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The Christy Collection

Military Stories and Articles

Capt Richard Gerry, U.S. Air Force (1964-1970)

Capt Richard Gerry, U.S. Air Force (1964-1970)

Has Together We Served helped you find and reconnect with someone you served with? If so, please describe how this happened and what this meant to you. Please add any specific memories of this person and a photo if available.:

This is my response to my friend Robert Pryor’s post.

Friday, June 20th, 1969, is a day I’ll never forget! In two weeks, I would be on that Freedom Bird heading home.

I was Air Force Captain Dick Gerry, the Air Liaison Officer (ALO) and Forward Air Controller (FAC) at Song Be, Phuoc Long Province, assigned to MACV Advisory Team 67. I flew the O-1 Bird Dog, and my call sign was Rod 11. Approaching the end of my tour, I had more than five hundred combat missions under my belt.

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PFC Jr. Eugene Broyls, U.S. Marine Corps (1988-1990)

PFC Jr. Eugene Broyls, U.S. Marine Corps (1988-1990)

Has Together We Served helped you find and reconnect with someone you served with? If so, please describe how this happened and what this meant to you. Please add any specific memories of this person and a photo if available.:

Recently, I reconnected with Lance Corporal Darren Foster, with whom I served in the US Marine Corps in Kaneohe Bay, HI. While in the Marines, we were together every day like Frick and Frack. There were days we’d take the military excursion bus (provided by the base) to Waikiki every night after “work.” After partying in Waikiki every night, we’d get back on the base bus and barely make it to formation in time. And, we’d be in formation “leaning,” meaning we’d be so hungover we’d be unable to stand up straight correctly due to a headache, stomachs boiling in the hot Hawaii sun, and “reeking” of alcohol. Our Staff Sergeant would just laugh and say, “Broyls, Foster, you’ll ‘tied one on” again last night?” And we’d reply, “Yes, Staff Seargent.” And at times, he’d come over yelling in our ear, knowing we’d have a headache, and sometimes call for our daily PT right after formation, knowing we’d be struggling!

To reconnect with Darren means we’ve found a wonderful “best friend” with whom we can share photos of our wives, kids, and grandkids now and reminisce on our crazy Marine days. When we 1st reconnected, Darren asked, ” You finally found someone just as crazy as you to marry your crazy a**?”

LoL…Good times.

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PFC Daniel Brookes, U.S. Army (1966-1969)

PFC Daniel Brookes, U.S. Army (1966-1969)

Has Together We Served helped you find and reconnect with someone you served with? If so, please describe how this happened and what this meant to you. Please add any specific memories of this person and a photo if available.:

In 2010, because of TWS, I was able to locate one of my best friends from Vietnam, Bob Hillerby. We served together in the 69th Signal Battalion Combat Photography Unit. As a result of our reconnecting, I was able to write and publish two books on the role of military combat photographers in Vietnam.

Bob was my co-author of the first book, “Shooting Vietnam,” and between Bob and I, we were able to share hundreds of photos taken by us and a third writer, Tony Swindell, along with our first-person accounts of our experiences.

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Cpl Edward Bonny, U.S. Marine Corps (1960-1964)

Cpl Edward Bonny, U.S. Marine Corps (1960-1964)

Has Together We Served helped you find and reconnect with someone you served with? If so, please describe how this happened and what this meant to you. Please add any specific memories of this person and a photo if available.:

After I joined TWS, I was contacted by a Marine I went to MCES Electrician’s School with at Court House Bay, Camp Lejeune, Jacksonville, NC. His name was Ronald Barnes, and he was from Louisville, KY.

Ronnie used to travel with me to NYC, my hometown, on weekends, and we shared a lot of memorable adventures. We went overseas together and wound up in different outfits. I left the Corps after 4 years. Ronnie stayed in over thirty years and retired as a Sergent Major. My wife and I went to visit him and his wife in Florida, and it was a memorable reunion, which would never have happened except for TWS. The attached picture is of Red Beach at Camp Garcia, Puerto Rico, about a mile from our power plant.

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Service Reflections of SMSgt Don Zeman, U.S. Air Force (1970-1994)

Service Reflections of SMSgt Don Zeman, U.S. Air Force (1970-1994)

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After graduating from Charles D. Owen High School while living in Black Mountain, NC, 1968, my family moved to Danville, VA. I attended Danville Community College for a year and a half, but my heart wasn’t into more school at the time. I was a better draft avoider than a student. Quitting school several times, my 2S (student) deferment was changed to 1A (ready for immediate induction) and I was called for a physical.
I was unsure what I wanted to do, and how to start my adult life. Going to college was a long-term path. Working low-paying jobs that didn’t require experience was not satisfying. Without a commitment to school, I faced being drafted.
My older brother, Sgt Frank J. Zeman III, had completed five years of Air Force service and elected discharge in June 1970. My twin brother, SMSgt Ronald F. Zeman, USAF Ret., and I were in the first group for the new (December 1969) draft lottery and our draft number was 161. Without a deferment, I would have been drafted with numbers 195 and below were called.

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Service Reflections of PS1 Gerald Brooks, U.S. Coast Guard (1975-1996)

Service Reflections of PS1 Gerald Brooks, U.S. Coast Guard (1975-1996)

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I was an Army brat for 17 years (Dad was career army, West Point graduate). I had two years of Army ROTC in college. I went to the Oakland (CA) recruiting station fully intending on enlisting in Army or Marines. However, I saw the sandwich board sign at the end of the hall advertising the Coast Guard. Went in talked with the recruiter and realized the CG was a natural fit for my interest in having a career in law enforcement or firefighting. Signed up on delayed enlistment in 1975 and have been involved in law enforcement, firefighting, and emergency management since then.

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Service Reflections of Capt Rockford Willett, U.S. Air Force (1980-1992)

Service Reflections of Capt Rockford Willett, U.S. Air Force (1980-1992)

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My oldest brother served in the Army from 1964 – 1967 and survived a tour in Vietnam as a combat medic. I figured if he could do that and come back alive, I could do better in the US Air Force. I was married for about 18 months, quit a full-time job to “go back to school,” hated going back to school, and got a job as a “courtesy clerk” at Kroger. Although I had a lot of experience in stage lighting, no jobs were panning out for me in that area. Then I remembered my brother’s experience with the Army and decided to visit an Air Force recruiter and see what it was all about. I still remember the recruiter – TSGT Steiger.

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Service Reflections of COL John R. (Dick) Power, U.S. Army (1963-1992)

Service Reflections of COL John R. (Dick) Power, U.S. Army (1963-1992)

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It was straightforward. My father, a WWII veteran who left the Army as a Captain, gave me sage advice. I was about to enter my freshman year in college in 18. There was still a draft. He told me to get into the ROTC program because it was better to serve as an officer than an enlisted soldier. I would not challenge his credibility about this and so on. Unusually for an 18-year-old, I listened to my father. And went on to serve for almost 30 years and retired as a Colonel. I sure wish he had lived to see that!

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Service Reflections of CPL Michael Hall, U.S. Marine Corps (1968-1971)

Service Reflections of CPL Michael Hall, U.S. Marine Corps (1968-1971)

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My very good childhood friend, Ray Cagle, enlisted in the Marine Corps in mid-67 (at a Local Judge’s firm recommendation), almost a year before I did. Yes, we could be mischievous teenage boys. So, the Marine Corps was an excellent choice for both of us.
I met up with Ray after he had completed Boot Camp at Parris Island and Infantry Training at Camp Geiger, N.C. Ray was home for a visit before going to Radioman School and then on to Vietnam. His comments and his suggestion on The Marine Corps sold me. On enlisting. when I turned 18. But my 18th Birthday fell on a Sunday, so when I tried to enlist on Saturday, August 3, afternoon—one day prior to turning 18. The Recruiter said I would need to get my Parents’ signature or come back Monday AM to enlist. I did return at 9:30 AM Monday, August 5, 1968, and enlisted on the 3-Year Enlistment plan—a suggestion the Recruiter made.

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Service Reflections of ISCM Donald Zimbelman, U.S. Navy (1967-1991)

Service Reflections of ISCM Donald Zimbelman, U.S. Navy (1967-1991)

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My decision to join the Navy was probably like others who joined, I didn’t want to be drafted into the Army. Also, my dad and several uncles were in the Navy during WW II, and I wanted to follow the military tradition that my family had. I also had an uncle who served in the Army during WW II, and my Grandfather was in the Army during WW I. I was also interested in the Navy and was mesmerized by the battleships and aircraft carriers. I wanted to be a Naval Aviator, which didn’t happen, but I came close as an aircrew member on EC/WC-121s. So, my best friend, Doug Austin, and I enlisted in the Navy and left for boot camp in San Diego on February 1, 1967. We were both tired of school and were looking forward to a change.

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Service Reflections of SMSgt John Ridlehoover, U.S. Air Force (1957-1983)

Service Reflections of SMSgt John Ridlehoover, U.S. Air Force (1957-1983)

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When I graduated from high school, I knew I did not want to go to work at the main source of employment in my then, hometown. Namely one of the 5 or more “Cotton Mills” that employed a large percent of the population of the town. I had an uncle who had gone to West Point for a period of time, did not graduate, but did go into the Army as a 2nd Lt. He would come home on leave in a nice car from places like Texas and other locations and I said to myself “The military will be my ticket out of here”.
Plus the draft was still in effect. I did not think I wanted to get drafted into the army, so I enlisted in the Air Force. When I enlisted I did not necessarily do so with the intention of making a career of it but after Tech School, I was sent to Scotland where I met my future wife. After my tour there, I had five years invested so I thought why not just stay for the long haul!

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