Category: Marine Corps Stories

My Office

I work as a maintenance manager been with this company for quit some time. Myself and the other maintenance managers built a new bigger office so we all have our own space. I have never been able to get over the "Yellow Footprints". So one day I had one of my mechanics in the office (and he is also a Marine) and I decided I wanted some yellow footprints by my desk so I traced his boots and had one of our painters fill them in with yellow paint. Every Marine that comes up to my desk knows what the footprints are about, but the funniest thing is that everyone else that comes in to see me they all look at the yellow footprints and stand on them to talk to me. I can't help but laugh. Then they all ask "What does it mean"? You have to be a Marine to understand.  read more

My time at An Hoa

My Nam tour was from July '69 – June '70. I spent many daysb at An Hoa, first as a member of H&S Co, 1st  Tanks. Myself and 2 Flame tanks spent 5 weeks spraying Agent Orange from Liberty Bridge (Phu loc 6) to Charlie Ridge to An Hoa. Christmas Eve '69 while following  the minesweep out going back to Tank Hill (Da Nang)  the lead Flame was blown off the road by a command detonated device… Blew the tank completely off the road. Later I was TDY to An Hoa while with a tank platoon from Bravo, 1st Tanks… I'll always remember the mud during the monsoon. After 1st Tanks pulled out in Feb '70, I was re-assigned to Alpha Co, 5th Motor T Bn. We ran convoys twice week to An Hoa which was always kinda crazy. Didn't get to see the EM club though. A prolific memory I have is being asked to take letters /mail from the 5th Marine grunts all along Liberty Road as we drove back to our motor pool in Da Nang. I could relate as I spent 3 months as a 0311 on 1st Tanks "OP Manta" before they got overrun in Oct '69. War is HELL!!! read more