Mark Karls

      Interesting sidebar on the Vietnam war since it affected our generation so deeply.  I agree with Tom Hersem that that war left a bad taste.  Despite being decorated for Combat Action in Vietnam as a young U.S. Naval Officer, I totally understood the feeling that I and my fellow Vietnam veterans were the scum of the earth when returning home to America.

      Prior to military service, my college roommate was a missionary kid who grew up in Vietnam.  His dad was assassinated by the Viet Cong directly in front of his mom and little sister.  My roommate believed in the Vietnam war and claimed that the true Vietnamese in the mountain areas away from the coast had already been persecuted by the Vietnamese in the large cities who were primarily of Chinese ancestry.  That had a great influence on my decision to become a Naval Officer.

      The Vietnam war was an astronomically costly price to discover that politicians need to stay out the way and let the military do what the military is trained to do.  Schwarzkopf benefitted greatly from that.  In addition to 58,000 American soldiers who died in Vietnam, an estimated 1.1 million North Vietnamese and Viet Cong soldiers died, and up to 250,000 South Vietnamese soldiers died by U.S. government figures.  Additionally, about 11 million Vietnamese became refugees in their own country.

      Despite donating all of my combat pay to World Vision to support 2 Vietnamese orphans for several years, and despite using the G.I. Bill to attend seminary and become a pastor for 41 years, my efforts are like a small pebble tossed in a vast ocean.  Life is amazingly precious.

Dennis Proux

Well said Mark.  And very thoughtful.  I was a Russian interpreter whose mission in Nam is still sealed.  My wife and I adopted five Vietnamese families and resettled them in the US.  Through that we discovered a whole new dimension of racism in America.  Fond memories of Mark and his family.

Mark Karls

Good to hear from you, Dennis.  You bring back great memories all the way from elementary school.  Thanks for your work in Vietnam and your work with Vietnamese refugees.  Maybe we are more than a small pebble in a vast ocean.

James McNab

Thanks Mark and Dennis, Vietnam had a profound impact on so many of our generation.  I was wounded in battle over there and made a commitment to myself that if I made it back to civilian life I would finish my education and make something of my life.  After four months in a military hosptial I finished my commitment and, wearing the scars of war, returned home to finish my education and embark upon my career.  42 years latter, while living with my wife Kaylyn in Atlanta, GA, I found myself getting winded while walking the hills around our home.  The diagnosis was stage four Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia  (CLL).  It was like a gut punch, I was a victim of Agent Orange exposure and I remembered exactly when the exposure occured.  We had set up a night ambush along the Ho Chi Minh Trail where The Army had just sprayed Agent Orange that evening.  I remember my jungle fatigues soaked with it.  Thus the exposure that didn't seem significant at the time but had such a profound impact on me latter in life.  It's been eleven years since that diagnosis and we have pushed through making the best of our lives.  I'm thankful to many including the scientists who created a drug that has allowed me to lead a nearly normal life.  I applaud both of you for your service and your unselfish efforts to help those in need.

Thomas Hersem

Jim, Mark, Dennis, and all of our classmates who served and sacrificed, thank you all.  I have visited the Wall every time I have been to D.C, found it a very humbling experience,. and it was at my urging that Kristy Evon (Behm) visited John and Eddie.  I cannot tell you how thankful I am that I have not had to seek out your, and each of your, names on the Wall and then taken the time to read the brief recap the government provides of your service in the war.  Thank you, also, for sharing your experiences here.   For any of our classmates who are interested, you can visit on the internet by typing in the name of the deceased veteran followed by Vietnam Memorial

Kenneth Feit

Jim, Dennis and Mark,  you guys are all heroes to those of us who did not go.  Instead, I spent 40 years as a high school English teacher and coach working to instill within my students and athletes what it means to be human and to honor all those who put forth the maximum effort into all they strive to achieve.                                 

I am truly humbled by what you and all who have served and do serve have sacrificed to insure our safety and well being.  Thank you from all of us who did not go.  I too have visited the Wall.  I found Ed's name as well as the name of a close friend from college.  The entire experience of being there among all those who were lost was overwhelming.  To say I wept would be an understatement.  Thank you, gentlemen.           
And, Tom, you expressed yourself eloquently, as you always do.  Oh, that we should all meet again some day to share memories of the meaningful times we've known.