“Vietnam – My Story” Remembered

The new issue of The Rock, Whittier College’s alumni magazine,  has an article about last April’s trip to Vietnam; You can read it by clicking here.

I also wanted to add a couple videos that I had not posted before – Enjoy.

Vietnam 1968-1969; And 42 Years Later

I would like to share with you all a great slide show produced by Frank Remkiewicz ’74 about his Vietnam experience. Frank was part of the Whittier group that traveled to Vietnam in April.

Check it out –   the music really sets the tone!

A look back at LZ Evans – by Fred Bergerson

Fred Bergerson - Camp Evans 1968

I was contacted recently by one of my men, Paul Seaton, after he discovered our blog online. I had lost track of him for more than 40 years. He sent along some photos, [including the one posted here]. This photo will give the people we traveled with [as well as those who’ve followed our blog] a sense of how close we were to the actual place where the 191^st Military Intelligence Detachment worked at LZ Evans. The road where we parked at LZ Evans prior to the memorial service was on the airstrip. You can see that location clearly in the picture, because there are a few aircraft parked on the runway. We then walked towards where I was standing in the picture to find a suitable place to plant the flag.

The trip is a gift that keeps on giving. Reuniting with Paul Seaton, with whom I worked so closely, is a special pleasure for me. You may recall the story of how when I lost weight, one of my men, who started out more slender than I, was losing at the same rate. For example, when he went from long-large to long-medium, I went from long-extra large, to long-large. As I lost those 70 pounds, I kept getting Seaton’s fatigue pants, rather than having to wade through the vicissitudes of the Army supply system.

Professor Fred Bergerson in the “Whittier Daily News”

Fred Bergerson - Khe Sahn

Cpt. Fred Bergson was featured in Bill Bell’s Memorial Day column in the Whittier Daily News.

http://www.whittierdailynews.com/business/ci_15194011

“The War is Over – We are friends now”

A while back Frank Remkiewicz wrote about meeting an ex-Viet Cong soldier while visitng the Forbidden City in Hue — the following photo records that event

The war is over - meeting olf VC & NVA in Hue

Frank wrote: “I recall our meanderings in Hue. When inside the Citadel we came across two “ex-VC” and one former NVA type. They all went to great lengths to share with us the following sentiment,  ‘The war is over, we are friends now.’ While I still have much to work through from that trip, I must admit, ‘The war is over, we are friends now.’ Peace”

Colorado Article

Fellow traveler Kat Larson – Colorado Native – is featured in an article about the trip to Vietnam. Read more here: http://www.coloradocommunitynewspapers.com/articles/2010/05/12/centennial_citizen/news/07_pj_vietnam_trip_ce.prt

Poll: Vietnamese upbeat 35 years after U.S. exit

Thirty-five years after the end of the Vietnam War, the people of this country are optimistic about the future, bullish about the free market and rarely think about a conflict that still ignites political passions in America.
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/36838056/ns/world_news-asiapacific/from/ET