The Vietnam Virtual Wall

[Guest Tony n Terrific]

First click on a state. When it opens, scroll down to the city and the names will appear. Then click on their names. It should show you a picture of the person, or at least their bio and medals.

This really is an amazing web site. Somebody spent a lot of time and effort to create it.

I hope that everyone who receives this appreciates what those who served in Vietnam sacrificed for our country.

 

The link below is a virtual wall of all those lost during the Vietnam War with the names, bio's and other information on our lost heroes. Those who remember that time frame, or perhaps lost friends or family can look them up on this site.

 

 

http://www.virtualwall.org/iStates.htm

[dnoblett]

That is a very cool site, very impressive, each and every name there is a link to a page dedicated to that soldier with coments there from people who knew that soldier.

 

Truly awesome site.

 

THANKS FOR POSTING THIS!

[Mick]

Nice site. Thanks.

[Mike62356]

Thank you Tony

[samsong]

I don't know any brave soldiers that lost their lives in Vietnam but I know a few veterans of that terrible conflict. I remember a friend of my mother's getting reel tapes from her husband over in the war. I knew a guy who was badly disabled by a grenade blast and I worked with a fellow one time who was over there on tour in the Marines and saw alot of action. He didn't talk about it much but when he did, everybody listened with interest.

I tryed a few names and looked in the cities I know to look into to see if I recognized any names. Fortunately I didn't. All the same, they are in God's hands now and that's a good thing.

 

Yeah,,, good site, Tony! Thanks!

[dnoblett]

Made me think of the painting a copy of which is posted in a hallway at my college.

 

http://edfromct.files.wordpress.com/2009/04/vietnam-memorial.jpg

Edited March 18, 2010 by dnoblett (see edit history)

[Guest Tony n Terrific]

I was raised in a heavy manufacturing town in SW Ohio of 70,000 people. My town lost 42 men in the Vietnam War. I personally knew 7 of these men and their families. One family gave up two sons in this terrible war. I can remember one of boys leaving for Nam in January of 69. Myself and some friends saw him and his Dad driving to the airport heading to Vietnam. His Dad stopped the car at service station and we followed them there when Davey got out of the car he was dressed in his Marine Corp uniform and did he look sharp. We all gave him hearty encoragement. We told him he had to win the war so we who where graduating 5 months from now would not have to go and do our part. 6 weeks later he was killed. His other brother re-enlisted in the Airforce and was killed in head on collison with another B-52 bomber over the Rockies 5 years later. Their parents where such nice people. Very kind and gentle type.

My local paper ran an article over 30 years ago after interviewing this good family.

Maybe if our politicians would read this article and when the war toxin sounds we maybe able to eliminate man's most insidous invention called war.

 

Journal-News Writer

 

 

The faded American Flag will fly today in front of the neat porch at Elvin Ave.

But it won't be any different than any other day in the year. It waves every day above the planter filled with bright geraniums.

It has for a long time.

"Don't say 'Gold Star Mother,'" Mrs. XX said, "say 'Gold Star Parents'. The father loses them too."

The "gold" speaks for two sons lost while in military service of the United States.

But the "gold" says nothing compared to the volumes spoken by the tears that still come when David and Michael XX letters and medals and military decorations are brought out.

The items were shown to a reporter during an interview requested by the Journal-News.

David was killed Feb. 19, in a foxhole 24 miles south of Quang Tri City, in Vietnam.

His brother, Michael, died in a plane crash in the United States almost exactly five years later - Michael was in the U. S. Air Force when he lost his life.

Michael, who had already served a hitch in the Marines, re-enlisted after David's death.

"Michael was in a very bad car wreck and was in the Veterans Hospital when the news of Davey's death came," Mrs. Schneider said.

"Michael couldn't come to the funeral ... he couldn't see Davey. After he recovered and went back to work he was so restless ... he had to go back ... because Davey was killed and he didn't get to see Davey. Michael thought he just had to go back."

So, when he couldn't get back into the Marines, Michael enlisted in the Air Force.

David had enlisted in the Marines three days after his graduation from XX High School. He was 17.

"We didn't want him to do it, but he felt like he had to," she said.

"That's when all the protests were going on and people were running off to Canada. Our son Jim was serving a term in the Navy. Davey thought he should go because his brothers were serving."

On his way to Vietnam (he had just turned 18) Davey and his brother Michael met in California. Michael was returning from a tour in Vietnam. It was the first time they had seen each other in a long time. It has been more than five years since Michael's death, more than 10 since David's, but the pain remains so real, it's as though it were yesterday that the young Marine officer stood in the lovely living room at XX Elvin and delivered the devastating messages.

The military delivers gold star pins to parents of deceased servicemen. Mr. and Mrs. XX each have a star. She has had hers made into a ring.

The stars don't ease the grief that still rips at her, that sends her out to work "just to get out of the house."

"We taught them not to fight all their lives. But we taught them to respect the country and to obey the law. They said they didn't want to run away from it and they believed they were doing what was right," she said.

Although there was the added agony of widespread disgust with a "non-war," of cruel phone calls and unkind remarks even after their sons were dead, Mrs. XX is not bitter.

"Davey was a great, big, tall kid everybody loved," she said. "He was so kind. And he was special. He had rheumatoid arthritis when he was nine and that's why we thought they'd never take him into the service."

But they did. And that February when the North Vietnamese made a suicide attack on a hill his outfit had just captured, Davey was shot in the head after saving his buddies.

"I know some people can't see the reason for the war." Mrs XX said. "It was horrible to listen to them after the boys died. My boys were dead. I couldn't understand. It didn't make sense that they drafted so many boys then said it wasn't a war."

"My boys believed they had to go because it is our country. There were so many killed ... and it looked as if no one cared."

"I can't be bitter. It wouldn't be fair to my sons' beliefs. We fly the flag every day except when it rains. And every year I go out and help flag the graves of other servicemen.

I remember when the second news came ... I thought 'No. I can't go through this again.' But you don't die. You go on living."

"I know we have to have doctors and lawyers and other people in other professions in this country ... but it seems to me that if everyone pitched in for the country's defense, maybe things wouldn't happen, and boys wouldn't have to die."

"Maybe with the draft, everyone will be treated a little more equally."

Both her dead sons have received a long list of medals and citations.

There are other sons, a daughter, and grandchildren in the XX family.

Unavoidably, family gatherings carry a bittersweet share of pain. Mr. and Mrs. XX take special delight in their children and grandchildren , but they don't forget. They never forget.

The American Flag will fly in front of the XX home this Independence Day, but the grief and pain and significance are always there.

"We live with it every day," Mrs.XX said.

[tsap seui]

Freedom ain't free...this website details a bit of the costs.

[knloregon]

Tom Gibson, Portland Oregon. Died at age 20 in March of 1969 in Tay Ninh province.

 

Its not exactly in this very good web site, but he and his high school buddy, Randy ---and it was almost unheard of that two guys from the same town, and the same HS would make it through basic, and into Country, and were walking down this path together--- a path they were told not to walk down. In fact, they were told to avoid all the trails in their sector.

 

Tom was killed with the first shot. Randy hit the ground and gave cover fire with his M-16 until the VC retreated.... He would see much more action before leaving VN..

 

He later worked for the Army Corps, where we were land surveyors together.

[knloregon]

Before I left land surveying, one of my greatest honors was to be on the crew that did the topographic survey for the VN memorial in Washington Park in the west hills of Portland. the weather was horrible. Almost as if the tears of all 183 war dead, from Portland, and their families were trying to blow us off that hillside with the horizontal winter rain, day after day----soaked to the bone for 10 days. But we got it done.

[Michael]

Wow some really great stories. And I can relate very well. For some reason over here in China I cannot get on that site. Can hardly wait to see when I get back. I was in the Marines 1964 to 1970. I was with Charlie, 1/1 in 1967- 1968. A lot of very good Marines died. If you would like to read a book that I happen to be in. It is called The Lions of Media. It was a battle that I will never forget. PST really was bad for me a awful long time. A very close friend ended up killing himself because he could not deal with it any longer. I am really a very lucky man.

I always pay tribute to those that paid the price.

 

Semper Fi,

Michael

[Chad]

Made me think of the painting a copy of which is posted in a hallway at my college.

 

http://edfromct.files.wordpress.com/2009/04/vietnam-memorial.jpg

 

I remember when I saw this picture for the first time. I was in the mall in a picture store, it brought tears to my eyes, still does today!