Gender

Male

Birth date

1944-11-1

Place of birth

Manzanar CA, U.S.A.

Inducted

1962-11-5, Los Angeles CA

Enlistment type

Volunteer

Service branch

Army

Service type

War

Unit type

Support

Units served

534th Engr Det.
7th Special Forces Group (ABN) HQ & HQ Co.
3rd Special Forces Group (ABN).

Military specialty

Personnel Specialist
Airborne
Special Forces Qualified

Stationed

USA: Fort Bragg, NC
Other Countries: CanTho, South Vietnam.

Unit responsibility

Company Clerk, Personnel Specialist

Personal responsibility

Group (3rd SFG) enlisted records, Group morning reports.

Major battles (if served in a war zone)

None.

Awards, medals, citations (individual or unit)

Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal (service in Vietnam)
Good Conduct Medal (good behavior)
Army Commendation (exceptional work in Personnel, 3rd SFG)

Living conditions

Slept in barracks, NCO quarters, single bunk bed.
Bathed in barrack showers.
Meals were acceptable, sometime steak, hamburger, liver, cold cuts (Sunday evenings).
Movies, NCO Club, Fishing for entertainment.

Most vivid memory of military experience

I went to a movie in Vietnam (at a local theater) with a Vietnamese friend. We saw 'Saipan'. It starred Jeffery Hunter and Dick Jansen and was about a Caucasian boy raised by a Japanese family who then got interned in Manzanar. It was funny trying to explain that the scenes were where I was born, where I grew up (Hollywood) and that I went to Jr High School with Dick Jansen's sister. Especially since my friend did not speak English and my Vietnamese was very limited.

Missed most whilst in the military

Home life, church and family.

Most important thing, personally, to come from military experience?

The military service forced us to live with and understand others of various nationalities, economic, and education levels. It enabled me to see the value of an education. It enabled me to complete an obligation while I decided which field to go into.

Additional information

I believe that being of Judeo-Christian background enabled me to better cope with the military service. The timing of going 'in' was perfect in that I got out in August '65, during the Vietnam build up and I did not have to worry about the draft.