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In the Spring of 1971, Gary Holian surprised his family by coming home for his R&R from Vietnam. The Gary who arrived at their doorstep was quite unlike the Gary they knew before he left for war. Three months later, Gary was killed when his Huey gunship was shot down over the DMZ. His sisters, Jody and Lory, traveled on Honor Flight Chicago's Mission 125 in September of 2025 to honor his memory. They share their family's story here.

Arnie Oskin never saw combat in Vietnam, but he witnessed firsthand its effects on those who did. Arnie's profession was social work, and he used his skills as a neuro-psychiatric specialist to make recommendations around the mental state of veterans coming back from Vietnam. Over a long career in the Army, Arnie's own mental well-being was affected by what he saw.

Army Special Forces Veteran Bruce Hill served in Laos during the Vietnam War as part of clandestine operations that were not formally acknowledged for many years. Though Hill made it home, a Vietnam tragedy unrelated to his time in Laos changed his life forever, and set him on a path toward honoring his fellow Veteran at every turn.

The Battle of Ia Drang in November of 1965 was the first major battle between the U.S. Army and the North Vietnamese Army during the Vietnam War. The engagement -- which resulted in 237 dead and 258 wounded on the American side -- spawned a critically acclaimed book and a major motion picture detailing the events around Landing Zones X-Ray and Albany. Lieutenant Bob Konrardy was there. This is his story.

Carl Adams spent the Vietnam War walking his dog. As an Air Force sentry dog handler at Phan Rang Air Base, Carl's job was to patrol the perimeter each night to defend against sappers and other attacks. The adventures of Carl and his sentry dog, Andy, were often entertaining, sometimes irreverent, and occasionally terrifying -- but above all else, the K9 unit was known for its dedication and professionalism in the field.

In May of 1969, Jim Miller was badly wounded in a sapper attack on his firebase near the infamous "Hamburger Hill." In the months that followed, Jim had to re-learn how to walk. He also sought to learn exactly what had happened that day, a process that took far longer.

On May 9, 1968, Marine Corps L/Cpl Timothy Fitzmaurice was killed in action in Thua Thien Province, Vietnam. His sisters, Ellen Shea and Maureen Schiesser, remember in vivid detail the subsequent knock on the door at their family home. More than 57 years later, Ellen and Maureen joined HFC123 as our inaugural Gold Star Family participants to honor their brother's sacrifice as well as their own.

By the age of 18, James Cox knew he wanted to fly helicopters. In 1969 he arrived in Vietnam as a Huey gunship pilot, an assignment full of risk considering over one-third of all Hueys in combat were shot down during the war. After his tour, he was assigned as an instructor pilot back in the United States. There he found flying with his students to be too dangerous for his taste -- so he requested a second tour back in Vietnam.

Army SP5 Tom Messenger served as a flight engineer on a Chinook in the early 1970s, flying "dozens and dozens" of missions ferrying men and supplies into Vietnam, Cambodia and Laos. While some of those missions were uneventful "milk runs" as Tom says, many were not. He wrote a book about his experiences in Vietnam, and he shares some of his stories with us here.

Air Force SSgt Donald Beach's job in Vietnam was, in part, loading body bags onto planes heading back to the States. Between that and the wounds he suffered during a rocket attack on his base, Don developed strong feelings about his service. When he was greeted by protestors upon his return home, Don was so upset that he wrote a letter to his Congressman -- a letter so powerful it was entered into the Congressional Record.

Johnnie Williams received a bit of advice as he arrived in Vietnam: Don't get too close to the soldiers you are fighting with. He found out why on his very first mission in the jungle, and again and again throughout his tour. As Johnnie came to understand, though, heeding that advice was much easier said than done.

Don Hendrick grew up in the Cabrini-Green Housing Project and joined the Army after repeated run-ins with the law. On the battlefields of Vietnam he distinguished himself, earning the Bronze Star with V device. Upon his return home, though, he was told "nobody cares." Years of substance abuse followed, but Don's story did not end there. In this raw and honest episode, Don details the road he took to "get busy living."

Sergeant Don Taylor had a background in music when he entered the service. Armed with an FCC license, Taylor was the perfect recruit to join the Armed Forces Vietnam Network as a disc jockey spinning the soundtrack of the Vietnam War. Here he shares old clips from his shows and the music meant to give our service men and women a taste of home.

Richard O'Connor earned a Bronze Star for his heroics on the battlefield one early April day in 1969, a fact that only came to light back home when his mom found the medal in his duffle bag. Dick did not want the attention as he dealt with the lasting emotional scars of service. Dick credits his wife, Patricia, with helping him deal with those scars, beginning with her letters to him in Vietnam through to the present day.

Dr. John Wander was drafted in 1967, certain he was headed to Vietnam where surgeons like himself were in great demand. Instead, he was assigned to an Army base eight miles from the DMZ in South Korea. As the base's Chief Surgeon, he used his authority to benefit not just those assigned there but to deliver much-needed care to hundreds of Koreans in the surrounding areas.