THE WALL OF FACES

On May 16, 1971, a New York Times article described heroin use by American troops in Vietnam had reached epidemic proportions. The piece reported that 10 to 15 percent of lower-ranking enlisted men were heroin users, and military officials working in drug‐suppression estimated that as much as a quarter of all enlisted personnel, more than 60,000 men, were hooked. They added that some field surveys reported units with more than 50 percent of the men on heroin. In Vietnam, the drug was plentiful, cheap, and 95 percent pure. Its effects could casually be achieved through smoking or snorting, as compared to the U.S., where the drug was impure, only about five percent heroin, and had to be main-lined or injected into the bloodstream to achieve a comparable high. The habit, which cost $100 a day to maintain in the U.S., cost less than $5 a day in Vietnam. PFC William F. Aaronson IV was a construction and utilities worker serving with the 528th Maintenance Company, 86th Maintenance Battalion, Army Support Command Qui Nhon, 1st Logistical Command. The 86th Maintenance Battalion was deployed to the Cha Rang Valley in Binh Dinh Province, RVN, upon its arrival to Vietnam. Cha Rang was a large maintenance complex constructed along National Route QL-19 west of QL-1. On the early morning of January 18, 1971, less than seven weeks after beginning his tour of Vietnam, Aaronson died at Cha Rang of heroin overdose. He was 19 years old. [Taken from coffeltdatabase.org and “G.I. Heroin Addiction Epidemic in Vietnam.” New York Times (New York, NY), May 16, 1971]

William,
On today, the 52nd anniversary of your death I would just like to say thank you for your service and sacrifice for our Country when you served with the U.S. Army in Vietnam. And to your Family and loved ones, I wish to extend my deepest sympathy.

Thank you for your service to our country sir. Rest in eternal peace.

Private First Class William F. Aaronson IV, Served with the 528th Maintenance Company, 86th Maintenance Battalion, United States Army Depot (Qui Nhon), United States Army Support Command (Qui Nhon), 1st Logistical Command, United States Army Vietnam.

Private First Class William F. Aaronson IV, Served with the 528th Maintenance Company, 86th Maintenance Battalion, Army Support Command (Qui Nhon), 1st Logistical Command