REFLECTIONS

Let’s take a trip back in history during the Vietnam War.

A close friend of my wife, Dianne Smith, has written a comprehensive account of the Vietnam War from the trenches.

PaPa Peter Smith is the main character. His wife, Dianne, has penned two editions of this book entitled Strike Soldier in Country ’67 and ’68.

I was drawn to this book because PaPa Pete entered the Army about the same time I did — 1965 and at Fort Leonard, Mo. I served in the Army National Guard during the Vietnam era, 1965 to 1971. I didn’t set foot on Vietnam soil. He did.

Dianne explains the significance of the title, which is that "strike” was the mantra or battle cry of the 502nd Battalion. It is the phrase used by soldiers to refer to time spent in Vietnam, or in country.

101st Airborne

I read the book very carefully, because it contains lots of detail. Dianne printed her book in spiral format, 8-1/2 by 10 inches, and 85 pages. in spiral format.

Look into PaPa Pete’s eyes, and you will see a man who had his life changed forever after fighting in the Vietnam War.

God has invested in all kinds of people, and PaPe Pete is that extraordinary individual who makes the world go round. He even told me that he would like to meet the enemy soldier who sprayed a volley of bullets at him causing critical wounds.

Pete and Dianne spent minutes, hours, days, weeks and months putting this memory book together for their children and grandchildren.

I am using Dianne and Peter as examples of a couple who worked together to tell their story.

Dianne says this literary project is dedicated to the memory of these men listed below. All were members of the 101st Airborne Division 502nd Infantry Battalion, Company D.

All were killed in action (KIA) in Vietnam, with the exception of LaMoen Yingling, who died in 1976 of skin cancer, presumably caused by Agent Orange.

Another exception was Mike Kelley, who died by his own hand in December of 2011. He could no longer live with the memories and the psychological pain inflicted upon him by the war. They are the true heroes of Vietnam.

Walter L. Gawel, Ohio

Reginald Bell, North Carolina

Herbert Probst. Pennsylvania

Kenneth Quan, Michigan

Patrick Hassan, Florida

Phillip Pigford, North Carolina

Roland Levesque, Vermont

Ronald Weister, Ohio

James S. Combs, Ohio

Richard Friend, California

Herbert Stoneking, Missouri

Clinton Carpenter, Massachusetts

Lamoen Yingling, Oklahoma

Michael Kelley, California

These men have their names etched on the Vietnam Wall in Washington.

There are 58,267 names listed on that polished, black wall, including those added in 2010. The names are arranged in the order in which they were taken from us by the date, and within each date the names are alphabetized. The first known casualty was Richard B. Fitzgibbon of North Weymouth, Mass. He was listed by the U. S. Department of Defense as having been killed on June 8, 1956.

Hia name is listed on the Wall with that of his son, Marine Corps Lance Cpl. Richard V. Fitzgibbon III, who was killed on Sept. 7, 1965. 

NEXT: Read about Cpl. Peter Smith’s time in the trenches in Vietnam.