Vietnam

*Wes' Vietnam Page*

This page may not be much in the way of a tribute but it is dedicated
to all veterans who served, fought, lived and died in Vietnam.

My Unit: "A" Battery, 4th Battalion, 42nd Artillery,
4th Infantry Division May 1967-March 1968

*Ham & Lima Beans Forever*!

"C" rations were disliked by almost everyone I know of who had to eat them, but the "Ham and Lima beans" were especially detested. They were hated so much that when cases of rations were opened, the boxes were numbered and we drew lots so everyone had an equal chance of getting stuck with the "Ham and Lima Beans". We even had a name for them that I can't put here because of the family oriented theme of this site.

This picture was featured in the November 26,
1967 issue of "Stars and Stripes". The sign
with the "Sandbaggers" slogan on it was carried
with us from firebase to firebase.

The news of my arrival in Vietnam
appeared in my hometown newspaper,
The Selma Enterprise, in May 1967.

Me and a Montagnard CIDG (Civilian
Irregular Defense Group) posing for a
picture after just having cleared everyone
out of a village for relocation to a
"secure" area. Shortly after this was
taken we set fire to everything and
burned it to the ground. Has anyone ever
heard of Edap Enang?

Heading out on patrol with the
"2nd Brigade Reaction Force".

A grunt on an APC shot this tiger with
a 50 cal. machine gun. It was just
running through the brush not
bothering anyone. At the time this was taken I thought it was pretty "cool" but now I look back on it as just another needless killing.

Goofing Around!

Except for the picture in "Stars and Stripes"
I didn't have an actual photo of "the sign"
until this was sent to me by William (Harley
Bill) Hale who lives in Knoxville, Tennessee.
Bill served with "A" Company 2nd/8th
Infantry mechanized that my artillery
battery provided fire support for. He
located me via the internet. "Thanks Bill"!

Me and my wife Jewel at "The Wall" May 19, 2000. I want everyone to know I couldn't have done it, or made it, without her.

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