THE WALL OF FACES

There is a place
Not far from here
Where spirits walk
And heroes live
And honor still resides.

It is a wall
With names inscribed
Of those who served
When they were asked...
The brothers of my youth.

I go there still
To walk and think
About my life,
And what I've done since
And things that might have been.

There is a debt
I can't repay
Too many lives were spent.
And one man's life cannot suffice
To make their deaths worthwhile.

But there is hope
In the memory
Of those we leave behind
Who know the price that freedom brings
Who can carry on in kind.

I send you now
To touch a name
So the vision can be passed
Remember there is honor still
It is for you to see it lasts.

They are not dead
And have a wish
As all old soldiers do
The reflection you see before you now
Is their wish to live in you.

Dear Cap Joseph Whelan, Thank you for your service as a Special Forces Infantry Unit Commander. Saying thank you isn't enough, but it is from the heart. It is Advent, and Christmas is soon. Time passes quickly. Please watch over America, it stills needs your strength, courage, guidance, and faithfulness, especially now. Rest in peace with the angels.

On October 25, 1969, CPT Joseph V. Whelan and SSG Ronald H. Bozikis were part of a forty-five-man Hatchet Force platoon of Montagnard (“Yards”) indigenous fighters and Americans on an operation in Laos for a week-long, reconnaissance-in-force. The lift of four helicopters had not even put the group on the ground before they began taking enemy fire. From their landing zone, CPT Whelan spotted some North Vietnamese Army soldiers run across a facing hillside 400 yards away. He ordered a quick assault to seize that high ground. The platoon rushed into an intervening depression when it was suddenly hit by all sides in an ambush. Outnumbered at least three to one, several Americans and Yards were wounded, including Whelan. After a rocket-propelled grenade detonated virtually above Whelan, killing him instantly, a lieutenant took command. Realizing to stay pinned there meant annihilation, he ordered an immediate breakout, leading his men toward the hill. SSG Bozikis rushed forward, firing his weapon on the run, with a squad of Yards following. They burst through rank after rank of NVA, opening the way for the whole platoon. Then, only yards from the top, his squad was caught in a horrific crossfire and Bozikis collapsed, mortally wounded. His Yards, emboldened by his actions, continued the fight and routed the NVA from the hilltop. The platoon dug in on the hilltop where they spent the night, American gunships defending their perimeter while NVA mortar fire pounded the position. At daylight, American fighter planes blanketed the valley with fire, and under the cover of concentrated tear gas, the Hatchet Team was extracted. [Taken from coffeltdatabase.org and the book “Secret Commandos: Behind Enemy Lines with the Elite Warriors of SOG” by John L. Plaster]

Rembering you today and missing you . I hope my letters and packs of Kool-aid helped you when you were in Vietnam. You are always in my thoughts and prayers. Love you. Your nephew Rob V

Being from Garwood we are friends even if we didn't know each other. Thank you for serving our country.