MEDEVAC
15th Med\15th FSB
Mike Bodnar
307B N Main
Copperas Cove, TX 76522 1704
254-542-1961
e-mail: mbodnar27@juno.com
HTTP://WWW.VABCH.COM/MSSB/SNORE/MEDEVAC.HTM
I received an e-mail from LASH, who is Larry ASH,
<LASH@BLRG.TDS.NET><GUNNER2@BLRG.TDS.NET>, one of our MEDEVAC
Eleven Bushman door gunners from '70-'71. Larry says, "Mike,
I understand you met Henry LAND (Cpt. Hook). We had a mutual
friend, Dave MURPHY, who passed away year before last (from an
overdose of alcohol and V.A. supplied prescription drugs). I sure
hope you encouraged Henry to attend this year's reunion in San
Antonio. I have spoken with him on the phone, but have yet to meet
him in person.
"I sure hope you make the reunion, too. I see that you have been
working hard to assist SNORE's site and I, for one, really
appreciate your hard work. Hope to see you in San Antonio."
Larry also posted, forwarded by Mike SMITH: "I'm excited all to
heck. I had sent a letter out to Ken "Doc Nose" FLOWERS & he
called me back this A.M. Says he'll be at the reunion on that
Saturday. One of our best Medics. Came in the unit from a couple
of previous grunt units, around August of '70. He left about the
time I did in April '71. He's, definitely, a true MEDEVACer. I
turned him on to the Web site and he'll contact [Jim] RAMSEY and
the La Quinta. At least, some of this is shaping up. He has
boucoup pictures and will bring them with him.
"Man, I'm getting excited now. He killed the biggest hog in
Vietnam (yes, they did have some big ones, not just those little
pot-bellied kind). He was, also, one heck of a deer hunter & a
great Medic. Can't wait. A week and half; tell David [PARKS] he'd
better prepare for these crazy cats. Have you heard from SNORE?
Negative contact here. See you in about a week, or so. It's gonna
be a ball. Send cc's to everyone on this message. I don't have my
e-mail address installed yet so, I'll rely on you."
That Reunion is now history and from what I have read because I
could not attend it was a successful gathering of new and old
attendees. Larry, also being the 15th MED Assn. historian
has started a Web site for that purpose called the "Historian's
Corner" <HTTP: ~lash personalpages.tds.net />.
Larry explains, "The purpose of this page is to document the
history of the 15th Medical Battalion Association -
MEDEVAC and those brave souls who lived and died at the whim of
fate. I wish to recognize those who have worked so, very, hard to
bring this association together, search for their brothers-in-
battle, become productive human beings and, most of all, remain
the best of friends through the decades following their service.
"We salute you for your continued efforts to serve your faith,
your family, your country, your community, and the good of all
mankind. In the original M*A*S*H movie, they had a phrase:
"Finest Kind." You shall forever remain in the annals of history
as the: FINEST KIND."
Larry ASH is the prime example of a Combat Infantryman-and there
were many others like himself-who volunteered to fly on MEDEVAC,
to look out for their own. Thanks LASH, and now on to Fayetteville
for the 53rd Annual 1st Cav Assn. Reunion.
I need to make a correction to my last mention in the SABER of 1\8
Cav and MEDEVAC Medic Joe DENNISON'S second tour Vietnam War unit,
from the 196th, which I incorrectly stated, to the 198th L.I.B.
Both of them ultimately comprised the Americal Division along with
the 11th L.I.B. All of those brigades originally deployed to
Vietnam as separate units and then were assigned to the 23rd I.D.
i.e. Americal Division.
My D.I. in Basic wore alternately with the 25th I.D. patch the
196th L.I.B. patch which has on it a match, lit on both ends
indicating Infantry and readiness, for the matchlock, on a Roman
shield patch silhouette. Comparably, the 198th L.I.B. patch has on
it a bayonet, for combativeness and fighting ability, on flames
which suggests firepower, on a Roman shield patch silhouette.
Just for complete information to not confuse any of them, the 11th
L.I.B. has on a Roman shield patch silhouette three arrows forming
a trident suggesting amphibious assault. The colors on all of them
add to their heraldry. Y'all know what the 1st Cav patch looks
like.
James L. (Jimmy) MINISH <JLMINISH@BELLSOUTH.NET>from Greensboro,
NC, comments: "I was crew chief with MEDEVAC in '69. Anyone I
served with drop me a line. Cav reunion is in North Carolina this
year anyone needing a place to stay let me know. Its in
Fayetteville, NC. Read SABER where ZEPP & WHEELER are still
kicking, that is good. Got to go for now. SNORE-great site
In response to my mention of Chuck LAWHORN's-of 1\9 Cav and
MEDEVAC-letter in the March\April SABER, "Hey Mike!!!!!," writes
MEDEVAC gunner and newly elected 15th MED Assn. president Mike
SMITH, "I have been enjoying your articles in the SABER. They have
been very good and bring back a lot of memories!! ...Also if I am
remembering right I am pretty sure we voted for Vietnam era vets
of the 15th MED. Those are the only ones we have been searching
for. Don't get me wrong but any 15th MEDer is welcomed to join in
just don't have time to extend the search back another 10-15 years
[anyone can volunteer those efforts]. Mike "tater" SMITH Door
Gunner '69-'70 MEDEVAC 1st Cav 20181 Top Rd. Greenleaf, ID 83626
PHONE: 1-208-459-9592 <MVANDCO@AOL.COM>
<HTTP: 4700 base pentagon www.geocities.com Medevac-Nam.html>."
I also heard from our incarcerated fellow 1st Cav Vietnam
veteran Bill HELTON, TDOC #79751 BMCX/Unit 9/23 P.O. Box
2000, Wartburg, TN 37887 who forwarded to me a copy of his
rebuttal or self explanation to those SABER letter writers
about him. He offers a good defense of his human errors and
appears to be another worthy individual whose pleas for help
were ignored if there was any human help available. He as
well indicated to the 1st Cav Association his desire to
cancel his complimentary subscription to the SABER in
response to the misunderstanding by those who feel that he is
undeserving, and that is his final act of separation from the
Division which he "truly loved, and cherish as a family," and
that he served with honor.
For the sake of example and to illustrate that anyone in our
society can be wrongly convicted-justice is blind, sometimes too
blind and sometimes not blind enough; which I do not think that it
is a black and white issue but a gray scale human situation; and
the point of the law can be a thin line; I just wanted to say do
not just let our fellow once honorable servicemen rot in jail and
be forgotten as well as all Americans who may be unjustly accused;
never give up in finding the truth.
A recent PBS program on D.N.A. testing use to help fix our
"broken" legal system had one of the contributors comment that,
"The criminal justice system is the only place where innocence is
irrelevant." To any defenders of our democracy who are concerned
with more than just, "What they got comin'," this all should
matter.
For the example of that I would like to mention an incident that
breaking news has prompted me to want to mention but was too
lengthy to print in the last SABER. Although I did not serve with
him in Vietnam, the 9th Cav SABER columnists have written about to
remember as one of their own: a.k.a. Elmer "Geronimo" PRATT, who
now uses the name of Geronimo ji JAGA and who had spent twenty-
five years in prison for a murder that he did not commit. But,
because of new evidence found by those who would not forget and
not give up, and also because of conscientious former jurors
speaking out, a new trial was won and he was released from prison
to pursue that.
The Los Angeles D.A. finally agreed to drop the case and it was
just announced that Geronimo ji JAGA was awarded a 4.5 million
dollar lawsuit which he is planning to use in his hometown in
Louisiana for a youth center. If anyone would like a copy of the
newspaper article where I got this information from I can e-mail
one to them on request to me.
I have noticed in the SABER many typographical errors in my
own column. I just wanted to let you know that I take great
pride in being grammatically correct; that I am not just some
ridge runner who left his articles in the outhouse.
I spoiled myself when I went into the Army right out of high
school because upon E.T.S. and then higher education was a
choice, I could not lower myself to learn in the presence of
the military objectors at the time after my experiences with
best who were THE FIRST TEAM!
So, necessity being the mother of invention-and the father
for that matter; necessity deemed that if I wanted to
communicate properly, the way that the U.S. Army had
instilled in me to do in all things, I picked up a copy of
Warriner's Grammar and Composition and studied hard to master
those principles. I am constantly, conscientiously working at
that for the SABER readers' higher thoughts, with no blatant,
poor writin'.
Always remembering our 1st Cav troops on duty around the
world; over and out.
FIRST TEAM!
Garryowen,
Mike Bodnar C 2\7 Cav 1969
MEDEVAC 1-7\1970
SO THAT OTHERS MAY LIVE
