THE WALL OF FACES

I cried again today when I got a rubbing of your name from the wall. Tears of sadness and loss but mostly tears missing you and the man you were and the person you would be today. Still sweet, still funny, still caring and old like me and our friends. You left a hole in many hearts. See you someday. Love gloria

They shall grow not old, as we that are left grow old:
Age shall not weary them, nor the years condemn.
At the going down of the sun and in the morning,
We will remember them.

Hi Butch, I think of you often and miss you. You were the sweetest guy of all our crazy friends. Thank you and love you, gloria

You were my more than cousins. You were my Big Brother, my Protector and my Best Friend. I will forget you "Butch". RIP

Cpl William David Mc Cuen, Jr. (21) was born on April 2, 1944 and was from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He was a 1962 graduate of Northeast Catholic High School and was the son of Mr. and Mrs. William D. Mc Cuen of Philadelphia. The 21-year-old corporal, had worked as a drill sergeant before being assigned to Viet Nam. He was a rocket launcher, ammunition carrier and squad leader in Company M of the 3rd Battalion, 1st Marines, 1st Marine Division. On March 4, Operation UTAH was launched under the command of Task Force Delta in the Son Thinh District of Quang Ngai Province where the Marines would encounter elements of the 21st NVA Regiment. Mike Company was helicoptered into the operations area on the evening of 4 March the Marines moved forward on their search and destroy mission at first light on March 5. With little contact in the morning hours, Company M got heavily engaged with the enemy in the vicinity of Chau Nhai (3) by 1100 hours with the battle continuing into the afternoon. The NVA troops "occupied classic defensive positions, were well-armed and equipped, and defended occupied positions in strength." The Marines engaged and aggressively assaulted the enemy fortified positions and by approximately 1330 hours were able to penetrate the enemy positions which came at a cost of fifteen Marines killed and forty-six wounded in the action. Enemy resistance slackened with nightfall and when the Marines began again after daybreak on 06 March they found the NVA had withdrawn. The position turned out to be an extensive tunnel and underground bunker complex for the NVA 21st Regiment. The action on 05 March cost the Marines 43 dead. Mike 3/1 had fifteen of the Americans killed in action and forty-six wounded on 05 March. Pfc. Mc Cuen died from hostile small arms fire in Quang Ngai Province on March 5, 1966. He is interred at Holy Sepulchre Cemetery, Cheltenham, Pennsylvania and is honored on the Vietnam Veteran's Memorial Wall, Panel 05E, Line 121.