Search for Photos

[Jim Sheppard]

I took two days and ran through my lists to determine exactly who from our KIA list is still without a photo. I have just finished checking the Vietnam Veteran's Memorial Fund Website for updates to my list and they did have two I had not had before...so we are making some progress. I am also still hoping to try to contact high schools for these men...as this has proved to be a fruitful method lately. Below are the names of those from the 50th Infantry in Vietnam whose photos I am still seeking. There will be more I will seek of men we listed as ours in error...as well as men from other 50th Infantry designations ("E" and "F" Company LRPs and Security Police units), but 1st priority goes to men who we have determined died while assigned or attached to the 1st Battalion (Mechanized), 50th Infantry...as well as a few who died after transfering from us to other units.

Here are the names on my current "Photos Wanted" list:

Arlentino, Dudney Nelson
Ayers, Johnnie Marvin
Belinge, Richard Lewis
Beverford, Timothy Wayne
Blair, Donald D (Have poor quality photo)
Cagle, Randy Graham
Carpenter, Tommy Lee
Cast, Thomas Edward
Chenoweth, Austin Ray
Collins, Jerome Liston
Craig, Roger Gene
Crull, Raymond H.
Denkins, Fred, Jr
Feldmann, Barry Edward
Filippelli, Alfred A.
Fleetwood, Donald L
Gentry, Bobby Lee
Givens, Roy N
Grayson, Ramon L.
Gutierrez, Albert R., Jr.
Haas, Russell C.
Hacek, James D.
Hinton, Dennis E. (Have poor quality photo)
Hoskins, Danny
Hubbard, Roger Lee (Have poor quality photo)
Jennings, Lawrence M.
Johnson, Gary R.
Leska, Robert
Lowe, Jere Rone
Lukes, Thomas B.
McMillin, Robert A.
Mogan, John A.
Null, Ricky L.
Owens, Robert L
Pangelinan, Gregorio L.
Perez, Joseph E.
Pettis, Lorenzo R.
Pillow, Ronald E.
Pipkin, Thomas D., Jr.
Ramey, Thomas R.
Roberts, Claude
Sachaschik, James H.
Sims, William A.
Smith, Thomas T.
Snelson, John W.
Stainer, William E (Have poor quality photo)
Strouse, Gary Lee
Thomas, Allen W.
Thomas, Charles E.
Thomas, Kenneth B.
Velilla, William
Wadlington, Louis W.
Walker, Michael E.
Ward, Johnny L.
Wells, Richard F.
Williams, Melvin J.

If you find photos for any of these men, please contact me ASAP! (Jim SHeppard: kiss-ac@juno.com or 50thinfantryassociation@gmail.com)

[Jim Sheppard]

Jim Hacek's Niece contacted me after an exploratory e-mail response to her memorial post on the VVMF Web-Site. She sent the photo now shown on his memorial page. She also sent contact information on her mother, our man's sister, for future memorial service notification.

Our list of "Names without Faces is now at 55, 5 of those being men with poor quality photos...since Russ Roth provided a distance shot photo of Thomas Ramey, we now have, at least, a poor quality photo of Ramey.

[Jim Sheppard]

Newest Association Member Chucksey Spotts ("A" Co., 1967) sent photos of John Mogan! Mogan's Memorial page will be updated shortly.

[Jim Sheppard]

Randy Cagle's Sister sent several great photos of Randy. Thanks to Oren Culpepper for re-establishing the connection with Cagle's family. We are now down to 53 men without photos...5 of which we at least have poor quality photos.

[Jim Sheppard]

I am taking a trip south this week...primarily to attend a Phillies Spring Training Game in Clearwater, Florida.

I decided it might be a good idea to extend this trip slightly and do some research on a half dozen of our KIAs who are missing photos on our Memorial Pages. I plan on investigating one in South Carolina on my way down, then checking on 3 in Alabama, 1 in western Georgia and finally one in Kentucky on my way back to New Jersey. Depending on how road weary I am...I may hit one more in Pennsylvania before returning to New Jersey and home.

I plan to keep a sort of running diary as this might make for an interesting piece in the upcoming newsletter. The only one of these men I have a "for sure" lead on is the one in Kentucky...where I will visit the father (Still alive and in fairly good health!) on our man Gentry...the rest are all mysteries. I have some "lead" information, but nothing confirmed...just very old addresses and cemetery locations in some cases.

There will likely be no time to "stop and visit" along the way...although I will be within about a hundred and fifty "clicks" of some of you! I need to run a tight schedule and stay focused.

The thought just occured to me as well that I might want to delegate some of these "investigations" to those of you who live near the hometowns of these KIAs for whom I still need photos. I will be posting all the names as well as home towns sometime late this month or next month. I have found that one of the best routes is to find out where the local high school is located that our man likely attended. Visit the school Librarian as past yearbooks are normally kept there in the library. (Principals do not respond well...I believe because they are so busy. I have been trying to reach several high school administrators who have not returned repeated phone calls. VERY discouraging...so go for the Library or ask at the school office about visiting the librarian. If all they have to do is direct you to the library...you will likely make out much better). I can provide, in most cases, the location of the KIAs burial as well as the address and names of his next of kin at the time of his death. In some cases, family members still live there.

Look for information to be in the next Newsletter and also look for details to be posted here on this board.

[catain_j504]

Hey Jim if you ever get around memphis,tn give me a shout JR Dacus C22 901 494 8010