Last Days Some of the Best Ones Die

Though few Americans were paying attention at this late stage of the Indochina War, GIs continue to be killed by enemy action around and after Jan. 27, 1973.  They died in Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia.

Twenty Americans were killed by hostile action in the very last days of operations in the three theaters of the U.S. war.  They represented all services.  Their memories deserve to be preserved despite the rush of history.

Click Here to read the story…  Then go to Page 24

SOURCE: VFW Magazine

‘Until They Are Home’: MIA Mission Continues After 40 Years

Tim Dyhouse

January marked the 40th anniversary of the start of the post-war search for missing Gis in Indochina. That mission’s origins are under reported as are the earliest efforts to recover the remains of Americans from overseas wars beginning in 1898. Here is a brief recap.

THE OFFICIAL DOCUMENT that ended America’s military participation in the Vietnam War in 1973 contained a provision that supported a vital VFW priority.

Article 8 of The Agreement on Ending the War and Restoring Peace in Vietnam— also known as the Paris Peace Accords—stipulated that the former combatants would cooperate “to facilitate the exhumation and repatriation” of the remains of war dead. Immediately after the document was signed, the U.S. created the Four-Party Joint Military Team (FPJMT) and the Joint Casualty Resolution Center (JCRC) to carry out Article 8. The FPJMT negotiated details of remains recovery while the JCRC carried out the actual field work. Continue reading →

Happy Vietnam Veteran’s Day

By Major General Donald Dunbar, Wisconsin National Guard.

Forty years ago in 1973, the last American combat soldier departed Saigon and ended America’s involvement in the Vietnam War.

Today, we honor our Vietnam veterans — soldiers, sailors, airmen, marines, and coast guardsmen who served our nation with honor and distinction at a very difficult time in our nation’s history, a time of war and a time of social unrest at home, a time when our society failed to distinguish between our nation’s policy and the faithful service of our military. Time has brought perspective, and today our country knows that our Vietnam veterans’ service was extraordinary and that honor was and is due. America has a proud tradition of military service, and the Vietnam chapter in America’s history is just as important to this nation and just as valued as any generation prior or since.

Our Vietnam veterans, like previous generations of veterans who served in time of war, served with valor on the field of battle and came home to make America better. We remember the difficult time during this conflict, but often miss the extraordinary contribution of so many of our Vietnam veterans. They have made America better and stronger, by building our institutions, starting and succeeding in business, serving in office and in our communities, and raising families. And they continue their commitment to the men and women who wear the uniform. They have been at the foundation of America’s commitment today honoring those who have served in our most recent conflict.

How do I know? I see them every time we deploy a unit of the Wisconsin National Guard — a tear in their eye, pride in their gaze, a flag in their hand or on their shirt, and a staunch commitment to supporting this current generation of warriors. America is better not in spite of our Vietnam generation, but because of it. So on behalf of the 10,000 soldiers and airmen of the Wisconsin National Guard, I say to all Vietnam veterans — thank you for your service and commitment to America. You have our respect, our appreciation and our admiration. Our history is freedom’s history and it must be preserved. Each generation must keep the torch of freedom lit and pass it on to the next generation.

You, the Vietnam generation, faced significant challenges as you carried that torch, but you kept it burning and burning brightly. Thank you. —  Major General Donald Dunbar, Wisconsin National Guard.

Hagel Orders Review of Drone Medal Ranking

Mar 12, 2013

Stars and Stripes| by Leo Shane III

WASHINGTON — Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel has ordered a review of the new Distinguished Warfare Medal following complaints from veterans groups and lawmakers about its ranking above the Bronze Star and Purple Heart, a senior defense official said Tuesday.

The review, to be led by Joint Chiefs Chairman Gen. Martin Dempsey, will look at whether the order of precedence for the new medal should be changed, but will not consider eliminating it. A report is due back to Hagel in early April.

The new medal, announced last month, is designed to honor “extraordinary actions” of drone pilots and other off-site troops performing noteworthy deeds on far-away battlefields. Continue reading →

REMEMBERING THOSE WHO FOUGHT

Ground was officially broken for the Education Center at the Wall, to be located across Henry Bacon Drive from the Vietnam Veterans Memorial, on Nov. 28.

Northeast of the Lincoln Memorial, the 35,000-square-foot underground museum will display photos (“Wall of Faces”) of the 58,282 Americans killed in the war and otherwise honor their sacrifices.  Showcased, too, will be samples of the hundreds of thousands of mementos left at the memorial.

The memorial, dedicated in 1982, cost a mere (by today’s standards) $8.2 million to build.  The center, scheduled for completion in 2014, will cost about $85 million – $48 million of which has already been raised.

SOURCE: VFW Magazine, February 2013

As a member of the VFW, I was able to place a notice in VFW Magazine about our 2013 Reunion in Tulsa.  It was published in the March 2013 issue.

Click on the picture to see a larger version

I did not think that anyone would call regarding the notice.  But – surprise, surprise – I got a telephone call Saturday afternoon from Dale Fleming of Blackwell, OK.  He does not have an email address or even a computer.  He told me he plans to attend the reunion.  I sent him reunion information in the mail.