top of what had been an impenetrable mountain fortress. When the platoon came under the intense fire from a determined enemy located in two heavily fortified bunkers, and realizing that withdrawal would result in heavy casualties, Sergeant Buker unhesitatingly, and with complete disregard for his personal safety, charged through the hail of enemy fire and destroyed the first bunker with hand grenades. While reorganizing his men for the attack on the second bunker, Sergeant Buker was seriously wounded. Despite his wounds and the deadly enemy fire, he crawled forward and destroyed the second bunker. Sergeant Buker refused medical attention and was reorganizing his men to continue the attack when he was mortally wounded. As a direct result of his heroic actions, many casualties were averted, and the assault of the enemy position was successful. Sergeant Buker's extraordinary heroism at the cost of his life are in the highest traditions of the military service and reflect great credit on him, his unit, and the United States Army.

Nothing I can say to this or any of the following is necessary.  

Thomas Joseph McMahon

Medal of Honor Citation

Thomas Joseph McMahon

DATE OF BIRTH: June 24, 1948
PLACE OF BIRTH:
Washington, D. C.
HOME OF RECORD:
Portland, Maine

Medal of Honor
AWARDED FOR ACTIONS
DURING Vietnam War
Service: Army
Battalion: 2d Battalion
Division: Americal Division
GENERAL ORDERS:
Department of the Army, General Orders No. 46 (August 28, 1970)
CITATION:
The President of the United States of America, in the name of Congress, takes pride in presenting the Medal of Honor (Posthumously) to Specialist Fourth Class Thomas Joseph McMahon (ASN: 52895360), United States Army, for conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty while serving as an Aid Man with Company A, 2d Battalion, 1st Infantry Regiment, 196th Infantry Brigade, Americal Division, in action against enemy aggressor forces at Quang Tin Province, Republic of Vietnam, on 18 March 1969. When the lead elements of his company came under heavy fire from well-fortified enemy positions, three soldiers fell seriously wounded. Specialist Fourth 

Class McMahon, with complete disregard for his safety, left his covered position and ran through intense enemy fire to the side of one of the wounded, administered first aid and then carried him to safety. He returned through the hail of fire to the side of a second wounded man. Although painfully wounded by an exploding mortar round while returning the wounded man to a secure position, Specialist Fourth Class McMahon refused medical attention and heroically ran back through the heavy enemy fire toward his remaining wounded comrade. He fell mortally wounded before he could rescue the last man. Specialist Fourth Class McMahon's undaunted concern for the welfare of his comrades at the cost of his life are in keeping with the highest traditions of the military service and reflect great credit on himself, his unit, and the United States Army.

Donald Skidgel

For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity in action at the risk of his life

above and beyond the call of duty. Sergeant Skidgel distinguished
himself while serving as a reconnaissance section leader in Troop D. On a road near Song Be in Binh Long Province, Sergeant Skidgel and his

section with other elements of his troop were acting as a convoy security and screening force when contact occurred with an estimated enemy battalion concealed in tall grass and in bunkers bordering the road.

Sergeant Skidgel maneuvered off the road and began placing effective
machine - gun fire on the enemy automatic weapons and rocket - propelled grenade positions. After silencing at least one position, he ran with his machine - gun across 60 meters of bullet swept ground to another
location from which he continued to rake the enemy positions. Running
low on ammunition, he returned to his vehicle over the same terrain.
Moments later he was alerted that the command element was receiving
intense automatic weapons, rocket - propelled grenade and mortar fire.
Although he knew the road was saturated with enemy fire, Sergeant
Skidgel calmly mounted his vehicle and with his driver advanced toward

Update: Don't know what happened to the end of this post. I am having crazy issues with the software.

Comeback on the 26th to see a new post from Maryland. Hopefully issues will be resolved by then!
the command group in an effort to draw the enemy fire upon himself.
Despite the hostile fire concentrated on him, he succeeded in silencing
several enemy positions with his machine - gun. Moments later Sergeant
Skidgel was knocked down onto the rear fender by the explosion of an
enemy rocket - propelled grenade. Ignoring his extremely painful wounds, he staggered back to his feet and placed effective fire on several other enemy positions until he was mortally wounded by hostile small arms fire.
His selfless actions enabled the command group to withdraw to a better
position without casualties and inspired the rest of his fellow soldiers to

gain fire superiority and defeat the enemy. Sergeant Skidgel's gallantry at the cost of his life were in keeping with the highest traditions of the service and reflect great credit upon himself, his unit, and the

United States Army.

Next time on the 27th, we will return to Maryland to honor a few of her heroes. These will post, as usual, at 9:00 am. 

As mentioned above, if you are following along at all, you will have seen that a number of you, like Joan from Wisconsin, Tony from Texas, Mike from Maryland, Ron from Florida, Tim from Virginia, Molly from Florida, Colleen from Pennsylvania, Elli from Maryland, and Peg and Ray from Florida, among others, have responded to my request to send me memorials you have seen in your area or where you may have traveled. I even got one from Ireland! These submissions help expand the knowledge of how we have remembered the men and women who served and/or were lost in 'Nam and you help to honor them. If you have any such photos, I would love to see them. Please send them along to the email at the left and I will gladly share them here.