Festival Of Trees

Thank you again here is the final product all put together I 

will go and try to get a couple of more shots for you I sent  this on to the media with the following. This would not be  possible without You and your team's great help we have enough  stuff to start next year's tree as well.   At the Festival of Trees this year you will find this tree. Not  the largest not the most fancy but look closely if you can catch  one of the 64 Dog tags on it you will see they are the Names of  all whom have passed from Utah serving their country since that  dreaded day on 9/11.  Even though the tree has a largely Marine  theme to it,  it stands as a tribute to all those whom have  given all and give all every day.  So if you get a chance spread  the word and stop by and take a look maybe even if you can make  a bid on it and help another great cause.  This tree is  donated curtsey of Marine League Utah West Det. #1332    Semper Fi Gunny & Troy

Miscellaneous

The Green Weenie
Uncle Sam's Misguided Children
University of Science Music & Culture

I'm sure there are others with more time in grade but I spent 31 months as a PFC E-2, from 1December1962 until 1July1965, with no legal proceedings involved (thank you 1st Sgt Linehan). Most of it was bad timing. I left 29 Palms just as I had enough time in grade for L/Cpl and spent 14 months in school where rank was frozen. Upon reporting to my first duty station after school – Cherry Point – I managed to piss off S/Sgt Gehrdes and then ended up working for him. That tacked on another ten months TIG. I received my promotion to L/Cpl at the same ceremony at which I got my Good Conduct Ribbon. I don't recall where or how I got these PFC chevrons but it was shortly after I was promoted and I wore them for the rest of my time in grade. No one ever questioned them. read more

Australian Photo Journalist

Dear Sir,

  Hi my name is Shaun Gibbons.   My father, Denis Gibbons was an Australian photojournalist in  Vietnam 1966-1970.   Unfortunately Dad passed away a few weeks ago.   Attached are a few photos from a series he took with a US Marine  Unit.   The only description I can find with the photo sequence is    Fire fight between Viet Cong (VC) and United States (US)  Marines, Hoa Vang textile Factory, there were two Marines  wounded in the action.   I was wondering if you knew of any way I could find out what  unit is in these pictures, and if there are any surviving  members?   Thank you so much for your time.   Cheers Shaun

Bob Hope and Martha Raye

Sgt Grit,
Here's a shot of Bob Hope's Christmas Show on Freedom Hill in 1967. Les Brown and his Band of Renown and Raquel Welch share the stage. (Raquel's the one wearing a white top.)
I also saw Martha Raye in "Hello Dolly" at the same venue in early 1968. I rode in a Navy launch with Martha across the DaNang River going from the White Elephant to Camp Tien Sha. She was a pure delight to be with and lifted everyone's spirits. read more

Christmas 1962 Marine Corps Air Station Iwakuni

Christmas of 1962 found a lot of us in the Iwakuni trying to see how many of the 93 bars we could have at least one drink and move on before falling on our faces at the bar.  My trip to town that day was with Bob Ryan, John Cherry and one Lt Gofas.  No we never made it but I know we must have had a great time as I did end up on some futan in the morning. read more

Bob Hope visits DaNang 1969

Sgt Grit

I saw your newsletter about going to the Bob Hope Show near DaNang in 1969. It was at Freedom Hill and I was there also. In fact I was a Squadron Photographer (First Marine Air Wing, MAG 11, VMA225 at the DaNang Airbase) and was sitting on the ground right in front of the stage. I took 600 pictures of the show and went again the next year to see his 1970 show and give him an album of the pictures I had taken the year before. Bob Hope was gracious enough to stand backstage with me and look at every page of the album with me that I had given him. He kept that album and it is now in his exhibit in the Library of Congress in Washington DC. It is a miracle story that is very meaningful to me and is my main memory of being a Marine (1967 – 1971). I was in Avionics on the A-6A Intruder and my specialty was the Auto Pilot on that plane but I was the Squadron Photographer as a hobby and so I would get a ticket to the show when Bob Hope came that year. I was making so much money selling the pictures I took that I extended for another tour to do another Bob Hope Show. The public opinion of the war had degraded so low between 1969 and 1970 that I couldn’t give my pictures away of the 1970 show. read more