THE WALL OF FACES

Thank you for your service to our country so long ago sir. The remembrances from fellow soldiers John Garris and Thomas Clarke are moving and reflect their admiration and respect for you. As long as you are remembered you will remain in our hearts forever….

We were both Private First Class when we first met at the entrance to our hooch, in late after noon. You took me in and showed me a home made two by four bunk, with the bed four feet above the floor. Yours was higher yet. In my confusion in arriving at an unfamiliar place, you showed me kindness and helped me get set up, and off on the right foot. I remember you talking to gecko lizard who prowled the hooch looking for things to eat, before you fell asleep. You would talk and he would bark back. We were working at Tom that day. The next day I sat by your body and cried.

During the summer of 1968, the 19th Engineer Battalion was tasked with upgrading National Highway QL-1 between Bong Son and Mo Duc, RVN. The work included road-widening, bridge building, and placing a sand-asphalt seal coat on a forty-kilometer stretch of QL-1. North Vietnamese Army and Viet Cong forces were active in the area, and frequent contact with the enemy occurred. On the afternoon of July 22, 1968, elements of the 137th Engineer Company were traveling on QL-1 near Dai Duong, three miles south of Tam Quan, when they were caught in an ambush. The 4:15 PM attack raked the convoy with intense fire from the east and west sides of the highway. The engineers fought back with unit weapons and radioed for assistance. Army of the Republic of Vietnam (ARVN) armored personnel carriers, gunships, aerial rocket ships, and artillery were called in on the area; however, due to the intense enemy contact, the ambush site could not be immediately reached. The 137th suffered devastating personnel losses with twelve killed. They were PVT George N. Davis, SSG Hugh M. Davis, 1LT David M. Drob, CPT Siegfried L. Graebner, SP4 David B. Kelley, PFC Gerald D. Kiesling, SP5 Roger D. Shafer, SP4 William L. Shrum, SP4 Jerry L. Shultz, SSG Valentine Tucker, PFC Marc G. Van Dalsem, and SGT Gary R. Willeke. A thirteenth engineer was wounded, and two ARVN’s were reportedly killed. The equipment losses included one lowboy trailer with a 5000-gallon tank, another lowboy trailer carrying a D7 dozer, two jeeps, and one three-quarter-ton truck. A reaction force consisting of one platoon from E Company, 17th Cavalry, and another platoon from A Company, 137th Engineer Company, finally reached the ambush site at 11:00 PM and retrieved the dead and wounded. They were unable to ascertain whether the casualties were wearing flak jackets or steel helmets during the attack as all the bodies had been stripped of their gear by the enemy. The twelve men killed during the ambush was one of the largest single engineer event losses during the Vietnam War. [Taken from coffeltdatabase.org and “19th Engineer Battalion United States Army” at 19engrvn.org]

Dear Sp4 David Kelley, Thank you for your service as a Heavy Construction Equipment Operator. Saying thank you isn't enough, but it is from the heart. We are approaching Thanksgiving. The time passes quickly. Please watch over America, it stills needs your strength, courage and faithfulness. Rest in peace with the angels.

We never met, I am your niece. You also have another niece and nephew. My Dad rarely talks about you or has talked about you. I know it just hurts too much. You are always in our thoughts and someday we will meet.
If anyone has more information about David. Please contact me.
[email protected].