THE WALL OF FACES

Your sacrifice is not forgotten.

HOOAH

Thank you for your service to our country so long ago sir. As long as you are remembered you will remain in our hearts forever….

Operation Yellowstone was a military operation conducted by the 1st and 3rd Brigades, 25th Infantry Division, in northeast Tay Ninh Province, RVN, lasting from December 8, 1967 to February 24, 1968. Northern Tay Ninh Province contained the largest North Vietnamese (NVA) and Viet Cong (VC) base areas in the III Corps Tactical Zone, providing easy access for the enemy to bases in Cambodia and Saigon and other cities in the Mekong Delta. U.S. Army and Army of the Republic of Vietnam (ARVN) forces moved in to sweep the area, constructing FSB Beauregard on Route 246 at Boc Tuc, seven miles southeast of Katum Airfield. At 2:00 AM on December 20th, NVA mortar fire began hitting the 4th Battalion, 9th Infantry positions at Beauregard. This was followed by a ground assault from several hundred soldiers from the 2nd and 3rd Battalions of the 141st NVA Regiment. The base received ninety-five rounds of mixed 60mm and 82mm mortar fire, then human wave attacks with the infiltrators breaching the perimeter at 2:30 AM. Sappers placed satchel charges in the ammunition dump, setting off over six hundred 105mm shells. The defenders fought back with small arms, automatic weapons, artillery, support from light fire team aircraft, and air strikes. At 3:46 AM, it was reported that Beauregard was surrounded by one to two North Vietnamese battalions. Twenty minutes later, land line communication the firebase was severed. The mortar attack ceased at 5:50 AM, then resumed at 7:05 AM. Fighting ended thirty minutes later when the enemy withdrew. Six Americans were killed in the attack. The lost personnel included SP4 Horatio L. Jones, SP4 William C. Jones, SP4 Morris G. McPhail, SP4 Carl E. Murray, SP4 Frank G. Michulka, and PFC Barry A. Thompson. Another twenty-two were wounded. The NVA left behind forty dead and a variety of enemy weapons were captured. SP4 Horatio L. Jones was posthumously awarded the Distinguished Service Cross for smothering a grenade against himself after it was thrown into a bunker he was sharing with another. [Taken from coffeltdatabase.org]

Dear Sp4 Morris McPhail, Thank you for your service as an Infantryman. Saying thank you isn't enough, but it is from the heart. Tomorrow is the anniversary of the terror attacks. Time passes quickly. Please watch over America, it stills needs your strength, courage and faithfulness, especially now. Rest in peace with the angels.

I am Morris McPhails niece. He is my dad's baby brother. I would love to see the photo you have of him and hear any stories you may have. I only know Morris through pictures and stories from the family. My email is [email protected]