Veteran's Day ride

[Stig / Major Tom]

My daughter invited me to a nice Veteran's Day chapel ceremony at her school.
My daughter's history teacher approached me to inquire about my military experience (the veterans had each filled out a brief bio on a form). He knew that I was a combat medic & conscientious objector and asked if I was aware of the new movie coming out that tells the story of a WWII C.O. medic who was awarded the Medal of Honor.
I said, "yes, there have only been three -  two other C.O. medics received the M.O.H. in Vietnam. One was from nearby Dayton, OH; the other served in the same area and at the same time I was there. But theirs were  awarded posthumously."

I did locate my tie for the occasion.  (a favorite from high school - now back in  fashion)
Afterwards I put on my riding gear and took a nice ride to my coffee village.
There is a neat little restaurant tucked into the brickwork here. It should do nicely now that this new hotel has been built just next door!

Stig
PS: I imagine that there have been other medics who received the Medal of Honor since Vietnam - but since there is no longer a draft - there are no more conscientious objectors in the Army , or being trained as field medics at *Brooke Army Medical Center, Ft. Sam Houston, TX.
 
For a time in the 1960's, a large % of the graduating medic classes were sent straight to Vietnam. A small % of those classes were made up of all the C.O.'s who had taken an abbreviated basic training (no weapons training) on the other side of Ft. Sam. Other than Seventh Day Adventists having no duties on Saturdays - there was no distinction made between C.O.s and other medic trainees during the training - nor with their assignments after graduation. We knew this going in...

The new medic without a sidearm was a curiosity for only a short time to most grunts in Vietnam.

The Medical Field Service School at *B.A.M.C. kept no records of how many C.O.s were KIA in Vietnam.

[pipster326]

Thank you for your service to our great country, Stig. I appreciate everything you and all the other military personnel,do and have done, to ensure our safety and freedom! God Bless America!!!!!

  Rich


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[GLV55]

Thank you for your service to our great country, Stig. I appreciate everything you and all the other military personnel,do and have done, to ensure our safety and freedom! God Bless America!!!!!

  Rich

Ditto that. We owe our veterans a huge amount of thanks for serving and protecting our country! Raise a glass to Stig and the rest!

[ole two wheels]

I want to thank you Stig and Crossbolt  for your service to our country. I was in the 173rd Airborne on Okinawa and rotated back to Ft. Campbell in NOV. of 64 and the 173rd made a combat jump into Nam in 65.  I never got into the fight because I was in S4 supply. They had me in Germany deactivating units so those men could be sent to VN. I put a 1049 in while in Germany requesting transfer back to the 173rd, but it was denied because supply people were in short supply. Crossbolt and other members of my former unit told me that I didn't miss a thing.. I can find several names I recognize on the Wall.

Mac, aka "ole two wheels"

[Stig / Major Tom]

I want to thank you Stig and Crossbolt  for your service to our country. I was in the 173rd Airborne on Okinawa and rotated back to Ft. Campbell in NOV. of 64 and the 173rd made a combat jump into Nam in 65.  I never got into the fight because I was in S4 supply. They had me in Germany deactivating units so those men could be sent to VN. I put a 1049 in while in Germany requesting transfer back to the 173rd, but it was denied because supply people were in short supply. Crossbolt and other members of my former unit told me that I didn't miss a thing.. I can find several names I recognize on the Wall.

Mac, aka "ole two wheels"

Hello Mac,
Yeah, the  "3rd Herd". I remember some casualties from the 3rd Herd in II Corps area.
It has been half a century - and as an E-5 I was not always well informed about the Bigger Picture - having a good case of head down, 'trail vision' - not that the LT had a much better grasp of things (hopefully the Maj. flying over us in C.&C. huey did).....
Anyway, (and I heard plenty of senior Sgts. use two words *, new to me - so I know they must be in a Webster's somewhere...) for 50 yrs I've been  'missremembering' that the 3rd Herd was also called the 'Walking Dead'.

Well, glad I looked it up this evening. The unit known as the W.D. was actually the 1st of the 9th, Marines.
Had that wrong for half a century.
* Still looking for the edition of Webster's that has "mens" in it! (as in "Listen up mens! Assume the front leaning rest position!")
Better stick some scooterin' pix in here....





 Stig