Jamaican,A Soldier in vietnam

These were some of the men that I shared camaraderie with, during my tour of Vietnam. We fought in Corp III & IV, from south of Saigon in the swamps and the Plain of Reeds by the Bobo Canal or in the jungle north of Xuan Loc area, there you were in no mans land, it was open season.

L to R: Richard "Doc Salter" Salter, Benjamin "Doc Benny" Hawkins, Baldwin "Doc Sam" Samuels.

Doc Benny and Doc Salter were two top Medical Corpmen (medics), and I was very elated with the camaraderie that we shared. I can recall how happy Doc Salter

was after reading he was a dad for the first time. No matter how rough the situation was, we hard cores always could come up with a smile. Those times are unforgettable; it seems just like yesterday. May the Most High bless our friendship.

Doc Salter never carried any weapons in Vietnam, only smoke grenades to mark Medevac (Helicopters) spots, where the injuried and KIA could be retrieved. That takes guts and I respect that. Doc Benny and I slung M-16's and grenades!!

Photo taken at BMB Long Binh, around December, 1969

Even though I was of the higher rank, Benny and Richard came to 4/12 two weeks before I did, that makes them seniors in the field. At this point, we were the same rank, E-5 (Specialist-5), same rank as a three stripe (Sergeant). Before my Deros we would make the evening rounds at the Non Commission Officers Club (NCO). Entertainment was provide by Brigade or Fillopino bands. There was a Redcatcher who would join the band(s) and livening up the somber scene, singing is version of Major Lance "Mama did'nt know" and the flip side "The Monkeys Time".

We would occasionally drop in on the Engineers club, the brew was half price whenever a band was not schedule. Notice re-enforced concrete bunker in the background, which serves as air raid shelter.

Photo taken around December, 1969.

This picture was taken during one of my medcap assignments, when the rest of the Platoon was standing down at an ARVN base north of Dinh Quan. This base camp was near the mountains, that was the most northern point where Redcatchers did time. The old French electrical girders pass near by, ascending over the mountains.

The Major in the background (I can't recall his name, he spoke French) had this community service gig in which I was the Doc (Bacsi). The name of the village where I was stationed, I can't recall. The 1st squad of the 4th Platoon shared a ARVN base, on about July/August 69. The patient had scabies, and the bulge in my lower shirt pocket, is morphine, that was kept in a bottle.

I was recalled to the squad that was stationed at the ARVN base shortly after this photo was taken. We had to check out a B-52 bombing run, the Compay was beefed up with some green ones (GI's), to approximately 140 troopers. The NVA (North Vietnamese Army) were Regiment strength around 1000 or so freshly out fitted. I understand the NVA, thought we were Special Forces or crazy, that mission lasted more than a month.

Photo taken around July/August, 1969

This photo was taken at camp Frenzell/ Jones, Long Binh. This was the Brigade Main Base (BMB) during my 1969 tour. I cannot recall the name of the other medics. The Redcatcher with the shades, was transferred to the 199th and the other GI was from Texas.

I often wandered what happened to GI's that had "a less than Honorable discharge" ? Are they most likely to loose their benefits, shut out of the job market, their GI bill for continuing education gone, they are homeless etc. Comparing to the state of the guys that evaded doing time in Vietnam and got cushy pardons? why not pardons for the suffers too?

Photo taken about October/November, 1969.

Village of Dinh Quan sit below FSB NANCY, located northwest of Xuan Loc. We were never allowed to venture into the village to my knowledge socialize. I performed MedCap duties

in Dinh Quan and in the villages along this Highway going in north of Nancy.

There was this with a French speaking Major and his driver. We never had an escort, at various times we had an Army Republic Vietnam (ARVN) Army Officer as interpreter, who would meet us at the various locations, these medcaps would be staged whenever I returned from a mission.

The yellow front truck is used for logging by the Vietnamese.

For a time my Hootch (Bunker) was over on the northwest side of FSB Nancy, a few feet from the 155MM Howitzers, which was to the rear of the bunker in the front.

I was assign to 4/12 Echo Co. during that period, the Recon team at max consist of 23 men, which was more on a Main-line full strength Platoon level.

This FSB was not properly designed to me, there was a taller hill to the right were dry land rice was grown, Charlie could easily see into the base, as the Bern was low and not greatly station with artillery as oppose to the other side of the base where the entrance was. The perimeter should have been extended and grade to deny easy movements.

Photo taken about Oct/Dec., 1969.

This photo was taken at the entrance of Medical Aid Station at FSB Nancy, I setup my Yashica camera on some crates with auto setting, and the chair broke and interfered with my nice pose.

The Medical Aid Station Surgeon was Captain Raines, The E-6 name I can't recall, then there was Doc Mike Yancy, Doc Balent, Doc Love and Doc Jim Mullens. Captain Raines would correspond home by taping his messages, as a grunt we would even send letters written on C-Ration cardboards.

Some nights I would drop in for a game of cards playing fish or wisp, and have some freshly roasted popcorn. I recall my first time having apples from Washington St, given to me by a Doc station at the Aid Station, it is still the juiciest apple I have ever had.

Redcatchers, if my recollection of time and places are off, it is because I used to live day to day or should I say night to morning. Then again, we were moving around so often, from Fire Support Base(FSB) Stephanie, Rach Kein(9th Infantry Div) El Vira the old French fort, Nancy, Joy, Carroll etc. How about the Special Zone, Plain of Reeds, Bobo Canal, Parrots Beak, Pineapples, Three Finger Rivers, Patrolling with the muddy water Navy, and around Xuan Loc where fire restrictions were placed on us not to damage the rubber plantations, Thunder Alley etc.

If you have a photo of me, please send me a copy I will return original, or you can E-Mail me a JPG/GIF/BMP. I will be appreciative, as you can see, I did not posses many combat snaps, but I do know that other Redcatchers have of me. They are out there. I will include other Redcatcher photo from you for this and the Caribbean page.