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Ty and Ben,
I was there when Luna, Rimmer and Lt. Emory were killed. I seem to remember Lt. Emory went on the medivac alive and that we were upset later to learn he died of “shock” on the way to the aid station. RTO Luna and Doc Rimmer were brought up the hill later.
I guarded their bodies under a poncho during that night.
Paul
Gary K.,
You have my greatest sympathies for the loss of your son. I don’t have words to express how sad I am for you.
Paul
so sry for your loss gary//may God reach down and comfort you two//prayers from here to you
Gary,
My heart felt sympathy goes out to you over your loss. My oldest son was killed by a UHaul truck in New Mexico on Labor Day Weekend 2005. You never get over it… you just learn to deal with the loss. Perhaps the losses of men in Vietnam taught me this. Thankfully, you have your wife to share this AND the good memories of your son with. Good luck.
Gary,
You are always in our thoughts and prayers and especially at this difficult time. It is the parent’s nightmare to outlive their children. I know you have the strength to make it through this considering all you have endured in live already. I am looking forward to spending time with you in Killeen! Hang in there Brother!
Gary,
You are in my prayers as well as your whole family. I am deeply sorry for your loss.
My friends and brothers- I haven.t been on here much but so many of you are in my thoughts. J probably won’t get back on the site until the weekend. i plan on going to
kileen in September, I found out that my 32 year old son passed over the weekend. The neighbors called the landlord when they didn’t see him over the weekend.
landlord called me and I was on my way when the police called with the news. We are shocked and overwhelmed
i really don’t know what to say or how to say it.
Guys!
Ben and I had a wonderful time in Mount Morris IL on Tuesday night helping to present the Ed Rimmer Scholarship at the HS Awards night. It was very nice to see the deep love that Ed’s classmates had and still have for him. I personally opened my wallet for a donation to the continuance of the scholarship in his memory as he was one of OUR medics. I wish those of you who could would also contribute. The two young ladies who got the scholarship money were very smart young people and received many other awards throughout the evening. Ben and I stayed in a flea bag hotel that on second thought may have not been as nice as the bunkerline bunkers but the wise old Ben got a nicer room than LT. Live and learn!
thnx lt&ben
Saw that piece on the new about the remains & the braclet. She was a special woman to wear it all those years.
Patrick, what dates were you in country and do you remember what company & platoon. I was on Baldy & Hawkhill but left in 11/69. Welcome home!
good evening brothers//was curious if anyone else seen the news about the nam vet whose remains were sent back [westmorlin]and the woman who had wore his braclet all that time she put it in his coffin before burial
I was on Hawkhill and, lzbaldy, 1970 Have not had any contact because I had to leave on emergency home and was put in hospital when I got back to the world . An never went back. I was from south FL and still live there today. I walked point during my time. I have terminal liver problems now and don’t have the best memory about names of my guy I was with. But I do have some pics I will try to download later.Anyone with recall of that time on the hill let me know.southflhutch2@aol.com
welcome home/here patrick
Amen Gary!
There’s just no better job than Grandpa, is there? If I’d known grandkids were this much fun, I’d have had them first.
Amem!
Grandparents:
Grandparents are a lady and a man who have no little children of their own. They like other peoples.’
A grandfather is a man and a grandmother is a lady!
Grandparents don’t have to do anything except be there when we come to see them. They are so old they shouldn’t play hard or run. It is good if they drive us to the shops and give us money.
When they take us for walks, they slow down past things like pretty leaves and caterpillars.
They show us and talk to us about the colors of the flowers and also why we shouldn’t step on ‘cracks.’
They don’t say, ‘Hurry up.’
Usually grandmothers are fat but not too fat to tie your shoes. That’s why I got fat………
They wear glasses and funny underwear.
They can take their teeth and gums out.
Grandparents don’t have to be smart.
They have to answer questions like ‘Why isn’t God married?’ and ‘How come dogs chase cats?’
When they read to us, they don’t skip. They don’t mind if we ask for the same story over again.
Everybody should try to have a grandmother, especially if you don’t have television because they are the only grownups who like to spend time with us.
They know we should have snack time before bed time, and they say prayers with us and kiss us even when we’ve acted bad.
A 6-YEAR-OLD WAS ASKED WHERE HIS GRANDMA LIVED. ”OH,”HE SAID, ”SHE LIVES AT THE AIRPORT, AND, WHEN WE WANT HER, WE JUST GO GET HER. THEN, WHEN WE’RE DONE HAVING HER VISIT, WE TAKE HER BACK TO THE AIRPORT.”
GRANDPA IS THE SMARTEST MAN ON EARTH! HE TEACHES ME GOOD THINGS, BUT I DON’T GET TO SEE HIM ENOUGH TO GET AS SMART AS HIM!
It’s funny when they bend over; you hear gas leaks, and they blame their dog.
Gary,
In about a month I am retiring & moving with block & half of my grand kids. Looking forward to it.
When we are new to the field we all do funny things. Not funny then but are now as we look back.
Bill:
I guess I earned mine by doing something similar, except that I was even then almost deaf in one ear and dove off the wrong side of the paddy dike. There was nobody over there but me and the dinks (who were about a 100 meters away). :-0!
And, why shouldn’t I put her up to it? That’s what Grandpa’s do, isn’t it? (I didn’t film it. Her daddy did.)
Guess I need to get nails & a hammer for Gary for putting his grandchild up to that joke.
Gary,
I earned my CIB diving into a rice paddy when a sniper was taking pot shots. Being new I was waiting for the whole VC army to over run us because I learned later the NVA hung out in the mountain areas.
Wanna hear a funny joke?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dq8GVcwrudo
That’s one of my grandkids! 🙂
Bill:
The only thing better than rice paddy coffee is to bail off in it head first and drink a mouthful of it rather than get shot, huh?
Ah! I love the smell of a good mature rice paddy in the morning. There is no better way to start the morning than a fresh canteen of rice patty water with two tablets dropped in it.
appears that a couple of the recent comment posters drank a bit too much rice paddy water
Gary,
It is two shots with a salt water chaser!
Costellobad. OOOOO! That’s….well….. bad! 🙂
Have you been to the bar and order an Osama yet? It’s just two shots and a splash of water.
Bin Laden was killed in a Pakastani town called Abottabad…..This was after a thorough search of Costellobad proved futile.
yes,another 4 may, remembered here. like so many others, a worthless hill where things happened that we don`t forget, due to grunts that paid too much of a price. may our brothers rest in peace–
Hey guys,
Did you hear that Starkist has come out with a new line of canned seafood products? It is called Osama Bin Laden, “Chicken of the Sea”> I hear it is the official canned seafood of the U.S. Navy Seals!! HOOAH!
Ben,
I would like to see if I could join you on May 17 at Mt Morris. Can you please email me any details you have? In my mind it would be honoring the LT and the RTO who were lost also.
Ben,
May 4th,1970, is burned in the memory of many of us. Each “Charlie Co Grunt Group” has a May 4th to haunt them. It is important to continue to talk of these not only as a therapeutic tool but to remind those who visit this site the sacrifices and horrors combat soldiers face. This date definitely changed my life and impacted the lives of Short Round and five other men who went with us to 3rd Platoon. I wish SOMEONE could help me remember the names of the other 5 who went with S.R. and me to 3rd Platoon that night. My PTSD has blocked their names. I apologize to those of you who’s names I fail to recall.
May 4, 1970 was a tragic day for 3rd Platoon when they were ordered to assault a fortified hill. Cut down in the initial assault was the Platoon Leader Stephen Emery and his RTO, Armando Luna. The medic, James Rimmer, rushed forward to render first aid and was hit in the head, killing him instantly. There were others wounded. I do remember Duane Bailey lost an eye. Who was it that took an AK round between the lips causing a blister? Besides the loss of life, many lives were forever changed that day. For several of us it remains “what if ?” or “if only” or “why ?”.
On May 17 I go to Mt Morris, Illinois (Rimmer’s High School) to award a Memorial Scholarship to a graduating senior in honor of Doc Rimmer. Once again I am asking for volunteers to join me and also am asking for donations to keep this scholarship in effect (contact Larry Harper or me). I am working on a method to make it perpetual so no one forgets even after we are gone.