THE WALL OF FACES

Your sacrifice is not forgotten.

HOOAH

Specialist Five Allen Edward Gomes, Served with the Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 13th Signal Battalion, 1st Cavalry Division, United States Army Vietnam.

Thank you for your service to our country so long ago sir. The remembrance from Carol is touching and reflects the anguish experienced by so many who lost loved ones in this war. . As long as you are remembered you will always be with us….

Dear Sp5 Allen Gomes,
Thank you for your service as a Food Service Specialist with the 1st Cavalry. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year. It has been too long, and it's about time for us all to acknowledge the sacrifices of those like you who answered our nation's call. Please watch over America, it stills needs your strength, courage and faithfulness. Rest in peace with the angels.

I was just 5 years old when my cousin, Allen Edward Gomes, began serving in the US Army and although I only have vague memories of him, I'll never forget his funeral in Honolulu just 20 short months later or how his sudden loss affected everyone in the family.
I'm grateful that the ultimate sacrifices he and 58,271 other American men and women made during the Vietnam War continue to pay for so many privileges and blessings I often take for granted.
This month, I've learned so much about how Allen and 23 other incredibly brave, young men were all tragically killed on October 3, 1968 in a single unfortunate moment in what had become the deadliest year of the War.
Engraved in black granite, their names are memorialized and linked forever, and like the irreversible tragedy they shared 50 years ago, the writing on the Wall cannot be simply erased. Yet, counted alongside the names of so many others, theirs might be easily overlooked or unacknowledged, as people quietly pass them by.
It matters to me to say that their brief lives still mean something.
In commemoration of the 50th anniversary of their passing, I humbly send my Aloha and appreciation to the families of these 24 men who served with honor, lived with purpose and whose names are now inscribed on my heart, where they will always be remembered.

THOMAS E ALDERSON
WAYNE P BUNDY
DONALD G CLEAVER
DAWSON CLEMENTS
JAMES K CONNOR
RONALD L CONROY
LARRY LEE COSTLEY
DONALD J CRAMER Jr
DAVID J DELL’ANGELO
DAVID A DISRUD
• ALLEN E GOMES
DALE G GRANGER
JOE J HIBBLER
THOMAS E JOHNSON
JOHN W LUCIER
DAVID B PERREAULT
JERRY LEE PIERCE Jr
DENNIS D REESE
RALPH SCHIAVONE
MICHAEL D SEE
ROBERT D TOMLINSON
CHARLES J WALLACE
DENNIS A WIRT
WILLIAM R YOUNG


Thank You for your Service,

Sam K. Pokini
October 2018