A real hero just died and I'm angry.
 

I just received word an old army buddy and long time friend just died. We have known each other since 1967 when we were stationed together in Germany. His wife and mine were friends before they married us.
Bill served in the Army for 20 years and was a Viet Nam veteran who was awarded the Silver Star for bravery during his first tour of duty there. He suffered from PTSD and Agent Orange poisoning which caused extreme mental and medical problems for him. He and his wife had three children, two sons and a daughter that have done well in their lives. Both sons were in the military, the oldest a Navy Seal and the other a soldier in the Army military intelligence where they served honorably. Their daughter married an Army Ranger who also served honorably. All the sibling's children have either completed college or are working on their degrees.

Bill related a few stories to me about his time in Viet Nam with one incident that preyed on his conscience ever since. His unit was sweeping through a village in what intelligence declared a "free fire zone", meaning there were not supposed to be any friendlies there. If someone was there, they were Viet Cong. He was young and scared spitless. As they were sweeping the village he heard a noise to his right rear and reacted by turning and firing at the silhouette of a man he saw. Unfortunately it was an old man was carrying in his arms a small girl about 7 years old. He killed both of them, not a Viet Cong. So much for there being no friendlies in the area.

The Agent Orange poisoning caused severe medical conditions that made his life difficult and eventually killing him but he pushed on with his life not giving in to despair or whining constantly about his condition. He wasn't a saint and not the Devil but was a good father, good husband for 51 years, and a good friend.

I'm not looking for sympathy. I'm expressing my anger because his death won't be known beyond his family and those who read obituaries in their local newspaper. A man who gave more for this country than any celebrity or politician. Yet whose deaths receive nation and international attention? Hollywood celebrities, politicians and felons.

Sorry for the loss of your friend. So many gave so much so we could have the opportunity to live a good life. I would rather have heard the things your friend had on his mind then some others who have the public attention now.

Again, Sorry Number 10 GI.

My condolences for the loss of your friend. Any war has a lot of grey areas among the people involved. So sad that some people have to see things in the simplest of terms to deal with them.

OP, thanks for sharing. Some with connections and money got out of serving during the draft and the Vietnam conflict. I call it a conflict cause in my book we really didn’t fight to win. Sorry for your loss. Your friend is a hero. God bless his family and friends.

There are real heroes like your friend. Then there are entertainment and sports heroes. I don’t mean to denigrate (most) entertainers and athletes, but there is no comparison. Too bad the same word is used for both.

Your friend was a hero and should be mourned as such.

Sports hero’s! NOT. They play game and get paid for it.

I served in Vietnam during 1967 and retired from the U.S.Army after 22 years. Rest easy Bill, and know that many of us are fully aware of those that sacrificed and those that failed to serve.:pray:

Honor us with his full name. Those of us that pray can at least lift him up in our prayers and thank God for him.

I had an adopted brother who also served in Vietnam. He was Purple Heart. He rarely talked about it. He did tell me the story about when he returned to the US, people spit at him in the San Francisco airport. He was exposed to Agent Orange, and the cancers that he developed ultimately lead to his death at age 70. He complained about very little, except why the VA hospitals didnt take better care of him.

I’m sorry
 

I’m sorry for your loss. Your friend was a hero... to those he loved and for those that he fought for....his family for sure... but to all of us in this country. We salute him today.

a real hero. sorry for your loss

He was a true hero deserving of the title. The sport, hollywood and political names are simple entertainment and never earn a hero title. May your friend rest in peace.

I am sorry for your loss. I agree it’s sad how the true hero’s are forgotten
Prayers to his family and love ones 🙏🏻🇺🇸❤️

So sad
 

He was a true hero. May he Rest In Peace and may his memory be a blessing

Totally agree with you God Bless him and his family!!������������������������������������������ ������������������������

Thank you for sharing this mans story
He will be remembered By many now that you had told us his story
A great American he was unlike in these times

justjim, The Vietnam War was NOT a conflict.. Im sure you wouldn't say it was that to a Veteran who had boots on the ground and did what was asked to survive..Namvet 1968

I'm sorry for your loss.

so sorry for your loss and glad you have told us about him. I get angry when I see some of our Heroes that do nothing more than play a sport. I want to scream at the world about my brother who died covering grenade to save others.

I’m so sorry to hear about your friend. Thank you sir for sharing this. You guys are the true American heroes not sports and not Hollywood.

Sorry for the loss of a real hero. I know what you’re going through as my best friend from my unit in Nam is becoming a short timer due to the effects of Agent Orange. He’s getting great care from the VA as I am too as in the past couple of years the VA has improved 100% with the new Choice Program. Glad he shared a bit of the ugly with you as that’s therapeutic for PTSD and showed that he trusted you more that you can ever know. Most of us share the good with our friends, while keeping the bad and the ugly to only fellow vets and ourselves. He must have loved you as a brother, so cherish his memories for the rest of your days as he and others like him have contributed to what true Americans stand for, the freedom to become a productive member of this great nation by giving back. Slow salute.

Thank you for sharing! We will truly never know what that would be like.

I’m sorry for your loss. Pray that we never have to fight again. And despite what some say, your friend was neither a sucker or a loser.

Thank you for this wonderful post and for your service. May your friend rest in peace. May you and his family find comfort in the memories you keep and share. And may God bless America.

Sorry for yours and the countrys loss.

What a wonderful tribute to your friend. May he RIP. Friendships like that in a lifetime are so hard to come by.

Your friend will not be forgotten, you are here and his family will treasure his memory. I am sorry for the loss of your lifelong friend.
Veterans are at the top of the list for the term "hero". Anyone else comes in second.

Salute

Rest In Peace, Brother. God Bless

Dont be angry praise God for his life and the memories your shared throughout your friendship..

I can relate. I have had several friends that served in Nam die over the years including a few as a result of Agent Orange

Dear #10 GI,

Your friend knew the pain of War, and it indeed was a war and not a conflict. Millions of young men and women served in Southeast Asia and over 53,000+ never returned home again. I was one of the lucky ones. Vietnam was like no other war in history and your friend knew that from the first day he arrived yet served with Courage, Honor, and Distinction. In War we follow orders, we don't question them and that means often we are charged to do things that are beyond human comprehension. Your friend took an innocent life but that was never his intent. I have no doubt that he was scared to death as we all were but those things happen in war and we carry the pain of that with us to our last day. Often like your friend we don't forgive ourselves but we forget that God has forgiven has already forgiven us because he knows what's in our heart when these terrible things happen. Your friend is finally at peace now and he has been welcomed into the arms of our Lord. His pain and guilt no longer exist and they have been replaced with unending love and everlasting life. Your angry also will pass. When someone we love leaves this life and goes on to the next the immediate response is often anger simply because we will miss them and can't understand why others don't feel the same way. The fact is he really hasn't left you as long as you remember him in your heart which you clearly do. Celebrate his life and give thanks for it, and remember him especially on Memorial Day and Veterans Day because he will be standing right next to you. He has now received his true "Welcome Home".
If you need to talk contact me. gkadow@aol.com

Father Gary Kadow, OSL
St. Patrick's Episcopal Church
Project SOS-Support Our Soldiers, Inc.

I had a friend who was in the 101st Airborne , who died from colon cancer, contracted from Agent Orange. He also was emotionally damaged from the horrific experiences of the war. As a member of the Special Forces he and his team were required to precede the regular forces on their missions through the jungles, in an attempt to intimidate and destroy any Cong in the area. He related many horrific stories of his encounters to me. His unit was called The Widow Makers . They would leave their “calling cards” on the bodies of the enemy. The fire fights were horrendous and they left a terrible impact on him that never went away. It was a terrible war that Lyndon Johnson did not allow them to win. Upon their return the communist rioters in the streets treated them with disdain , spitting on them when they came home. How similar that is to the way the communists of today are treating our first responders! This communist attack against our country today must be wiped out, and the weak leaders who refuse to ask for government forces to help their first responders must be replaced. I suspect they are purposely allowing their cities to be destroyed to satisfy their sick political plots to keep our country in chaos. This is a communist movement to weaken our government and turn citizens against each other, right out of Mao’s “ Rules for Insurgency”. A civil war would satisfy their goal. I could care less if some of you call me a conspiracy theorist, the citizens in the riot areas have started to take it into their own hands , since their leaders have failed them , and are standing with their first responders to defeat these thugs. They should think twice before coming to the Villages, for we have the largest number of retired military vets in the world residing here, and thousands of other citizens , locked and loaded!!!

Sadly, I wish more of our Vietnam Veterans were able to express what they went through over there. Those people were savages and did things so awful, no one civilized would think a human being could do. So many lives were lost because of it too. Then when they put their life on the line and were one of the "lucky ones" to come home, they were spit on and ridiculed by idiot people here who thought they knew what was going on over there because of the fake news media going on, even back then. These people are all HEROES and everyone should be thanking them for their service.

Thank you for sharing his story and God Bless!!

Actually you are right on track with your post!!

Number 10 GI, there are so many similar stories of men and boys that died as a result of the nasty things we asked our soldiers to do in Viet Nam.

I too have three friends, "On The Wall". Regretably, your friend will never make the Wall even though he was killed by it. It just took him all these years to pass.

You must be proud of his service and remember his sacrifice. Thank you for letting the rest of us who care about your good friend.

Very sad when we lose a good friend that has been suffering so long from combat wounds. There are many vets who served in Nam with similar issues. I was there twice. Hit heavy with PTSD from intense combat on the DMZ. Until 2 years ago, I thought I escaped the Agent Orange(any many other poisons) that were sprayed on us daily. I was diagnosed with Peripheral Neuropathy of lower legs. Intense pain 24/7, unable to sleep and walk was impeded and balance unsteady. Found out that this condition is considered incurable by many in the medical field. However, after being refused treatment everywhere I turned to, extensive reading revealed a possible remedy. But I was told the treatment would NOT work. Desperate for my life after one year of little sleep and pain that could not be abated with drugs, I wrote a personal letter to our president, Donald TRUMP. It was a "hail Mary". 2 weeks later I received a phone cal from the White House sending me to a local hospital for 40 days of outpatient treatment. I finished said treatment in the Fall of 2019. Wow! I was overjoyed. No more thoughts of suicide-sleep and pain both improved. But I still had the disease and I wanted to kick stout of my body. I was refused more treatment by the USG telling me "It doesn't work". This year I was forced to write another personal letter to Donal TRUMP asking approval for more treatment, I was hesitant to write because he was going through IMPEACHMENT hearings. But, I had a feeling that he was a champion of all of us and sure enough, another phone call authorizing 40 additional days of treatment. I finished this Spring. Despite all naysayers I was now 99% pain free and feeling great. No more thoughts of ending life early! I have 2 TRUMP flags at my Viggages home--Now you know WHY? He cares for us all-even Disabled MARINES! Semper Fi

What a thoughtful and helpful post!!!

Hero
 

My brother also served in Vietnam. He was injured, received a Purple Heart, and suffered cancer from agent orange. Thankfully, he is still alive and enjoying life.