THE WALL OF FACES

Steve and I met at Garfield Elementary in Alhambra in about 1961 or 2. He, his mom and stepdad (Zeke, I think) lived about 2 blocks away from my family's home. We were part of a group of boys who hung out together through grammar and then high school before he moved to Monrovia.
Steve was one of my very best friends and we managed to get into enough mischief as we worked toward puberty. I remember that in 1964 Steve was going to wear a jacket without lapels, the kind the Beatles had made famous then, to our 8th grad graduation. The school principal told Steve he couldn't wear it, and his mom, Pat, went to battle over it; she won. At the 8th grade graduation, in typical fashion, Steve pretended to trip as he climbed the stairs up to the auditorium stage to get his diploma.
The night before Steve left to join the army, he and I, along with my then girlfriend, went to dinner at Filthy McNasy's in Hollywood and then saw Bonnie & Clyde. I remember saying goodbye to him that night and though we exchanged letters while he was in VN, I never saw him again. I've been lucky enough to see and touch Steve's name at both the California and WDC monuments.
Coming across this webpage and seeing the photos and comments brought on a torrent of memories and great stories. When I think that we lost him at 18, it breaks my heart. God bless Steve and all who served and fell with him.

Thank you for your service to our country so long ago sir. You died at 18 years of age. I am 73 and have lived a long and fulfilling life. It is tragic you never had that same opportunity. May you rest in eternal peace.

The back of the photo reads "me and my dog April 10, 1968
Viet-nam
-Steven"

My heart hurts for those who love and lost you. I never knew you but you're my uncle and I've never felt a stronger connection to you than I do now. My dad, Scott Jordan, was your brother and only a year old when you left this world. I only learned of you about 2 years ago when I started spending some time with my dad after not being in touch for many years. I shared some photos of Stephen that my dad has that belonged to Grandpa Al.(Stephen's and my dads dad) and I have a few more photos of when Stephen was younger that I'd love to share with anyone who wants to see them, please feel free to email me. Wish I'd of got to meet you CPL Stephen Alan Jordan. Thank you for the mark you made in this world. You were a Hero.. and now you're an Angel.

Operation Cochise Green was a security and pacification operation conducted by the 173rd Airborne Brigade in Binh Dinh Province, RVN, from March 30, 1968 to January 31, 1969. Inside the province were the Soui Ca Valley and “Oregon Trail,” busy infiltration routes used by the North Vietnamese Army (NVA) to move men and materials west from the Ho Chi Minh Trail to the Bong Son and Phu My coastal plains. U.S. efforts to interdict enemy movement along these routes included aggressive patrolling by Allied forces. On the morning of August 25, 1968, elements of B Company, 1st Battalion, 50th Infantry, 173rd Airborne Brigade, and the battalion Scout Platoon were conducting ground combat operations while enroute to a forward area. Accompanying them was an eighteen-year-old Forward Observer (FO) named CPL Stephen A. Jordan. Despite his youth, Jordan had been fighting in Vietnam for six months, performing a critical role as FO during ground operations with command authority to order fire against enemy positions. When the patrol was approximately one mile south of National Highway QL-19 (eleven miles west of An Khe), they were engaged by an estimated enemy company. Attacked with small arms, automatic weapons, and rocket-propelled grenade fire, Jordan was killed in the first minutes of the contact. His death was a blow to his unit as they would have to endure the fiercest stages of the fighting without artillery support. Gunships eventually came on station, and the troopers of B-1/50 and the Scout Platoon pulled back to a secure location at Bridge 26 on QL-19 to evacuate their casualties while airstrikes worked over suspected enemy positions. Elements of C-1/50 were combat assaulted into an area south of the contact area from where they maneuvered north; no enemy contact was reported. U.S. casualties were one killed (Jordan) and eleven wounded. Known enemy losses were five killed and miscellaneous weapons captured. [Taken from coffeltdatabase.org and “History of 1st Battalion (Mechanized), 50th Infantry, 173rd Airborne Brigade, 1 July 1968 – 30 September 1968” at ichiban1.org]