THE WALL OF FACES

Thank you for your service to our country so long ago sir. The remembrance from your friend Mike Crawford is touching. As long as you are remembered you will always be with us…..

Dear PFC Richard Clements,
Thank you for your service as an Infantryman. December has begun, along with all the preparations. It is so important for us all to acknowledge the sacrifices of those like you who answered our nation's call. Please watch over America, it stills needs your strength, courage and faithfulness. Rest in peace with the angels.

On October 1, 1968, D Company, 1st Battalion, 46th Infantry, was engaged in the vicinity of the Thien Phuoc Special Forces Camp in Quang Tin Province. During the fight, attempts to medevac their wounded were hampered by heavy enemy fire on the helicopters. One attempt, flown by WO1 Reinis Fox from the 54th Medical Detachment, 498th Medical Company, resulted in a downed helicopter. Fox and his crew were picked up and volunteered to try again. On his second attempt, with the help of supporting gunships, he succeeded in landing his aircraft and remained on the ground long enough for nine of the casualties to be loaded on to the aircraft. Once airborne, his aircraft continued to receive hostile fire and sustained several hits, putting it into a tailspin and causing it to crash land. Upon impact, the aircraft burst into flames. Three wounded were recovered from the downed Huey, but the bodies of the dead could not be recovered at the time. As the day wore on the US soldiers were required to pull back, taking their wounded but unable to recover their dead from the ground action. U.S. forces later reentered the area and recovered all their dead, 16 men total. Two more died of wounds incurred in the action. Fox, who was seriously burned over a large portion of his body, was evacuated to the 106th General Hospital in Japan where he died on October 7th. The medevac helicopter loss is known to have resulted in eleven deaths. The three air crewmen included pilot WO Reinis Fox, crew chief PFC Calvin E. McGilton, and flight medic SP4 Richard W. Sanders. The lost passengers were SGT Robert F. Asher, SGT Ward E. See, CPL Timothy G. Arens, CPL Frank A. Baggett, CPL Lemuel Johnson, CPL Bernard J. Uhren, PFC Charles A. Branch, and PFC Jose D. Melendez-Gonzalez. Seven other men died in the fighting on the ground. Their names are 1LT Ronald D. Brown, SGT Robert J. Davis, SGT Frederick H. Flynn, CPL Gary W. Brown, CPL John W. Dingus, CPL Eugene R. Suarez, and PFC Richard B. Clements. As noted above, Fox reportedly loaded nine wounded men aboard, but only eight can be identified. All eleven men aboard the helicopter died from burns received in the crash. CPL Gary W. Brown is not coded as a helicopter-related death, but he alone among the ground casualties died of burns. It is possible that he was the ninth wounded passenger, if there were indeed nine men loaded aboard. [Taken from virtualwall.org]

Dear PFC Richard Bart Clements, sir

As an American, I would like to thank you for your service and for your sacrifice made on behalf of our wonderful country. The youth of today could gain much by learning of heroes such as yourself, men and women whose courage and heart can never be questioned.

May God allow you to read this, and may He allow me to someday shake your hand when I get to Heaven to personally thank you. May he also allow my father to find you and shake your hand now to say thank you; for America, and for those who love you.

With respect, and the best salute a civilian can muster for you, Sir

Curt Carter

Richard is buried at Green Hill Cemetery, Lindsay,McClain County,OK. PH