THE WALL OF FACES

Never forgotten.

Semper Fi, Marine

"The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs and comes short again and again, who knows the great enthusiasms, the great devotions, and spends himself in a worthy cause; who at best, knows the triumph of high achievement; and who, at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who know neither victory nor defeat."
-Theodore Roosevelt, "Citizen in a Republic", April 23, 1910

On November 12, 1966, a reinforced platoon of Marines from I Company, 3rd Battalion, 1st Marines, were settled into night positions around the hamlet of An Trach (1), two miles north of Hill 55 in Quang Nam Province, RVN. Fourteen bunkers ringed the small village, each one with a Marine on alert while the others slept. An Army of the Republic of Vietnam (ARVN) platoon assisted the Marines in defending An Trach (1). Around midnight, an ambush patrol of 10-12 Marines returned in the pouring rain, bringing the total number of Marines and ARVN in the village to around 80. An Trach (1) was considered to be in a passive area where a measure of loyalty had been gained from the peasants through security, economic, and social programs provided by the Americans. However, at approximately 1:30 AM, some 35-50 Viet Cong were able to infiltrate the hamlet through the northeast portion of the perimeter. They wore only shorts and many had baskets tied to their sides to hold explosive charges. They used these to attack the Marine positions, lobbing grenades, satchel charges, and C4 charges into the bunkers. Fourteen Marines and one Navy corpsman were killed in the attack. Another twenty-eight U.S. personnel were wounded. The Marines were able to kill three of their attackers (confirmed by body count) and reported another seven probable killed. The lost Marines were PFC Daniel Acosta, PFC Roy G. Alvis, CPL Eduardo Ayala, LCPL Thomas E. Birdsall, PFC Ted D. Broomfield, LCPL James P. Brown, PFC Roger J. Bryant, LCPL Larry D. DeFilippis, LCPL John A. McGrath, LCPL Charles E. Meek, PFC David H. Paulsen, CPL Raymond L. Powell, LCPL Alan H. Shields, and CPL Daniel D. Yarnell; the lost Navyman was HM3 Manuel Avila Jr. The dead were collected and carried in ponchos on wooden stretchers and placed on the porch of the church in the center of the hamlet. The wounded were carried by truck to NSA Hospital in Da Nang. [Taken from coffeltdatabase.org and information provided by Jerry E. Brown (September 2019); also from “Marine Platoon Hit Hard.” Pacific Stars & Stripes, November 15, 1966, and the book “The Huts” by William E. Dowell]

Private First Class Daniel Acosta, Served with the Headquarters and Service Company, 3rd Battalion, 1st Marine Regiment, 1st Marine Division, Third Marine Amphibious Force.

DEAR PFC ACOSTA,

AS WE CONTINUE TO CELEBRATE OUR NATION'S BIRTH THIS WEEK, I FEEL IT IS IMPORTANT TO REMEMBER AS MANY OF YOU AS I CAN. YOUR SACRIFICE IS APPRECIATED, BUT I WISH THESE SACRIFICES WOULD NOT HAVE BEEN.

REST IN PEACE.

SEMPER FI.