Author - Sarah Almazan

By Kyle Peschler

NJVVMF Intern

Apollo 11 was one of the most historic moments in the Vietnam Era and a turning point in the Cold War against Soviet Russia.  Being such a momentous occasion for the United States, everyone who was alive at the time would remember where they were and what they were doing when they first heard of the event.  Since Apollo 11 occurred in the height of the Vietnam Era, our volunteers remember exactly where they were when news broke of the Moon Landing.  

Joe Foster: 

Joseph Foster had graduated from Coast Guard boot camp earlier that year in 1969.  His first official orders were to report to the 12th Coast Guard district in Honolulu Hawaii.  Joseph was scheduled to go out onto Ocean Station Victor, a geographic location in the Pacific Ocean where there is nothing for miles. There Joseph helped give aid to navigation for ships and aircraft.  Joseph’s ship, the Coast Guard Cutter Mellon, was stationed there from the end of July to the middle of August, right when the Apollo 11 mission took place.  The Apollo 11 mission was scheduled to land several miles south of where Joseph was located.  Joseph has a personal connection to the Moon Landing.  His uncle was a design engineer for Roman Aircraft and was part of the design team for the lunar lander control system.  Joseph’s uncle’s name is on a plaque attached to the lunar lander that was left on the Moon after the mission was complete.  Just like most Americans at the time Joseph and his shipmates were thrilled when Apollo 11 landed on the Moon.  Although they couldn’t see it, the radio broadcast was playing throughout the ship.    

Frank Dunn:

Frank served in the 69th Infantry Regiment of the New York State National Guard until November 1970 when he enlisted into the U.S. Army.  Frank served in Vietnam from 1970 to 1971.  Frank had just graduated high school at the time of the Moon Landing.  Frank remembers watching the event on television with his friends.  Frank and his friends were in awe and thrilled with what they saw.  According to Frank, it is hard to describe the joyous feeling he had when Neil Armstrong touched the surface of the Moon.       

Cappy Everhard:

Cappy served in the Marines and was deployed to Vietnam in 1966.  Cappy was a tank crewman for the Bravo Company, 1st Marine Division.  Cappy wonders to this day if the Moon Landing really happened.  He never saw the purpose of sending a man to the Moon other than to beat Russia.  Cappy often asks why we should care about sending anyone to the Moon since no one can live on it.  Cappy believes that the Moon Landing was nothing more than a waste of time and money.  

Peter Meloro

The Apollo Moon Landing occurred July, 20, 1969.  I arrived in Vietnam on July 10, 1969.  To say my mind was occupied elsewhere would be an understatement.  I was newly assigned to the 101st Airborne Division and on or about the 20th, I arrived at my unit Charlie Company, 2nd Battalion, 506th Infantry as a newly assigned Company Clerk.  We did hear about the landing on Armed Forces Radio and eventually from Star and Stripes (military newspaper).  I then received letters from home that included articles about the landing.  Quite frankly, it was somewhat of a non event for me and I never sensed the event generated much discussion among the Infantry soldiers.  We had other things to keep us occupied.  Clearly, it was a momentous achievement for the United States and the World but to the Infantry  soldier it was another day in the bush trying to stay alive.  I was fortunate to spend most of my time in a Base Camp but it was not without its dangers as well.

The Apollo 11 Moon Landing was a historical turning point for the United States.  It showed just how far technology had come in under a century while symbolizing a stunning victory over Russia in the Space Race and the Cold War.  While many of our volunteer veterans were off fighting in Vietnam during this historic moment, others were back home and remembered exactly what they were doing when they heard the news of the Moon Landing.  Most of the veterans remember watching or listening to the historic event on the news and couldn’t help being ecstatic.  They felt as if the United States gained a major victory in technological advancements along with the Cold War.  There are other volunteer veterans that also question if it really happened.  They believe that the Moon Landing was nothing more than a waste of time and money all for the sole purpose of beating Russia.  At the end of the day, our volunteer veterans can agree that the Moon Landing is still a notable event in American history which they were alive to witness. 

    

By Kyle Peschler

NJVVMF Intern

Woodstock was a music festival that occurred in the summer of 1969 in Bethel, New York.  The festival is known to this day for its extensive lineup of performers and even larger crowds that were painted as anti-war protestors.  Performers included Jimi Hendrix, The Grateful Dead, and Creedence Clearwater Revival, all of whom played an important role in the counterculture movement during the Vietnam Era.  Since Woodstock took place at the height of the Vietnam War, our volunteers have different opinions on the seemingly anti-war festival.    

Among the employees giving back to The Memorial was Jennifer Hardy, the Regional Vice President of the New Jersey Metro area.  Although she had no ties to The Memorial or the Vietnam Era, her grandfather courageously served in World War II, which helped her understand what the Vietnam Veterans went through. Just like most of the employees, Jen believes in the core value of giving back.  

Frank served in the 69th Infantry Regiment of the New York State National Guard until November 1970, when he enlisted into the U.S. Army.  Frank served at Fort Dix, New Jersey, from 1970 to 1971.  

Frank graduated high school in the summer of 1969, right around the time of Woodstock.  Although Frank was capable of going to the festival, he declined because instead of paying $23, he could pay $4.50 to see the same artists just seven blocks away at the Fillmore East Theater in New York City.  

Frank Dunn:

To this day, Frank regrets not going to Woodstock.  According to Frank, not all the artists who performed at Woodstock were anti-war.  The festival was about peace and love; for three days, there was not a single act of violence among 400,000 people.  Frank instead went to the Watkins Glen Festival after his service in the military.  Frank said it had the same feeling of “peace and love” as Woodstock.  The music of the Vietnam Era shaped Frank’s life in many ways.  Before enlisting in the Army, Frank was anti-war; after his medical discharge in 1971, his opinions on Vietnam greatly increased.      

Casper “Cappy” Everhard:

Cappy served in the Marines and was deployed to Vietnam in 1966.  Cappy was a tank crewman for the Bravo Company, 1st Marine Division.  At the time of Woodstock, Cappy was still in the military.  

Being rejected by everyone upon coming home, Cappy didn’t want to be anywhere near Woodstock.  Even if Cappy wanted to go, he still had a military haircut and would’ve stood out.  Looking back now, Cappy applauds the people who went.  According to Cappy, it was a big party where everyone was having fun.  Cappy states that he and his fellow Marines fought for the right of civilians back home to protest.  Cappy’s job was to serve his country, which he believed in.  

Woodstock took place in August 1969, not long after the Moon Landing.  Having been in Vietnam for a little over a month at that time, again, it had no impact on me, nor did I pay attention to it. From a cynical perspective, it was attended by individuals who could have been in the military and in Vietnam. Protesting of the war was very commonplace, and as we heard more and more about the protesting and some of the anger directed at the soldiers, we would necessarily have to tune them out.

 

We had a saying in Vietnam that any English teacher would be aghast at its grammar, but here it is, “It don’t mean nothing.”  It was our way of saying the Country didn’t support us, the Government didn’t support us, and we could only depend on each other. Therefore, as much as I enjoyed music with the Temptations and groups like them being my preference when it came to Woodstock, “It don’t mean nothing.”

Woodstock was a controversial music festival known for its large drug use and anti-war rhetoric.  The common idea is that

    

By Kyle Peschler

NJVVMF Intern

One of the most notable presidents in United States history, John F. Kennedy was assassinated on November 22, 1963.  At this time the Vietnam War was well underway and soldiers were dying daily.  As the war raged on, it was becoming increasingly unpopular at home in the United States.  Many were influenced by JFK’s words “ask not what your country can do for you, ask what you can do for your country” and joined the military.  Since this event occurred during the Vietnam Era, our volunteers have their own opinions on Kennedy’s job performance and remember exactly where they were when news broke of his assassination. 

Rick Amsterdam: 

Rick Amsterdam, who enlisted into the U.S. Army in 1969 and served in Vietnam from 1970-1971, was in ninth grade in Brooklyn, New York at the time of JFK’s assasination.  During that time students would get a one hour lunch break where they could leave school to buy and have their lunch.  After lunch Rick and his friends would spend the remainder of their hour playing handball in the schoolyard.  Rick was in gym class when his teacher came out crying and gathered all the students and told them the news of Kennedy’s assasination.  Later that day the school’s principal addressed everyone on the speaker and said that everyone was dismissed for the rest of the day so they could go home and reflect on what happened with their parents.  According to Rick many of his peers started to cry once they heard of the news, he himself felt upset at the events that had occurred.  Rick remembers his parents being extremely upset at the fact that such a horrific act could take place in “this day and age.”  The entire country was glued to their televisions and radios as the events unfolded.  One event that stuck out to Rick was the State Funeral that was held for JFK.  During the funeral, everyone cried when the television showed three year old John Kennedy Jr. saluting his fathers casket as it was led by a horse drawn carriage down the funeral route.  Rick was astonished when he watched Jack Ruby kill Kennedy’s assassin Lee Harvey Oswald on live television prior to the trial as he was being escorted by FBI agents.  This image is forever embedded into Rick’s mind.  After watching this event, Rick realized that anything could happen to anyone at any given time.  JFK’s famous speech “Ask not what your country can do for you, ask what you can do for your country” stayed in Rick’s mind for a very long time. As Rick became eligible to join the military, he remembered JFK’s words and what he thought about Communism and the nation’s obligation to stop it.  Kennedy’s words and presidency played a big part as to why many of Rick’s peers joined the military to fight against Communism.      

Bill Leipold: 

Bill Leipold, who enlisted into the U.S. Army and served in Vietnam from 1968-1969 as a helicopter pilot, was fifteen at the time of Kennedy’s assasination and a sophomore in high school.  Bill was in sixth grade at a Catholic grammar school when  he first heard of JFK.  Since Kennedy was potentially going to be the first Catholic president, there was a lot of excitement and enthusiasm within Bill’s school.  During Kennedy’s campaign, the nuns at Bill’s school had them make posters and other items to help encourage his election.  Once JFK was elected, everyone was excited as the feeling of Camelot had arrived.  Most of Bill’s peers at the time took Kennedy’s “ask not what your country can do for you, ask what you can do for your country” to heart.  They endorsed his decisions to establish the Green Berets and be more involved in Vietnam.  On the day of Kennedy’s assasination, Bill was attending a Catholic high school in Atlantic City, NJ.  While in class, the priests and nuns came out to announce the news of his passing, everyone was shocked and saddened.  Along with the killing of Lee Harvey Oswald shortly after, everyone had been numbed by the series of events.  To this day, Bill’s most vivid memory of the entire event is the state funeral where three year old JFK Jr salutes his fathers casket as it passed by him on the funeral route. Bill always asks himself what could’ve been if Kennedy completed his first term and won a second.           

Pat Vellucci: 

Pat served in the 10th Cavalry of the 4th Infantry in the Central Highlands of Vietnam from May 1967 to May 1968.  According to Pat, JFK was seen as a superstar who was loved by the world.  Everywhere Pat went he would hear about Kennedy and what he was doing.  Pat is aware that there was another side to JFK that wasn’t shown by the media.  Pat believes that being a shameless womanizer and leaving a battalion on the beaches of Cuba was inexcusable.  Pat was in class at Paramus HIgh School when he heard that President Kennedy was shot.  At the time Pat was trying to learn new plays for a football game he had after school that night.  A few years after the event took place, Pat was working on a film titled Ellery Queen, which starred Kennedy’s brother in law Peter Lawford.  Peter would speak about “Jack” along with his father Joseph, who completely controlled him.  According to Peter the Kennedy Family had made a great deal of enemies.  Peter would often joke about how many of them were in Dallas on the day of the shooting.  The point being that there could’ve been more behind the assassination than Lee Harvey Oswald.   

Jim McGinnis:

Jim was drafted into the U.S. Army in October of 1965 and served with the 196th Light Infantry Brigade until July 1967.  Jim served in Vietnam from 1966 to 1976.  At the time, Jim was working as a messenger for Columbia Gas Systems in New York City.  Jim worked with a temp messenger who he and his coworkers believed was not that bright.  At around noon the temp messenger told Jim and his coworkers about Kennedy’s assasination.  At the time none of them believed the temp as they did not think much of him.  As it turned out the temp was telling the truth and Kennedy was assassinated earlier that morning.  The following four days after Kennedy’s assasination were something Jim had never experienced before.  According to Jim, President Kennedy was beloved by the entire nation and his realm was likened to “Camelot.”  To this day Jim believes that Kennedy would have pulled the troops out of Vietnam as his idea was to use Special Forces and advisers to train the Vietnamese to defend their own country. 

Bill “Doc” McLung: 

Bill was an Army Medic who started serving in the military in June 1968.  At the time of Kennedy’s assasination Bill was around 18-19 years old and had just started college.  Bill lived in Kearny at the time and commuted to Jersey City State College.  On the day of the assassination Bill had an afternoon class at around 3:00-4:00 PM.  Wanting to get to class early, Bill left his home at 1:00-2:00.  While on the way to class Bill stopped at a gas station where they usually played the radio news broadcast.  It was there Bill heard the news that President Kennedy was assassinated and pronounced dead.  After pondering whether to go to class or not, Bill drove over to campus and met up with a few friends.  After discussing the events that had unfolded, it was announced that class was canceled, something they all saw coming.  Once Bill arrived home, he turned on his big wooden television and watched the news coverage for the entire weekend.  The coverage started with investigations as to who did it which eventually led to the hunt and capture of Lee Harvey Oswald.  According to Bill, nothing like this had ever occurred in his lifetime up to that moment and the constant news coverage was unprecedented.  To this day, the memory of watching Jack Ruby kill Lee Harvey Oswald on live television remains clear in Bill’s head.  Unlike today’s media, the news coverage kept playing Oswald’s shooting over again.  Once this happened, theories as to what really happened started to fly.  Bill has thought about what really happened for a long time.  Since the Kennedy’s had many enemies, shooters would have ranged from the government to the mafia.  Bill remembers the news coverage revealing that Oswald, although served in the Army, was not trained as a sniper or a marksman.  Oswald also used a mail order rifle which was known to be cheaply made.  To this day Bill questions how someone who had no training in marksmanship could get three headshots in a moving car from such a high vantage point with a cheaply made rifle.  Bill’s questions only increased when he visited the site of Kennedy’s assassination years later on a business trip.  According to Bill, the Kennedy assassination was all over the news for around two weeks after until it started to slowly fade away.  

Bill believes that the event was terrible, even if you supported the president or not, the assassination was tragic.  Bill did not support President Kennedy as he was affiliated with the opposite party and did not agree with his politics.  Bill didn’t like the Kennedy family in general, especially the father Joseph Kennedy Sr.  Bill believes to this day that Joseph Sr. was a sleeze who made his wealth from racquets and booze running during the prohibition.  Once Joseph Sr. made his money he wanted to build a dynasty.  Joseph’s son, Joseph Kennedy Jr. was a fighter pilot in World War II and was killed in action.  Having been groomed to be president, John F. Kennedy, then a state senator, took his place, being controlled by his father.  Bill believes the influence that wealth can do brought scandals amongst the family.  Bill was disgusted when JFK’s brother Ted Kennedy killed a woman in a drunk driving accident and had it covered up by the family.  Although Bill doesn’t like the family and how they acted, he tends to look back now and agree more with what President Kennedy believed back then.

Michael Coale: 

Michael was drafted into the U.S. Army in 1966 and served in Vietnam from 1967 to 1968 with the 4th Battalion 9th Regiment and the 2nd Battalion 12th Regiment, both in the 25th Division.  Michael had graduated high school in 1961 and was attending night school at Fairleigh Dickinson University Teaneck when the Cuban Missile Crisis occurred.  Michael remembers watching the crisis occur on a small black and white television in the student union center in between classes.  Michael and his peers were concerned about a potential war and if they were going to fight.  Vietnam wasn’t as much of an issue at the time.  On the day of Kennedy’s assasination Michael was working at his place of employment when he heard the news.  Not having a television, Michael and his co-workers listened to the radio broadcast for updates on the events as they became available.  Michael worried about the future as it was a somber time for the nation, but they preserved and moved on.

Cappy Everhard:

Cappy served in the Marines and was deployed to Vietnam in 1966.  Cappy was a tank crewman for the Bravo Company, 1st Marine Division.  Cappy was in a class in high school when he found out about Kennedy’s assasination.  Cappy was devastated to hear the news of Kennedy’s death since he loved the president.  Although today Cappy admits President Kennedy had his faults, he still believes that there hasn’t been a good president since.  According to Cappy, President Kennedy was straightforward and for the troops.  Cappy believes that President Kennedy had great ideas.  This is why Cappy was devastated when Kennedy, along with his younger brother Robert, were assassinated.     

since the JFK Assassination took place before the Vietnam War became a major issue, almost all of our volunteer veterans remember exactly where they were and what they were doing when they found out President Kennedy was killed.  A common theme amongst the volunteer veterans was the sadness that fell over America as President Kennedy was beloved by the entire nation and the world.  There are many differing opinions amongst our volunteer veterans when it comes to President Kennedy.  Some supported him, using his patriotic words as inspiration to join the military and fight for the American cause.  Many ask what would’ve happened if Kennedy wasn’t assassinated and won a second term.  A few believe that had Kennedy not been killed, he would’ve pulled the American troops out of Vietnam to have Special Forces train the Vietnamese to fight for themselves.  On the other hand, a few of our volunteers did not support Kennedy.  Some being of the opposite party, didn’t agree with Kennedy politically while others didn’t like him due to the fact that he was a shameless womanizer and left American troops to die on the beaches of Cuba in the failed Bay of Pigs Invasion.  A few volunteers didn’t like the Kennedy Family as a whole.  Having made their wealth off of racquets and booze running during the Prohibition, the veterans see Joseph Kennedy as a shady figure.  The volunteers don’t like how wealth brought out the worst of the Kennedy Family which led to numerous scandals.  Some volunteers even question who really shot President Kennedy and what their true motive was.  At the end of the day however, no matter what their beliefs are, all of the veteran volunteers agree that the Kennedy Assassination was a national tragedy.

 

    

By Kyle Peschler

NJVVMF Intern

On Thursday, June 9th employees from Home Depot gathered at the New Jersey Vietnam Veterans’ Memorial in order to give back to the Vietnam Veterans. The Home Depot employees paid tribute by planting colorful flowers around the property and washing The Memorial walls.  One of the core values of Home Depot is giving back to a community, whether that be fixing a children’s playground or washing the walls of a veteran’s memorial.      

“I always enjoyed doing the Team Depot Projects with Home Depot.” John Poyhonen, an Operations Manager at Forked River said. “What started out as doing playgrounds for kids grew into doing things for VFW’s and memorials.” 

This was a common theme that most of the Home Depot employees mentioned.  Many employees either had family members who served in Vietnam or realized the pain and suffering the Veterans went through during the war. There is also a small percentage of employees that just like to give back to the community in general.  

“This is one of my favorite things the company does.” John continued.  “I have worked for other companies that did very little for people or the community.” 

Home Depot has a value wheel that its employees use on a daily basis.  Values range from respecting each other to giving back. According to Tom Gally, a Pro Account Sales Representative from Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, employees at Home Depot hold the values on the wheel very sacred to them.  In order to work in the company, one needs to have a giving mentality.  

Along with the orange apron-wearing everyday workers, many high-ranking employees such as store managers and regional vice presidents of Home Depot came out to lend a hand in sprucing up the memorial.  

“How can you not want to help after seeing what they went through?” Lisa Corci, the Community Captain asked. “I want to give back because the soldiers risked their lives for us. It isn’t about just throwing money around, sometimes you have to do things like this.”

Among the employees giving back to The Memorial was Jennifer Hardy, the Regional Vice President of the New Jersey Metro area.  Although she had no ties to The Memorial or the Vietnam Era, her grandfather courageously served in World War II, which helped her understand what the Vietnam Veterans went through. Just like most of the employees, Jen believes in the core value of giving back.  

“On a pretty regular basis, we volunteer time and work on projects. It is an annual tradition here at The Memorial.” Jennifer explained.

Many Home Depot employees choose to participate in the cleaning of The Memorial because they have personal ties to someone who served in the Vietnam War.  John Poyhonen has an uncle who served in Vietnam and survived. While Kim Vignola, the manager for Home Depot in Hazlet, had two uncles who served and survived.  Tom Gally did not know anyone personally who served in Vietnam, the closest was a man his father knew.  As a child, Tom remembered his father talking to a young man who had just found out he was going to serve in Vietnam.  The newly drafted soldier was scared and did not want to go.  Tom’s father tried to calm him down by explaining how everything was going to be alright.  Unfortunately, the man did not survive the war.  Due to their close ties to people who served in Vietnam, each of these employees knows what the Veterans went through while on their tour of duty along with the hardships they faced upon returning home.    

The annual washing of The Memorial has been going on for around twelve years.  Dennis Beauregard, a member of the Vietnam Vets Chapter 12 in Oakhurst, NJ has been a key member in putting this event together. Dennis served in the Army Infantry from 1967 to 1968. Instead of serving a full year, Dennis was injured within four and a half months.  Due to this injury, Dennis spent seven months in Valley Forge Military Hospital in Pennsylvania for seven months. After those long months in the hospital, Dennis was honorably discharged.  

“I have been a big veterans advocate since day one to fight for benefits that veterans deserve and receive now,” Dennis stated. “When we first came back, they didn’t want to know us, no one did.” 

Dennis discussed how veterans of the Korean War and World War II began to respect Vietnam Veterans because they fought for them and went through the same troubles such as PTSD and Agent Orange. This led Dennis to advocate for all veterans along with his own from Vietnam. Dennis has been a big fan of what the New Jersey Vietnam Veterans’ Memorial Foundation has done to help preserve history and educate today’s youth about the era. 

“I’ve been here since opening day,” Dennis stated.  “The thing is now to educate our youth.” 

Dennis expressed his interest in the tours the foundation gives to school groups every year. After the Home Depot employees were done planting flowers and washing The Memorial, two Veteran Volunteers gave the Home Depot employees a tour of The Memorial and Vietnam Era Museum.  Although many employees have relatives who served in Vietnam, many know very little about the era. This tour gave them an opportunity to learn about the war and time period.

At the end of the day, the Home Depot employees gave back to the Vietnam Veterans and learned more about the time period. The Home Depot employees felt fulfilled and accomplished with the jobs they did.