biography

After graduating from college in 1960, I was commissioned and assigned to the Infantry. I completed Basic Officers Course, Ranger and Airborne training at Fort Benning, Georgia and went to Germany. Two years later I transferred to the Military Police Corps.

After the MP Officers Career Course at Fort Gordon, Georgia in 1963, I was assigned to the 720th MP Battalion at Fort Hood, Texas. Upon arrival at Fort Hood, the Provost Marshal diverted me to the stockade for duty promising a company slot within a year. I took over command of the newly formed C Company in September 1965.

In April of 1966 I was promoted to Battalion S-3. In June of 1966 we were alerted for deployment to Vietnam in August.

Upon arrival in Vietnam, we were given 30 days to build our base camp in Long Binh. At that time, only the 24th Evacuation Hospital was there and it was yet to be staffed.

After only two weeks we picked up our first mission, which was to escort prisoners from the 1st Infantry Division, The Big Red One, to POW camp at Bien Hoa. That was followed by security patrols at night between Saigon, Long Binh and Bien Hoa; escorting movement to Xuan Loc and Chu Chi, and security of the ammunition depot in Bien Hoa.

In 1966 the officers and NCO’s were infused in other units since we all had the same DEROS. I was assigned as Security Officer, Headquarters Area Command (HAC) in Saigon, and later as Operations Officer for the HAC Provost Marshal Office.

I returned to Vietnam for a second tour as the escort officer for the representatives of the International Red Cross.

I went on to complete 23 years of active duty retiring as a Colonel in 1983. I completed a second career as Director of Security with Kentucky Fried Chicken Corporation, retiring in May 1999.

Vietnam changed my life in that we were a bunch of soldiers with no experience fresh from the states and were forced to immediately make decisions effecting the lives of each other and others.

The fact that common sense allowed us to be successful resulted in meeting future challenges with confidence.