Saber Article Index
2017 Jul-Aug
The 2017 15th Medical Bn Association Reunion was an enormous success! By Terry McCarl: The 15th Medical Bn Association’s 2017
Reunion was held in Branson, MO, April 26-30. Reunion Coordinator
Ron Ingram and his wife Marlene do not live what you would call close to
Branson (about four hundred miles away), but Branson is a frequent vacation
spot for them, and their familiarity with Branson was invaluable in his
putting together an incredible Reunion! “The turnout was a record!
Forty-seven Veterans attended; along with spouses, Family, and guests,
eighty-six persons from twenty-three states were there! For many
Veterans, this was their first Reunion, and many had not attended for many
years. All had an enjoyable time! Attached is a group photo and
identification of the Veterans in attendance
“Westgate Branson Woods
Resort is a beautiful reunion/convention facility. Rooms were spacious
and luxurious for a daily group rate of only sixty-three dollars a night!
Our group had exclusive usage of the ‘Grand Pavilion,’ a magnificent open
space building about one fifty by forty feet where all meetings, daily
buffet breakfasts, the banquet, and socializing could be accomplished
No visit to Branson would be complete without attending a first rate
country music show! Our group saw two great shows, the famous ‘Baldknobbers,’
and ‘Raiding the Country Vault.’ Other group activities consisted of a
tour of the Branson Veteran’s Memorial Museum, and a dinner at the Fall
Creek Catfish and Steak House, a long-time Branson institution where the
servers toss fresh rolls to customers.
The annual Fund-Raising
Auction was held after the banquet on Saturday evening. The auction lived
up to its tradition of generosity and fun. Auctioneer Mark ‘Doc’ Holiday
and his able ‘Assistants’ Randy Burkhart and Jim Victor artfully cajoled
and coerced the crowd to bid generously! “Perhaps the most notable
donation was by past Association President Leo ‘Short Round’ Williams,
who donated three leather-bound original editions of the book, We Were
Soldiers Once and Young, by LTG Hal Moore, autographed by the author,
plus a photograph of General Moore. Bidding was vigorous on these
treasured books! “Joel and Dorothy Chase of Manassas, VA attended the
Reunion and expressed deep appreciation for the MEDEVAC rescue and
medical treatment. Joel was platoon leader for D Co., 1st of the 5th
Cavalry and was severely wounded at LZ David in Cambodia on June 14,
1970. He was MEDEVAC’d to the B Company, 15th Medical Bn treatment
facility at LZ Buttons, where Dr. Jon Lundquist (then CPT MC) treated
him. Joel would like to find that MEDEVAC crew and thank them. If you
were, or know someone who was on that crew, please e-mail me at:
<historian@15thmedbnassociation.org> or call (402)457-9807.
Ron ‘Huey’
Huether was recognized for his outstanding work developing and running
the Association Web site. He was presented
a Lowe’s gift certificate for $100.
The next Reunion will be Number
20-the 20th anniversary of the founding of the 15th MED Bn. Assn. and the
first Reunion. That was in 1998 in Franklin, VA. “Dan Toothman, the 2018
Reunion Coordinator reports that the 2018 Reunion will be held at
Williamsburg, VA, likely sometime between April 18 and May 6. Dates and
facility will be announced on the Web site; 15th MED Bn Assn Saber column;
and 15th MED Bn Assn Facebook page as soon as available.
Terry also
wanted to add the following information: How to obtain Personnel Rosters.
The 15th Medical Bn Association now has available personnel rosters
requested from the National Personnel Records Center (NPRC) in St. Louis,
MO for 1965- 1970. These rosters were generally prepared only for the
months of April and October of each year during the Vietnam War, except
during 1965 and 1966, when they were prepared during some additional
months as well. Enlisted Personnel Rosters for 1968 are available only
for 10/68; only officer rosters for 07/65, 08/65, 10/65, 01/66, 07/66,
07/67, 09/67, 04/69 and 10/70 are available. Rosters must be requested
and will be sent by e-mail only, unless special arrangements are made by
e-mail.
To request rosters for your time in Vietnam, send an e-mail to:
historian@15thmedbnassociation.org . Enter “15th MED Bn Roster Request”
on the Subject line. In the message section, enter your full name, unit(s)
and dates. See example below: EXAMPLE E-MAIL REQUEST To:
historian@15thmedbnassociation.org Subject: 15th Med BN Roster Request
SP4 John Q. Scalpel B Co: 03/66- 09/66 HSC: 09/66-03/67 (Include
any questions or comments that you have). Upon receipt of your e-mail
request, you will be contacted by e-mail regarding what rosters are
available.
To receive these rosters, you must be a Life Member of the
15th Medical Bn Assn. and your name and current contact information must
be on the Unit Member Search List (UMSL). Anyone who served with the 15th
Medical Bn for at least 30 days may become a Life Member simply by
completing a short application online; there are no fees or dues. If you
are not a Life Member, you will be sent instructions on becoming one.
If you are not a Life Member, but are a Family member of a deceased 15th
Medical Battalion Veteran who served in Vietnam (either KIA or Died After
Service), we will do our best to find rosters with the name of your Family
member and e-mail them to you. In the case of KIA’s, we have all the
information needed and all you need do is e-mail us the name of your
Family member. In the case of Family members who died after service in
Vietnam, please include as much information as you can, including the
name, the unit of assignment, dates of tour, and date of death in your
request e-mail.
If you do not have access to a computer, the internet, or
e-mail, and nor a friend or relative with a computer, we suggest
contacting your local County Veterans Service Office (check your local
telephone book under County Office listings), your local public library,
or possibly even your local VFW or American Legion Post for assistance.
If you absolutely cannot get assistance and need to have paper photocopies
made and mailed to you via U.S. Postal Service, please call (402)457-9807,
and arrangements will be made to send them to you for a charge to cover
the cost of copying, postage, and handling.
Please be aware these
rosters were printed from microfilm, and range from highly legible to
nearly illegible. In most cases, enlarging areas of them on your
computer, or using a magnifying glass may help.
There will be no charge
to e-mail the rosters to you, but since the 15th Medical Battalion
Association does not charge any membership fees or dues, any donations
are welcome. You may make a donation by using a PayPal account, credit card,
or debit card by going to the website (www.15thmedbnassociation.org),
clicking on “Informational,” then on “Historical Documents,” then on “How
to Get Personnel Rosters,” and then on the “ Donate” button.
If you desire to send a check please make it payable to “15th Medical
Battalion Association” and send it to Ron Huether, 110 Cedar Hills Dr.,
Fredericksburg, TX 78624. If you have any questions, please send them by
e-mail to
historian@15thmedbnassociation.org .
15th Med Bn Assn.
Historian Needs Your Help! The VVMF (the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund)
is the nonprofit organization, which was authorized by the U.S. Congress
in 1980 to build a national memorial dedicated to all who served with the
U.S. armed forces in the Vietnam War. This memorial is the Vietnam
Memorial Wall in Washington D. C., completed in 1982.
One of the projects
by the VVMF is to complete the Wall of Faces. The following quote is from
the VVMF Web site (www.vvmf.org).
Wall of Faces The Wall of Faces
connects a face and a story to each of the more than 58,300 names on The
Wall. Collected photos are displayed online at VVMF’s Wall of Faces,
which features a page for each person whose name is on the Memorial.
These pages allow Family and friends to share memories, post pictures and
connect with each other. The photos will also be displayed in the future
Education Center at The Wall. To see the Wall of Faces, go to:
www.vvmf.org/thewall There are 3 out of 43 15th Medical Battalion KIA’s
without photographs on the Wall of Faces. These are: Charles S. Ridout,
SP5, Age 28, Washington, DC -July 20, 1968 Gary L. Taylor, SGT, Age 20,
Cincinnati, OH -May 24, 1970 Michael R. Wick, SP4, Age 21, College Point,
NY -June 9, 1969 Also, there is a photograph of Armand A Sylvestre, CPT,
Age 32, Nashua, NH-July 15, 1968 on the Wall of Faces, but it is of very
inferior quality, and a replacement is being sought.
If you happen to have a photograph in which any of these Veterans appear,
please notify the 15th Medical Battalion Association Historian at
historian@15thmedbnassociation.org , or call (402)457-9807. Thank you!
Always remembering our 1st Cav Troops on duty around the world; over and
out.
Garryowen, Mike Bodnar C 2\7 Cav 1969, MEDEVAC 1-7\1970