Don Rudness (1969) was one of the original 13 B Company men to attend the first Branson reunion in 2005. We asked for his comments on how much it has changed and grown over the passing years. "Thanks for all of your hard work in helping put the reunion together. Yes, the event has changed dramatically, since the first one in Branson where we just kind of winged it. I had an absolute great time, renewing acquaintances and friendships and I haven't stopped talking about it. Among other things, I am part of a PTSD group and I shared my reunion experiences with my fellow group members, telling them what a therapeutic 4 days it was for me. I also debriefed members of my V VA Chapter. My wife couldn't attend and I'm sure she knows as much as I do about the reunion!. While this was my first reunion since the original, it will certainly not be my last. Any and every unit member should do themselves a favor and make an attempt to attend these wondeful events. They will certainly not be sorry. Steadfast & Loyal, Brothers!"
Ed Leak " I felf a little out of place as I came, do to when and how I served, being in HQ Co. most of my tour. It turned out Ken Schatz and "Tiny" Pederson were the only two that had actually served at the same time and place I had. Ken had pictures of Tiny and I setting on a bunker together and had put pictures of me on the website. Honestly I didn't remember with of them. I certainly enjoyed talking with both and finding that we had things in common that we remembered. That "out of place feeling" came to an ABRUPT HALT as I mingled with the others there. I found, that I was automatically adopted into the clan brotherhood because I had served even though not together we had a common thread, WE HAD BEEN THERE. As at all reunions there will be a little gatherings as old times are being rehashed. I enjoyed listening to and taking part in the conversations. As I joined groups I would be asked (when were you there, what did you do, and do you remember and were you ever at) many of the places I had been to. As one would expect some of the gathers were very emotional and some were very humorous. I met several interesting people at the reunion all with the common thread, and truly enjoyed meeting them. I would highly recomment that anyone attend the reunions if at all possible. I think they would find it very worthwhile. PS> I wor the balck scarf that was given to me a the reunion to the breakfast put on for veterans at the local school on the 19th (with pride). I old thouse that asked it was the symboy of the 1/22nd". Jun 69-Oct 70)
Ed Leak " I felf a little out of place as I came, do to when and how I served, being in HQ Co. most of my tour. It turned out Ken Schatz and "Tiny" Pederson were the only two that had actually served at the same time and place I had. Ken had pictures of Tiny and I setting on a bunker together and had put pictures of me on the website. Honestly I didn't remember with of them. I certainly enjoyed talking with both and finding that we had things in common that we remembered. That "out of place feeling" came to an ABRUPT HALT as I mingled with the others there. I found, that I was automatically adopted into the clan brotherhood because I had served even though not together we had a common thread, WE HAD BEEN THERE. As at all reunions there will be a little gatherings as old times are being rehashed. I enjoyed listening to and taking part in the conversations. As I joined groups I would be asked (when were you there, what did you do, and do you remember and were you ever at) many of the places I had been to. As one would expect some of the gathers were very emotional and some were very humorous. I met several interesting people at the reunion all with the common thread, and truly enjoyed meeting them. I would highly recomment that anyone attend the reunions if at all possible. I think they would find it very worthwhile. PS> I wor the balck scarf that was given to me a the reunion to the breakfast put on for veterans at the local school on the 19th (with pride). I old thouse that asked it was the symboy of the 1/22nd". Jun 69-Oct 70)
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As I prepared to go to the reunion, 4 years in a row, I would talk myself out of going at the last minute. My excuse would always be the same, I've lived without them this long, I don't have anything in common with them. I went this year, boy was I wrong! As I walked into the hospitality room, I was greeted by my old, and I do mean old, squad leader and another squad member. It was like a 46 year gap was bridged and we continued on. Everyone there was so happy to see me and ready to receive me back into the unit. I'll be back every reunion as long as I'm able. Thanks guys, and girls, (if not for the ladies nothing would happen), for a wonderful experience.
Mike O'Banion (May 68-May 69)
As I prepared to go to the reunion, 4 years in a row, I would talk myself out of going at the last minute. My excuse would always be the same, I've lived without them this long, I don't have anything in common with them. I went this year, boy was I wrong! As I walked into the hospitality room, I was greeted by my old, and I do mean old, squad leader and another squad member. It was like a 46 year gap was bridged and we continued on. Everyone there was so happy to see me and ready to receive me back into the unit. I'll be back every reunion as long as I'm able. Thanks guys, and girls, (if not for the ladies nothing would happen), for a wonderful experience.
Mike O'Banion (May 68-May 69)
Attending the reunion helped me answer a question that has puzzled me for some time. The question is, “Are Viet Nam veterans special for our service or is it more honest to think of ourselves as just having done what was our duty like all the other citizen soldiers who put themselves in harm’s way in defense of our nation and its values?”
There can be no doubt that compared to those who have not seen combat, I do feel special. There aren’t many civilian experiences where one’s life is and, more important, the lives of our friends are immediately at risk. My service in Viet Nam gave me two things that I don’t see in most people; confidence in my ability to function under stress and an intense appreciation for life itself. Any combat vet should feel special for having passed a test that most people will never understand. Combat vets should taste a sweetness in life that is known only to those who faced the possibility of death.
On the other hand, I’ve done a fair amount of reading about the Civil War and WWII and I am always stunned at the hardships and dangers those veterans endured. Reading about their service makes me realize that in another way, my time in combat is not so special. Millions of vets, including most of the guys I met in Albuquerque, endured more than I did and endured it longer than I did. So that is the question, “Special or not?”
The reunion helped me come to an answer that I hadn’t expected. Being around other vets rekindled in me a sense of shared experience and responsibility that I haven’t found often in civilian life. Every infantryman understands how much we depend on one other. As a chain is only as strong as its weakest link, every infantryman knows that one weak spot in the wire endangers everyone.
It seems to me that analogy holds when thinking about our service in a larger and longer perspective. We are part of a chain of veterans who have for over two hundred years stepped forward when called. When tested, each link held. We did our job, just like all of the others, to protect and preserve a way of life that was and is worth fighting for. I believe that is really the most important point about being a combat veteran.
No matter what anyone thinks about the war in Viet Nam, no one can deny that we were there because our country asked us to go there. It may sound cliché to some, but as imperfect, inefficient and raucous as our system of democracy is, it is still the best ever devised. Winston Churchill once said, “Democracy is the worst form of government, except for all the others.” Another quote that was well understood by our generation is, “The price of freedom is eternal vigilance”. The ultimate source of that vigilance has always been and will always be soldiers, sailors and airmen who are willing to answer their democracy’s call to arms; willing to stand a post, to endure hardship, to kill and die if necessary.
Our country is remarkable for a number of reasons, but what is unique is our democratic way of life and our determination to support and defend it. It is also worth remembering that American democracy has led much of the planet to a better way of life. I suspect that most people can recall the last sentence of Lincoln’s address at Gettysburg where he spoke about government,”…of the people, by the people and for the people…”. What is less well known is the final phrase of that sentence in which he called for increased devotion so that such a government, “…shall not perish from the earth”. Lincoln understood a hundred and fifty years ago that the survival of American democracy would shape the fate of mankind and shape it for the better. That survival was guaranteed only by combat soldiers who did not allow the chain to fail, who did their job.
So, I guess my final answer is that service in Viet Nam may or may not be special depending on each individual’s experience and depending on what it is compared to, but what is certain is that Viet Nam vets are part of a very special chain of citizen soldiers who do the hard, nasty, necessary work of combat in defense of two of the most important ideas in history; democracy and freedom.
The other lasting and unexpected thought from the reunion comes from our conversations about our cherished grandchildren. As we did our job in Bravo Company, we have another job to do with our grandkids. So few people serve in the military now, I see less of an understanding about the need for citizen soldiers, the chain of generational responsibility and for importance of eternal vigilance. No one is as qualified as a combat veteran to explain why we answered the call and why the chain must remain unbroken. If we don’t do the job of educating our grandkids, I don’t see who will. We need to do that job, too.
Terry Kohlbuss (Aug 70-May 71)
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There can be no doubt that compared to those who have not seen combat, I do feel special. There aren’t many civilian experiences where one’s life is and, more important, the lives of our friends are immediately at risk. My service in Viet Nam gave me two things that I don’t see in most people; confidence in my ability to function under stress and an intense appreciation for life itself. Any combat vet should feel special for having passed a test that most people will never understand. Combat vets should taste a sweetness in life that is known only to those who faced the possibility of death.
On the other hand, I’ve done a fair amount of reading about the Civil War and WWII and I am always stunned at the hardships and dangers those veterans endured. Reading about their service makes me realize that in another way, my time in combat is not so special. Millions of vets, including most of the guys I met in Albuquerque, endured more than I did and endured it longer than I did. So that is the question, “Special or not?”
The reunion helped me come to an answer that I hadn’t expected. Being around other vets rekindled in me a sense of shared experience and responsibility that I haven’t found often in civilian life. Every infantryman understands how much we depend on one other. As a chain is only as strong as its weakest link, every infantryman knows that one weak spot in the wire endangers everyone.
It seems to me that analogy holds when thinking about our service in a larger and longer perspective. We are part of a chain of veterans who have for over two hundred years stepped forward when called. When tested, each link held. We did our job, just like all of the others, to protect and preserve a way of life that was and is worth fighting for. I believe that is really the most important point about being a combat veteran.
No matter what anyone thinks about the war in Viet Nam, no one can deny that we were there because our country asked us to go there. It may sound cliché to some, but as imperfect, inefficient and raucous as our system of democracy is, it is still the best ever devised. Winston Churchill once said, “Democracy is the worst form of government, except for all the others.” Another quote that was well understood by our generation is, “The price of freedom is eternal vigilance”. The ultimate source of that vigilance has always been and will always be soldiers, sailors and airmen who are willing to answer their democracy’s call to arms; willing to stand a post, to endure hardship, to kill and die if necessary.
Our country is remarkable for a number of reasons, but what is unique is our democratic way of life and our determination to support and defend it. It is also worth remembering that American democracy has led much of the planet to a better way of life. I suspect that most people can recall the last sentence of Lincoln’s address at Gettysburg where he spoke about government,”…of the people, by the people and for the people…”. What is less well known is the final phrase of that sentence in which he called for increased devotion so that such a government, “…shall not perish from the earth”. Lincoln understood a hundred and fifty years ago that the survival of American democracy would shape the fate of mankind and shape it for the better. That survival was guaranteed only by combat soldiers who did not allow the chain to fail, who did their job.
So, I guess my final answer is that service in Viet Nam may or may not be special depending on each individual’s experience and depending on what it is compared to, but what is certain is that Viet Nam vets are part of a very special chain of citizen soldiers who do the hard, nasty, necessary work of combat in defense of two of the most important ideas in history; democracy and freedom.
The other lasting and unexpected thought from the reunion comes from our conversations about our cherished grandchildren. As we did our job in Bravo Company, we have another job to do with our grandkids. So few people serve in the military now, I see less of an understanding about the need for citizen soldiers, the chain of generational responsibility and for importance of eternal vigilance. No one is as qualified as a combat veteran to explain why we answered the call and why the chain must remain unbroken. If we don’t do the job of educating our grandkids, I don’t see who will. We need to do that job, too.
Terry Kohlbuss (Aug 70-May 71)
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