Camp Lejeune, North Carolina – April 11, 2002
CAMP LEJEUNE,
N.C. - The United States Marine Corps, on behalf of the three Sea
Services, will host a major Korean War commemorative event here
on Thursday, April 11. This all-day event, entitled "The Korean
War, 1951-1952", is open to the public and will honor and remember
all Korean War veterans and their families and their moving example
of courage, honor and commitment in the defense of freedom and our
nation.
Senior military
leaders, including Commandant of the Marine Corps Gen. James L.
Jones, and hundreds of Korean War veterans and active-duty members
of the military are expected to attend. The Secretary of the Navy
the Honorable Gordon R. England, is scheduled to deliver the keynote
address.
The day’s activities
will include an all-services honors ceremony at Liversedge Field
from 10 to 11:15 a.m; a static display of current Marine Corps equipment
and Marine Corps Community Services-sponsored "fair" at
W.P.T. Hill Field from 10 a.m. to 4:30 p.m; and a seminar on the
conduct of the Korean War in 1951-1952 at the Base Theater from
1:30 to 4:30 p.m.
The event had
originally been scheduled for September 2001. Event organizers note
that the day’s activities will now serve as a particularly appropriate
reminder of how Americans who fought for freedom in Korea are emblematic
of all those in uniform who have defended our nation and values
throughout our history — including the current war against terrorism.
The seminar,
co-sponsored by the Marine Corps Association and the Marine Corps
History and Museums Division, will focus on Marine air and ground
actions (e.g., Operations Ripper and Killer, the Punch Bowl, and
the Hill Battles in 1951, battles at Bunker Hill and the Hook in
1952, and other naval and sea service actions throughout the 1951-52
period.) The seminar is intended to bring together Korean War scholars,
veterans and active-duty military in a thought-provoking examination
of the lessons learned from combat operations throughout this often
overlooked period of the war.
Scheduled seminar
speakers include renowned Korean War scholar and Professor of Military
History at Ohio State University Col. Allan R. Millett, USMCR (Ret),
Naval Historian and Writer-in-Residence at the University of North
Carolina Cmdr. Thomas B. Buell, USN (Ret), and 1951 infantry combat
veteran Lt. Gen. Charles G. Cooper, USMC (Ret). Among the Korean
War veterans being honored throughout the day will be Medal of Honor
recipient Gen. Raymond G. Davis, USMC (Ret). Davis, who served with
the 7th Marine Regiment in Korea until June 1951 and who will be
among the seminar panelists.
Other military
units scheduled to participate in the commemoration include a parachute
demonstration team from the U.S. Army’s 82nd Airborne Division (aboard
Marine helicopters) and fly-overs by U.S. Army Helicopters, U.S.
Air Force A-10 "Thunderbolts," Marine Corps tactical (jet)
aircraft, and the storied workhorse of naval aviation during the
Korean War, the F-4U "Corsair".
For more information
about the event, please contact Maj. Skip Crawley or Gunnery Sgt.
Jim Riley at (910) 451-1714/5276 (DSN 751-), or e-mail CrawleyS@lejeune.usmc.mil
or RileyJC@lejeune.usmc.mil. Additional information may be found
at the Camp Lejeune website, http://www.lejeune.usmc.mil.
For information
about accommodations and lodging in the nearby Jacksonville, N.C.
area, please contact Onslow County Tourism at (910) 455-1113, or
visit their website at http://www.onslowcountytourism.com
This event is
part of the on-going activities of the Navy, Marine Corps and Coast
Guard to honor and remember Korean War veterans and their families
throughout the Congressionally authorized United States 50th Anniversary
Korean War Commemoration. For more information, please contact Lt.
Col. Ward Scott, USMC, Navy-Marine Corps KWC Coordinator at (202)
433-3085, or e-mail ScottWE@hqmc.usmc.mil, fax (202) 433-7265 (DSN
288-) or YN1 Victor Ward, USN, KWC Operations Chief at (202) 433-4223,
or write to: Navy-Marine Corps Coordinator, Korean War Commemoration,
Marine Corps Historical Center, 1254 Charles Morris Street, SE,
Washington Navy Yard, DC 20374-5040, or visit the website at http://hqinet001.hqmc.usmc.mil/HD/Home_Page.htm.
The Department
of Defense Korean War Commemoration Committee has endorsed and is
actively supporting this event. For more information about the DoD
Committee and the national commemoration, please visit the official
website at http://korea50.army.mil/
or call toll free (866) KOREA50.
2/9
Network & One KIA
Submitted by Jim Hahn
Our 2001 reunion
continued to evolve toward perfection. Red, you did an outstanding
job and we all thank you, your family and working party.
Some members
of H 2/9, 3rd platoon invited the family of Cpl. Richard “Gill”
Gillingham to attend the reunion as our guests. The “Together then,
together now” motto was once again appropriate. We take this opportunity
to thank everyone for making this reunion a healing and bonding
experience for Gill’s family.
For perspective,
Gill was KIA on 19 May 67 and was awarded the Navy Cross posthumously.
During numerous telephone conversations with Gill’s sister many
issues were presented: 1) the family didn’t believe Gill was dead
(closed casket) and thought he was a POW 2) they thought Gill was
singled out to be shipped to Vietnam 3) they thought Gill’s service
was unappreciated because of anti-war demonstrations and a general
lack of knowledge regarding the USMC 4) they thought Gill was KIA/POW
after his rotation date and most of all, they thought Gill was forgotten.
Most of the
proceeding was straightened out by three of us who were with Gill
on 19 May 67 and further clarified by teaching them how to read
his SRB. The eyewitnesses and documentation were a good start but
the 2/9 Network, all of us, demonstrated that Gill was not forgotten,
nor unappreciated.
The standing
ovation they received at the banquet was likely the highlight of
their visit. Gill’s sister described the entire experience as the
most significant event of her life.
Prior to the
banquet, we attempted to explain the magnitude of the Navy Cross.
Imagine how the family felt when only one person at the banquet
rose to acknowledge receipt of the Navy Cross, second only to the
Congressional Medal of Honor!
Florence, Linda
and Anita were stunned by the attention they received from individual
2/9 members after the banquet. The weekend continued with a photo
session that included the Commandant and the Secretary of the Marine
Corps (most of us didn’t know such a billet existed.)
The 2/9 Network
“…together now” brought a family peace and closure. They are now
aware they are bonded to us forever.
Jim
Hahn, Andy Puttagio, Bob Stocker and Garrette Peck brought Richard
Gillinghams family to the Reunion. A rounding “Semper Fi and OORAH”
This is the 2nd year that these men have done so and are already
planning to bring another 2/9er’s family to the next reunion
Air
Force Settles On A New Memorial Site
By Rowan Scarborough, The Washington Times
The top officers
of the Air Force and Marine Corps jointly have endorsed a deal to
move the site of a planned Air Force memorial from near the famed
Iwo Jima statue to grounds overlooking the Pentagon and Arlington
National Cemetery.
The endorsements
from Gen. John P. Jumper, who became Air Force chief of staff Oct.
1, and Gen. James Jones, the Marine commandant, promise to end a
long, bitter dispute between veterans of both services. Previously,
the Air Force and Marine Corps had failed to agree on a way to settle
what some called the "Battle of the Monuments."
Gen. Jumper's
willingness to endorse the move - and the expected approval of the
private Air Force Memorial Foundation - is a victory for Marine
veterans who fought in court, in the media and on Capitol Hill to
shift the project. They argued that the memorial complex encroached
on what they called "hallowed ground." Previously, the
foundation adamantly refused to relinquish the prime site at Arlington
Ridge between the cemetery and the Potomac River.
A House-Senate
conference on the 2002 defense authorization bill is now working
on an official memorial cease-fire. The legislation would transfer
the federal land at the Navy Annex to the Army, which runs Arlington
Cemetery. The defense secretary would then provide four acres to
the foundation for the memorial. The remaining land would be used
for burial sites once the annex is vacated later this decade.
The annex, a
complex of buildings that once housed Marine Corps headquarters,
overlooks the Pentagon and is bordered by Interstate 395 and the
cemetery.
The Air Force
foundation had planned to erect its 50-foot-high building 200 yards
from the bronze statue depicting Marines raising the flag on Iwo
Jima's Mount Suribachi on Feb. 23, 1945, after one of World War
II's fiercest battles.
"We wish
to jointly express our enthusiastic support of the proposal to locate
the Air Force Memorial at the Arlington Navy Annex," said a
letter jointly signed by Gen. Jumper and Gen. Jones, and sent to
Rep. Bob Stump, Arizona Republican and chairman of the House Armed
Services Committee. A copy of the letter was obtained by The Washington
Times.
"Given
the immense benefits the Navy Annex site has to offer, and the multiple
concerns that have attended this project previously, we want to
urge the committee of conference to act now and ensure success,"
the two generals wrote. "The time has arrived for bringing
to reality this lasting tribute to Air Force men and women past
and present."
Retired Air
Force Maj. Gen. Edward F. Grillo Jr., the foundation's president,
said yesterday the group is willing to accept the new site, subject
to the trustees' approval.
"It is
our intention, assuming that the congressional language is passed
and the Air Force Memorial Foundation considers it to be in the
best interest of the foundation and our contributors, to relocate,"
Gen. Grillo said.
He said the
foundation has raised $29 million from 130,000 individuals, organizations
and corporations. Founded in 1992, the foundation was headed for
years by beer magnate Joseph Coors.
In July, Ross
Perot Jr., an ex-Air Force fighter pilot, became the new chairman.
The memorial
will have to be redesigned, or a fresh design ordered, to fit the
new site.
"You have
to have a new memorial that not only represents what one wants it
to represent but is also perfectly suited for the environment in
which it is placed," Gen. Grillo said.
He added, "The
country is at war right now, and the last thing we need is anything
of an interservice controversy that this has somewhat caused in
the past."
Indeed, ill
feelings among some Marines and Air Force veterans festered during
much of the mid- and late 1990s.
Marines noted
that nearly 30,000 of their brethren were killed or wounded in taking
the Pacific island so that Army Air Corps pilots had an airfield
on which to land disabled bombers returning from Japan.
The Air Force
had a reply. "No branch of the service has earned an exclusive
right to 'hallowed ground,'" wrote retired Maj. Gen. Charles
D. Link in 1999 when he served as foundation president. "There
is more than enough room in the 25 acres on Arlington Ridge for
the two-acre site of the Air Force Memorial."
Retired Gen.
Charles Krulak, then the Marine commandant, weighed in, saying in
1998, "What people need to understand is that the Marine Corps
lost, either killed or wounded, on Iwo Jima almost 30,000 people
and when you look at that memorial, and then understand that some
150 yards away we're thinking about building something else, we
just don't think that that's the right thing to do."
Gen. Jumper
and Gen. Jones called the Navy Annex location a "win-win solution."
"It affords
the Air Force Memorial Foundation an inspiring site with impressive
views of our nation's Capitol on which to erect a lasting memorial
to the airmen who have bravely defended our nation in both peace
and war," they said.
|
Reunion
2002
|
As usual the dates of the reunion will be
the same. They will be on November 9,10 and 11. That will
be on a Saturday, Sunday and Monday. If you wish to get
an early start the telephone number is 1-800-424-1501. Mention
the 2/9 reunion and Group Number 2013. Singles, Doubles,
Triples, Quads are all $75.00. And be sure to get a confirmation
number! And be sure to get a confirmation number! And be
sure to get a confirmation number! I repeat myself but it
is necessary that you get a confirmation number and periodically
check with the hotel. I had a phone call from a couple of
men who made early reservations and when they checked on
their rooms the hotel had no registration for them. And
at the time they checked there were no rooms left. I have
blocked 65 rooms. At this past reunion the hotel was completely
booked by September.
|
2/9
Website!
The site has
been a tremendous success. There have been over 37,000 + visitors.
We have been seen virtually from all corners of the globe.
If you haven’t
been there here is the address: http://www.2ndbattlion9thmarines.org
(all one word).
If you would
like your e-mail address posted on the site please e-mail me at
graymarine@aol.com and let me know. I will edit you name on the web
site. If you do a new “Member Addition” I will have to go and edit
out one of your names. When a New Member Addition is done it now
automatically goes to the site. And even if you do not have a computer
your name is listed on the web site under the company that you served
with. Your address and phone number is not listed on the web. Just
the town and state. I notify “New” members that if they see a name
they recognize to let me know and then I provide the address and
phone number to them. So if you get a computer you do not need to
fill out a “BECOME A MEMBER OF 2/9.”
If you have
any suggestions about the site please let me know.
There is a “Picture
Gallery.” If you have a photo you would like placed there send
it to me at graymarine@aol.com
in a JPEG format. If you scan a photo you can “save as” and it gives
you options. Please use JPEG format. If you don’t have a scanner
just mail me the photo and I will scan it and mail it back to you.
And please don’t bombard me with photos for there are space constraints
on the web site. I will only do 2 photos per member. Do not send
photos of dead or mutilated bodies.
Comrades
of KIA's & MIA's
The Friends
of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial (FVVM) have instituted a no-cost
program designed to put the families of Vietnam casualties in touch
with veterans who served with them and it helps the vets get in
touch with the families of their fallen comrades.
The following
list contains the names of those 2/9 casualties whose families are
seeking Marines who served with them.
FAIRFIELD,
Dennis H. L/Cpl
KIA/MIA 5/19/67 FOX Company
GRANT,
Robert O. Cpl
KIA/MIA 7/29/66 HOTEL Company
JOHNSON,
Oliver PFC
KIA/MIA 11/6/66 FOX Company
JUERS,
Roy J. Cpl
KIA/MIA 9/12/67 GOLF Company
MORELOCK,
Willard F. S/Sgt
KIA/MIA 9/24/68 H&S Company
MORSE,
Richard Lucien Cpl
KIA/MIA 8/11/67 FOX Company
UPCHURCH,
James G. 2nd Lt
KIA 3/25/69 ECHO Company
Kathy is listed in the roster
Anyone desiring
to get in touch with the families of any of the above should contact:
IN TOUCH, c/o Friends of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial, 2030 Clarendon
BLVD., Suite 412, Arlington, VA 22201 or telephone (703) 525-1107.
Also, Nancy
Rylee, 241 Gower Rd., Maysville, GA 30558 would like to hear from
anyone who served with PFC Weldon G. Lynn who was a machine gunner
with Hotel Company and KIA on Feb. 17, 1969.
And Shawn Acton
would like to hear from anyone who remembers her father David Acton.
David was KIA in June of 67’ Shawn can be reached at 419-385-0988.
Address is 541 Wyman, Toledo, OH 43609
William Worthington
, brother of James Worthington (Echo Co. KIA April 23, 1969) would
like to hear from buddies that knew his brother. Contact William
at P.O. Box 819, Winterville, NC. 28590 252-321-1394
Replacing
lost Medals
You can replace
lost service medals by filling out a standard Form 180 (request
Pertaining to Military Records). You can request via a copy of the
form by visiting their web site at http://www.nara.gov/regional/mpr.html.
If you are using the mail send to: Navy Liaison Office, National
Personnel Records Center, Room 3475/ N-314, 9700 Page Blvd., St.
Louis, MO 63132-5100. Whether using the internet or by mail you
need to send proof that you received these medals. Providing a copy
of your DD 214 will satisfy that requirement. Also include your
full name, DOB, Service Number, Social Security Number, approximate
dates of service and your return address.
Personnel
Rosters
If
you are looking for the names of the men that you served with
you can request that info’ by writing the DEPARTMENT OF THE NAVY,
Headquarters USMC, Personnel Management Support Branch, 2008 Elliot
Rd., Quantico, VA 22134-5030.
Just
write that you are looking for men that you served with and give
them the time frame and unit you served with.
You
might also be able to request copies of the Unit Diaries at this
place.
Circumstances of
Death
If
you are looking for information on how a “Brother” or loved one
died you can request the circumstances of the death from: NATIONAL
PERSONNEL RECORDS CENTER, MILITARY PERSONNEL RECORDS, 9700 PAGE
AVENUE, ST. LOUIS, MO 63132-5100.
Include service
number if you know it or at the least all of the info’ surrounding
this event.
Paralyzed
Veterans
Any vets having
any paralysis from any cause, whether it be service connected or
not, please contact your nearest VA hospital or Paralyzed Veterans
of America.
Paralyzed
Veterans of America
801 Eighteenth Street, NW
Washington, DC 20006-3517
Telephone
Numbers
PVA National Headquarters
800-424-8200
PVA
Health Care Hotline
800-232-1782
Sports
n' Spokes Magazine
888-888-2201
PVA
Donor Service Line
800-555-9140
PN/Paraplegia
News Magazine
888-888-2201
PVA
Publications Distribution Center
888-860-7244
Their
Internet address is http://www.pva.com
“Striking”
9th Marines Vietnam Reunion
June
27- July 9, 2002
MILITARY
HISTORICAL TOURS, Inc.
4600 Duke Street
Suite 420
Alexandria, VA 22304-2517
Ph:(703)212-0695
* (800)722-9501 Fax:(703)212-8567
E-Mail:
mht@miltours.com
Tour
Hosts:
George
Malone - 1/9
Richard “Red” Hill - 2/9
Warren Wiedhahn - 3/9
Optional
Bangkok Extension
**************************************************************
Hue - Phu Bai - Dong Ha - Khe Sanh - Ca Lu - Vandegrift Combat Base
/ LZ Stud - Battles along Rt. 9 to Khe Sanh - Cam Lo Bridge and
Hill - "Rough Rider Convoy Route" - Lang Vei - "Leatherneck
Square" - Con Thien - "A2&4" - “C1&2” - DMZ
- Mutter Ridge Camp Carroll - "Rockpile - Razorback - Punchbowl"
- Danang
**************************************************************
Military Historical
Tours is proud to have conducted a series of extremely historical
and successful "Return to Vietnam" tours. Led by prominent
veterans, leaders and decorated heroes of the conflict, each tour
focuses on the USMC experience in I Corps, with visits to all the
significant sites associated with our involvement there. Each tour,
however, is specifically geared towards the desires of the participants
and the itinerary is “fine-tuned” to reflect those interests.
This special
9th Marines tour promises to be one of the most extensive returns
to the Northern I Corps - DMZ - Leatherneck Square - Danang / Chu
Lai AO’s to date. From the initial landings of the 9th MEB in March,
1965 and Operations “Starlite” and “Harvest Moon” to “Buffalo” and
“Dewey Canyon” and many more, the Striking Ninth Marines led the
way. We will be returning to the LZ’s airfields, firebases, and
camps where you lived, fought, defended and traveled through some
thirty years ago. Participants will be requested to provide their
personal sites of interest to augment the tour itinerary outlined
on the following pages. Join us as “the Striking Ninth” returns
to the battleground where we grew up fast, were baptized under fire
and where we joined hands with our brothers and vowed to return
one day when the war was over. Space is very limited on this tour
and is on a "First come - First Served" basis. It is imperative
that you respond as soon as possible with your deposit to guarantee
your seat. Should you have any questions, please feel free to give
the tour hosts or Ed Henry, our Director of Vietnam Operations,
a call.
Well Guys, I
never thought that I would be going back to Vietnam. However after
conferring with Colonel John Peeler and Kathy Upchurch and a couple
of the other troops that have taken the trip I have decided to go.
You should be
receiving a packet of information from Colonel Wiedhahn and MILITARY
HISTORICAL TOURS in the mail which gives more detail about the trip.
This is a 9th Marine Expedition and I am hoping that some of you
will join me in this endeavor. I know that I will be more comfortable
being with the men I served with back in country. So if you have
ever thought about doing this I hope you consider this trip.
As
I put on the Cover Sheet of the handout at the reunion:
“
TOGETHER THEN – TOGETHER AGAIN !”
“Red”
Network
Contributors
A very special
THANK YOU goes out to: Jim Chase,Sam Conner,Jim Joyce,Mary Staresinich
in memory of husband Joe "Starch",Charles Conley,Ted Licitra,SgtMaj
Lester Wadleigh,John & Wanda Carson,Kenton Dean,Tom Reasch,Herbert
Thrasher,Tom Callum,Major General Dennis Murphy,George Bebbington,Chadwick
Floyd,Patrick McKenna, Jr., ,Lee Cobb,Gierard Fitzpatrick,Glenn
Elvey,Tim Forbes,Major General Jack Davis,Richard Biskup.Jim Langford,Colonel
Bill Cryan and Barbara,Colonel W. J. Wood,Charles Cooper,Douglas
Youens,Thomas Darcy,Major J.T. Guggino,Joe Henebury,Ralph Martinez,Paul
Morin,Colonel James Davis,Leonard Bruguier,Colonel Jim Davis,Kevin
Jewers,Kenneth Tomlinson,Colonel "Wild Bill" Coti,Bill
Lachesky,Richard Centi,Ed Gorman,Dennis Becton,Ronald Taylor,General
Clyde Dean,Colonel Joe Long, Colonel Warren Wiedhahn,SGTMAJ William
Little,Bob Slattery,Thomas Weinhold,Lester Wadleigh,SGTMAJ Barton
Forester,Galen Sarvinski,Charles Conley,George Ponikly,Walter Thomas
Jr.,Colonel Bill Kent,Ralph "Chuck" Smith,Jerry Royce,John
Mattern,Major Bob Ramsey,Ward Hoffman,Roger Flood,Carl Johnson,Bob
Driver Jr.,SGTMAJ Randy "Pete" Peterson,Aldo Martinelli,Janet
Taylor,EW Bill Henderson, Ted Licitra,Ralph C. Martinez,Terry Welborn,Capt.
Bill Whorton,Colonel "Wild Bill" Coti,John Dee,Gunny Ed
Harker,Watson Burton,John Robinson,Ralph Fatello,Major General Dennis
Murphy,Mike Libretto, Walter Wood,Dan Schuster,Captain Pat Pearce,
Leanord Harris Jr.,Robert Mumper,Gary York,David Baggett,George
Kinnaman,Ken Blankenship,Mike Olson,John Goulart,Len Etcho,Steve
Smith,Jimmy Burney,Dave Bigler,Joseph Muphy,Paul Morin,Ray Nieto,George
Sachleben,Don "Snoopy" Truesdale,Glen Milliman,Mike Nielsen,John
Burch,Alex Montoya,Mike McCrea,Tom "Rip" VanWinkle, Andy
Puttagio,Bob Stocker,Jim Hahn, and Garrette Peck in memory of Richard
Gillingham. Joe Stine,Barry Yeakle,Gerald Hornick, Tim Guarino,
Eugene Lant,Cecil "Buck" Buxton,John Suddarth, Henry Ostaszewski,SGTMAJ
Bill Little,Louis Dudeck,Dr. Carl "Eel" Eller, James "Matt"
Mathews,Neil Smith,Tony Newsome,Andrew Wiemann,Stoney Burke,Paul
Stephenson,Allan Marquis,Bob Slattery,Byron Norman,James Beyersdorf,Dennis
Voge,George Hummer,Roberet Nixon,Jim Murphy, Joe Henebury, John
F. Harley in memory of Alfred Gaspar (KIA-July 67') and Victor Bowles,
Deceased 1997 both of Hotel Company. Ralph Martinez,James Davis,Robert
Mumper,Peter McClaine,Doc Jim Maddox,Steve Hurt,SGT MAJ William
Hazelrigs,Jim McGunnigle,Leonard Harris Jr.,Gene Holland,Glenn Siegler,Bill
Corbett, John Swanson,Jesus Godinez,Darrell Crabtree,Joe Guggino,Jack
Dewell,Dick Wallis, Kathy Upchurch,Tim Blinn,James B. White,Basile
Ossetian,Dave Garner,Bill Ackley,Dan Mannix,Dave Sitren,Gary Davis,
Col. Tom & Mrs. Diane Richards,Xavier Rodriquez,Jeff Fisher,
Peter Anderson and Joe Mannino for your help in supporting the 2/Network
over the past year.
And as I usually
do at this time, if you can contribute anything it would be greatly
appreciated. We have added 294 brothers this year. That’s 1551 newsletters
to copy, fold , stuff, label and mail. And with the cost to maintain
the 2/9 web site I definitely need your help. I have also had to
place a $1,000 deposit on the banquet facility for this year. So
I am again begging for your support. Without it I will not be able
to mail out the next newsletter. Please make checks payable to Richard
“Red” Hill. Unfortunately the bank will no longer take checks payable
to the 2/9 Network. If you are uncomfortable with this I fully understand.
I will always
try to run this on donations. I have seen other organizations go
to a dues membership and now I can’t find some of them on the web
any more. You “brothers” and family have always been here to keep
the Network going. I know that I can depend on you. Thank You for
your help. I really need it.
Semper
Fi And Happy New Year!
“Red”
