New Memorial Pages work has begun

[Jim Sheppard]

TOday I added: Connell, Craig, Denkins, Haney, Thomas Smith, Ken Thomas, Crandall and Rood.

[Jim Sheppard]

This past week I added: Crull, D'Agostino, Aguayo, Dennison, DIllard & Dodge. A quick count shows 85 Memorial Pages complete. I have a total of about 210 Memorial pages to do...so I am nearly half way through. Even though approximately 34 of these that appeared on our "In Memoriam" pages have been found to NOT be 50th Infantry, we are creating pages for them regardless. Their names will remain on our memorial and explainations will be on their website memorial pages.

[Jim Sheppard]

Busy week...got a lot done! Added Donovan, Dulac, Ferguson, Filippelli, Hacek, Fowler, Witham, Franckowiak and Gaftunik. Of particular interest was the page for Gaftunik. He was not one of ours....being listed as such by mistake, but we have decided to keep all these "mistakes" on our memorial and note their correct affliations on the website. I found a great account of the action where he was killed...and a touching photo of him as a child. I learned that this man had lost his older brother a little over a year before...killed in action on March 27, 1968 with the 4th Infantry Division. The Gaftunik family lost both sons in the war in Vietnam.

[Jim Sheppard]

added 7 more: Gasko, Gentry, Givens, Gooch, Owens, Rylee and Honeycutt.

[Jim Sheppard]

Added 9 new names: Graves, Grayson, Gray, Green, Greene, Powell, Guenther, Gutierrez and Herkins. Also added a great photo to Drew Shipley's Memorial Page. I was in contact with the military school he attended and they sent me a bunch of his yearbook photos!

[Jim Sheppard]

Have added 9 more memorial pages: Haas, Handy, Hills, Sims, E., Harbison, Hayes, Heinecke, Hillman, Zambano and added a photo to existing page for Burns.

[mmokler]

JIM..
I JUST WANTED TO THANK YOU FOR SUCH A GREAT JOB THAT YOU HAVE DONE ON THE MEMORIAL PAGE.. ESPECIALLY TO SGT. GARY W. COKLEY.. AS I HAVE MENTIONED SOMETIME BEFORE, GARY AND I ALONG WITH 2 OTHERS WERE DRAFTER AT THE SAMETIME. WENT THROUGH BASIC AND A.I.T. TOGETHER.. GARY WENT ON TO N.C.O. TRAINING AND I LOST TRACT OF HIM, UNTIL OCT. OF 2002..THAT IS THE MONTH THAT MY FATHER PASSED AWAY, AND IS BURIED AT THE SAME MEMORIAL PARK AS GARY.. UNKNOWN TO ME GARYS EX-WIFE (MARLENE) WAS AT THE BURIAL OF MY DAD, AND SHE CAME OVER TO ME, AND ASKED IF I REMEMBERED HER.. I SADLY SAID "NO" AND SHE TOLD ME WHO SHE WAS.. I TOLD MARLENE THAT I HAD BEEN LOOKING FOR GARY'S BURIAL SITE, EVER SINCE I GOT OUT OF THE SERVICE IN 1971.. I WAS UNABLE TO LOCATE MARLENE BECAUSE SHE HAD REMARRIED.. MARLENE TOLD ME GARY WAS CLOSE TO WHERE MY DAD WAS BEING BURIED.. APPROXIMATELY 50 FEET OR SO FROM MY FATHERS TOMB MARLENE WALKED ME DIRECTLY TO GARYS HEADSTONE.. I KNELT DOWN AT GARYS GRAVE AND CRIED MY EYES OUT.. IT WAS A EMOTIONAL TIME FOR ME TO BE BURYING MY FATHER, BUT BEING RE-UNITED WITH GARY AFTER 32 YEARS.. I KNOW THAT I HAVE RAMBLED ON AND ON.. BUT TO FINALLY READ ABOUT GARY AND HIS LAST COMBAT ACTION, PUTS MY MIND AT REST.. I WILL ALWAYS MISS GARY AND LOVE HIM MORE.. MY BURIAL PLOT WILL BE CLOSE TO GARYS AND ONE DAY WE WILL MEET AGAIN.. JUST A NOTE ON THE PICTURES OF GARY..IN GARYS MEMORIAL PICTURES, I BELIEVE YOU HAVE GARY MISLABELED.. GARY IS THE INDIVIDUAL ON THE LEFT SQUATTING DOWN WITH THE HIS BACK TO THE CAMERA..ONCE AGAIN THANK YOU AND EVERYONE THAT HAS PUT SO MUCH INTO THIS..
SINCERELY,
MIKE C. MOKLER

[Jim Sheppard]

Thanks to Mike for clueing me in on the Cokley photo. I corrected his memorial page!

[Jim Sheppard]

The last few days, I spent some time setting up folders for the men KIA in Vietnam with other 50th Infantry "designations". There were 33 men killed either while serving with these designations or shortly thereafter. The units were: "E" 50th Inf (LRP), 9th Infantry Division; "F" 50th Inf (LRP), 25th Infantry Division; "E" 50th Inf (Security), 1st Log Command, Danang; and "F" 50th Inf (Security), Danang, USARV. I have interacted with veteran's from the 75th Ranger Association and 25th Infantry LRRPs to iron out a few "kinks" & will finish setting up folders for these men today. Actual work on their memorial pages will lay ahead for me & will be done after I finish our contiguous battalion KIAs.

I had put the memorial page work on the "back burner" while I worked on converting documents obtained during my last National Archioves trip to .pdf files. That work is now finished...and I am set for another trip to College Park...possibly in August.

I will be on vacation after this week & be back the first week in August. Look for new memorial pages to be posted soon.

[Barbara Anne]

I have been in contact with Claire Holloway Hines who provided some very nice pictures of her brother Richard... she is really interested in the reunion and thinks she will be able to attend. I found Howard Pontuck's niece her dad his Howard's brother and he has a sister named Linda.. more on that as I get the info... Have refound Marty Mitchell who is the son of Thomas Mitchell... it has been a great afternoon... Finding and reconnecting is an Awesome feeling for me.... Thanks for allowing me to be a part of it ...

hugs, BA

[Jim Sheppard]

Posted 5 memorials this week: Hinton, Holloway, Melish, Alley, Mitchell and Whitlatch. I have two more weeks to work on more until I take another trip to College Park to copy more records.

[Jim Sheppard]

Productive week. Posted new memorial pages for: Hoskins, Monaghan, Hubbard, Thiry, Janke, Taylor, Jennings, Gary Johnson and James Johnson, Van Keuren and Wadlington.

[Jim Sheppard]

Added 11 more: Jones, Jordan, Mulvey, Kazmierczak, Keil, LeDonne, Ramey, Leska, Lollar, Lopez and Donald Lowe.

[Jim Sheppard]

Another dozen complete: Jere Lowe, Small, Lukes, Pillow, Marason, Marthaler, Massa, McDonald, Matlock, Pettis, Mays and McDaid. I will be taking a short break as I will be at the Archives all next week seeking out more General Orders and coying a few more month's worth of Daily Journals from the 173rd in 1969. Memorial Page work should resume in mid September. I have about 50 left to complete.

I have also made up folders for those men Killed while with other 50th Infantry Designations...mainly those of "E" and "F" companies (LRP & Rifle Security). I will create abbreviated memorial pages for those men as well, but after our Battalion Proper has been completed.

[Jim Sheppard]

After a two month period where I was busy with new documentation collection, I will be back to work on the KIA Memorial Pages sometime next week. Tonight, I updated 1st Sergeant Malcolm Dulac's memorial page with a photo and new awards information. Part of the documentation I was working on was new General Orders....and most of the Memorial Pages already completed will be updated with the proper awards in the coming months. First I will concentrate on finishing the last 47 men on our KIA List.

[Jerry Cooper]

Jim, I just want to thank you for all your hard work. It means so much to me and so many.
Thank you very much.

JC

[Jim Sheppard]

Wow...this string is getting long! Back to work on the Memorial Pages. Add the following names to those completed: McMillin, McQuinn, Meinen, Meza, Mogan, Moody, Moomey, Moore, Morris and Morrissey. Several others had new photos added and I will be updating Awards as well.

[pcfrmr]

Jim, your work and mission is greatly appreciated. THANK YOU, Bob Wuestenberg

[Jim Sheppard]

Got a photo for another man who had previously had no picture! "B" Company's Paul Branyan, KIA December 10th in the Battle of Tam Quan. Check out his updated memorial page:

http://www.ichiban1.org/pdf/Memorial/Branyan.pdf

Many thanks to Paul's Niece, Michele, for contacting us and providing his photo!

[Jim Sheppard]

After a long break for the holidays and postings involving the upcoming reunion, I have returned to work on our Memorial Pages. I have added: Murphy, Murray, Myers, Null, Pangelinan, Parker, Williams, Pipkin, Wiegand and Pontuck.