MOH recipient: Get involved in Vietnam Veteran events

I don’t know

My name is Gary, I served in Nam 68-69. I was a machine gunner on convoys 50 caliber in jeep and M-60 on the 18 wheelers. We hauled food and ammo and other supplies to th 101st airborne, big red 1, 25 th infantry and others. Met a lot of nice people. The first thing I did when I got there was attend a funeral for six soldiers killed on an attack on one of our convoys. World War II was the last war we should have had our nose in. After that it was all about our big ego. Korea, Viet Nam, and all the others after that. I was proud to serve my country,but when I left Viet Nam, I left all my medals and reminders of what a waste of fellow friends we left behind. Medals are ways of politicians justifying there arrogance and and guilt for poor decision making. Today when you watch the news and you see the suits at there desks, one killing indiscriminately and the other talking tough and letting the other get away with it. This is why when you have complaints about the government or the VA hospital’s they fall on deaf ears. They are above the rest of us and don’t have to go to the same hospitals as the rest of us. Fellow Viet Nam vets, hope you had a good life. I thought the strangest thing I saw was when there was vacation tours to go to Viet Nam. How ironic!

Graduated U.P. high school June ’66. Mom sent me to computer school in Phila. Brother had a wife and young son. I had school or farm deferments. Bro had a high draft number. I volunteered to get more computer training in the Air Force. LOL. And keep my bro from the draft. Stationed 2 years in Wash. D.C. Hung out with the wrong crowd and just wanted out. Stayed away from the anti-war demonstrations across the river. First sgt. and Base Commander told me, “There are no jobs when you leave.” They were spot on. I left under honorable conditions. Many article 15s later. And no rank. Vet relatives dissed me. Being discharged was like basic training. Except the service was a job. After discharge I could smile and not be harassed by my T.I. And instead of losing weekend passes was free to roam. Hitch-hiked east to west for 2 years due to no work. No one wanted to hire a VN era service vet. 30 years I denied being a veteran. 1st decent job was transporting trucks for Ryder in 1978. While travelling checked out other jobs. Applications wanted to hire minorities due to affirmative Action. App questions were, “Are you black, hispanic, native american, oriental, OR OTHER?” Being “other” again, other job prospects didn’t look good. Still denied being a vet. Around the year 2000 applications dropped those A.A. questions.
Thank you Ryder! For the 11 years you allowed me to work there! And the monthly pension. Attend a VN area ceremony? Probably not. Too emotional. American legion newsletters tear me up. No AL activities nearby. So I didn’t rejoin. One other poster stated the VN war was to support industry. And the top cats. Hmmm-.
Thank you for your service troops, support groups, USO, Red Cross, and everyone helping the service men. And you too, First responders. You also put your lives on the line.
Gee- 4X11=??? Let me get my phone out for this.

I wish to thank the Government of Berkeley County, SC for cremating a Pennsylvania born Vietnam Veteran who died in a homeless shelter on Veterans Day, 2013. Nobody checked to see if he was a Veteran. Robert James Brown had no next of kin. His cremains sat on the crematorium shelf for 5 years and then they were transported to Greenlawn Memorial Park, in Columbia, SC. to be put in an Unclaimed Cremains crypt in Building D, #153 on Level D. Since the crematorium would not release his cremains to the Missing In America Project, who is authorized by our government to give a decent burial forgotten vets, I believe his ashes were most likely co-mingled with other who were cast aside and they didn’t want the truth to get out. Disgusting.

As a Flag Ship on the USS Denver we often saw some of the hottest areas and engaged in many things that other ships did not. We were cited by the Sec’y of the Navy as the first US Navy ship to launch missions into North Vietnam as a response to the North’s Easter offensive in early 1972. We also were the command ship of ships as far as the eye could see in any direction except land, at Quang Tri Province beach where we took on heavy fire from land. This was more like a WWII assault. Even though recently injured with TBI’s etc., a situation that had been covered up by my department and for which I received very little treatment for, I had the instinct of walking through this shower/barrage several times while others hid thinking I must be crazy. You see I had already died temporarily beforehand and once that happened, I had no fear of death and still do not. I was assigned to the starboard rear gun director during General Quarters and when I arrived, the operator was not there so I asked the duty Officer there where the operator was? He said the guy was in sickbay so instead of operating my normal set of headphones for this location, I also jumped into the gun director as operator. At that same time, the first 50 ca.’s started whizzing at, over, past, and around us. Again, as Command/Flag Ship, we were closest to shore. Since we had been extended on tour, a growing number of crew were new and green, because at the end of a normally scheduled tour, most of the crew is either transferred or discharged. That process continued only they were replaced by untrained and inexperience personnel. This green Ensign at the gun director saw the incoming barrage, tore off his headphones threw them to the deck, and commenced to hang over the rail vomiting for the next half hour plus. I jumped back out of the gun director and ran over to grab his headphones which were a different communication group than mine, crisscrossed both sets of headphones on my head and operated the gun director for almost an hour before the normal operator returned from sick bay. Then I got up and walked again through and around our area still receiving random bursts and showers but returned to continue to operate both sets of headphones. Later on when they announced that the ship had been awarded the Combat Action Ribbon, which by past experiences we had already qualified for, most of the crew grumbled that we had never earned this. That is because most of the crew is below decks and never would experience what we had at that location above decks. If only one person or area earns this on a ship, the entire ship then earns it as well, but no details were ever released or circulated as to how the CAR was earned. We also were the first ship to be assigned specially equipped Cobra helicopters. During Operation MARHUK (Marine Hunt Kill), these were successfully utilized for various things such as cutting off supply lines. We often carried 8-900 Marines and several hundred Special Forces ranging from UDT teams to tacrons to CIA in military uniforms, to you name it.

I had been injured during a buoy mooring in Hong Kong in mid to late March 1971, where I actually died temporarily under water for around 10 minutes, but recovered and climbed back up to assist with the connection of the anchor chain to the buoy. During this initial task, three of us on board the buoy which was around 10-12 feet in diameter concrete, we had to first connect a 2-3 inch very long wire rope cable from the ship to the buoy. The anchor itself which weighed 40,000 pounds was disconnected from the chain and bolted to the ship. Upon connection of this cable, the ship was supposed to reverse until the cable was taut and then they were supposed to slowly lower/slide the chain down to us on the cable so that we could connect it to the buoy. At the last moment when it seemed like we should be in proper position, I looked up to find the ship coming at us and on the focsle above an E-5 was cutting the chain loose to drop straight down on top of us. The chain consisted of 100 pound links so this was a lot of dead weight with a slightly forward motion, that would be on top of us very fast, and I was in the sweet spot, almost as its target. In less than a second, I decide to jump to my left towards the motor whale boat that was along side of the buoy which had the boat coxswain and a radioman on board. As I jumped, the chain hit the back of my head and changed my trajectory to where the front of my head drilled into the metal boat rail and then ricocheted my head and body into the concrete buoy. I remember thinking at that moment, that was it, I could take no more, and then blanked out. My next memory was going into the ocean but for some reason I remember that in slow motion, my body slipping into icy cold water and me looking all around to see what the other four sailors were doing. It was a windy, blustery day but when I was under water, I reasoned that I should try to get to the other end of the buoy away from the ship bumping the buoy, but I had to be careful to stay away from the boat propeller screws. At that time I must have slipped into the other world because I instantly found myself where I needed to be but found it strange that the water there was luke warm, and I did not even need to breathe, so I stayed there for a while until the chaos had passed and then looked for an opening to climb back out of the water. One came but it was very quick as the boat again slapped against the buoy and would have really been bad for me. Another came and it was long enough to climb back out and assist the connection, which consisted of connecting to the center buoy iron loop, a heavy rusty clamp with a link of the chain. The chain had a small portion draped over the edge of the buoy which could shift at any moment causing injury to any of us who were in its way or were trying to connect it. The locking pin was so rusty that we took turns trying to turn it and tighten it and each of us made it a quarter to half an inch each try. Eventually we did get it to the end and to the lock point where we finished it off and then did a quick look at everything and again boarded the boat to return to the ship. As the boat was turning and going around the very front of the ship, I looked down at myself and thought: what in the he*l happened to me? My dungaree pants was torn wide open from my left foot all the way to the crotch, and my life jacket looked like someone had repeatedly taken a machete to it with long vertical cuts all the way across the front of it. As the motor whale boat was being raised up to the ship, but before we reached the main deck, orders were being shouted at us in the boat. The two of us who got hit by the chain were to report to the 1st Lt.’s office and the three who were not in danger or injured, were to report to sick bay. Dave F. and myself waited for 5-10 minutes until the 1st Lt. came in. He went to the podium and commenced, red hot, to chew us out for jumping off the buoy. Dave said that he had been hit in the leg but I never had the chance to say anything. They covered it all up in our department and I soon was in a serious mental fog that lasted for at least 45 years until my mind began to remember most of the details, one at a time, of what had happened back then.

Even though I could not remember all the details early on, I had told VA many times about what I experienced but they told me there was no record and treated me as though I was delusional and making it all up. By 2015 I decided to at least try to get my Navy discharge papers corrected. I put together as much info as I could because they only showed that I had the National Defense, Vietnam Service with four battle stars and the Vietnam Campaign, and two tours of Vietnam. They don’t really correct DD-214/215’s but rather draft another completely different form that adds info to the original. This process takes several years but when completed they sent me two official forms of this, one of which I had to send back to the Navy at Virginia and one of which I was to keep. This they erroneously sent to my 1969 enlistment address by them, which no longer existed and it was never forwarded to me. Later on DAV of which I am a life member, pulled it up and provided me with an official version that showed it was actually filed in Virginia. I have yet to receive the actual medals or ribbons or stars, and they failed to include the 2nd and 3rd tours. Upon further research, I found that the ship’s log and the COR (Commanding Officer’s annual Report) for 1971, the year I was injured and the year of the two missing tours, was missing and/or classified. During that process I did receive copies of several interesting things from National Archives, etc. When I was transferred from the ship around July 15-20, 1972 to Subic Bay Hospital in the Philippines, I was later further transferred from there to San Francisco (where I got the full hippie treatment at the airport), Treasure Island on July 24 late PM, via “sealed orders” and was never privy to my orders but was immediately administratively Honorably discharged from the Navy on July 26, 1972. Around late 2016 I obtained a copy of a Memorandum Log Sheet in my name from a place I had never heard of named Oakland Naval Hospital (ONH) just across the bay from Treasure Island, which entries started on August 4, 1972 and ran until a final entry on September 30, 1972. Normal entries were “man not here yet” and the final entry stated that I had been discharged from the Navy on July 26, 1972. The importance of this at that time is that the VA scheduled my initial visit on August 23, 1972, and definitely did not have my full medical records from the ship and especially the injury related records. That visit resulted in a lower back 10% VA disability and after each other item I listed on the original claim that I filled out at Treasure Island was a “not found”. This was not provided to me until years later when VA told me that I had been denied for all the other items. In fact this was an allusion that they did not have my full records during my initial visit, but they still stand by that as being an official denial even though they never provided a copy to me until many years later, and the vast majority of official denials are in a completely different format.

After 46-47 years post discharge I was miraculously able to contact one of the sailors who was on the buoy with me and he graciously wrote up a brief email “buddy statement” that proved the incident occurred. There was also a shrink report written up that alluded to this because after a few months from my injury, I was still unable to obtain meaningful medical treatment. I had requested the psychiatric visit in June or so, 1971 and it was scheduled for December 8, 1971 at Subic Bay Hospital. He recommended that I be transferred off the ship or at least to another department, but like all medical things back then on the ship, it was ignored. I had obtained numerous light duty chits and all were ignored, because my department said if I was not in a hospital bed, I was fit for full duty. I had electrical shocks coming from my neck and have been told I have post traumatic selective amnesia, along with PTSD and I had nerve impingement from my neck into my left shoulder and many other things. When in late 2016 I then asked VA if they could schedule an MRI for my head and left side, they came back and said that I have a small piece of brain missing due to concussion (which was never treated), and then another MRI revealed that I had a fractured pelvis which must have happened when I blanked out on the buoy, between then and the time that I went into the water, a short period which is still not remembered by me. When Dave F. and I were released from the 1st Lt.’s office that day of the injury, we were told to go to our berthing compartments so we were never even sent to sick bay. The three who were sent there and were never injured, all received a clean bill of health and a “splice the main-brace” measure of whiskey. So after I gathered up all the info I thought pertinent and much of which I obtained during the discharge papers correction rehearsal, I went to visit a local VSO who told me that I should file a form for PTSD along with a writeup explaining why I was doing so. The VSO was an ex-04 military officer and very astute but unfortunately was also hired by our county, the 3rd or 4th largest in the US (and bigger than the two smallest states, Rhode Island and Delaware) as their emergency manager. This write-up for me was a very difficult task.

I began writing up what had to begin with a full explanation of the anchor chain incident, research that showed what the task was, how it was supposed to be undertaken, and then how it all went wrong as best I could recall or understand. Because of my short and medium term memory loss, and to avoid as much redundancy as possible, it was necessary for me to read and re-read all that I had previously written each day until I completed the write-up. It took me off and on during spare time, around 10 1/2 months and still was not totally finished, but the VSO had previously processed my intent to the VA and therefore there was a deadline of one year to meet. I figured I had enough info included without completing it so went to contact the VSO to arrange an appointment. After numerous attempts, I came to the conclusion that he was way too busy that year with his emergency management duties, so decided to reluctantly contact the DAV. I say reluctantly because I had previously tried to have them assist me and they were mostly hung up on the info from VA that I was delusional. Still I persisted and told them I simply wanted to file this PTSD form and attachments and would they help? They were by then gone as to local assistance so I needed to talk to their NSO on the other end of the state, about 360+ miles away. My son helped me to assemble all this and get it mailed off to them. This filing was my write-up which was 67 pages and another 100-115 pages of documentation to try to back up what I was saying. I had also received copies of at least two different high level Navy medical officers that had directed that I be sent to Oakland Naval Hospital, but they were dated snail mail July 25, 1972, the day before I was discharged and nobody ever forwarded any of this to me back then. This entire filing was processed by the DAV NSO and at least got the ball rolling, even though there were a couple of minor mistakes as to what I was specifically claiming. Not long after that, the numerous letters from VBA began and it was more than I could deal with so I contacted a law firm and then turned it all over to them. It helps me a lot so far and keeps me from going entirely crazy but that process also has its ups and downs, which I have dealt with so far.

As to the discharge papers update, they added our Meritorious Unit Citation from the Sec’y of the Navy for being the first US ship to launch missions into North Vietnam, two more Battle Stars to my Vietnam Service Medal for a total of six, and the Combat Action Ribbon. Upon research, historians have divided the US/Vietnam Conflict/War into 29 or 30 major campaign/engagements. Out of those 29/30, our ship, the USS Denver participated partially or totally in 18 during the time I was aboard from January 1970 through July/August 1972. Of course to us on board ship it all seemed like one very long campaign. Even when we returned stateside, we were only there for a short while, mostly only a few weeks although it was a bit longer after the first tour. They never included in my revamped discharge papers the two shorter tours that occurred in 1971. I wonder if there is a coincidence related to my anchor chain injury incident which happened in 1971 and the complete missing or still classified ship’s log and COR for that year. Way too many things were discombobulated after that to say they were all simply coincidental. Even the incident itself begged for answers because it was completely fouled up and I was the apparent target. The only thing that pops up in my mind is that an E-6 in our department had literally gotten stabbed in the back prior to this and at least two different sailors whom I did not know and were from other departments, had told me that this E-6 had alluded to them that I either stabbed him or was somehow behind it. Since I did not even know about his alleged stabbing, I had chalked it all off as rumor. Afterwards though, at a time when I needed to crawl off somewhere to heal, he assigned every of the worst possible work details to me and then when I was unable to complete them to his satisfaction, he jerked my already approved promotion from E-3 to E-4. I found out recently that that is a violation of the USMJ unless done so as a result of an official hearing such as a court martial or at least a Captain’s Mast. Even though I did not get permanently killed, it definitely screwed up the entire rest of my life.

As to the VA/VBA’s response to my write-up, they have done numerous C&P exams and some of them multiple times and they have me as total and permanent, but many of the legitimate conditions they still deny as to service connection. The Navy and the VA were wrong but the worst thing in the world is to prove to them that they were wrong, because primarily they are never wrong. For many years I had to pay co-pays and rarely ever received travel pay, even though we were all told back prior to enlistment that we would never ever have to pay for medical care. Since much of my situation was denied as to service connection, I had to figure out ways to attempt to self-treat these things. For instance I take 48 Chinese herbs twice a day for joint pain and numerous other things for various other conditions. I have allergies that are caused by the only natural hormone replacement that works for my hypothyroidism because it is made from pigs and I have always been allergic to pork. It takes me around 3-4 hours per week to sort basic pills plus an hour per day to sort AM/PM from the basic ones. I have osteoarthritis in every joint, PN that is really nasty, perpetual stomach ulcers, etc., etc. Last July I obtained a VA authorization to see a spine specialist in Denver and during the initial visit he wrote up a next day stat surgery for my neck, explaining that I could be paralyzed at any moment. The surgery went fine and consisted of a total disc replacement at C4 to C5 and my neck now at 70 is much better and my left shoulder is starting to act like the neck/shoulder impinged nerve is improving. My local doctor had told me that my neck was wrecked at least from C3 to T1. I have three more MRI’s that he is to review to see if he needs to address anything else, as there are thoracic, lumbar, and pelvic issues yet.

As to my Navy experience, I loved my ship and most of my shipmates and officers, and even the Navy in general. I had had some very good experiences prior to being injured. During our ship’s maiden voyage, we were on our way to answer a distress call in the middle of a typhoon (hurricane) and I was assigned to the helm 8-12 PM watch. Shortly after reporting, the compass began swinging wildly side to side. I had been told that the ship could handle up to a 39 degree roll prior to a capsize. When we hit around ten degrees both ways I started analyzing things that were never told to me. The flight deck always swung in delay to the rest of the ship, and the compass location was offset from the center. I became accustomed to the swings so that I could anticipate one side swing by the strength of the other side. I started swinging the hydraulic wheel fast and furious upon the completion of each swing. The ship responded very well. When we reached the 30+ degree swings, the Captain/CO acting as Officer of the Deck got up from his Captain’s chair and came over to the ship’s log podium to the left and in front of me to watch me, Apparently satisfied, he returned to his chair and then we were hitting 37, 38, 39, 40, 41, 42, and 43 2/3’s. By then I was praying like never before and thanking all the riveters and others who had built this ship. That was the highest it ever went and I don’t think she would have completed 43 to 44. That all lasted over four hours and the Captain would not allow my relief until the major part of the storm subsided. When I finally was relieved and walking towards my berthing compartment, I was met by people coming out of side compartments, asking me where I was when all the clipboards were sideways? I was 18 and afraid to tell anyone I was the one steering the ship because they might assume that I somehow caused all that. The last thing anyone needs on a Navy ship is for rumors to cause the ship’s crew to come down on them. The next day, a friend of mine and I were up to the outer upper decks to inspect the ship. We got to the top catwalk where the large heavy inflatable lifeboats were stored in steel cages — (today these are made out plexiglass but back then they were steel cages). The forward cage was empty and there were supposed to be three per cage. A few other cages were missing one or two. This would be at least 150 to 200 feet up and all those missing disappeared as though they were never there, no remnants. When we reported this, they said that it would have taken at least a 250 foot wave to do this. Nothing was ever put in my file although I assumed something might have been placed there. Still I carry with me the exhilarating memory of having saved this ship and the 320+ crew, not only me but by the grace of God or someone looking over me. No medal or award could ever take that feeling away even now.

On another occasion, my friend and I were awakened at around midnight and told that the Captain was requesting us two to come to the bridge. He had a leak in his stateroom porthole and could we repair it? He asked for us because we by then had a reputation for doing the impossible. The ship was passing through the Bering Sea and it had been announced that anyone falling overboard were goners because they would be dead before we could launch a rescue boat. The leak in the porthole could not be patched or fixed from inside so we had to figure out a way to climb out during a storm in pitch dark to the side of the ship far enough to patch the leak. We studied and discussed this and decided to fashion a walk-way out of some smaller lines (ropes). Once out there he was closest and I carried all
of the materials and tools to do the repair. Several times when the ship swung our way, we were dunked into this freezing salt water slush, hanging on for dear life. Upon completion we were going to put all our tools and things away and then go back to our racks (beds). Instead the Captain standing next to the ship’s log podium, motioned for us to come over there. He said to wait there while he called for the ship’s doctor and we could not hear what they discussed. Within a few minutes the doctor arrived with two large coffee mugs and a jug of rum/whiskey. He poured them to the brim and handed them to us saying that this was twofold, splicing the main brace and to ward off pneumonia. Unfortunately nothing was ever written up in our files so much of this was as though it never happened. There were other things maybe not so notorious, but that was the Navy. Every day was another experience. When people ask me what I did in the Navy, I answer: which day? Then too, there were a lot of 72 hour days, in DaNang loading and offloading personnel, supplies, equipment, etc., in Hawaii because four of us had to paint out the entire side of the ship, and front and back prior to returning stateside because they did not want people to see what she really looked like after a tour in Nam. Got two NJP’s, both for stupidity not mine. These were handed out like candy on the ship and nearly always accompanied fines which replenished the officers coffee fund. Mostly they were like getting a speeding ticked for going 50 in a 60 mph zone. Still these things are kept in a permanent record which none of us knew back then.

The problem for me and perhaps others, is that it only takes one strategically located individual E-6 who was an habitual drunk but intelligent enough to smile before officers and convince them that he was able bodied. He knew all the records channels and how to systematically remove various things from them or have then re-routed in such a fashion that practically nobody could ever figure out what was what. Prior to the anchor chain incident and the triple TBI’s in less than five seconds, I was leaning towards re-upping and maybe even trying to get into Officer’s Candidate School. In the late 70’s I had a short job where I worked under a National Guard Brigadier General and he wanted to send me to OCS, but then I had to divulge all my disabilities and decline his offer. In fact once he learned of my short/medium term memory loss, he did not even want me to work there any longer. Yet when I took the VA’s memory tests, twice years apart, they said that I averaged around 100 percent but when I inquired of my specific things they said it did not apply to them. I am mostly nocturnal but when someone calls me on the phone in the morning, I can have perfectly good conversations but later may not remember the call or if I do, what was discussed. In my sleep whenever that happens in a 24 hour day, I relive this incident in deep sleep and that is when I go through some sort of memory wipe which randomly erases portions of short and medium term memory which I have no control over, thus post-traumatic selective amnesia. As you can see, I can write for long periods about long term memory things which to me are like yesterday or only minutes ago. I am stuck in that time so that I do remember most of what happened back then except for a few tiny portions of the actual injury incident. I remember during SAR (search and rescue) our picking up a number of downed pilots, and once we were sent to search for any survivors of a Panamanian freighter, Chinese flagged that broke up and sank. There was one brave soul who at night time jumped into hurricane force winds and swells the ocean so fierce and managed to actually get to one of their wooden life boats. We picked him up around three days later about 90 miles from where it broke up and sank. He was beet red but had managed to make a make-shift sail out of his shirt and an oar. I also have pics of some of these things.

Lastly, as to Vietnam and service there, I have two brothers who are also Vietnam Veterans. The older of the two was there in or around 64/65 to 67/68 and he was on the USS Kearsarge. I have not had the opportunity to talk with him very much and he definitely has some issues. I think he finished 2 or 3 terms in the Navy, then joined the Army where he was booted due to alcohol but he did serve around 15-16 years. My other brother 1 1/2 years older there was in my same HS graduating class but volunteered for the Army around six months after I enlisted in the Navy. Once in 1971 our ship’s Captain requested me to come to his cabin where he informed me that he needed my permission to bring the ship to the deep water pier in DaNang. I thought this had to be some sort of joke but then he explained that I had a brother there and they weren’t supposed to have two brothers in the same combat zone. He said that they had already obtained my brother’s permission and that if I agreed, they would give us each some time off to run around there. I said absolutely, go for it. I knew I had a brother in Vietnam but did not know where until then. Upon mooring, my brother arrived in a deuce and a half truck and we proceeded to drive around the airport and then downtown DaNang. This also happened one other time a few months later and today we both consider these two visits as the highlight of our time over there. We toured each others units so when I took him around my ship, everyone that we passed no matter their rank or status stopped to salute him. I didn’t think that him carrying his M-16 and a bag of grenades made the difference, but … maybe to some. He and I have had long periods of non communication and then other times when we talk regularly. He told me that the 50 ca. barrages that I went through at Quang Tri were actually 51 ca’s. Russia provided the arsenal to the North Vietnamese and they used 51 ca., because that way they could use our ammo if acquired but we could not use theirs. In recent years I wondered why only twice did we connect over there because my ship was in and out of DaNang dozens of times that year. He shared with me that he had spent five months or more in Cu Chi as a tunnel rat and then they pulled him out, sent him to Hawaii for a week and then re-stationed him in DaNang. After his full tour, he got out of the Army about six months before I was discharged. The first time I drove a forklift in DaNang I picked up a large pallet and as I took off, this rather goofy looking animal crawled over the top at me and I could not tell what it was — it was very fat and about 16 inches long, and I noticed others as well. After I delivered the pallet I asked an older sailor what it was and he said it was a cockroach. We worked many different tasks including monorails in the well deck, loading and offloading boats there, loading and unloading conveyors and probably at least another 100 different things. I was a GQ floater assigned to a location immediately after GQ sounded, so worked the big guns, smaller guns, gun directors, magazines, or whatever was called for. I was an FTG (gunfire control tech) but they had no billets so was assigned to Boatswainsmate except still had to work gunnery during GQ. We also saw numerous ports of call in between and most of them were great experiences. The USS Denver served our nation proudly for 45+ glorious years. They did have an accident with a barge around the year 2000 but were repaired over the following year or so and sent back to sea. We were instrumental during the SS Columbia Eagle fiasco in 1970 which was the first armed mutiny in over 150 years, a topic that has had several books written about. For all our Marine guests that traveled or served on her, SEMPER FI !

GOD BLESS ALL VIETNAM VETERANS AND THEIR FAMILIES, BOTH HERE AND ABROAD, WHO MUST NOW ENDURE OR PERISH!

Thanks

I served in the U.S. Army, 25th Infantry Division, 3/4 CAV (Tropic Lightening) 1967/1968, Vietnam.
The VA hospital in Grand Junction, Colorado has provided me with superb health care over many years.
I salute all Veterans who have served our county in any capacity.

Served in USAF in Pleiku 68-69. Got back home and my friends pretty much ignored me. Same with town I grew up in (Huntington NY).

Fast forward to around 2015. Saw a guy with a Vietnam cap. Walked up to him to shake his hand. He looked at me and said; welcome home. My eyes welled up.

i luis e giron-morel FROM PONCE,PUERTO RICO I AM ALSO A PROUD VIETNAM VETERAN 1967 SERVED WITH THE 1ST INFANTRY DIV.AS A RADIO MAN (RTO)
ALSO I AM VERY PROUD OF TWO GRANDSONS ANGEL E CAMACHO GIRON AND JONATAN D GIRON-GUIDICELLI SERVING IN THE AIR-FORCE AND INTHE ARMY

I am writing this comment as it pertains to My two brothers, Lance Corporal Edmund Gillette, Corporal Roger Gillette and myself Technical Sargeant Robert Gillette. The three of us are Vietnam Era Veterans. My brothers Edmund and Roger served in the Marines and I served in the Air Force. My brothers served 4 years and 3 years and I served just over 20 years. My brother Edmund also saw combat in Vietnam. I did not see combat but I supported the all of the forces in Vietnam as a photo-lab specialist. My brother Edmund also received the Purple Heart Medal among other medals as he was wounded in combat in Vietnam. I have received 12 medals during my career, for meritorious service rendered. We were honorable discharged from the respective service. I am very proud of my brothers especially since Edmund is now suffering from cancer. It is my belief that he has never received the full recognition and thanks for the service he has rendered. He came to the United States from Belize at the young of 18 years and enlisted in the Marines at age 19. The Purple Heart Medal is a good recognition however it does not provide for a better life financially. I am afraid that he does not have many years left. So I want all who read this, to say a prayer for him, that his suffering be diminished. I praise him as a hero among heroes.

I’m a Vietnam era veteran who served proudly in the USAF who for years hid the fact that I never served in country. That was until I met a Vietnam veteran who served in country. He was collecting data about Vietnam veterans that included where they served in country. I told him that I was a Vietnam era veteran who was made to feel as though I was not worthy of the title of Vietnam era veteran. What he told me changed my outlook on my status as a Vietnam era veteran. He said I answered the call and even though I never served in country I should be proud of my service. From that day forward I became proud of the fact that I served my country. I wear my Vietnam era veteran cap proudly and thank all who served, weather they served in country or not.

I entered the Navy n 1968 and volunteered for Nam. I didn’t go my first enlistment partly due to a stabbing in Norfolk that put me in Portsmouth hospital 6 months and 6 months limited duty. My second enlistment was on board the USS Midway from ’73-=76. I was in Frequent wind. I heard that the time frame was correct for Agent Orange because we were Blue water in April 1976. I have few symptoms but do have peripheral nephropathy and minor else. I was told I do not qualify. It has been a year since I did a follow up because I wanted all civilian medical records to be with the VA first. The only way I figure I could have come in contact with Agent Orange is in the preservation of A-37’s and F-5’s the Air Force brought onboard and we (INM-2) was to preserve these aircraft. I do not know if I was infected but I was denied with no testing. Should I continue or drop it. (the VA has listed me permanently injured, not disabled, due to my condition with my hearing and radial nerve laceration) (TAD to IM-2 from VA-93)

Good morning! Spent 1968 to 1969 in Danang sending supplies to Marines North and South of air base. One night we went on red alert . Was told one night if they get by the Marines we would be last hope. Thank God for Marines and any Army unit in the area, they stopped them !

On my way to Nam, Colonel (then Captain) Harvey Barnum was my CO in Staging Bn. He was a good man and I’ve always been proud that I served under him. I also ended up, down in the A Shau. It was experienced leaders, such as Capt. Barnum, who got us through that hellhole. Semper Fidelis, Col. Barnum!

P.S. – having a math problem to verify you deserve to post is (ha-ha) rather unfair to us Marines.

I am glad that I started the Vietnam Day at the UofM. I never got credit for it and vet groups fought me but all that I wanted was for that day to happen. Also I was Blessed toget the university for their help.