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Grand Valley State University. University Libraries
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Vietnam War, 1961-1975--Personal narratives, American
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United States. Marine Corps
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- Notes:
- Ron Hutson born in Muskegon, Michigan in 1950 and enlisted in the Marines in 1968. He trained as a truck driver and was assigned to a 105mm self-propelled artillery unit in the 3rd Marine Division in Vietnam. His unit was based at the Rockpile, just south of the DMZ. He served there between April and November, 1969, when the division left Vietnam. After spending several months in Japan, his unit returned to the US, and he completed his enlistment at Camp Lejeune, North Carolina.
- Date Created:
- 2014-01-30T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Grand Valley State University. University Libraries
- Collection:
- Veterans History Project (U.S.)
- Notes:
- Richard Teesdale served in the Vietnam War with the U.S. Marine Corps. After his eight weeks of basic training in California and 20 weeks at Camp Lejeune, NC, he was assigned to a Combat Engineer unit. His service in Vietnam included several offensives in Quang Tri, Hue and Quang Thien. He was awarded several medals, including a Bronze Star with a Combat V and a Purple Heart, among others. Today, he still has difficulty adjusting to life after the Vietnam War. He has suffered from Post Traumatic Stress Syndrome, as well as the long-term effects of Agent Orange.
- Date Created:
- 2009-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Grand Valley State University. University Libraries
- Collection:
- Veterans History Project (U.S.)
- Notes:
- Chuck O'Conner enlisted in the U.S. Marines while living in Illinois and served 3.5 years in the service. During his service Chuck obtained the rank of Staff Sergeant and fought in the field during the Vietnam War. He was involved in the battle at Khe Sanh, but does not say much about it.
- Date Created:
- 2010-05-15T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Grand Valley State University. University Libraries
- Collection:
- Veterans History Project (U.S.)
- Notes:
- Elvin W. Keith III was born on April 14, 1933. He went to Westchester State Teachers College and then joined the Marines. He started out in the platoon leader's class and then was promoted from a Field Commander to the Company Commander. Elvin was stationed in Vietnam and was assigned to the Motor Transport Battalion of the Third Marine Division. After Vietnam he was stationed at Camp Lajune, North Carolina where he trained to become a Regimental Motor Transport Officer. After his time in the service, Elvin began working for the FBI in Texas and he now teaches classes in Michigan at Baker College.
- Date Created:
- 2008-11-24T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Grand Valley State University. University Libraries
- Collection:
- Veterans History Project (U.S.)
- Notes:
- Ron Howell, born in Flint, Michigan in 1948 He enlisted in the Marine Corps and served from 1967 to 1969. Trained at San Diego as a radio operator, he was sent to Vietnam in June, 1968 and assigned to a headquarters unit in Da Nang. He later requested duty in the field, and became a radio operator with the 3rd Shore Party near the DMZ, and went out with different combat units to call in helicopter support.
- Date Created:
- 2012-09-13T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Grand Valley State University. University Libraries
- Collection:
- Veterans History Project (U.S.)
- Notes:
- Martin Goldrick was a Marine Officer who served during the Vietnam War from 1969 to 1971 as a Platoon Commander, then as a Civic Action Officer working with Vietnamese civilians. He discusses combat operations in detail, as well as some of the issues confronting him as a Civic Action Officer. He also discusses morale and race issues within his units.
- Date Created:
- 2009-12-02T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Grand Valley State University. University Libraries
- Collection:
- Veterans History Project (U.S.)
- Notes:
- Gerald Redwine was born in Grand Rapids, Michigan in 1933. After graduating from high school in 1952, Redwine was attending Grand Rapids Junior College when a group of five of his friends suggested they join the military. After both the Air Force and Navy refused to enlist the entire group, due to all the men being black, the group finally enlisted in the Marine Corps. Once Redwine completed boot camp in San Diego, he joined the 3rd Marine Division, which in 1953, received orders to deploy to Korea to participate in the Korean War. However, the brokering of the armistice ended the war and the division re-routed to Japan. After Redwine's deployment to Japan finished, he briefly served at El Toro Naval Air Station in California before transferring to Okinawa. Redwine spent fourteen months on Okinawa and when he returned to the United States in 1957, the Marines sent him to advance training in administration at Parris Island, South Carolina. After finishing the training at Parris Island, Redwine returned to California and went through training to be a drill instructor, a position he held for three years. In 1962, Redwine transferred to Bellingham, Washington to work with the Marine Corps Reserves. After spending a further three years in Washington, the Marines recalled Redwine in 1966 and placed him in the newly-formed 5th Marine Division, which soon deployed to Vietnam. Once in Vietnam, Redwine served in administrative positions in bases at Dong Ha and Phu Bai. When his tour ended in Vietnam, Redwine returned to the United States and worked in the brig at Camp Pendleton, California. Following a year working at the brig, Redwine transferred again to Okinawa as part of the 3rd Marine Service Regiment. When his time in Okinawa ended, Redwine transferred back to the United States, spending time at both Camp Pendleton and El Toro. Finally, in 1972, after having served the mandatory twenty years necessary to earn a pension, Redwine left active-duty. Due to his ethnicity, Redwine faced numerous incidents of discrimination during his time in the military from officers blatantly telling him he would not receive a promotion based on his race to people confronting him when traveling in the South.
- Date Created:
- 2011-11-03T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Grand Valley State University. University Libraries
- Collection:
- Veterans History Project (U.S.)
- Notes:
- Born in Kalamazoo, Michigan in 1947, William Jones divided his younger years growing up between Ionia, Michigan and Manchester, New Hampshire. After graduating from high school in Manchester, Jones followed family tradition and enlisted in the military, specifically the Marine Corps. After completing basic training at Parris Island, South Carolina and Advanced Individual Training (AIT) at Camp Lejeune, North Carolina, Jones went to the Marine Corps' base at Quantico, Virginia for training in supply and logistics. When he finished training at Quantico, Jones deployed to Vietnam, where he served with the 1st Marine Division in Da Nang as part of a supply and logistics unit. Following a yearlong tour in Vietnam, Jones returned to the United States before deploying overseas again, this time to Guantánamo Bay, Cuba. Once his tour at Guantánamo Bay was complete, Jones returned to Camp Lejeune, where he finished the remainder of his enlistment.
- Date Created:
- 2011-02-10T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Grand Valley State University. University Libraries
- Collection:
- Veterans History Project (U.S.)
- Notes:
- Clyde Westra was born in Grand Haven, MI in 1948. He dropped out of high school to join the Marine Corps at the age of 17. Clyde was initially trained and worked in Vietnam as a Combat Engineer, but was shipped to Danang and trained to be a radio operator. He served in Vietnam for 26 months, including at Khe Sanh and in the A Shau Valley. For his service in Vietnam, he recieved a Purple Heart, and Bronze Star. After Clyde came home, he was diagnosed with PTSD and other illnesses as a result of exposure to Agent Orange.
- Date Created:
- 2009-06-17T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Grand Valley State University. University Libraries
- Collection:
- Veterans History Project (U.S.)
- Notes:
- Michael Woods grew up in a poor neighborhood in New Orleans and enlisted in the Marine Corps in 1960 at the age of 17. He was based on Okinawa in the early 1060s, and was sent to Vietnam with one of the first Marine units assigned there, and participated in a number of combat actions of varying size. After his tour in Vietnam was over, he stayed in the Marines until 1979, but did not return to Vietnam.
- Date Created:
- 2010-06-08T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Grand Valley State University. University Libraries
- Collection:
- Veterans History Project (U.S.)
- Notes:
- Al Orr was born in Grand Rapids, Michigan on November 5, 1935. He enlisted in the Marines Corps in November 1952 when he was only 17 years old. Al was sent to the Pacific in March 1966 and first arrived in Okinawa where he was assigned to a unit. He was then sent into Da Nang where he worked as an assistant operations officer of his battalion. Al was in Vietnam for a little over a year and was engaged in a campaign against the Viet Cong in his sector.
- Date Created:
- 2004-12-07T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Grand Valley State University. University Libraries
- Collection:
- Veterans History Project (U.S.)
- Notes:
- Robert Huizenga was born in Portland, Michigan in 1948 and grew up on a farmhouse near the town until he was fourteen, when his family moved to Hudsonville, Michigan. After graduating from high school in 1966, Huizenga enlisted in the Marine Corps. Following boot camp in San Diego, California and infantry training at Camp Pendleton, California, Huizenga received orders for motor transport school at Montford Point, North Carolina. Once he completed the school, Huizenga briefly served in the motor pool at nearby Camp Lejeune before deploying to Vietnam. When Huizenga arrived in Vietnam, he received an assignment to the 1st Anti-Tank Battalion. However, only a few months after Huizenga arrived, the battalion contracted to a company-sized unit and Huizenga transferred to the former battalion's sister unit, the 1st Motor Battalion. While with the 1st Motor, Huizenga worked in the battalion's shop repairing vehicles and rode in convoys, first as a machine gunner then as an assistant driver. While Huizenga was with the battalion, it transferred to base at Gia Le outside of Hue just prior to the start of the Tet Offensive in 1968. During the offensive, the battalion helped transport men and supplies into the forces stationed inside Hue. He chose to extend his tour by a total of nine months rather than be posted back at Camp Lejeune, preferring to stay with his unit, which eventually moved to the Da Nang area, where it remained for the rest of his tour.
- Date Created:
- 2012-01-05T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Grand Valley State University. University Libraries
- Collection:
- Veterans History Project (U.S.)
- Notes:
- Richard Jakubczak is from Grand Rapids Michigan and was born in May of 1946. After high school he worked at Lowell Engineering and as a farmer. He briefly attended Kendall School of Design, but dropped out in 1966 and he and his brother joined the Navy and volunteered for training as medical corpsmen. He completed his basic training and medical training at Great Lakes, Illinois, and then went to Camp LeJeune, North Carolina, for field training. He then worked at Great Lakes Naval Hospital for ten months, and went to Vietnam in February, 1968. He was assigned to the First Shore Party, which provided logistical support to Marine combat units in the field, and was regularly attached to combat units when on operations. He was based near Da Nang, and supported Marine units involved in Operations Allen Brook and Mameluke Thrust. He left Vietnam in February, 1969, and completed his enlistment at Great Lakes.
- Date Created:
- 2011-10-14T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Grand Valley State University. University Libraries
- Collection:
- Veterans History Project (U.S.)
- Notes:
- Edward Serafino was born in Illinois in 1948 and enlisted in the Marines Corps right after graduating from high school. They were sent to San Diego for basic training for 9 weeks, which was very rough on him even though he had played many sports in high school. Edward then trained with amphibious vehicles called Amtraks for another 30 days before being shipped to Vietnam. While in Vietnam Edward worked for a while on supplies, guard duty, and then spent most of his time traveling along water ways in the Amtraks.
- Date Created:
- 2009-11-12T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Grand Valley State University. University Libraries
- Collection:
- Veterans History Project (U.S.)
- Notes:
- Edwin Heiden was born and raised in St. Joseph, MI in March 1947. He graduated high school in 1965 and joined the Marine Corps shortly thereafter. Edwin adapted to Marine life well and became a mechanic. He was deployed to Vietnam as reinforcement for the 3rd Motor Transport Battalion in Phu Bai, operating mostly as a truck driver. He was soon transferred to the 3rd Medical Battalion, where he served during the Tet Offensive, helping transport and care for the wounded coming from Hue City. His unit then moved north to Quang Tri where he helped construct a new base. Edwin then returned home to finish his enlistment by teaching marines to drive trucks in California. He then left the military for a short time to attend college and get married, before returning to the service through Officer Candidate School. Edwin became an Infantry Platoon Commander and led a unit operating at Guantanamo Bay. Edwin left the service again soon after this and moved back home to Michigan.
- Date Created:
- 2015-12-08T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Grand Valley State University. University Libraries
- Collection:
- Veterans History Project (U.S.)
- Notes:
- Jim Hunter was born in Grand Rapids, Michigan in July 1946. After briefly trying college, he enlisted in the Marine Corps in February, 1966. After training in San Diego, he deployed to Vietnam and was assigned to the 2nd Battalion, 9th Marine Regiment; this unit took many casualties and became known as "The Walking Dead." His unit operated close to the DMZ, around Dong Ha, Cam Lo, and Camp Carroll. He was badly wounded in December, 1966, and upon recovery was sent to the Amphibious Warfare School at Quantico, Virginia until he received a medical discharge in 1968.
- Date Created:
- 2014-03-13T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Grand Valley State University. University Libraries
- Collection:
- Veterans History Project (U.S.)
- Notes:
- Dr. Larry Robson is a Vietnam War veteran who was born on June 27, 1937 in Almont, Michigan. He attended Albion College and the University of Michigan completing surgical training in 1968. He enlisted in the Navy in June 1968 to fulfill his commitment to the military. He was first stationed at Naval Air Station Corpus Christi, Texas for five months until he received orders to go to Vietnam. He was trained at Camp Pendleton and was then deployed to Vietnam where he joined the 3rd Medical Battalion with the 3rd Marines Division at Quang Tri. He served as a surgeon for a year first with the Marines then with the Army when the 101st Airborne Division replaced the Marines. After Vietnam he was assigned to the Great Lakes Naval Hospital at Great Lakes Naval Station, Illinois for the last six months of his service.
- Date Created:
- 2014-11-08T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Grand Valley State University. University Libraries
- Collection:
- Veterans History Project (U.S.)
- Notes:
- Claude Dies was born in 1945 and served in the Vietnam War with the Marine Corps. He was trained in the area of Air Radio Electronics after basic training, and was sent to New River Air Base in Jacksonville, North Carolina where he spent most of his tour of duty working as an electrician on rewiring the base. After his time in the service, he worked in Avionics.
- Date Created:
- 2008-05-29T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Grand Valley State University. University Libraries
- Collection:
- Veterans History Project (U.S.)
- Notes:
- Donald Lee Clark, of Tacoma Washington, served in the United States Marine Corps during the Vietnam War, from 1962 to 1966. He was a member of the Marine Reserves before being sent to Marine basic training. He worked as a truck driver for the marines both stateside and while serving in Vietnam. Clark worked as part of a guard on the Chu Lai airbase in Vietnam while it was being built. Before Vietnam, he was sent to Cuban waters in the aftermath of the Bay of Pigs incident.
- Date Created:
- 2007-02-04T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Grand Valley State University. University Libraries
- Collection:
- Veterans History Project (U.S.)
- Notes:
- Wesley Daniels enlisted in the Marine Corps and served during the Vietnam War. He Served in Helicopter Squadron 647 and worked as a clerk.
- Date Created:
- 2012-02-07T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Grand Valley State University. University Libraries
- Collection:
- Veterans History Project (U.S.)
- Notes:
- Michael Burton was born in Detroit and enlisted in 1966 after finishing one year at Grand Valley State College. He spent 8 months in Hawaii as part of the 127th Marine Infantry Regiment, and for a short while was part of their bases tennis team. He was then sent to Vietnam via Okinawa. He spent time in Dong Ha and Kontum, but eventually found his way to his new location near the DMZ as part of the 3rd Marine Division, Golf Company, 2nd Battalion, 9th Marine regiment. He was able to find a friend from college that was with the same unit, and spent his entire time in the field with him. He never saw the enemy, and the engagements he was involved in were from a distance. He talked about the C-rations they got during their time in Vietnam, and how the cigarettes they received were good for bartering. He also talked about the supplemental weapons the soldiers would carry, and what kind of equipment they would bring with them while on duty. He was in the field for two to three weeks before he was wounded by a mortar round. He had several injuries, as did his friend, and he was sent back to the US. Along the way he was treated at a battalion aid station, a hospital boat, and eventually at the Great Lakes Naval Hospital. He spent the rest of his service at the Hospital, and was reunited with his friends from college. He had been a vocal opponent of the war once he was discharged, and has some opinions about the war in Iraq. He also talks about how soldiers who experience war need to seek professional help when they return to civilian life, and that mob mentality needs to be avoided by all soldiers. Personal narrative appended to interview outline.
- Date Created:
- 2007-10-16T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Grand Valley State University. University Libraries
- Collection:
- Veterans History Project (U.S.)
- Notes:
- Denton Kime was born on March 11, 1942 in Niles, Michigan. After graduating from high school in 1960, Kime attended Albion College, although he did not graduate because he failed to complete some of the graduation requirements. Once out of Albion, Kime received his draft notification and after joining the Marines, went to the Recruit Depot San Diego for training. After completing his basic and advanced training, Kime deployed to Vietnam and spent his entire tour in the area around the city of Da Nang.
- Date Created:
- 2010-01-14T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Grand Valley State University. University Libraries
- Collection:
- Veterans History Project (U.S.)
- Notes:
- Loren Brand entered the Marine Corps in 1966, and attended college at Michigan State University and North Texas University. He was trained in aviation and served in the Vietnam War as a helicopter pilot. After the war he became an FBI agent.
- Date Created:
- 2009-05-15T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Grand Valley State University. University Libraries
- Collection:
- Veterans History Project (U.S.)
- Notes:
- Louis Dudeck was born in 1943 in Bloomer, Wisconsin, and enlisted in the Marine Corps in 1963. He trained at San Diego and Camp Pendleton, and served with the 1st Battalion, 5th Marine Regiment at Pendleton until he unit was deployed to Vietnam in 1965 and redesignated as the 2nd Battalion, 9th Marines. His unit did jungle training on Okinawa, and then landed at Da Nang, the first ground combat unit in Vietnam. His battalion initially guarded the Da Nang airport, then went to Chu Lai, and Dudeck was then transferred to the 3rd Battalion, 3rd Marines, with whom he participated in Operation Harvest Moon in December, where his company took heavy losses. A few weeks later, while operating in the A Shau Valley, Dudeck was badly wounded and sent first to Japan and then to the US to recuperate, and was discharged for medical reasons in 1966. [Note: the first interview includes most of his combat history, and the second fills in some gaps in the early part of the story and clarifies several aspects of his Vietnam service.]
- Date Created:
- 2007-05-30T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Grand Valley State University. University Libraries
- Collection:
- Veterans History Project (U.S.)
- Notes:
- Dick was born in Grand Rapids, Michigan in December 1946. He grew up in Rockford, Michigan and graduated from high school there in 1965. After facing a certainty of being drafted, he instead chose to enlist in the United States Marine Corps in 1966. After boot camp and ITR, he was made a truck driver and arrived in Vietnam with the 7th Motor Transport, which operated around Da Nang and Phu Bai in the northern part of South Vietnam. He served with two different companies carrying supplies to different units and bases, and toward the end of his tour went with a convoy into Khe Sanh.
- Date Created:
- 2013-07-25T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Grand Valley State University. University Libraries
- Collection:
- Veterans History Project (U.S.)
- Notes:
- Timothy Castora was born on July 3rd, 1949 in Highland Park, Michigan. He was drafted into the Marine Corps during the Vietnam War. He served as a radio operator to the 1st Shore Party Battalion 5th Marines. He directed helicopters on supply drops, ammo drops and medevac services. Timothy came back to the United States wondering why they went to war in the first place and ultimately learned to love those who love you the most from his time in the service.
- Date Created:
- 2014-05-10T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Grand Valley State University. University Libraries
- Collection:
- Veterans History Project (U.S.)
- Notes:
- Daniel Broe was born in Allegan, Michigan in 1949, and grew up there and in Holland, Michigan. He went to work after high school, and was drafted into the Marine Corps in 1969. He did well enough in rifle training at Camp Pendleton to be put into scout/sniper training, and went to Vietnam early in 1970. Assigned to the 1st Reconnaissance Battalion, he spent most of his tour on patrols in the northern part of South Vietnam, with occasional forays into Laos. The patrols were intended to find the enemy without being seen, and for the most part they avoided firefights, and took no casualties while Broe was in the field, despite a number of scares. While trained as a sniper, he never had occasion to carry out a sniper assignment, and instead operated his squad's radio. Toward the end of his tour, his unit shifted its area of operations away from the Laotion border and closer to Da Nang, and he was eventually assigned to a radio relay station, where he communicated between the units in the field and the rear area headquarters.
- Date Created:
- 2012-01-25T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Grand Valley State University. University Libraries
- Collection:
- Veterans History Project (U.S.)
- Notes:
- James Perso was born in Milwaukee, Wisconsin and later moved to Minneapolis, Minnesota where he grew up. After graduating from high school he took classes at the University of Minnesota in mechanical engineering and also went through an ROTC program. After graduating from college he was commissioned and sent to Quantico, Virginia for training in the Marine Corps. James continued after basic training with pre-flight, primary, and advanced flight training before he was stationed in Da Nang, Vietnam. While in Vietnam James flew a total of 203 missions with the 242nd Attack Squadron and was in country for 13 months.
- Date Created:
- 2009-12-03T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Grand Valley State University. University Libraries
- Collection:
- Veterans History Project (U.S.)
- Notes:
- Mark Thiel was born in Grand Rapids, Michigan in 1950 and served in the Navy/Marines and Army during the Vietnam War Era. He worked for the Navy and Marines as a lab assistant in a number of different locations, including South Carolina and Camp Pendleton in California. After his stint in the Navy, he joined the Army and worked as a truck and forklift driver in Germany and at Fort Bragg, North Carolina. After the Army, he worked as a truck driver in Grand Rapids, Michigan.
- Date Created:
- 2009-10-15T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Grand Valley State University. University Libraries
- Collection:
- Veterans History Project (U.S.)
- Notes:
- Wayne Luznicky was born in Chicago, Illinois in 1947. He joined the Marines in October of 1964 and took his Basic Training in San Diego and infantry training Camp Pendleton, California. He then went to Memphis, Tennessee, for aviation mechanic training, and was assigned to Cherry Point, North Carolina where he worked on Phantom F4B. In January of 1966, Wayne volunteered to go to Vietnam. He was stationed at the Air Base at Chu Lai. After his first tour of Vietnam, and spending some time at Cherry Point, North Carolina, he volunteered for a second tour, and was again at Chu Lai from April to October of 1968.
- Date Created:
- 2012-11-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Grand Valley State University. University Libraries
- Collection:
- Veterans History Project (U.S.)
- Notes:
- David Christian was born in 1946 in Muskegon Heights, Michigan. After completing high school there in 194, he enlisted in the Marine Corps. After training in California, David was sent to Chu Lai, Vietnam in 1965. David's first tour was spent at Chu Lai and fixing aircraft at Marble Mountain Air Facility. After returning home and marrying his wife, David reenlisted for a second tour. David was promoted to sergeant and repaired aircraft at Chu Lai until 1970. David also worked at Iwakuni Marine Corps Base for the remaining 6 months of his second tour. David returned to the United States in 1970 where he worked at Camp Lejeune and as a Drill Instructor on Parris Island.
- Date Created:
- 2010-07-29T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Grand Valley State University. University Libraries
- Collection:
- Veterans History Project (U.S.)
- Notes:
- Baltazar Martinez was born in Plainview, Texas, in 1952. He was one of the last people to be drafted into the Army in 1972. He trained as an armored cavalryman and was deployed to Vietnam toward the end of the year, but stayed only a few days before being sent home. He re-enlisted twice, and served in Korea and in different bases in the US until 1981. He subsequently served in the Marine Corps for three years, and then later joined the Army National Guard, and deployed to Kuwait, and Iraq in 2010. He currently serves with the 507th Engineer Battalion, but did not deploy with them to Afghanistan in 2011 due to his age.
- Date Created:
- 2014-03-08T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Grand Valley State University. University Libraries
- Collection:
- Veterans History Project (U.S.)
- Notes:
- David Guevara was born in Martin, Michigan on October 19th 1947. He grew up moving around a lot because his parents were migrant workers. He went to school when he could and worked in a factory. In 1968, he was drafted into the Army, but enlisted in the Marine Corps before he had to report. He trained in California and became a wireman for a communications unit. He was assigned to the Marine air base at Marble Mountain, near Da Nang. He mostly worked on the base laying communications lines, but also did some radio work, at times communicating with other Hispanic soldiers in Spanish, which the Vietnamese could not understand.
- Date Created:
- 2011-11-02T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Grand Valley State University. University Libraries
- Collection:
- Veterans History Project (U.S.)
- Notes:
- Allen Vande Vusse was born and raised in Holland, Michigan, and graduated from high school there in 1962. He married and got a job shortly afterward, and his marriage gave him a draft deferment, which he lost after getting divorced in 1968. Upon receiving his draft notice, he enlisted in the Marine Corps so as to stay out of the Army, joining in early 1969. He scored well on the aptitude tests and took specialized training in communications and took a four-year enlistment, which meant that he stayed in the US until January, 1971, when he was sent to Vietnam so serve as a radio operator for the 1st Marine Medical Battalion at Da Nang, where he communicated with helicopters bringing in wounded soldiers and the teams that met them upon landing. He served there for the better part of a year, but his tour was cut short by a serious intestinal problems which required hospitalization. He was sent to Great Lakes Naval hospital, and from there to Camp Lejeune, North Carolina. He extended his enlistment, and was able to move to California, where he trained as a drill instructor and eventually wound up as a recruiter in Buffalo, New York.
- Date Created:
- 2012-05-16T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Grand Valley State University. University Libraries
- Collection:
- Veterans History Project (U.S.)
- Notes:
- Tom Meyer was born in Oak Park, Illinois in 1945 and grew up in Cicero, Illinois. After high school he attended college briefly before enlisting in the Marines in 1964. He went through basic training in San Diego, California and advanced infantry training in Camp Pendleton, California. He would go on to specialize in radio repair and operations. After a brief stint at Camp Lejeune he received orders to go to Vietnam whereupon he returned to Camp Pendleton for pre-deployment training. He was sent to Vietnam in February 1966 and was assigned to the 4th Marines Regiment Headquarters stationed at Phu Bai where he spent his deployment both in, and out of, the field.
- Date Created:
- 2013-10-17T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Grand Valley State University. University Libraries
- Collection:
- Veterans History Project (U.S.)
- Notes:
- Robert Vandermolen enlisted into the Marine Corps in 1974 when he was 18 years old. He spent several weeks training before he was sent to Yokohama, Japan. From Japan, he traveled to Thailand, Cambodia, Vietnam, the Philippines, and Korea. In Vietnam and Cambodia, he assisted with the evacuations of civilians when their governments fell.
- Date Created:
- 2010-05-08T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Grand Valley State University. University Libraries
- Collection:
- Veterans History Project (U.S.)
- Notes:
- Duane Ritsema was born in Grand Rapids, Michigan and enlisted in the Marine Corps on March 3, 1964 because he had wanted to avoid being drafted into the Army. Duane went through basic training for 3 months and then spent 1 month in advanced infantry training. He was then shipped to Vietnam and worked near China Beach for about 8 months. Duane was later discharged and sent back to Michigan where he found that the country did not appear to be fighting a war at all.
- Date Created:
- 2008-03-12T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Grand Valley State University. University Libraries
- Collection:
- Veterans History Project (U.S.)
- Notes:
- Howard Van Solkema was born in Byron Center, Michigan, in 1950. He was drafted shortly after graduating from high school and served in the Marine Corps between 1969 and 1971. He trained as a machine gunner and joined the First Marine Division at Da Nang in 1969. When his original regiment was sent home, he was transferred to a different unit in the northern part of the country, and finally to a base camp toward the end of his tour. He saw a good deal of small unit action, but no large battles, and worked with Australian and Korean troops.
- Date Created:
- 2008-10-21T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Grand Valley State University. University Libraries
- Collection:
- Veterans History Project (U.S.)
- Notes:
- Ron Oakes was born in Grand Rapids, Michigan in March 1949. After briefly attending junior college, he enlisted in June 1967 and received training at the Marine Corps Recruit Depot and Camp Pendleton, California. He then received instruction in the Vietnamese language before being sent to Vietnam. Once he arrived, he was trained as a radio operator and assigned to a squad in the 27th Marine Regiment in the Da Nang area, soon becoming his platoon's radio operator, and saw extensive combat experience. When the 27th was rotated home, he was reassigned to 4th Marines at Quang Tri, and operated between Quang Tri and Hue before being sent inland toward Khe Sanh. While in this area, he contracted dysentery and was sent to a hospital ship where he spent a month aboard a hospital ship before being returned to his unit. When his tour was over, re was sent home and discharged in 1969.
- Date Created:
- 2010-06-15T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Grand Valley State University. University Libraries
- Collection:
- Veterans History Project (U.S.)
- Notes:
- Louis Dudeck was born in 1943 in Bloomer, Wisconsin, and enlisted in the Marine Corps in 1963. He trained at San Diego and Camp Pendleton, and served with the 1st Battalion, 5th Marine Regiment at Pendleton until he unit was deployed to Vietnam in 1965 and redesignated as the 2nd Battalion, 9th Marines. His unit did jungle training on Okinawa, and then landed at Da Nang, the first ground combat unit in Vietnam. His battalion initially guarded the Da Nang airport, then went to Chu Lai, and Dudeck was then transferred to the 3rd Battalion, 3rd Marines, with whom he participated in Operation Harvest Moon in December, where his company took heavy losses. A few weeks later, while operating in the A Shau Valley, Dudeck was badly wounded and sent first to Japan and then to the US to recuperate, and was discharged for medical reasons in 1966. [Note: the first interview includes most of his combat history, and the second fills in some gaps in the early part of the story and clarifies several aspects of his Vietnam service.]
- Date Created:
- 2007-05-30T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Grand Valley State University. University Libraries
- Collection:
- Veterans History Project (U.S.)
- Notes:
- Robert Hood was born in Detroit, MI and moved to Grand Rapids, MI where he attended high school. After high school Robert joined the Marines shortly after World War II ended. He was sent to China, where he helped to repatriate Japanese soldiers. He continued to serve until 1951, and spent six months on the front lines in Korea before being wounded.
- Date Created:
- 2004-12-02T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Grand Valley State University. University Libraries
- Collection:
- Veterans History Project (U.S.)