Vermont XV

Vermont claims to be the first Government sponsored Vietnam memorial in the country. This may be open to some interpretation as we know that others predate it by some time. In many cases years. I guess what "Government sponsored" means could make a difference.

No matter, it honors 100 from the state and, today, we honor three from Johnson. Read more about this remarkable memorial here.

 

Wayne Eugene Byrne

PFC Wayne Byrne was lost on April 16, 1969. He had been in-country for about 6 weeks and was lost to "hostile...small arms fire" three days before his twentieth birthday.

Rollin Chesley Sargent jr.

MSG Rollin Sargent served not only in Vietnam, but, also, in WWII and Korea. He spent fourteen years serving his country. He was an advisor in Vietnam when he suffered a heart attack and was lost. He died at Quang Nam Province on October 22, 1964.

Kenneth G. Weightman jr.

A1C Kenneth Weightman, whose four brothers all served in the military or as First Responders, was killed by lighting from a freak thunderstorm on June 10, 1966. He was lost at Ninh Thuan.

All of these soldiers are from Johnson, Vermont and illustrate differing dangers of serving your country

Next time, on June 22, we will return to Virginia, so join me, 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 (now two) 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.

Utah X

I mentioned in my last post, on Texas, that it had the distinction of having the third most losses in the war. Well, Utah holds a similar distinction.

Utah has the 5th most, per capita, participation in the effort. This as stated in the original post from Utah was especially unusual given the make-up of Utah's society. You can read the details about that here

Today, we will honor three of the 388 from the state who made the ultimate sacrifice.

George J. Economous

1LT George Economous was lost in Kontum Province on April 15, 1968. His records say he was lost to "hostile...small arms fire..." He was from Logan, Utah but was interred in Indiana. This is the

 sum total of everything I could find on an American hero. Appalling.

Ray Grant Jenkins

WO Ray Jenkins was refueling his helicopter at Soc Trang when the mortar attack began. He tried to get his chopper off the ground but took a direct hit from one of the more than 100 rounds falling from the sky. He was transported by ambulance but to no avail. He was lost on February 2, 1968. One of the many casualties of the infamous Tet offensive.

Randall Leroy Saunders

SP4 Randall Saunders was lost to "hostile... small arms fire at Quang Tri Province. He was lost on February 16, 1968, in the shadow of the Tet offensive. I know I whine about this all the time, but nobody seems to tell their stories in much detail Once in a while I run across something useful but not nearly enough. Who will tell their story? I fear that now; it is too late.

All of these lost heroes were from Logan, Utah.

Next time on June 17th, we will return to Vermont, so join me, 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 (now two) 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.

Tennessee XI

The memorials at the Coffee County Courthouse honor those from many of our engagements. The following names were taken from the Vietnam memorial.

Richard Bradley

In a firefight that lasted approximately one minute eight Americans were wounded and PFC Bradley was killed. He was lost on June 19,1966, in the Thua Thien Province.

Hermann Ray Fletcher

In contrast to the above, Hermann Ray Fletcher was killed at Go Cong in a battle the cost us 19 heroes lost and 50 additional wounded. The battle lasted nearly 11 hours. PFC Fletcher and his 18 comrades were lost on January 10, 1968.

Kenneth Lee Kirkes

2LT Kenneth Kirkes was lost on February 9,1968, in the Quang Nam Province to "small arms fire...." Nothing else seems to be available.

Next time on Jun 7th, we will return to Texas, so join me, 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 ( now two) 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.

South Dakota XXV

As I wondered around South Dakota with no particular itinerary, as I have mentioned before, I ran across several memorials in some of the towns.

Howard was one of them and you can see one of the early posts from there, here.

Marlin Joseph Callies

LCPL Marlin Callie was a Rifleman with the Marines in the Quang Tri Province. On July 7, 1968, he died of wounds received from "other explosive device..." in an attack on his defensive position.

Tommy Leon Callies

Capt. Tommy Leon Callies was the pilot of a Phantom jet shot down over the Quang Ngai Province during a bombing run. His body has never been retrieved south of Quang Ngai city..

These two men Captain and Corporal from the same town of Howard were related. Even though their ages were quite close they were 1st cousins once removed. What strikes me is that these two were from a town of around 1,000 residents. I have only found three from Howard that were lost.

Roger W. Kvernes

LTC Roger Kvernes was killed in a helicopter crash at Bac Lieu on February 2, 1970.

Next time on Jun 2nd, we will return to Tennessee, so join me, 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 ( now two) 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.

Oklahoma XI

Kay County, Oklahoma's War Memorial is located on Main Street in Newkirk. It honors many from various wars including Vietnam.

Today, a few of our brothers:

Donald S. Allen III

SSG Donald Allen III was lost in a firefight on December 21, 1967, near Bien Hoa. He was among four lost and 15 wounded repelling a Viet Cong attack. He enlisted at 17 to follow in his Father's footsteps. His Father served in Vietnam.

James Johnson jr.

LCPL James Johnson was lost on May 11, 1967, in the Quang Tri Province. He was lost in "Hostile action... to Small Arms fire" or "Rocket, mortar, artillery" depending upon what source you read. VVMF says "Rocket, mortar, Artillery..."

Clarence Leon Rouse

SGT. Clarence Rouse was in the Dinh Toung Province when he was lost to "Hostile action...Small arms fire." I read on a site that Sgt Rouse had been awarded The Bronze Star, but have been unable to verify this

As I have lamented, so many times, it breaks my heart to be able to learn and share so little information about the brave men and women, heroes all, who gave their lives for our efforts in Vietnam.

Next time on May 8th, we will return to Oregon, so join me, 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.

Ohio XII

Once again, I am running behind. My apologies.

Stark County Ohio has a memorial to many lost. The memorial, as previously posted, stands in Massillon near the City Hall.

Today, as is becoming my habit, we will honor three from Stark County.

Robert A. Ater

PFC Robert Ater was a passenger on a chopper going to LZ North English. The chopper was seen flying very low and the boom hit the ground causing the craft to crash. All, except one, were lost on August 12, 1970, near Binh Dinh.

Clayton Henry Byers

LCPL Clayton Henry Byers was lost May 24, 1967, just a few days before his 19th birthday, at Quang Nam Province to hostile fire/explosive device.

George K. Galloway

SGT George K. Galloway died of a fatal heart attack on November 17, 1968. He was 50 years old and was known as "Pops" to his men as he took such good care of them. He was lost at Quang Tri Province on the exact same day as his brother died of a heart attack in Ohio. Neither brother knew the other has died. Stranger than fiction.

Next time on May 3rd, we will return to Oklahoma, so join me, 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.

North Dakota VII

So, it turns out that I am about 12 hours behind schedule today. At least I'm in on the right day. Better than far too often.

In keeping with my current efforts, today, I am going to share a little information about a few of the heroes from North Dakota. I have not spent too much time there but that does not diminish, in any way, the heroism of their efforts or the honor they deserve.

North Dakota Veterans Memorial

The memorial here as a unique feature which you can check out in my original posting, It is worth the effort as it is the only such element I have found in my travels.

Among the many listed and honored here are the following:

Roger D. Alberts

PFC Alberts was lost at Gia Dinh on February 2, 1968. His COD is listed as "Hostile fire...small arms fire...." He Is one of the first Native American I can remember having written about here. this gives an opportunity to remind all who might see this that no other group in America volunteers for service in greater percentages than Native Americans.

Thomas E. Alderson

Capt. Thomas Alderson was a passenger on a helicopter when it collided with a cargo plane. All aboard each were lost. This tragic event happened on October 3, 1968, in Thua Thien Province.

Dale H. Amundson

PFC Dale Amundson was lost in Quang Tin in a non-hostile drowning incident. He gave his life on October 30, 1968.

It has been a while since I have complained about the lack of information about the men and women who gave their all and their lives for their country, but such is the case. I think it is despicable.

Next time on April 28th, we will return to Ohio, so join me, 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.

North Carolina XL

 Graham, North Carolina is the home of this memorial to the many who served in our nation's conflicts.

The section honoring our brothers and sister contains 42 names. 

Today, we honor these.

Kemper S. Billings

BM1 Kemper Billings was lost overboard while in high surf on the Hue River. His body was found days later washed up on a beach. He was lost on October 20, 1966, in the Thua Thien Province.

Dennis C. Boone

SP4 Dennis Boone was an infantryman who was lost on September 2, 1968, at Hua Nghia Province to "Artillery, Rocket, Mortar" explosion. I note that his name is spelled Denis on the memorial in Graham.

William Bray

2LT William Bray led his men up a hillside under heavy fire. He took out a number of enemy combatants before being mortally wounded himself. Oddly, I think, several days later some of his men engaged a different group of NVA soldiers, killing several. They found on one of them Bray's weapon which had disappeared in the previous battle. He was lost on November 6, 1967, in the Quang Tin Province. He was awarded a Silver Star for his actions.

Next time on April 23rd, we will return to North Dakota, so join me, 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 York XXXIII

This small, local memorial in Port Jervis, New York honors ten from the area including two who were MIAs.

Today, a few of them.

Peter Paul Bohnwagner

SGT Peter Bohnwagner was lost October 26, 1970, at Lam Dong to small arms fire.

Thomas J. Case

PFC Thomas Case was lost on May 9, 1967, to an "explosive device" at Quang Nam.

Peter H. Garms

PFC Peter Garms was born in Port Jervis but grew up in Pennsylvania. He was lost 5 days after arriving in 'Nam in a training accident with a hand grenade. He was destined to be a clerk. Tragic: as were all the losses.

Next time on 18th, we will return to North Carolina, 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 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.

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

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.

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.