Interwoven with the author’s own experiences and reflections on the Vietnam War are the personal narratives of other Vietnam veterans. He focuses on how they were treated upon returning home and how their lives, physical and mental health, were impacted by the war. Many of those that served in the Vietnam War are still dealing with its effects. In this important book, for which more than 150 Vietnam veterans were interviewed, a strong light is shone on the lingering legacy of the war. Some volunteered, others were drafted. Some saw combat, others dealt with its aftermath. Some thrived after coming home from Vietnam. Still others led successful lives but have had to deal with the effects of PTSD and Agent Orange illnesses. A great many struggled to reclaim their places in civilian life. The horrors and shock or war were compounded by the “welcome” home many Vietnam veterans received.
Those that came home from Vietnam had to move on as best they
could, on their own terms. Here are their stories.
A routine mission in Vietnam. Last flight of the day. Chinook 07999 with its crew of five picked up fifteen passengers heading back to the rear. Some had finished their tour and were heading home. Others were going on R & R to see their wives. As luck would have it, an additional mission was assigned to them. They were to pick up some empty fuel blivets from navy river boats that had been refueled. A milk run. Easy peasy. But nothing was easy in Vietnam.
As they flew in the VC were waiting. Rocket propelled grenades and small arms fire impacted the ship bringing it down in a ball of fire. In the ensuing crash nine would eventually lose their life. Others were horrifically wounded. Their families back home had no idea what was happening thousands of miles away.
This is the story of the men involved in this crash, both the wounded and the dead. The families of those who survived and those who did not. It chronicles the heartbreak and the sorrow of learning to live with loss. We veterans of the Vietnam War never had the luxury of mourning our dead. We were forced to move on. But it never left us.
For the families the pain lingered the rest of their lives.
This is their story.
Jack McCabe was born and raised in Chicago, Illinois. He attended both Catholic elementary school and high school. He feels that experience helped him prepare for Vietnam.
With this light and sunny personal memoir of his youth Jack leaves the seriousness and impact of the Vietnam War behind.
Climb on your bike with Jack and take a nostalgic ride back to the 50’s and 60’s in this often funny, sometimes heartbreaking, memoir of growing up Catholic in Chicago. Follow the author’s dilemma of being an ADD student under the strict supervision of Catholic nuns combined with his unsupervised antics when away from school. Jack recounts the hilarious and poignant stories of his blue-collar childhood.
You will meet the crazy cast of characters in school and in his neighborhood as well as cousins, aunts and uncles. At the urging of friends and family he has chronicled the stories of his childhood. Humorous and sometimes sobering, it is sure to be enjoyed by all generations.
