MLive.com: Seven brothers in service: Victor Kindell sent to Germany during Korean War
TAWAS CITY — Victor Kindell, now 80, remembers the words on the top of his draft letter in the early 1950s — "Your friends and neighbors have selected you."
"I remember those words," Victor Kindell said. "Basically my thought was, would I ever make it?"
Following the path of five older brothers who had served in the military during World War II, his brother Leo Kindellgave him a few words of advice: "Don't believe anything you hear and only half of what you see."
Victor Kindell said he remembers looking up to his older brothers during their time in the war. He can only imagine how much worrying his parents must have gone through with five sons overseas at once, he said.
"I remember I was old enough to know what was going on," said Victor Kindell, who was 15 when World War II came to a close. "I was worried where they were and if they were still alive."
All the brothers survived the war.
During training camp for his own time in the military, he fully expected to be sent to Korea, he said. The Korean War was "going good" at the time and he remembers seeing a few guys sitting down and crying when they received their orders to be sent to Korea.
Instead, he was sent to Germany, where most of his work involved driving tanks, looking after equipment and participating in constant training. His brother, Larry, also was sent to Germany to work in the artillery.
Victor Kindell never was engaged in battle, but one situation still involved some quick thinking. He was helping direct a tank into a spot he had picked out to park it at night. The tank was running with night lights that didn't give off much light in the dark, he said, and when a tank began approaching him without stopping, he realized the driver could not see him.
"I was that close to getting flattened," Victor said with a smile. "If I hadn't jumped, I would have been run over."
After returning home, he worked in the woods cutting timber. He married his wife, Irene, and had two sons, Victor and Eugene.
Tuesday, May 31, 2011
Saturday, May 28, 2011
Veterans of Korean War remember fighting cold, Chinese
Herald-mail.com: Veterans of Korean War remember fighting cold, Chinese
Editor's note: On June 25, 1950, communist forces of North Korea attacked South Korea to begin the Korean War.
Early in the fighting, South Korean defenses were pushed back to a small pocket of resistance on the southeast coast of the country until United Nations forces, led by U.S. troops, mounted a successful counterattack at Inchon in September 1950.
The war lasted until July 27, 1953, when both sides agreed to end hostilities. The country remains divided today.
The U.S. Department of Defense estimates that 36,574 Americans were killed during the conflict.
Today, in observance of Memorial Day, we tell the stories of three men who served in Korea.
On Monday, we will tell the stories of two members of the West Virginia Air National Guard's 167th Airlift Wing and Hagerstown attorney Bill Young, who served in Vietnam as a legal officer and periodically returns to Southeast Asia to help the poor of that region.
John Jackson, 82
Hagerstown
John Jackson said he joined the Army in 1949 because he needed a job.
In August 1950, he was sent to Korea.
Although the military was integrated in 1948, Jackson was assigned to an all-black tank unit that mainly supported the 3rd Infantry Division.
He said the tankers acted like band-aids at the beginning of the war, going from hot spot to hot spot until the United Nations could mount a counterattack to beat back the Communist invasion.
"We were in a whole lot of places," he said. "We were wherever they needed us ... Everybody was under strength."
The Americans were armed with obsolete weapons from World War II. When he was sent north to the Chosin Reservoir, a lot of outfits still had only their summer clothes. They were in for the coldest winter in 90 years, with temperatures well below zero.
"We fought on the ground. We slept on the ground. Everything we did was on the ground," he said.
Many of the men suffered from frostbite because of the cold. Jackson said fighting the weather was just as bad as fighting the Chinese, who moved into North Korea to halt the advancing Americans.
"If you got hit, the blood would freeze right away," Jackson said. "A lot of lives were saved that way."
Jackson said he didn't recall his unit getting a Thanksgiving dinner in November 1950, but said it probably would have been too frozen to eat.
Some of the American commanders underestimated the numbers of Chinese troops and their tenacity, he said.
"The commanders said they were nothing but a bunch of Chinese laundry men," Jackson said. But, he said, "They put a hurting on us."
He said the Americans would have suffered more casualties when they retreated from the Chosin Reservoir had it not been for the support of the Navy and Air Force.
In 1951, Jackson was wounded during a mortar attack and received the Purple Heart.
He said Memorial Day is a time to remember everyone who has been touched by war.
"I feel sorry for the ones who lost their loved ones over there," Jackson said. "It's not something you'll ever forget. I feel sorry for the mothers and fathers."
Albert Jacobson, 81
Smithsburg
Albert Jacobson joined the Army on Dec. 7, 1949, and shortly thereafter went to Aberdeen, Md., to learn how to operate military vehicles. Less than a year later, he would see some of the most intense combat of the Korean War.
A tank driver assigned to the 7th Division, Jacobson was part of the invasion force that landed at Inchon on Sept. 15, 1950. He said the tanks were delayed moving inland because their metal tracks had a difficult time getting traction on the cobblestone roads.
The tanks eventually made the uphill climb and were ordered to the edge of Seoul, where Pfc. Jacobson's unit was assigned to take Kimpo Airfield.
He said he continually had to wipe the dust and dirt from his goggles to see the road.
"It was sheer hell without the fighting," Jacobson said. "You had to watch the road because both sides were rice paddies. You would sink" if you slid off the road.
Although the fighting was heavy at Inchon, Jacobson said resistance was light during the northward advance because the North Korean Army had been routed.
The 7th halted near the Chosin Reservoir, where the coldest winter in 90 years was about to hit.
"To me, that was the main thing we had to fight was the cold," Jacobson said. "It was so blistering cold."
The soldiers stood by the exhaust of their vehicles to keep warm. He said food froze almost immediately after it was served, and the soldiers had to chip ice from their Thanksgiving dinners.
Jacobson said things got worse when tens of thousands of Chinese crossed over the frozen Yalu River and took the United Nations forces by surprise.
"They looked like ants," Jacobson said. "We were knocking them off our tanks ... You did your job, but you were so scared."
American doctors told Jacobson's unit that the Chinese were taking morphine to make them oblivious to pain.
He said the American soldiers wished their commanders would have dropped atomic bombs to stop the Chinese onslaught.
Gen. Edward Almond, commander of the American X Corps, landed in a helicopter to tell the surrounded troops that they would have to fight their way out.
"He dropped a box of medals and flew away," said Jacobson, who criticized Almond as a commander. "He could have flown five or six of the wounded out of there."
He said X Corps slugged its way south out of the Chosin Reservoir, loading the wounded on tanks and picking up Korean refugees along the way. It was so cold that truck tires popped like balloons.
Some units suffered 90 percent casualties.
Jacobson said the Americans fought their way to the east coast and were evacuated by sea. He boarded a ship with other evacuees on Christmas Eve of 1950. The putrid smell in the hull, caused by seasick men, prompted him to sleep on the deck.
Jacobson spends Memorial Day thinking about the friends that he lost at the Chosin Reservoir and other battles.
"The real heroes are the ones who didn't make it," he said. "I don't think the public should forget. We gave them what they got today."
Paul Summers, 81
Waynesboro, Pa.
Pfc. Paul Summers was a 20-year-old Marine when he was thrown into the chaotic initial months of the Korean War.
His unit was sent to Pusan, a port city in South Korea where retreating United Nations forces assembled to form a defensive perimeter after the communist invasion.
"They stuck us in there to fill the gap," Summers said. "The first dead I saw over there were four or five Marines. It was friendly fire."
After spending a short time in Pusan, Summers was redeployed to participate in the Battle of Inchon, an amphibious assault that occurred on Sept. 15, 1950. The operation involved landing United Nations troops behind the North Korean army to ease the pressure on Pusan.
Summers said his unit was among the first to land. They were assigned to attack Wolmi-do, a fortified island that the North Koreans used to defend the Inchon coastline.
Summers said the Marines took the island and gathered on high ground to watch the invasion from above.
"It was just like a movie," he said.
On Sept. 17, Summers was wounded during a firefight in a village.
"I saw a North Korean stand straight up in a field," Summers said. "He ducked down and I sprayed the area with my (Browning Automatic Rifle). I was going to throw a grenade and got hit in the shoulder."
Marines dragged Summers to a nearby street and gave him morphine and a small sip of brandy. He was put on a hospital ship and taken to Japan, where he was operated on a month later to remove the bullet.
While in the hospital, Summers ran into a friend who was in the same firefight in the village. He said the friend told him that 25 dead North Koreans were found in the field that he sprayed with his BAR.
"I probably got some of them," Summers said.
Summers received word that he would be transferred to the Philippines. He instead was ordered to draw cold-weather gear and sent to the Chosin Reservoir in late 1950.
Then, the Chinese got involved," he said. "One night, all hell broke loose. The shooting started at 2 a.m. I heard a Marine running through the snow saying, ‘Get up! Get up! They're here!"
The temperatures were well below freezing when the Chinese army attacked.
He said he picked up his friend's rifle by mistake and fired, but there wasn't a round in the chamber.
"There were dead everywhere," he said. "I'll never forget that."
Summers went on to fight in other battles during the war and said he still thinks of all of the dead men that he saw stacked in piles like timber.
When he returned to the United States, he was part of a military contingent of Korean War veterans who were sent to Washington, D.C., to meet then President Harry S Truman and his wife, Bess.
"I got to shake hands with Harry," he said.
Summers said Memorial Day reminds him of the ultimate sacrifice that American men and women have made in Korea and on other battlefields around the world.
"It means there were an awful lot of boys killed," Summers said. "It's something you'll never forget."
Editor's note: On June 25, 1950, communist forces of North Korea attacked South Korea to begin the Korean War.
Early in the fighting, South Korean defenses were pushed back to a small pocket of resistance on the southeast coast of the country until United Nations forces, led by U.S. troops, mounted a successful counterattack at Inchon in September 1950.
The war lasted until July 27, 1953, when both sides agreed to end hostilities. The country remains divided today.
The U.S. Department of Defense estimates that 36,574 Americans were killed during the conflict.
Today, in observance of Memorial Day, we tell the stories of three men who served in Korea.
On Monday, we will tell the stories of two members of the West Virginia Air National Guard's 167th Airlift Wing and Hagerstown attorney Bill Young, who served in Vietnam as a legal officer and periodically returns to Southeast Asia to help the poor of that region.
John Jackson, 82
Hagerstown
John Jackson said he joined the Army in 1949 because he needed a job.
In August 1950, he was sent to Korea.
Although the military was integrated in 1948, Jackson was assigned to an all-black tank unit that mainly supported the 3rd Infantry Division.
He said the tankers acted like band-aids at the beginning of the war, going from hot spot to hot spot until the United Nations could mount a counterattack to beat back the Communist invasion.
"We were in a whole lot of places," he said. "We were wherever they needed us ... Everybody was under strength."
The Americans were armed with obsolete weapons from World War II. When he was sent north to the Chosin Reservoir, a lot of outfits still had only their summer clothes. They were in for the coldest winter in 90 years, with temperatures well below zero.
"We fought on the ground. We slept on the ground. Everything we did was on the ground," he said.
Many of the men suffered from frostbite because of the cold. Jackson said fighting the weather was just as bad as fighting the Chinese, who moved into North Korea to halt the advancing Americans.
"If you got hit, the blood would freeze right away," Jackson said. "A lot of lives were saved that way."
Jackson said he didn't recall his unit getting a Thanksgiving dinner in November 1950, but said it probably would have been too frozen to eat.
Some of the American commanders underestimated the numbers of Chinese troops and their tenacity, he said.
"The commanders said they were nothing but a bunch of Chinese laundry men," Jackson said. But, he said, "They put a hurting on us."
He said the Americans would have suffered more casualties when they retreated from the Chosin Reservoir had it not been for the support of the Navy and Air Force.
In 1951, Jackson was wounded during a mortar attack and received the Purple Heart.
He said Memorial Day is a time to remember everyone who has been touched by war.
"I feel sorry for the ones who lost their loved ones over there," Jackson said. "It's not something you'll ever forget. I feel sorry for the mothers and fathers."
Albert Jacobson, 81
Smithsburg
Albert Jacobson joined the Army on Dec. 7, 1949, and shortly thereafter went to Aberdeen, Md., to learn how to operate military vehicles. Less than a year later, he would see some of the most intense combat of the Korean War.
A tank driver assigned to the 7th Division, Jacobson was part of the invasion force that landed at Inchon on Sept. 15, 1950. He said the tanks were delayed moving inland because their metal tracks had a difficult time getting traction on the cobblestone roads.
The tanks eventually made the uphill climb and were ordered to the edge of Seoul, where Pfc. Jacobson's unit was assigned to take Kimpo Airfield.
He said he continually had to wipe the dust and dirt from his goggles to see the road.
"It was sheer hell without the fighting," Jacobson said. "You had to watch the road because both sides were rice paddies. You would sink" if you slid off the road.
Although the fighting was heavy at Inchon, Jacobson said resistance was light during the northward advance because the North Korean Army had been routed.
The 7th halted near the Chosin Reservoir, where the coldest winter in 90 years was about to hit.
"To me, that was the main thing we had to fight was the cold," Jacobson said. "It was so blistering cold."
The soldiers stood by the exhaust of their vehicles to keep warm. He said food froze almost immediately after it was served, and the soldiers had to chip ice from their Thanksgiving dinners.
Jacobson said things got worse when tens of thousands of Chinese crossed over the frozen Yalu River and took the United Nations forces by surprise.
"They looked like ants," Jacobson said. "We were knocking them off our tanks ... You did your job, but you were so scared."
American doctors told Jacobson's unit that the Chinese were taking morphine to make them oblivious to pain.
He said the American soldiers wished their commanders would have dropped atomic bombs to stop the Chinese onslaught.
Gen. Edward Almond, commander of the American X Corps, landed in a helicopter to tell the surrounded troops that they would have to fight their way out.
"He dropped a box of medals and flew away," said Jacobson, who criticized Almond as a commander. "He could have flown five or six of the wounded out of there."
He said X Corps slugged its way south out of the Chosin Reservoir, loading the wounded on tanks and picking up Korean refugees along the way. It was so cold that truck tires popped like balloons.
Some units suffered 90 percent casualties.
Jacobson said the Americans fought their way to the east coast and were evacuated by sea. He boarded a ship with other evacuees on Christmas Eve of 1950. The putrid smell in the hull, caused by seasick men, prompted him to sleep on the deck.
Jacobson spends Memorial Day thinking about the friends that he lost at the Chosin Reservoir and other battles.
"The real heroes are the ones who didn't make it," he said. "I don't think the public should forget. We gave them what they got today."
Paul Summers, 81
Waynesboro, Pa.
Pfc. Paul Summers was a 20-year-old Marine when he was thrown into the chaotic initial months of the Korean War.
His unit was sent to Pusan, a port city in South Korea where retreating United Nations forces assembled to form a defensive perimeter after the communist invasion.
"They stuck us in there to fill the gap," Summers said. "The first dead I saw over there were four or five Marines. It was friendly fire."
After spending a short time in Pusan, Summers was redeployed to participate in the Battle of Inchon, an amphibious assault that occurred on Sept. 15, 1950. The operation involved landing United Nations troops behind the North Korean army to ease the pressure on Pusan.
Summers said his unit was among the first to land. They were assigned to attack Wolmi-do, a fortified island that the North Koreans used to defend the Inchon coastline.
Summers said the Marines took the island and gathered on high ground to watch the invasion from above.
"It was just like a movie," he said.
On Sept. 17, Summers was wounded during a firefight in a village.
"I saw a North Korean stand straight up in a field," Summers said. "He ducked down and I sprayed the area with my (Browning Automatic Rifle). I was going to throw a grenade and got hit in the shoulder."
Marines dragged Summers to a nearby street and gave him morphine and a small sip of brandy. He was put on a hospital ship and taken to Japan, where he was operated on a month later to remove the bullet.
While in the hospital, Summers ran into a friend who was in the same firefight in the village. He said the friend told him that 25 dead North Koreans were found in the field that he sprayed with his BAR.
"I probably got some of them," Summers said.
Summers received word that he would be transferred to the Philippines. He instead was ordered to draw cold-weather gear and sent to the Chosin Reservoir in late 1950.
Then, the Chinese got involved," he said. "One night, all hell broke loose. The shooting started at 2 a.m. I heard a Marine running through the snow saying, ‘Get up! Get up! They're here!"
The temperatures were well below freezing when the Chinese army attacked.
He said he picked up his friend's rifle by mistake and fired, but there wasn't a round in the chamber.
"There were dead everywhere," he said. "I'll never forget that."
Summers went on to fight in other battles during the war and said he still thinks of all of the dead men that he saw stacked in piles like timber.
When he returned to the United States, he was part of a military contingent of Korean War veterans who were sent to Washington, D.C., to meet then President Harry S Truman and his wife, Bess.
"I got to shake hands with Harry," he said.
Summers said Memorial Day reminds him of the ultimate sacrifice that American men and women have made in Korea and on other battlefields around the world.
"It means there were an awful lot of boys killed," Summers said. "It's something you'll never forget."
Wednesday, May 25, 2011
Allies to recall key battle of Korean War
BusinessGhana: Allies to recall key battle of Korean War
Hundreds of veterans from South Korea, the U.S. and France will mark this week one of the most pivotal battles during the Korean War and mourn their comrades who fell in the battle, Seoul's Defense Ministry said Tuesday.
The battle at Jipyeong-ri, about 64 kilometers northeast of Seoul, in 1951, is considered one of the turning points in the 1950-53 war as it marked the first time the allied forces succeeded in turning back the advance of the Chinese military.
About 340 American, French and South Korean veterans of the battle will attend the ceremony marking the 60th anniversary of the battle set for Friday, the ministry said in a statement.
Following the ceremony, the French embassy in Seoul plans to award the French Legion of Honor Chevalier, the highest state medal, to retired South Korean Lt. Gen. Oh Jang-seok. Oh was the commander of the South's 20th Army division during the battle.
A group of 105 veterans and their family members from the U.S. and France arrived in South Korea on Tuesday on a trip hosted by Seoul that included the ceremony, and tours to war memorials and a national cemetery, ministry officials said.
The Korean War broke out on June 25, 1950 when tank-led troops from North Korea made a pre-dawn invasion into the South. Sixteen countries dispatched troops, and five others sent medical units under the U.N. flag to help South Korea repel the communist North backed by Chinese troops.
The war ended in a truce, not a peace treaty, leaving the Korean Peninsula still technically at war.
Hundreds of veterans from South Korea, the U.S. and France will mark this week one of the most pivotal battles during the Korean War and mourn their comrades who fell in the battle, Seoul's Defense Ministry said Tuesday.
The battle at Jipyeong-ri, about 64 kilometers northeast of Seoul, in 1951, is considered one of the turning points in the 1950-53 war as it marked the first time the allied forces succeeded in turning back the advance of the Chinese military.
About 340 American, French and South Korean veterans of the battle will attend the ceremony marking the 60th anniversary of the battle set for Friday, the ministry said in a statement.
Following the ceremony, the French embassy in Seoul plans to award the French Legion of Honor Chevalier, the highest state medal, to retired South Korean Lt. Gen. Oh Jang-seok. Oh was the commander of the South's 20th Army division during the battle.
A group of 105 veterans and their family members from the U.S. and France arrived in South Korea on Tuesday on a trip hosted by Seoul that included the ceremony, and tours to war memorials and a national cemetery, ministry officials said.
The Korean War broke out on June 25, 1950 when tank-led troops from North Korea made a pre-dawn invasion into the South. Sixteen countries dispatched troops, and five others sent medical units under the U.N. flag to help South Korea repel the communist North backed by Chinese troops.
The war ended in a truce, not a peace treaty, leaving the Korean Peninsula still technically at war.
Korean War Vets Reunite with Child They Saved
WaayTV.com: Korean War Vets Reunite with Child They Saved
Huntsville, AL - A very unique reunion was held in Huntsville this week. 57 year old Dan Keenan was reunited with some of the men he says saved his life during the Korean War.
Keenan was just an infant when crew members of the escort carrier U.S.S Point Cruz rescued him from an orphanage. The men say they knew he had no chance of surviving. Father Riley, the ship's chaplain, had spotted Keenan and immediately notified the ship's captain.
"They both knew that a caucasian baby would never survive in that orphanage, so the skipper ordered Father Riley to bring me on the ship, breaking every military rule in the book," said Keenan.
Keenan's rescuers looked after him until he was allowed to be brought back to the United States.
"The corpsmen were taking care of him and feeding him and making diapers out of sheets. It was quite the operation," said veteran Robert Day.
Luckily, Father Riley was able to acquire a passport for Keenan.
"They were able to get a passport and visa for me," Keenan explained, "The passport I understand Father Riley won in a poker game."
As their story began to spread, Vice President Richard Nixon became interested in helping as well.
"Vice President Nixon interceded and said, 'Get the skipper a visa right away,' and they did," said Keenan.
Keenan was ultimately adopted by a surgeon on a medical ship. It was not until years later, however, that the men of the U.S.S. Point Cruz tracked down their baby.
Keenan about the ship "The newspaper tracked me down," said Keenan, " They did a story on me and it went on Associated Press and then the skipper contacted me."
After the captain wrote about Keenan in his autobiography, the rest of the men came out of the woodwork as well. The infant they had saved was reintroduced to the veterans as a 40 year old man at a U.S.S. Point Cruz Reunion in 1993. "The baby" has been invited to every reunion since.
"I find it kind of amusing, but to them I will always be the baby, even though I'm not."
Huntsville, AL - A very unique reunion was held in Huntsville this week. 57 year old Dan Keenan was reunited with some of the men he says saved his life during the Korean War.
Keenan was just an infant when crew members of the escort carrier U.S.S Point Cruz rescued him from an orphanage. The men say they knew he had no chance of surviving. Father Riley, the ship's chaplain, had spotted Keenan and immediately notified the ship's captain.
"They both knew that a caucasian baby would never survive in that orphanage, so the skipper ordered Father Riley to bring me on the ship, breaking every military rule in the book," said Keenan.
Keenan's rescuers looked after him until he was allowed to be brought back to the United States.
"The corpsmen were taking care of him and feeding him and making diapers out of sheets. It was quite the operation," said veteran Robert Day.
Luckily, Father Riley was able to acquire a passport for Keenan.
"They were able to get a passport and visa for me," Keenan explained, "The passport I understand Father Riley won in a poker game."
As their story began to spread, Vice President Richard Nixon became interested in helping as well.
"Vice President Nixon interceded and said, 'Get the skipper a visa right away,' and they did," said Keenan.
Keenan was ultimately adopted by a surgeon on a medical ship. It was not until years later, however, that the men of the U.S.S. Point Cruz tracked down their baby.
Keenan about the ship "The newspaper tracked me down," said Keenan, " They did a story on me and it went on Associated Press and then the skipper contacted me."
After the captain wrote about Keenan in his autobiography, the rest of the men came out of the woodwork as well. The infant they had saved was reintroduced to the veterans as a 40 year old man at a U.S.S. Point Cruz Reunion in 1993. "The baby" has been invited to every reunion since.
"I find it kind of amusing, but to them I will always be the baby, even though I'm not."
Community salutes as body of Korean POW returns
BlueRidgeNow.com: Community salutes as body of Korean POW returns
Almost 60 years after he went to fight in the Korean War, Army Pfc. Samuel Kelly Watkins returned to Henderson County on Tuesday. About 150 people gathered at Forest Lawn Funeral Home to welcome the fallen soldier home.
"It's nice to see the community come out to support a man they never knew," said Rob Bittle, vice president of Forest Lawn Funeral Home.
Another 75 to 100 people lined the streets of Hendersonville as the motorcade made its way from Charlotte-Douglas International Airport to Forest Lawn. People waved flags at the corner of Dana Road and Four Seasons Boulevard.
Ann Clingerpeel of Hendersonville got emotional when she tried to speak about the outpouring of support from the community.
"I can't talk about it," she said. "I'll cry. I just think it's great. No matter how long ago it was, they should be honored because they served their country."
"It was really moving coming into town and along the route and a lot of people were waving flags," Bittle said. "People had hands over their hearts. Some people were saluting."
Watkins was a member of the 2nd Reconnaissance Company, 2nd Infantry Division. He was taken as a prisoner of war in North Korea on Feb. 14, 1951. He was presumed dead on March 3, 1954.
Through the Korean War Project, family members have found servicemen missing in action by using DNA to identify remains.
"I just think it's closure for the family," said Ann Watkins of Hendersonville. Samuel Watkins was a first cousin to Ann Watkins' late husband, Gerald Watkins.
Kelly Pittman, whose husband, Jack Pittman, was Samuel Watkins' nephew, added that the family had been working for a long time to bring their loved one home.
"I think it's wonderful that it's being celebrated near Memorial Day," Kelly Pittman added.
A funeral for Watkins will be at 2 p.m. Thursday at Forest Lawn Funeral Home. Visitation with the family will start at 1 p.m.
Watkins will be interred near Marine Lance Cpl. Jessie Cassada's memorial bench at the memorial park. Cassada, 19, of Hendersonville, was killed in action Jan. 6, 2009, while serving his country in Afghanistan.
Almost 60 years after he went to fight in the Korean War, Army Pfc. Samuel Kelly Watkins returned to Henderson County on Tuesday. About 150 people gathered at Forest Lawn Funeral Home to welcome the fallen soldier home.
"It's nice to see the community come out to support a man they never knew," said Rob Bittle, vice president of Forest Lawn Funeral Home.
Another 75 to 100 people lined the streets of Hendersonville as the motorcade made its way from Charlotte-Douglas International Airport to Forest Lawn. People waved flags at the corner of Dana Road and Four Seasons Boulevard.
Ann Clingerpeel of Hendersonville got emotional when she tried to speak about the outpouring of support from the community.
"I can't talk about it," she said. "I'll cry. I just think it's great. No matter how long ago it was, they should be honored because they served their country."
"It was really moving coming into town and along the route and a lot of people were waving flags," Bittle said. "People had hands over their hearts. Some people were saluting."
Watkins was a member of the 2nd Reconnaissance Company, 2nd Infantry Division. He was taken as a prisoner of war in North Korea on Feb. 14, 1951. He was presumed dead on March 3, 1954.
Through the Korean War Project, family members have found servicemen missing in action by using DNA to identify remains.
"I just think it's closure for the family," said Ann Watkins of Hendersonville. Samuel Watkins was a first cousin to Ann Watkins' late husband, Gerald Watkins.
Kelly Pittman, whose husband, Jack Pittman, was Samuel Watkins' nephew, added that the family had been working for a long time to bring their loved one home.
"I think it's wonderful that it's being celebrated near Memorial Day," Kelly Pittman added.
A funeral for Watkins will be at 2 p.m. Thursday at Forest Lawn Funeral Home. Visitation with the family will start at 1 p.m.
Watkins will be interred near Marine Lance Cpl. Jessie Cassada's memorial bench at the memorial park. Cassada, 19, of Hendersonville, was killed in action Jan. 6, 2009, while serving his country in Afghanistan.
Friday, May 20, 2011
Healing and transcendence in war
The KOrea Herald: Healing and transcendence in war
First published in 1978, Yun Heung-gil’s “The Rainy Spell” is still regarded as one of the finest short stories dealing with the Korean War (1950-1953) experience.
The novel tells a story of a Korean family that has two of its members placed in the opposing camps during the war. It is told from the perspective of a young boy, who later gets caught up in the intense and emotional fight between his two grandmothers.
The story begins as the boy’s maternal grandmother, whose son is a member of the South Korean army, receives an official notice that he has been killed in a battle. Deeply hurt and upset by the news, the old woman starts to curse North Korean soldiers, saying she wishes all of them dead.
This soon enrages the boy’s paternal grandmother, who desperately awaits the safe return of his son who has been placed in the North Korean military. The gloomy rainy season continues as the two distressed women begin to express their innermost feelings against each other.
Things become worse when the North Korean solider of the family does not return home on the day he is expected. While almost every member of the family assumes him dead, his mother firmly believes he is still alive and continues to wait for his return.
While the rainfall gets heavier, a wounded snake, bleeding from its wounds, appears in the yard of the house. The boy’s paternal grandmother, severely tormented by the long wait for her son, loses her consciousness after seeing the bleeding reptile.
Yun’s therapeutic use of metaphors are mainly portrayed through images of rain and a wounded snake, depicted as the reincarnation of the cursed dead soldier ― gives both a spiritual and vivid account of the war experience.
The final reconciliation between the two women, after a series of emotional upsets and spiritual rituals, offers a rare message of hope for healing and transcendence.
Born in 1942 in North Jeolla Province, writer Yun Heung-gil studied Korean literature at WonKwang University. He is known for works that are realistically reflective of modern Korean history.
First published in 1978, Yun Heung-gil’s “The Rainy Spell” is still regarded as one of the finest short stories dealing with the Korean War (1950-1953) experience.
The novel tells a story of a Korean family that has two of its members placed in the opposing camps during the war. It is told from the perspective of a young boy, who later gets caught up in the intense and emotional fight between his two grandmothers.
The story begins as the boy’s maternal grandmother, whose son is a member of the South Korean army, receives an official notice that he has been killed in a battle. Deeply hurt and upset by the news, the old woman starts to curse North Korean soldiers, saying she wishes all of them dead.
This soon enrages the boy’s paternal grandmother, who desperately awaits the safe return of his son who has been placed in the North Korean military. The gloomy rainy season continues as the two distressed women begin to express their innermost feelings against each other.
Things become worse when the North Korean solider of the family does not return home on the day he is expected. While almost every member of the family assumes him dead, his mother firmly believes he is still alive and continues to wait for his return.
While the rainfall gets heavier, a wounded snake, bleeding from its wounds, appears in the yard of the house. The boy’s paternal grandmother, severely tormented by the long wait for her son, loses her consciousness after seeing the bleeding reptile.
Yun’s therapeutic use of metaphors are mainly portrayed through images of rain and a wounded snake, depicted as the reincarnation of the cursed dead soldier ― gives both a spiritual and vivid account of the war experience.
The final reconciliation between the two women, after a series of emotional upsets and spiritual rituals, offers a rare message of hope for healing and transcendence.
Born in 1942 in North Jeolla Province, writer Yun Heung-gil studied Korean literature at WonKwang University. He is known for works that are realistically reflective of modern Korean history.
South Korean Government Launches Investigation into Alleged Agent Orange Burial
Bernama.com: South orean Government Launches Investigation into Alleged Agent Orange Burial
Three US Korean war veterans have said that they helped to bury canisters of Agent Orange, a defoliant, at Chilgok, the site of the current Camp Carroll, in Korea 30 years ago.
South Korea has requested that the US verify this report.
There are about 28,500 American service members in Korea. The SOFA (Status of Fores Agreement) signed in1967 between the two countries, governs the legal status of US solders, their staff and families stationed there.
Three US Korean war veterans have said that they helped to bury canisters of Agent Orange, a defoliant, at Chilgok, the site of the current Camp Carroll, in Korea 30 years ago.
South Korea has requested that the US verify this report.
There are about 28,500 American service members in Korea. The SOFA (Status of Fores Agreement) signed in1967 between the two countries, governs the legal status of US solders, their staff and families stationed there.
Wednesday, May 18, 2011
Valleys of Death, by Colonel William Richardson
Valleys of Death: A Memoir of the Korean War, by Colonel William Richardson, US Army, (Ret), with Kevin Maurer
Berkley Caliber, 2010
324 pages plus index. A handful of b&w photos scattered throughout text
Library: 951.90427 RIC
Description
For Bill Richardson, a cocksure corporal, it was a swift move from the streets of Philadelphia to the battlefields of North and South Korea. One of the many noncommissioned officers to lead poorly trained and ill-equipped young men sent to war, he quickly rose to the rank of master sergeant after leading his 57mm recoilless rifle section in the defense and breakout of the Pusan perimeter.
Caught in the Chinese counterattack at Unsan-one of the deadliest American battles of the Cold War-Richardson led an Alamo-like defense of the few remaining survivors as they made their escape. When sixty men were reduced to three by mortars and enemy fire, Richardson sent the others on while he stayed behind to hold off the enemy. It was then, out of ammunition and attempting to hide from the Chinese, that he was found and taken prisoner.
After an attempted escape, he was handed over to the North Koreans, who marched him through subzero weather without food, shelter or medical attention-to the area known as Death Valley. Enduring long months of starvation and torture designed to break the mind and body, Richardson remained strong enough to lead his fellow prisoners in resistance, sabotage, and new plans for escape.
Table of Contents
Preface
1. War
2. Forming the battalion
3. Movement to the Far East
4. Pusan
5. Baptism of Fire
6. Dark Days of Summer
7. Tide Turns
8. Pursuit to the 38th Parallel
9. The GEneral
10. We Can't Hold the Bridge
11. Trapped
12. Dying One by One
13. Breakout
14. Capture and Escape
15. Death March
16. Valley of the Shadow of Death
17. Reminiscent of Andersonville
18. The Morgue
19. Truman's Running Dogs
20. Preparation for Escape
21. The Last Year
22. Freedom
Epilogue
Index
Tuesday, May 17, 2011
U.S. Soldier MIA from Korean War Identified
eNewsParkForest: U.S. Soldier MIA from Korean War Identified
Washington, D.C.--(ENEWSPF)--May 11, 2011. The Department of Defense POW/Missing Personnel Office announced today that the remains of a serviceman, missing in action from the Korean War, have been identified and are being returned to his family for burial with full military honors.
Army Cpl. Primo C. Carnabuci of Old Saybrook, Conn., will be buried May 12 in his hometown. On Nov. 1, 1950, Carnabuci’s unit, the 8th Cavalry Regiment, 1st Cavalry Division, occupied a defensive position along the Kuryong River, near Unsan, North Korea. Chinese units attacked the area and forced a withdrawal. Almost 600 men, including Carnabuci, were reported missing or killed in action following the battle.
In 2000, a joint U.S-Democratic People’s Republic of Korea team, led by the Joint POW/MIA Accounting Command (JPAC), excavated a mass grave discovered earlier in Unsan County, south of the area known as “Camel’s Head.” The team recovered remains of at least five individuals as well as military clothing.
Analysts from DPMO and JPAC developed case leads with information spanning more than 58 years. They evaluated the circumstances surrounding the soldier’s death and researched wartime documentation on the movements of U.S. and enemy forces on the battlefield.
Among forensic identification tools and circumstantial evidence, scientists from JPAC used dental comparisons and the Armed Forces DNA Identification Laboratory used mitochondrial DNA -- which matched that of Carnabuci’s brother -- in the identification.
With this identification, 7,997 service members still remain missing from the conflict.
For additional information on the Defense Department’s mission to account for missing Americans, visit the DPMO website at http://www.dtic.mil/dpmo.
Washington, D.C.--(ENEWSPF)--May 11, 2011. The Department of Defense POW/Missing Personnel Office announced today that the remains of a serviceman, missing in action from the Korean War, have been identified and are being returned to his family for burial with full military honors.
Army Cpl. Primo C. Carnabuci of Old Saybrook, Conn., will be buried May 12 in his hometown. On Nov. 1, 1950, Carnabuci’s unit, the 8th Cavalry Regiment, 1st Cavalry Division, occupied a defensive position along the Kuryong River, near Unsan, North Korea. Chinese units attacked the area and forced a withdrawal. Almost 600 men, including Carnabuci, were reported missing or killed in action following the battle.
In 2000, a joint U.S-Democratic People’s Republic of Korea team, led by the Joint POW/MIA Accounting Command (JPAC), excavated a mass grave discovered earlier in Unsan County, south of the area known as “Camel’s Head.” The team recovered remains of at least five individuals as well as military clothing.
Analysts from DPMO and JPAC developed case leads with information spanning more than 58 years. They evaluated the circumstances surrounding the soldier’s death and researched wartime documentation on the movements of U.S. and enemy forces on the battlefield.
Among forensic identification tools and circumstantial evidence, scientists from JPAC used dental comparisons and the Armed Forces DNA Identification Laboratory used mitochondrial DNA -- which matched that of Carnabuci’s brother -- in the identification.
With this identification, 7,997 service members still remain missing from the conflict.
For additional information on the Defense Department’s mission to account for missing Americans, visit the DPMO website at http://www.dtic.mil/dpmo.
Monday, May 16, 2011
Korean community marks 34th war memorial service
Saipan Tribune: Korean community marks 34th war memorial service
Twenty-one officials and members of the Memorial Service Association for Deceased Compatriots from Korea led by president Yong Taek Lee were on Saipan for the 34th Korean Memorial Service.
The annual event, organized by the Korean Community of Saipan, was held Friday morning at the Korean War Memorial Monument in Marpi to pay tribute to Koreans and all others who sacrificed their lives during the war.
Korean Community president Jong Ho Lee welcomed guests for the memorial service, which included Korean Consul General to Guam Hyun Soo Park, Lt. Gov. Eloy S. Inos, Saipan Mayor Donald Flores, and Marianas Visitors Authority managing director Perry Tenorio.
Inos, in his remarks, urged his audience not to forget the struggles and sacrifices of those who fought during the war and continue praying for them.
“Today, we are privileged to find ourselves living in peace, embracing the kind of freedoms and opportunities perhaps never experienced or contemplated by our ancestors during World War II,” he said.
Inos said the sacrifices of those who fought during the war could be honored by upholding peace and harmony in the community.
“As we reflect upon the lessons [of] our past, let us always recognize the importance of peace and goodwill in the present and into the future,” he added.
For his part, Flores said the annual excursion to Saipan of the Memorial Service Association for the Deceased Compatriots “is a testament of your convictions and has undoubtedly brought our two cultures closely together in prayer and peace.”
The mayor said the Korean War Memorial Monument is a reminder not to forget those who sacrificed during the war “so that we and future generations can continue to live in freedom and peace.”
“It is important to never forget those who have fallen victims of war. But we must never forget the men and women currently in battle afar and the innocent civilians who have lost their lives because of it,” he added.
The dignitaries' delivery of remarks was followed by the incense burning and presentation of offerings, which highlighted the ceremony.
Twenty-one officials and members of the Memorial Service Association for Deceased Compatriots from Korea led by president Yong Taek Lee were on Saipan for the 34th Korean Memorial Service.
The annual event, organized by the Korean Community of Saipan, was held Friday morning at the Korean War Memorial Monument in Marpi to pay tribute to Koreans and all others who sacrificed their lives during the war.
Korean Community president Jong Ho Lee welcomed guests for the memorial service, which included Korean Consul General to Guam Hyun Soo Park, Lt. Gov. Eloy S. Inos, Saipan Mayor Donald Flores, and Marianas Visitors Authority managing director Perry Tenorio.
Inos, in his remarks, urged his audience not to forget the struggles and sacrifices of those who fought during the war and continue praying for them.
“Today, we are privileged to find ourselves living in peace, embracing the kind of freedoms and opportunities perhaps never experienced or contemplated by our ancestors during World War II,” he said.
Inos said the sacrifices of those who fought during the war could be honored by upholding peace and harmony in the community.
“As we reflect upon the lessons [of] our past, let us always recognize the importance of peace and goodwill in the present and into the future,” he added.
For his part, Flores said the annual excursion to Saipan of the Memorial Service Association for the Deceased Compatriots “is a testament of your convictions and has undoubtedly brought our two cultures closely together in prayer and peace.”
The mayor said the Korean War Memorial Monument is a reminder not to forget those who sacrificed during the war “so that we and future generations can continue to live in freedom and peace.”
“It is important to never forget those who have fallen victims of war. But we must never forget the men and women currently in battle afar and the innocent civilians who have lost their lives because of it,” he added.
The dignitaries' delivery of remarks was followed by the incense burning and presentation of offerings, which highlighted the ceremony.
Book documents Canadian heroic moment in Korean war
TheStar.com: Book documents Canadian heroic moment in Korean war
They came from rough-and-tumble lumber camps, humdrum offices and the pot-holed streets of post World War II Canada.
They turned into crack troops who could take on a force many times their size in terrain that was half a world away.
When it was over they went quietly back to their lives, forgotten and unsung.
Few would think of the 1950-53 Korean War — if they think of it at all — as a Canadian victory. And as Canada enters a new conflict in Libya, and ends a bruising confrontation in Afghanistan, the now-obscure war fought under the UN flag is lost in the vapour trails of history.
Kapyong was one battle in that dirty, drawn-out war, and its 60th anniversary on April 24 was largely unmarked.
But says Dan Bjarnason, a veteran CBC correspondent and military researcher, it was a pivotal moment that could have altered the political and geographical landscape of East Asia.
Bjarnason’s book, Triumph at Kapyong, documents an extraordinary moment in Canadian and Korean history that was as unlikely as it was unknown.
“Kapyong was the gateway to Seoul,” he says. “If it had fallen Seoul would likely have gone under. Then it would have been a free-for-all and anything could have happened.”
By “anything,” Bjarnason suggests the American use of a nuclear weapon, and a communist takeover of South Korea that would have exploded the Cold War into the hottest conflict since World War II.
But in the beginning, Canada was an unlikely participant.
“(Prime Minister) Mackenzie King was suspicious of getting involved in Asia,” he says. “Canada was run by Atlantic-oriented people and the whole DNA of North America, Britain and France was to keep an eye on Europe and the Soviet Union. When Korea happened we didn’t have much of a stand, but the Americans were worried that it could get out of control.”
The war, in which up to 1.5 million people died — most from China and the two Koreas — resulted from the carve-up of the peninsula by the victors of World War II.
Formerly ruled by Japan, it was divided along the 38th parallel, with the U.S. occupying the south and Soviet troops the north, where the communist government of Kim Il-sung took power.
But escalating tensions between Kim and autocratic nationalist Syngman Rhee became full-scale war when North Korean forces invaded the south in June 1950.
With the Soviet Union boycotting the UN Security Council, and unable to cast a veto, the council quickly condemned the move as a “breach of the peace,” and a 15-country UN military force assembled to beat back North Korea.
King, who would have opposed it, had retired in 1948 and Louis St. Laurent succeeded him. Along with external affairs minister Lester Pearson — who later won a Nobel Peace Prize — he committed troops to Korea.
But from the start it was an irregular operation, conducted off to the side of the regular military.
“Canada created a special Korean force, and guys volunteered specifically for that,” said Bjarnason. “They were a real ‘people’s army’ with no ideology or military ambitions. The army brass was skeptical and the chief of staff implied that they were adventurers. They were even called mercenaries.”
Some, like 19-year-old B.C. lumberjack John Bishop, did join for adventure. Or, like 20-year-old Guelph cab driver Don Hibbs, for military action he’d been too young to see in World War II.
One of the most stellar recruits, Mike Levy, joined after his Vancouver restaurant business failed. As a teenager he was already a distinguished World War II veteran and escapee from a Japanese internment camp.
For some 700 Canadians who fought at the Kapyong hill northeast of Seoul — a fraction of the 22,000 troops Ottawa sent to Korea — the battle came as a shock.
Thousands of Chinese soldiers who had joined the North Koreans began to withdraw from the south side of the dividing line, pursued by Canadian, Australian, South Korean and British soldiers.
Troops from the 2nd Battalion of the Princess Patricia’s Canadian Light Infantry were about to take a well-earned break, when the tide of battle unexpectedly turned.
Equipped with aged sniper rifles — and whatever else they could buy or barter from the Americans — they found themselves mano a mano with about 5,000 charging Chinese troops who had turned around and attacked British and Australian units on nearby hills, causing heavy casualties.
“Our guys were flung in at a moment’s notice,” said Bjarnason. “They were sent in to plug a hole in the line. All the other units were driven back. The British were almost annihilated, and the South Koreans virtually wiped out. Our guys could see that, and they knew what was coming.”
It was horrifyingly close combat — with firing at 50 metres, hand grenades rolling down the hill, and battles with rifle butts, shovels and bayonets. Night, and darkness, heightened the danger.
Levy, a “natural leader” in command of the last platoon to be attacked, made a life-or-death decision: he radioed a New Zealand artillery unit and called in fire on his own position.
“It was an act of desperation. He figured they might get killed — but without that they would be killed. He won the bet. The Chinese were driven off, and they didn’t attack them again. At the end of it there were only 10 Canadians killed.”
Thousands of Chinese died in the skirmish, although their numbers were never verified by Beijing.
The against-the-odds victory won almost no recognition for the Canadians.
“When we came back we got no bands, no medals,” Hicks told Bjarnason without bitterness. “The only people who wanted to meet us were gangsters who wanted to buy our weapons.”
Ottawa largely ignored their feat, and in bureaucratic fashion, refused to let them accept a rare presidential medal from Washington because the “correct protocol” for the award had not been observed.
It was only five years later, with the intervention of honorary colonel Lady Patricia Mountbatten, that they received it. To this day members of the Manitoba-based battalion wear blue patches on their shoulders to commemorate the award.
Other reminders of Canada’s role in Korea are hard to find.
In Brampton there is a memorial wall to commemorate the 516 soldiers who died in the campaign, but their remains lie in South Korea. An annual ceremony sponsored by the Seoul government to thank the survivors is sparsely — if ever — attended. “Stuff happens,” is the motto of those who shrugged and went on with their lives.
“Korea was a meat-grinder of a war,” says Bjarnason. In nearly a decade in Afghanistan, he notes, there are 155 Canadians dead. “In Korea we were there for 2 ½ years, and lost 500.”
But he says, barring a few historic battles, time and distance often obliterate the memory of past wars. Only the blank pages of family scrapbooks tell their silent tales.
“There is no chance of resurrecting the Korean war now. And in 2030, we may be reminding people what happened, years back, in Afghanistan.”
"Forgotten War" Vet Recieves Medals 60 Years Later
Stamford Advocate: "Forgotten War" Vet Recieves Medals 60 Years Later
STAMFORD -- On a quiet, slightly damp Saturday afternoon, Korean War veteran Bob Gaipa sat on the sofa in his Stamford living room, speaking about his military service with U.S. Rep. Jim Himes, D-Greenwich, who listened intently on a chair nearby.
On the coffee table in front of both men were three Army service medals, the National Defense Service Medal, Korean Service Medal & Bronze Star and United Nations Service Medal. Gaipa was awarded those honors for his service nearly 60 years ago, yet this was the first time he'd actually seen them.
"This is sort of the icing on the cake. I never expected this," Gaipa said. "This is wonderful. I really appreciate this."
Gaipa's medals, which were obtained through the National Personnel Records Center, likely never reached their recipient because the records proving his service were destroyed in a fire in 1973. The Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 9617, which Gaipa joined, contacted Himes' office regarding the medals and the Congressman's office appealed for new service papers so that Gaipa's medals could be found. Gaipa himself said he never thought of locating them.
"I think that's probably true with most people who served," Gaipa said. "It's just something we did. Most of us made no attempt to get the medals, especially those who were drafted."
Gaipa was drafted into the Army just after graduating college in June 1952. He underwent basic training at Camp Pickett in Virginia for 16 weeks before being shipped out to Korea. He was stationed 40 miles north of Seoul on the 38th Parallel at the Injim River, with 8055 Mobil Army Surgical Hospital, the same MASH unit that was portrayed in the book, film and television series by that name.
"One of the reasons I was really excited to get personally involved with this is that the Korean War is called the `forgotten war,' " Himes said. "It strikes me that there's a lot of people who served in the Korean War, which was a U.N. action for which there's just not much awareness."
Speaking to the Congressman and district director Mark Henson, Gaipa recalled being stationed on one side of the Injim River opposite Chinese forces, watching flares and tracers at night, when all the fighting took place. He also described how, after the end of the war, he was sent to another unit near the 38th parallel and taught English to orphaned Korean children. His classroom had a portable blackboard, one light bulb and little else.
"There were so many orphans at that time in Korea," Gaipa said. "The kids were perfect, of course. No discipline problems."
Gaipa noticed how few clothes the children had and got students from Stark Elementary School to ship boxes of clothing over to Korea. The Advocate covered the story at the time.
Today, Gaipa speaks often to students at Westhill and Stamford high schools, sharing the history of his experiences, particularly that of living with a draft, which was in effect from 1940 to 1973.
"The concept is important, the concept that all citizens have an obligation to do some sort of service for their country," Gaipa said. "And we're sort of losing that perspective."
Himes and Gaipa also spoke about the state of the armed forces today.
"I've always wondered whether, if every Congressman's son and daughter was going into the military, we wouldn't think differently about going to war," Himes said.
The Congressman invited Gaipa to participate in the oral history project, sponsored by the Library of Congress, which is collecting veterans' stories to preserve. Himes' office has already conducted interviews.
"This is why I'm so enthusiastic about talking to the kids about these things," Gaipa said. "We're going to lose those voices."
STAMFORD -- On a quiet, slightly damp Saturday afternoon, Korean War veteran Bob Gaipa sat on the sofa in his Stamford living room, speaking about his military service with U.S. Rep. Jim Himes, D-Greenwich, who listened intently on a chair nearby.
On the coffee table in front of both men were three Army service medals, the National Defense Service Medal, Korean Service Medal & Bronze Star and United Nations Service Medal. Gaipa was awarded those honors for his service nearly 60 years ago, yet this was the first time he'd actually seen them.
"This is sort of the icing on the cake. I never expected this," Gaipa said. "This is wonderful. I really appreciate this."
Gaipa's medals, which were obtained through the National Personnel Records Center, likely never reached their recipient because the records proving his service were destroyed in a fire in 1973. The Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 9617, which Gaipa joined, contacted Himes' office regarding the medals and the Congressman's office appealed for new service papers so that Gaipa's medals could be found. Gaipa himself said he never thought of locating them.
"I think that's probably true with most people who served," Gaipa said. "It's just something we did. Most of us made no attempt to get the medals, especially those who were drafted."
Gaipa was drafted into the Army just after graduating college in June 1952. He underwent basic training at Camp Pickett in Virginia for 16 weeks before being shipped out to Korea. He was stationed 40 miles north of Seoul on the 38th Parallel at the Injim River, with 8055 Mobil Army Surgical Hospital, the same MASH unit that was portrayed in the book, film and television series by that name.
"One of the reasons I was really excited to get personally involved with this is that the Korean War is called the `forgotten war,' " Himes said. "It strikes me that there's a lot of people who served in the Korean War, which was a U.N. action for which there's just not much awareness."
Speaking to the Congressman and district director Mark Henson, Gaipa recalled being stationed on one side of the Injim River opposite Chinese forces, watching flares and tracers at night, when all the fighting took place. He also described how, after the end of the war, he was sent to another unit near the 38th parallel and taught English to orphaned Korean children. His classroom had a portable blackboard, one light bulb and little else.
"There were so many orphans at that time in Korea," Gaipa said. "The kids were perfect, of course. No discipline problems."
Gaipa noticed how few clothes the children had and got students from Stark Elementary School to ship boxes of clothing over to Korea. The Advocate covered the story at the time.
Today, Gaipa speaks often to students at Westhill and Stamford high schools, sharing the history of his experiences, particularly that of living with a draft, which was in effect from 1940 to 1973.
"The concept is important, the concept that all citizens have an obligation to do some sort of service for their country," Gaipa said. "And we're sort of losing that perspective."
Himes and Gaipa also spoke about the state of the armed forces today.
"I've always wondered whether, if every Congressman's son and daughter was going into the military, we wouldn't think differently about going to war," Himes said.
The Congressman invited Gaipa to participate in the oral history project, sponsored by the Library of Congress, which is collecting veterans' stories to preserve. Himes' office has already conducted interviews.
"This is why I'm so enthusiastic about talking to the kids about these things," Gaipa said. "We're going to lose those voices."
Wednesday, May 11, 2011
The Running Wounded, by William W. Day IV
The Running Wounded: A personal memory of the Korean War, by William W. Day IV
Big Bend Press, 1990
251 pages plus notes, Appendices, glossary and Bibliography. No index. A few b&w photos scattered throughout text
Library: 951.9042 SAY
Description
A young man joins the local National Guard unit in a small Wyoming town to fulfill his military obligation and yet remain at home with his bride and infant daughter. But then, on June 25, 1950, North Korean troops swoop into South Korea. The United States becomes a part of a United Nations' response. And the young man's National Guard unit is activated almost immediately for service in Korea.
The young artilleryman finds himself in the midst of some of the most intense fighting of the Korean war-the Chinese spring offensive of 1951. And he begins a desperate struggle to survive, to do his duty, and to return home to his loved ones.
But when he does return home, he discovers that the combat experience was only the beginning of his struggle-a struggle to come to terms with death, destruction and the unfairness of war.
This is that man's story. It's a story of violence, love, frustration, faith, horror and gratitude. It's a story of the almost ignored military history of the Korean War from the time of General Douglas MacArthur's replacement through January of 1952. It's the story of soldiers trying to deal with danger and death while peace negotiations proceed at an agonizingly slow pace. It's the story of famous battles such as Bloody Ridge, Punch Bowl, and Yoke Ridge. And it's the story of the effects of war on the people who must participate.
Table of Contents
Acknowledgments
Introduction
1. Camp Carson
2. Where's Korea
3. Don't Unload
4. Fort Lewis
5. Jury Rudder
6. Kumhae on Naktong-gang
7. Human Waves
8. The Dead, the Dead
9. Operation Chopper
10. Homestead Valley
11. Bunker Hill and Maggie
12. Bloody Ridge and Yoke Ridge
13. Popcorn
14. Trench warfare
15. Homeward Bound
16. Run, Run, Run
17. Reflections
18. Return to Korea
Epilog
Notes
Appendix
Glossary
Bibliography
Big Bend Press, 1990
251 pages plus notes, Appendices, glossary and Bibliography. No index. A few b&w photos scattered throughout text
Library: 951.9042 SAY
Description
A young man joins the local National Guard unit in a small Wyoming town to fulfill his military obligation and yet remain at home with his bride and infant daughter. But then, on June 25, 1950, North Korean troops swoop into South Korea. The United States becomes a part of a United Nations' response. And the young man's National Guard unit is activated almost immediately for service in Korea.
The young artilleryman finds himself in the midst of some of the most intense fighting of the Korean war-the Chinese spring offensive of 1951. And he begins a desperate struggle to survive, to do his duty, and to return home to his loved ones.
But when he does return home, he discovers that the combat experience was only the beginning of his struggle-a struggle to come to terms with death, destruction and the unfairness of war.
This is that man's story. It's a story of violence, love, frustration, faith, horror and gratitude. It's a story of the almost ignored military history of the Korean War from the time of General Douglas MacArthur's replacement through January of 1952. It's the story of soldiers trying to deal with danger and death while peace negotiations proceed at an agonizingly slow pace. It's the story of famous battles such as Bloody Ridge, Punch Bowl, and Yoke Ridge. And it's the story of the effects of war on the people who must participate.
Table of Contents
Acknowledgments
Introduction
1. Camp Carson
2. Where's Korea
3. Don't Unload
4. Fort Lewis
5. Jury Rudder
6. Kumhae on Naktong-gang
7. Human Waves
8. The Dead, the Dead
9. Operation Chopper
10. Homestead Valley
11. Bunker Hill and Maggie
12. Bloody Ridge and Yoke Ridge
13. Popcorn
14. Trench warfare
15. Homeward Bound
16. Run, Run, Run
17. Reflections
18. Return to Korea
Epilog
Notes
Appendix
Glossary
Bibliography
Tuesday, May 10, 2011
DAV mobile service office, Korean War display in Sioux Falls May 17
BrandonInfo.com (South Dakota): DAV mobile service office, Korean War display in Sioux Falls May 17
The Disabled American Veterans of Sioux Falls will host the “DAV Mobile Service Office and The Korean War Display” on Tuesday, May 17 from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. at the DAV Headquarters, 1519 W. 51st Street, Sioux Falls.
The DAV Mobile Service Office gives veterans straight answers about rights and benefits the veterans earned through their service to our country – as well as free, professional assistance with claims from a highly trained expert.
The DAV National Service Officers (NSO) – rigorously and professionally schooled in the full range of benefits for military veterans and retirees – will provide the best counseling and claim filing assistance veterans can get from any source, anywhere.
The Korean War Display is open to all veterans, their families, and the public for viewing. This outstanding display is being provided by DAV Past Department Commanders Don Bren (Air Force Korean Veteran) and Robert Hill of Brookings.
During the Korean War, approximately 26,000 members of the military were from South Dakota. One hundred sixty (160) South Dakotans were killed in action, including 17 military members from Minnehaha County between 1950 and 1953.
The Disabled American Veterans of Sioux Falls will host the “DAV Mobile Service Office and The Korean War Display” on Tuesday, May 17 from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. at the DAV Headquarters, 1519 W. 51st Street, Sioux Falls.
The DAV Mobile Service Office gives veterans straight answers about rights and benefits the veterans earned through their service to our country – as well as free, professional assistance with claims from a highly trained expert.
The DAV National Service Officers (NSO) – rigorously and professionally schooled in the full range of benefits for military veterans and retirees – will provide the best counseling and claim filing assistance veterans can get from any source, anywhere.
The Korean War Display is open to all veterans, their families, and the public for viewing. This outstanding display is being provided by DAV Past Department Commanders Don Bren (Air Force Korean Veteran) and Robert Hill of Brookings.
During the Korean War, approximately 26,000 members of the military were from South Dakota. One hundred sixty (160) South Dakotans were killed in action, including 17 military members from Minnehaha County between 1950 and 1953.
Sunday, May 8, 2011
Korean Memorial taking shape in Mint Hill
South Charlotte News: Korean Memorial taking shape in Mint Hill
The North Carolina Korean War Memorial is taking shape in Mint Hill Park on Fairview.
Organizers have raised about $385,000 in cash, labor and material donations; they still need about $125,000 to complete the project, which is still under construction.
From 1-4 p.m. May 15, the North Carolina Korean War Veterans Chapter 265 will host a Korean Community Appreciation Day at the memorial, at 8850 Fairview Road.
The purpose of the gathering is to recognize the support of the Charlotte, Greensboro and Raleigh Korean communities for the project.
The memorial will feature a fountain replicating the Republic of Korea flag surrounded by four 11-foot-tall black granite pylons bearing with the names of the 789 Korean War veterans North Carolina.
Granite pavers, ranging in price from $200-$1,000, are still available to honor a veteran of any war. To order a paver, call Capt. Don Putnam at 704-496-4709 or Col. Billy Reid at 704-392-4981 or 704-365-1044, or email Reid at billr@jacksonpark.org.
The North Carolina Korean War Memorial is taking shape in Mint Hill Park on Fairview.
Organizers have raised about $385,000 in cash, labor and material donations; they still need about $125,000 to complete the project, which is still under construction.
From 1-4 p.m. May 15, the North Carolina Korean War Veterans Chapter 265 will host a Korean Community Appreciation Day at the memorial, at 8850 Fairview Road.
The purpose of the gathering is to recognize the support of the Charlotte, Greensboro and Raleigh Korean communities for the project.
The memorial will feature a fountain replicating the Republic of Korea flag surrounded by four 11-foot-tall black granite pylons bearing with the names of the 789 Korean War veterans North Carolina.
Granite pavers, ranging in price from $200-$1,000, are still available to honor a veteran of any war. To order a paver, call Capt. Don Putnam at 704-496-4709 or Col. Billy Reid at 704-392-4981 or 704-365-1044, or email Reid at billr@jacksonpark.org.
Friday, May 6, 2011
Britain receives body of Korean War fighter ace
The Telegraph: Britain receives body of Korean War fighter ace
Flt Lt Desmond Hinton, then 29, was shot down on January 2 1952 as he attempted to strafe a column of trucks north of Pyongyang during the 1950-53 Korean War where he was one of 41 RAF officers seconded to serve with the US Air Force.
His body was discovered in 2002 buried in a field near where his F84e “Thunderjet” crashed to earth after being hit by anti-aircraft fire during the engagement outside the village of Sunan, close to what is now Pyongyang’s international airport.
RAF archives from the time offered hope that F/Lt Hinton - who won a Distinguished Flying Cross for shooting down two Japanese Mitsubishi Zero fighters over Burma during WWII - might have successfully ejected from the aircraft, but these proved false.
“He called that his plane was hit and he would have to bail out. He jettisoned his canopy and two pilots saw the seat was empty which makes me beleive [sic] that Des got clear of the seat,” wrote Col. Paul Mitchell, his commanding officer.
“His parachute was not seen, however, he was wearing an all white shute and the ground was completely covered with snow. This would have made it difficult to see the opened parachute.
“The other pilots circled the area for some time and the could not locate Des. I personally feel that he made it O.K. and I feel he will be held until the cease fire talks become a reality …”
In 2004 Flt Lt Hinton’s younger brother, David, was allowed to visit the gravesite in North Korea, laying flowers on the grave. Photos show a mound of earth behind a neat white picket fence in the corner of a maize field.
As a souvenir, Mr Hinton was given a scrap of the flying suit that his brother, who left a widow and two small children, was wearing at the time of his death.
"I was very close to my brother who was very much my role model and a father figure to me. I have never stopped missing him every single one of the 57 years since he died,” he told Michael Rank, a retired journalist and member of the Anglo-Korean Society, in 2009.
"A tour lasted about three months. They were short of replacements, so Desmond offered to do a second tour and it was on his second tour that he was shot down and killed," added Mr Hinton, himself a retired RAF pilot, “There's an old maxim in the armed forces, 'Never volunteer.'"
The handover of the remains is a rare piece of positive news in North Korea’s relations with the outside world, as the bankrupt Stalinist dictatorship labours under punitive UN sanctions imposed after a series of illegal missile and nuclear bomb tests in 2009.
KCNA, the official North Korean news agency, said Britain had expressed “deep gratitude” to North Korea, adding that “such cooperation would mark a good occasion in developing the relations between the two countries”.
A British Embassy spokeswoman in Seoul said that the British government had been “very pleased” with the level of co-operation from Pyongyang.
The remains will now be sent to a US forensics laboratory in Hawaii for DNA testing to confirm they were those of Flt Lt Hinton, she added, with results expected with two to three months.
If confirmed, the body would finally be laid to rest in the UN Memorial Cemetery in the South Korean city of Busan, unless relatives requested repatriation to Britain.
In all, some 58,000 British servicemen served during the war as part of United Nations forces defending South Korea, and 1,109 of them were killed.
The only other British remains to be repatriated from the North Korean side were those of a private, in 1995, according to KCNA.
Flt Lt Desmond Hinton, then 29, was shot down on January 2 1952 as he attempted to strafe a column of trucks north of Pyongyang during the 1950-53 Korean War where he was one of 41 RAF officers seconded to serve with the US Air Force.
His body was discovered in 2002 buried in a field near where his F84e “Thunderjet” crashed to earth after being hit by anti-aircraft fire during the engagement outside the village of Sunan, close to what is now Pyongyang’s international airport.
RAF archives from the time offered hope that F/Lt Hinton - who won a Distinguished Flying Cross for shooting down two Japanese Mitsubishi Zero fighters over Burma during WWII - might have successfully ejected from the aircraft, but these proved false.
“He called that his plane was hit and he would have to bail out. He jettisoned his canopy and two pilots saw the seat was empty which makes me beleive [sic] that Des got clear of the seat,” wrote Col. Paul Mitchell, his commanding officer.
“His parachute was not seen, however, he was wearing an all white shute and the ground was completely covered with snow. This would have made it difficult to see the opened parachute.
“The other pilots circled the area for some time and the could not locate Des. I personally feel that he made it O.K. and I feel he will be held until the cease fire talks become a reality …”
In 2004 Flt Lt Hinton’s younger brother, David, was allowed to visit the gravesite in North Korea, laying flowers on the grave. Photos show a mound of earth behind a neat white picket fence in the corner of a maize field.
As a souvenir, Mr Hinton was given a scrap of the flying suit that his brother, who left a widow and two small children, was wearing at the time of his death.
"I was very close to my brother who was very much my role model and a father figure to me. I have never stopped missing him every single one of the 57 years since he died,” he told Michael Rank, a retired journalist and member of the Anglo-Korean Society, in 2009.
"A tour lasted about three months. They were short of replacements, so Desmond offered to do a second tour and it was on his second tour that he was shot down and killed," added Mr Hinton, himself a retired RAF pilot, “There's an old maxim in the armed forces, 'Never volunteer.'"
The handover of the remains is a rare piece of positive news in North Korea’s relations with the outside world, as the bankrupt Stalinist dictatorship labours under punitive UN sanctions imposed after a series of illegal missile and nuclear bomb tests in 2009.
KCNA, the official North Korean news agency, said Britain had expressed “deep gratitude” to North Korea, adding that “such cooperation would mark a good occasion in developing the relations between the two countries”.
A British Embassy spokeswoman in Seoul said that the British government had been “very pleased” with the level of co-operation from Pyongyang.
The remains will now be sent to a US forensics laboratory in Hawaii for DNA testing to confirm they were those of Flt Lt Hinton, she added, with results expected with two to three months.
If confirmed, the body would finally be laid to rest in the UN Memorial Cemetery in the South Korean city of Busan, unless relatives requested repatriation to Britain.
In all, some 58,000 British servicemen served during the war as part of United Nations forces defending South Korea, and 1,109 of them were killed.
The only other British remains to be repatriated from the North Korean side were those of a private, in 1995, according to KCNA.
Korean War-era grenade found at Camp Carroll
Stars and Stripes: Korean War-era grenade found at Camp Carroll
SEOUL — Construction workers at Camp Carroll found a live Korean War-era U.S. grenade Friday morning, the second piece of old ordnance uncovered in Korea in the last three weeks, military officials said.
U.S. Army Garrison-Daegu spokesman Phil Molter said workers found the pineapple-style grenade around 10:30 a.m. as they were digging at a warehouse construction site. Technicians from the 6th Ordnance Battalion confirmed it was a grenade, and a South Korean explosive ordnance team from an army ammunition site at Youngcheon, southeast of Daegu, removed it from Camp Carroll.
A spokesman for the Ministry of National Defense said the EOD team would detonate the grenade sometime next week.
“No one was ever worried about it” causing problems, Molter said.
Camp Carroll is located on the edge of the “Pusan Perimeter” area that saw heavy fighting during the war.
On April 14, a mortar was found behind the U.S. Forces Korea headquarters at Yongsan Garrison in Seoul. It is also believed to be a remnant from the Korean War, garrison spokeswoman Jane Lee said.
Construction workers found it while dredging a sewage canal that runs behind the White House, which houses USFK officials including commander Gen. Walter Sharp. The building was evacuated, Lee said.
An EOD team took the mortar, which was in “extremely poor condition,” to Warrior Base for detonation, according to Capt. Scott Mignot, commander of the 718th Ordnance Company.
He said in an e-mail that in the past two years EOD technicians have responded to about four similar incidents at U.S. garrisons across the peninsula, including two at Yongsan.
AdvertisementDan Thompson, Installation Management Command-Korea spokesman, said unexploded ordnance, or UXO, is found infrequently on bases, but community members should report any suspicious items to the military police immediately. EOD experts are on-call to investigate and remove UXO.
“Unexploded ordnance is one of the unfortunate legacies of armed conflict the world over, and Korea is no different,” he said.
SEOUL — Construction workers at Camp Carroll found a live Korean War-era U.S. grenade Friday morning, the second piece of old ordnance uncovered in Korea in the last three weeks, military officials said.
U.S. Army Garrison-Daegu spokesman Phil Molter said workers found the pineapple-style grenade around 10:30 a.m. as they were digging at a warehouse construction site. Technicians from the 6th Ordnance Battalion confirmed it was a grenade, and a South Korean explosive ordnance team from an army ammunition site at Youngcheon, southeast of Daegu, removed it from Camp Carroll.
A spokesman for the Ministry of National Defense said the EOD team would detonate the grenade sometime next week.
“No one was ever worried about it” causing problems, Molter said.
Camp Carroll is located on the edge of the “Pusan Perimeter” area that saw heavy fighting during the war.
On April 14, a mortar was found behind the U.S. Forces Korea headquarters at Yongsan Garrison in Seoul. It is also believed to be a remnant from the Korean War, garrison spokeswoman Jane Lee said.
Construction workers found it while dredging a sewage canal that runs behind the White House, which houses USFK officials including commander Gen. Walter Sharp. The building was evacuated, Lee said.
An EOD team took the mortar, which was in “extremely poor condition,” to Warrior Base for detonation, according to Capt. Scott Mignot, commander of the 718th Ordnance Company.
He said in an e-mail that in the past two years EOD technicians have responded to about four similar incidents at U.S. garrisons across the peninsula, including two at Yongsan.
AdvertisementDan Thompson, Installation Management Command-Korea spokesman, said unexploded ordnance, or UXO, is found infrequently on bases, but community members should report any suspicious items to the military police immediately. EOD experts are on-call to investigate and remove UXO.
“Unexploded ordnance is one of the unfortunate legacies of armed conflict the world over, and Korea is no different,” he said.
Wednesday, May 4, 2011
Hot Shots, edited by Jennie Ethell Chancey and William Forstchen
Hot Shots: An Oral History of the Air Force Combat Pilots of the Korean War, edited by Jennie Ethell Chancey and William Forstchen
HarperCollins, 2000
140 pages, no index, a few b&w photos scattered throughout the text
Description
Known as the "Forgotten War" the Korean War heralded a new era of warfare-one where countries from around the world struggled over the fate of a relatively small peninsula jutting into the Sea of Japan. Between 1950 and 1953, more than fifty thousand Americans gave their lives in pursuit of democracy for the Korean people.
The Korean War was also the proving ground for post-World War II aviation, when the first generation of jet aircraft took to the skies to tangle in deadly combat. It was the battlefield for Sabres and MiGs, American Hot Shots and Communist Honchos. And more than ever before, control of the skies meant victory or failure in the ground war raging below.
Now, fifty years after the war's outbreak, Hot Shots captures the voices of the original top guns, the pilots who flew Mustangs, Sabres and Shooting Stars and confronted a superior number of enemy aircraft.
Among the men who tell their stories are Lieutenant Colonel Duane E. "Bud" Biteman, one of the first fliers in the war; Lieutenant General Frederick "Boots" Blesse, a double ace who led efforts to refine tactical training for the new jet pilots; Colonel Cecil Foster, who fought in one of the longest running air-to-air jet encounters; and Colonel Harold Fischer, a double ace flier who was captured behind enemy lines and held as a POW until 1955, two years after the official end of the war.
Editors Chancey and Forstchen combine these compelling firsthand accounts with dozens of never-before-published photographs of air force pilots at work, as well as a history of the major events of the war. Hot Shots brings to vivid life the risk, dedication and bravery of these forgotten heroes.
Table of Contents
Acknowledgments
1. Origins of the War
2. First Contact
3. New Pilots and Old
4. Going North and the Chinese Counterpunch
5. Bugging Out
6. Pushing Back
7. Shot Down
8. A New Kind of War
9. The New Paradigm
10. 1951: The Long War Begins
11. Evolving Tactics ad the Need for Training
12. 1952: Still a Hard Fight
13. Honchos and Jumping the Border
14. 1953: Winding Down
15. The Long Exile
16. Ending
_________
A new book is added every Wednesday
News posted as it occurs
Monday, May 2, 2011
Korean War veterans join others on Honor Flight
Coloradoan.com: Korean War veterans join others on Honor Flight
During World War II, Fort Collins resident Donald Deppe earned the rank of sergeant by renovating ammunitions that were sent to troops overseas. He served in the Army from 1942-1946 and spent much of his time in Hawaii.
Deppe, who will turn 89 on May 11, was one of hundreds of WWII and Korean War veterans who gathered Sunday at the Embassy Suites Hotel in Loveland to take part in the sixth running of the Honor Flight of Northern Colorado.
The Honor Flight has traditionally taken veterans of WWII on a trip to see the war memorial in Washington, D.C. This year is the first time Korean War vets have been invited for the trip and a viewing of that war's memorial in the nation's capital.
Deppe said he was amazed at the number of people who filled up a ballroom at the Embassy Suites Hotel, not only to take the flight but also to honor those who served the United States in two important conflicts.
"(I feel) the same as the day I put on my uniform - a real sense of pride," Deppe said.
When Deppe landed in Washington, D.C., on Sunday, he was scheduled to be greeted not only by Honor Flight supporters but also his son, Darryl, who would view the WWII and Korean war memorials with his father.
Darryl, who lives in Seattle, owns a World War II museum in his hometown.
Cecily Cass, wife of flight commander and Vietnam veteran Stan Cass, who organized the Honor Flight for Northern Colorado, said the flights were started in 2005 in Ohio by Earl Morse, a physician assistant at a Veterans Affairs hospital. Morse would ask patients if they had been able to see the WWII memorial in D.C., Cecily Cass said, and when he found out many had not been able to take the trip, he chartered a private plane to take the vets.
"Pretty soon, (Morse) saw there was a bigger need than what he could fill," Cecily Cass said.
Ohio is still the main hub for the flight.
Volunteers called guardians tag along on the Honor Flight, with one guardian for every three veterans. Medical services are always close at hand, Cecily Cass said.
“(The veterans) are well taken care of,” Cecily Cass said.
When the Honor Flight of Northern Colorado touches back down at DIA today, it will have surpassed 800 veterans that have taken the trip.
The next Honor Flight will take place Sept. 11-12. That flight will be the first to take recipients of Purple Hearts, regardless of what war or conflict in which the veteran served.
During World War II, Fort Collins resident Donald Deppe earned the rank of sergeant by renovating ammunitions that were sent to troops overseas. He served in the Army from 1942-1946 and spent much of his time in Hawaii.
Deppe, who will turn 89 on May 11, was one of hundreds of WWII and Korean War veterans who gathered Sunday at the Embassy Suites Hotel in Loveland to take part in the sixth running of the Honor Flight of Northern Colorado.
The Honor Flight has traditionally taken veterans of WWII on a trip to see the war memorial in Washington, D.C. This year is the first time Korean War vets have been invited for the trip and a viewing of that war's memorial in the nation's capital.
Deppe said he was amazed at the number of people who filled up a ballroom at the Embassy Suites Hotel, not only to take the flight but also to honor those who served the United States in two important conflicts.
"(I feel) the same as the day I put on my uniform - a real sense of pride," Deppe said.
When Deppe landed in Washington, D.C., on Sunday, he was scheduled to be greeted not only by Honor Flight supporters but also his son, Darryl, who would view the WWII and Korean war memorials with his father.
Darryl, who lives in Seattle, owns a World War II museum in his hometown.
Cecily Cass, wife of flight commander and Vietnam veteran Stan Cass, who organized the Honor Flight for Northern Colorado, said the flights were started in 2005 in Ohio by Earl Morse, a physician assistant at a Veterans Affairs hospital. Morse would ask patients if they had been able to see the WWII memorial in D.C., Cecily Cass said, and when he found out many had not been able to take the trip, he chartered a private plane to take the vets.
"Pretty soon, (Morse) saw there was a bigger need than what he could fill," Cecily Cass said.
Ohio is still the main hub for the flight.
Volunteers called guardians tag along on the Honor Flight, with one guardian for every three veterans. Medical services are always close at hand, Cecily Cass said.
“(The veterans) are well taken care of,” Cecily Cass said.
When the Honor Flight of Northern Colorado touches back down at DIA today, it will have surpassed 800 veterans that have taken the trip.
The next Honor Flight will take place Sept. 11-12. That flight will be the first to take recipients of Purple Hearts, regardless of what war or conflict in which the veteran served.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)