Written by Bob Rabe Vietnam veteran Bob Rabe shares a beautiful Christmas moment from 1966. It seems like yesterday, December 25, 1966. While on patrol with my fellow Military Policeman, we came upon a Vietnamese Catholic Church. Mass had already started, but we entered the church quietly anyway. While we stood in the back, the Vietnamese
Written by Jim McStay A B-52 flies over the beach at U-Tapao, ca. 1973 (Jim McStay) Navy P-3 Orion pilot Jim McStay recalls a long day in the air from Diego Garcia with special cargo in a cooler and a badly hurt SeaBee on a litter awaiting emergency surgery. Back when I
Written by Irene Harrell Irene Harrell with her grandfather, retired Air Force Col. Ron Standerfer Irene Harrell is a young writer who has attended our VBC events in-person and online to meet veterans and hear their stories. She’s interested in interviewing Vietnam veterans especially to research a novel she’s working on about
The little-known SS Mayaguez Incident of 1975 was the last act of the Vietnam War. Coming two weeks after the Fall of Saigon, the armed conflict between the US military and Cambodian Khmer Rouge naval forces resulted in the last US casualties of the war. The names of these 41 casualties appear at the very
Colonel Kenneth G. Carlson graduated the U.S. Military Academy at West Point in 1966, launching a twenty-six year career in the Army. Among his honors are two Legions of Merit, two Bronze Stars (one for Valor), and a Purple Heart. The story below is selected from his interview with the West Point Center for
Written by Jim Roberts Vietnam veteran Jim Roberts poses the question: “What exactly is there to be happy about in being a veteran?” The words “Happy Veterans Day” always cause me to flinch. I shake my head in wonder. “What exactly is there to be happy about in being a veteran?” Todd and I
