THE WALL OF FACES

Thank you for your service to our country so long ago sir. You died at 18 years of age. I am 74 and have lived a long and fulfilling life. It is tragic you never had that same opportunity. May you rest in eternal peace.

Dear PFC Gilbert Thibeault, Thank you for your service as a Machine Gunner. Saying thank you isn't enough, but it is from the heart. Independence Day just passed. Time passes quickly. Please watch over America, it still needs your strength, courage, guidance and faithfulness, especially now. Rest in peace with the angels.

On February 27, 1968, a 1st Force Reconnaissance Company patrol composed of twelve enlisted men and one Navy corpsman were tasked with establishing an observation post and conduct surveillance operations to detect possible Viet Cong and/or North Vietnamese Army troop movement or arms infiltration in the southern approaches to the Hue City area in Thua Thien Province, RVN. The patrol was to place particular emphasis on locating enemy rocket launch sites, storage areas, fortifications, and routes of access. The team was backed by supporting arms in the form of artillery and air strikes which could be delivered on targets of opportunity in support of Operation Hue City, the recapture of the city during the Tet Offensive. The patrol was inserted at 10:45 AM by CH-46 helicopter in an open area with a clear view of the Perfume River and Royal Tombs area. Later that day, at 4:25 PM, they observed seven NVA soldiers in green uniforms with rifles and camouflaged ponchos moving west on a trail with a woman and child walking point. An artillery fire mission was called on the group with unobserved results. Over the next two days, the team made several sightings of enemy soldiers which were followed up by artillery fire adjusted onto the targets. The enemy were aware of the team’s presence, and in the evening of the third day, they tracked the patrol to their night harbor and attacked it with four rounds of either 81mm or 82mm mortar rounds (a different report cited eight 60mm rounds) and an unknown amount of sniper fire. The mortar fire killed two Marines, SSGT Carl R. Leed and PFC Gilbert Thibeault. The team returned fire with small arms, rifle grenades, and M79 rounds, killing the sniper and one NVA mortar man. An hour later, a platoon-sized enemy force carrying flashlights surrounded the patrol, tripping flares and noisemakers placed outside the perimeter. The team threw grenades and fired M79 rounds; a fire mission on suspected enemy positions caused the movement to cease. Helicopter gunships also strafed and rocketed the enemy. About and hour and fifteen minutes later, the patrol was extracted by helicopter under UH-1E helicopter gunship suppressive fire. [Taken from coffeltdatabase.org and “1st Force Reconnaissance Company (Rein), Command Chronology, February 1968” at ttu.edu]

As your 72nd birthday approaches, your sacrifice is not forgotten.

Forever 18.

Semper Fi, Marine

Your brother was our classmate at St. Joseph School. As 7th-graders we prayed at your funeral Mass, for comfort for your family and in thanksgiving for your ultimate gift of life. Your light continues to shine bright. We will always remember your sacrifice.