Merry Christmas to all-

it migrated.

Would you settle for her web address :-)

Merry Christmas,

Tom

...and to all a good night.

Tom

Hey, I would STILL take a go with Twiggy :) Always like Diane Cannon, and Farrah Fawcett too.

But dont mind me, I just lost the love of my life due to longterm illness recently, so I really am open to almost anything these days....... This is a very muted Christmas for me right now...

My younger son leaves for basic training Jan 3, he has decided to become an 11 Bravo, I couldnt be more proud, and at the same time a little sad at his leaving. But he has grown up and decided to do what he has always wanted to since he was 13 years old. I wish him all the best. He continues the long line of soldiers he is descended from.

Merry Christmas to ALL here, God Bless all our men and women in our amred forces !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Allan

My Christmas wish is much more simple that those (though probably more difficult for Sanrta to deliver. I'd just like to have some peace in the world.

Best wishes to all for a happy Christmas and my condolences to my British friends who have to wait for Boxing Day to see what Santa brought you ;~).

-- -- -- -- -- "We sleep safe in our beds because rough men stand ready in the night to visit violence on those who would do us harm." George Orwell

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You want peace, we want a piece... where's the difficulty. ;-) LOL... Merry Christmas Bill.

WmB

keep your powder dry and whistle wet.

yeah, peace, what a novel idea. i agree, just gimmie some peace, santa.

iceberg, goldberg...wait wrong story. there was a priest, a rabbi and a ...

I realize that all the posts about Christmas ans Christman memories and all have been light-hearted and humorous. My wish for peace was a serious if, in reality, an unachievable one.

My most memorable (not necessarily my happiest) Christmas actually happened two days late.

My Recon Team received its Frag order for the next patrol on the evening of 25 December 1967. The next day we prepared for a 5-day recon patrol and on the morning of 27 December we were waiting on the LZ for the helos. We were scheduled to be the second insert of the day on the morning of 27 December but the team going into the first recon location took heavy fire, wounding two before they could even get off the birds and they diverted to Charlie Med with the casualties. The helos were also hit and needed some emergency repairs so our insert was delayed until early afternoon. When we finally were inserted and the helos departed, all was quiet. We moved as quickly as we could up the finger of the hill to a point where we set up an OP to observe enemy activity. We saw a lot of movement in the valley below and called in several artillery fire missions on the NVA troops and it didn't take the NVA long to figure out where the guys calling the artillery in were at.

At about 1630, I had just relieved one of the other guys on the spotter scope on the OP and he was moving back up to the top of the hill where the rest of the team was. He had just disappeared from view when the whole hillside literally erupted in gunfire. We grabbed our gear and sprinted back to the lager site.

I broke into the clearing just in time to see my good friend, LCPL Ronald Frederick Kitzke (of Wawatosa WI) go down. He was leaning forward looking for movement down the trail when an NVA leapt out with an Ak-47 and fired a three round burst; all three hit Ski. The force of the impact threw him backward and onto the ground. As Doc Highum rushed to Ski, I dispatched the NVA with my

12-Ga. and then went to Ski as well. Two of the rounds had gone through his open mouth and exited the back of his neck on either side of the spine. The third hit him in the upper right chest and it exited the middle of his back.

An airborne FAC was diverted from another mission and was overhead within about

10 minutes and began directing artillery and fixes wing air support on the NVA surrounding us and their reserves in the valley below.

CH-46s tried to get in to extract us but they were badly short up and had to abort. More air support and artillery was called in. It was now getting dark and it had been some two hours since Ski was hit and Doc had not been able to completely control Ski's bleeding. The NVA were preparing for a final assault to roll us up when an AC-47 and flareship showed up. The mini-guns finally broke the NVA assault and another flight of helos came and we were able to get out. Normally two helos wound come but, in this instance, due to the still hot LZ only one was going to land and we were all going to get on it.

The helo didn't circle or anything; he just came straight in and settled on the little hilltop with the front of the helo hanging out over the slope while we walking wounded carried Ski and the immobile wounded aboard and we lifter off for Charlie Med. On the way to Charlie Med, Ski succumbed to his wounds and loss of blood in my lap on the floor of the helo.

Ski and I went through Boot Camp and Infantry training together. I even spend a couple days of my leave with him before we reported back to Camp Pendleton for Recon School together and then deployment to Nam together. We were good friends and I will never forget that day; nor will I ever forget Ronald Frederick Kitzke. As the anniversary of his loss approaches, I am making a feeble attempt here to remember him and honor his memory.

-- -- -- -- -- "We sleep safe in our beds because rough men stand ready in the night to visit violence on those who would do us harm." George Orwell

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I'm sorry to learn that - my condolences. Makes for a tough holiday season. :(

Hooah! I'm heartened that young men are still volunteering for service in the midst of a war, and for combat arms no less. Best wishes and congratulations to him and to you.

We call them 'walkers'. Still have Dad's here in case it ever needs to be used again.

Bill Banaszak, MFE

I suspect that brunette on the phone commercials is Catherine Zeta-Jones. Santa will have to go back for her to the time before Michael Douglas. :} ( A worthy trip, in my estimation)

Bill Banaszak, MFE

Sure, we know people who fight aging. Do you know anyone who's won?