DAVID E PADGETT
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HONORED ON PANEL 33W, LINE 73 OF THE WALL

DAVID EUGENE PADGETT

WALL NAME

DAVID E PADGETT

PANEL / LINE

33W/73

DATE OF BIRTH

06/02/1944

CASUALTY PROVINCE

QUANG TRI

DATE OF CASUALTY

02/06/1969

HOME OF RECORD

WASHINGTON

COUNTY OF RECORD

Daviess County

STATE

IN

BRANCH OF SERVICE

ARMY

RANK

MAJ

Book a time
Contact Details
ASSOCIATED ITEMS LEFT AT THE WALL

REMEMBRANCES

LEFT FOR DAVID EUGENE PADGETT
POSTED ON 1.25.2021
POSTED BY: Cathy Noland

Bracelet

I have a Vietnam Memorial Bracelet from 02/06/1969 with Capt. David Padgett inscribed. I would love to send it to any family member who would like it. I wore it in Junior High School & have kept it for many years. I'm sure it would mean a great deal to one of his loved ones.
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POSTED ON 5.28.2018

Major David E Padgett

My father gave me an MIA/POW bracelet that had Major
David E Padgett name on it. I wore it from the time i was around 13 until it fell off and vanished when I was around 21 or 22. I’m thankful the crash site was found and he was given the military burial he deserved and that his family was able to have closure.
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POSTED ON 5.21.2017
POSTED BY: Hannah Kirchner

Remembering the Padgett family

I was thinking about Margaret Padgett and her family. I guess I'm mourning her. She is from Washington but spent 40 years in Florida. She passed in December at age 90.

When my older brother died in 1972 at the age of 9, Mrs. Padgett's son had been MIA about 3 years. She came to our house more than once and spoke to my mother. I remember this distinctly.

David was a couple years behind my dad at WC. My dad remembers him as a shy gawky kid with a chipped tooth, who had a huge crush on my beautiful mother. He never spoke to her, but he would gaze at her in awe. My dad remembers that he was sensitive, and he is surprised he reached the heights of being a major and a chopper pilot. Courage doesn't require bravado.

Mrs. Padgett was a giving person. I learned later that she spent time watching out for me. I was is grade 3 at WC and a complete mess after my brother's death. Fighting, in trouble, and trying to save him from purgatory. I was unhinged about half the time, and the nuns had no idea what to do. I spent a lot of time in Sr. Ann's office.

Years later Mrs. Padgett wrote me and let me know she loved me. It took me years to write her back. It was just too hard. But then we set up a correspondence that lasted for a decade.

Losing David informed her life and actions as a caring and godly woman.

So on a Sunday, God bless the Padgett family.

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Donahue Catholic honors fallen Army pilot and military alums
May 8, 2014 at 9:25 pm · Filed under Ave Maria Florida, Observations and tagged: Ave Maria chronicles, Ave Maria Florida, Rhodora J. Donahue Academy, Veterans

This afternoon the Donahue Catholic Academy of Ave Maria dedicated a Wall of Honor to honor Army pilot Major David Padgett who was killed during the Vietnam War. The founder of the school, Marine Corps veteran Tom Monaghan, and the school’s benefactrix namesake, Mrs. Rhodora Donahue, were also on hand for the ceremony in the library where the Wall of Honor is installed.

During the ceremony headmaster Dan Guernsey also thanked Major Padgett’s mother, Margaret Padgett, for funding a scholarship endowment in David’s name. Father Robert Garrity was on hand to give an invocation, and the Wall of Honor was blessed by and was dedicated to St. John Bosco. The master of ceremonies was Ed Rivera, a retired Marine Corps lieutenant colonel. RJDA students sang several songs including America the Beautiful and My Country ‘Tis of Thee.

The Wall of Honor tells the story of Major Padgett’s short life. On January 6th, 1969, during the Vietnam war, the helicopter David had been piloting during an emergency re-supply mission went missing in action in the remote jungles of Vietnam with six others on board. They were declared missing in action (MIA) after an intense week-long search. It was not until more than 25 years later that the crash site was finally discovered. Finally, 33 years later, David was given a full military burial in Arlington National Cemetery in 2002. The Wall of Honor also honors Donahue Catholic graduates who serve in the military, including Peter Guerrero ’09, Thaddeus Guerrero ’10, Nathan Gay ’13, and Lane Lawe ’14.
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POSTED ON 7.6.2016
POSTED BY: Brenda Fielder

A Visit With An Old Friend

I recently had the moving experience of visiting the Viet Nam Memorial and finding David's name. Just this week I received my etching in the mail. I still have David's bracelet and this same picture.
It is comforting to know that his remains were identified and returned to his parents and his final resting place.
We were friends when he was attending Christian Brothers College
in Memphis, TN. He was a very fine person. All who knew him take enormous pride in his legacy.
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POSTED ON 7.18.2015
POSTED BY: Fred Fields Indpls In

Went to school with , class mate .

David ,you a HERO , I sat in from of in high school , Washington Catholic High School , Washington ,Indiana .
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