Vietnam Veterans Memorial Project, 7889 Lichen Drive, #113, Citrus Heights, CA (2026)

10/09/2026

THIS DAY IN VIETNAM HISTORY — OCTOBER 9, 1969

Four soldiers.

Four extraordinary stories of courage.

One unforgettable day.

On October 9, 1969, President Richard Nixon stood on the South Lawn of the White House and presented our nation’s highest military decoration to four Vietnam War heroes.

Major Patrick H. Brady

Captain Jack H. Jacobs

Captain James M. Sprayberry

Sergeant Robert M. Patterson

Each had demonstrated extraordinary heroism in Vietnam.

Major Brady repeatedly flew his medical evacuation helicopter into enemy-held territory, rescuing fifty-one seriously wounded Americans during one day of combat operations.

Captain Jacobs, serving alongside South Vietnamese soldiers, continued fighting despite his wounds and helped save fourteen American and allied lives.

Captain Sprayberry spent hours rescuing wounded soldiers while attacking enemy positions threatening his men.

Sergeant Patterson charged fortified enemy bunkers, helping his platoon overcome determined resistance.

Their stories were different.

Their missions were different.

But they shared something extraordinary.

When other lives depended on them, they placed themselves in danger.

They refused to leave their fellow soldiers behind.

And on October ninth, nineteen sixty-nine, a grateful nation recognized their courage.

But October ninth holds other important Vietnam memories.

In nineteen sixty-eight, the First Marine Division and First Marine Aircraft Wing received Presidential Unit Citations recognizing their extraordinary service in Vietnam.

In nineteen sixty-seven, soldiers of the First Infantry Division were fighting during Operation Shenandoah II.

And in nineteen sixty-six, Navy aviator Ross Terry began more than six years as a prisoner of war in North Vietnam.

Today, we honor those who demonstrated extraordinary courage.

We remember those who never returned.

And we recognize the thousands of Americans and South Vietnamese who served alongside them.

Courage is not the absence of fear.

It is answering the call when others need you most.

Every service mattered.

Every mission mattered.

Every name matters.

HONOR • EDUCATE • PRESERVE

Vietnam Veterans Memorial Project

CHVMP.org

Please LIKE and SHARE this remembrance so more people learn their history, remember their sacrifice, and help preserve their legacy.

10/08/2026

THIS DAY IN VIETNAM HISTORY — OCTOBER 8, 1967

He was 24 years old.

A West Point graduate.

An American Army officer serving not with an American infantry battalion—but alongside soldiers of the Army of the Republic of Vietnam.

On October 8, 1967, 1LT Carl Robert Arvin was serving as an adviser to the 7th ARVN Airborne Battalion when the South Vietnamese paratroopers encountered an entrenched enemy force.

Mortars and automatic weapons pinned the battalion down.

Arvin left cover.

He crossed exposed ground under fire so he could direct helicopter gunships onto the enemy positions.

When the battalion moved forward and came under fire again, he did it again.

Arvin continued directing supporting aircraft until he was mortally wounded.

His actions helped the South Vietnamese soldiers defeat an enemy force substantially larger than their own.

For his actions that day, he received his second Silver Star—posthumously.

His name is on the Vietnam Veterans Memorial:

Panel 27E, Line 68.

But October 8 was not finished.

That same day, a U.S. Navy E-1B Tracer disappeared near Đà Nẵng.

Five sailors were aboard:

LTJG Andrew G. Zissu
LTJG Donald F. Wolfe
LTJG Norman L. Roggow
ATC Roland R. Pineau
JO3 Raul A. Guerra

All were killed.

For decades, they remained missing.

Recovery teams eventually returned to the crash site.

Some of those sailors were identified in 2007.

And in 2019—more than 51 years after the crash—Raul Guerra finally came home.

October 8 also belonged to the Dustoff crews.

Army medical evacuation pilot Capt. Patrick Brady flew through torrential rain, near-zero visibility and enemy machine-gun fire to reach wounded soldiers near Tam Kỳ after other evacuation helicopters had been unable to get in.

He carried wounded men to safety.

Then he went back for more.

Different uniforms.

Different missions.

American soldiers.

South Vietnamese paratroopers.

Navy aircrew.

A Navy journalist.

Army Dustoff pilots.

They were all part of the same war.

And their stories remind us of something important:

Missing did not mean forgotten.

Every service mattered.
Every mission mattered.
Every name matters.

HONOR • EDUCATE • PRESERVE

Vietnam Veterans Memorial Project

CHVMP.org

Help us keep their stories alive. Please LIKE and SHARE this remembrance so more people learn their history, remember their sacrifice and help preserve their legacy.

10/07/2026

Want to see the aircraft from today’s Vietnam history post in action?

Here’s period footage of the Republic F-105 Thunderchief—the aircraft flown into some of the most heavily defended airspace of the Vietnam War.

Today’s CHVMP remembrance looks back at an October 7, 1967 mission in which F-105 crews attacked a heavily defended North Vietnamese helicopter area while facing MiGs, surface-to-air missiles and antiaircraft fire.

This footage gives you a sense of the aircraft—and the men who flew it.

Honor. Educate. Preserve.
CHVMP.org

10/07/2026

THIS DAY IN VIETNAM HISTORY — OCTOBER 7, 1967

Over North Vietnam, American pilots were flying into one of the most heavily defended airspaces in the world.

On October seventh, nineteen sixty-seven, U.S. Air Force F-one-oh-five Thunderchiefs attacked a heavily defended North Vietnamese helicopter parking area.

It was the first American flight credited with striking such a target.

The pilots went in low.

They faced antiaircraft fire, surface-to-air missiles and MiG-seventeen fighters.

Capt. Ramon Horinek made six strafing passes.

Lt. Col. Thomas Kirk repeatedly brought his Thunderchief back across the target.

When the attack was over, their award citations credited the mission with six enemy helicopters destroyed and two severely damaged.

Both men received the Distinguished Flying Cross for their actions.

But October seventh was not only an Air Force story.

That same day, Army Capt. Frank Kerbl was flying an OV-one Mohawk reconnaissance aircraft when he was shot down and killed.

His name is on the Vietnam Veterans Memorial at Panel twenty-seven East, Line sixty-five.

One year later, October seventh became a deadly day for Bravo Company, second Battalion, twelfth Infantry at Tam Định.

Seven soldiers were killed.

And on October seventh, nineteen sixty-nine, Navy Swift boats were fighting at close range on the Trường Giang River.

LTJG Kenneth D. Norton, officer in charge of PCF-sixty-one, was killed when his boat came under heavy enemy fire.

Different years.

Different services.

Different battlefields.

The same date.

Some fought at hundreds of miles per hour over North Vietnam.

Some walked into battle.

Some flew reconnaissance aircraft just above the terrain.

Some fought from small boats on narrow rivers.

All were part of the same war.

Today, we remember those who served—and especially those whose October seventh became their final day.

Every service mattered.
Every mission mattered.
Every name matters.

HONOR • EDUCATE • PRESERVE

Vietnam Veterans Memorial Project

CHVMP.org

Help us keep their stories alive. Please LIKE and SHARE this remembrance so more people learn their history, remember their sacrifice and help preserve their legacy.

10/04/2026

🏁 CORVETTES + A GREAT CAUSE! 🇺🇸

Come out to Red Hawk Casino today and check out an incredible lineup of Corvettes — classics, customs, and some seriously beautiful cars.

While you’re here, stop by the Citrus Heights Veterans Memorial Project booth and say hello!

We’re accepting donations to help build the Vietnam Veterans’ Memorial Wall in Citrus Heights — a 95% scale replica honoring the men and women who served and sacrificed during the Vietnam War.

🚘 Come for the Corvettes.
🇺🇸 Stop by and learn about the Memorial.
❤️ Make a donation and help us BUILD THE WALL.

Look for the CHVMP banner and table — we’re here and ready to tell you all about the project.

Every donation moves us one step closer to making this memorial a reality.

Please LIKE & SHARE and help us spread the word!

10/03/2026

THIS DAY IN VIETNAM HISTORY — OCTOBER 3, 1968

They were flying ordinary missions over a war zone.

One aircraft was a U.S. Air Force C-7A Caribou.

The other was a U.S. Army CH-47A Chinook.

At approximately 4:10 p.m., the Caribou lifted off from Camp Evans, north of Huế.

The Chinook was approaching the same installation from LZ Nancy on a scheduled passenger-and-mail shuttle.

At approximately 1,100 feet, their paths crossed.

The Chinook’s rotor struck the Caribou’s cockpit.

Both aircraft fell from the sky.

Twenty-four Americans were killed.

There were no survivors.

Four Air Force crewmen died aboard the Caribou along with nine Army passengers.

Five Army aircrewmen and six passengers died aboard the Chinook.

They were pilots.

Crew chiefs.

Infantrymen.

Signal soldiers.

Maintenance specialists.

A medic.

A dental officer.

Men carrying out the countless ordinary missions required to keep an army functioning in combat.

The disaster became more than another entry in Vietnam’s casualty record.

Air Force histories later pointed to Camp Evans as a tragic example of the hazards created when fixed-wing transports and Army helicopters shared crowded forward airspace without sufficiently integrated procedures and communications.

And October 3, 1968 was not finished.

Elsewhere, a Huey of the 117th Assault Helicopter Company attempted to carry am******on into troops engaged during Operation China Boy VI.

It was hit approaching the landing zone.

Four more Americans died, including Capt. James E. Mann of the 5th Special Forces Group.

The previous year, October 3 had taken seven airmen aboard an AC-47 gunship near Huế and an F-105 pilot over the Gulf of Tonkin.

And two years earlier, three American Special Forces soldiers disappeared during a classified reconnaissance mission across the border in Laos.

Different aircraft.

Different units.

Different years.

The same date.

Vietnam was fought on the ground—but it could not have been fought without the thousands of men flying above it.

Some carried weapons.

Some carried soldiers.

Some carried am******on.

Some carried mail.

And some were simply trying to get home.

Today we remember them all.

Every mission mattered.
Every service mattered.
Every name matters.

HONOR • EDUCATE • PRESERVE

Vietnam Veterans Memorial Project

CHVMP.org

Please LIKE and SHARE this remembrance. Every share helps preserve these names and carries their stories to another generation.

10/02/2026

THIS DAY IN VIETNAM HISTORY — OCTOBER 2, 1969

It was supposed to be a routine flight.

A U.S. Navy C-2A Greyhound lifted off from Cubi Point Naval Air Station in the Philippines carrying sailors bound for ships operating in the Gulf of Tonkin.

Its destination was USS CONSTELLATION (CVA-64).

The aircraft belonged to Fleet Tactical Support Squadron 50 — VRC-50.

As the Greyhound approached the carrier, everything appeared normal.

The crew was communicating with the ship.

The aircraft was visible on radar.

Then it disappeared.

No distress call.
No emergency transmission.
No survivors.

Ships and aircraft immediately searched the Gulf of Tonkin.

They found an oil slick.

Aircraft wreckage.

Personal effects.

But none of the men aboard.

Twenty-five U.S. Navy personnel and civilian technical representative Frank L. Bytheway are individually identified among those lost.

The sailors came from VRC-50, USS Constellation, Carrier Air Wing 14, USS Walke, USS Long Beach and USS Hamner.

They were pilots.

Aircraft mechanics.

Corpsmen.

Gunner’s mates.

Personnel specialists.

Technicians.

Sailors simply traveling from one duty station to another.

And they never came home.

Their remains have never been recovered.

The cause of the crash remains uncertain.

But October 2 carries other Vietnam stories as well.

Three years earlier, soldiers of the 1st Cavalry Division fought through the coastal hamlet of Hoa Hội during Operation Irving.

In 1967, paratroopers of the 101st Airborne Division assaulted fortified North Vietnamese positions.

In 1968, Marines fought during Operation Talladega Canyon.

And in 1970, another American helicopter crashed carrying soldiers in South Vietnam.

Different years.

Different services.

Different missions.

The same date.

Vietnam was not fought only by the men advancing through jungles and rice paddies.

It was sustained by sailors, aircrews, mechanics, logisticians, corpsmen and thousands of others who kept men, machines and supplies moving across an enormous theater of war.

Some died in combat.

Some died performing missions that looked routine.

The Wall makes no distinction.

Every name matters.

Every story deserves to be preserved.

HONOR • EDUCATE • PRESERVE

Vietnam Veterans Memorial Project

CHVMP.org

Please LIKE and SHARE this remembrance. Every share carries these names—and their story—to someone who may never have heard them.

10/01/2026

THIS DAY IN VIETNAM HISTORY — OCTOBER 1, 1972

At 1:00 in the morning, the heavy cruiser USS NEWPORT NEWS (CA-148) was firing her massive 8-inch guns off the coast of Quảng Trị Province.

Her mission was naval gunfire support for forces fighting ashore.

Then something went terribly wrong.

An 8-inch projectile detonated prematurely inside the center gun of Turret Two.

Flame blasted back into the turret.

Hundreds of pounds of propellant ignited in the powder hoists.

Fire and toxic smoke swept through the compartment and spread into the ship.

Twenty American sailors died.

Thirty-six were critically injured.

More than 250 suffered some degree of smoke or toxic-gas exposure.

Investigators later determined that the projectile’s auxiliary detonating fuze had activated prematurely.

They also discovered something chilling:

The flame had stopped only a few feet before reaching the ship’s magazine.

Had it continued, USS Newport News itself might have been lost.

The twenty sailors who died were:

Herman C. Acker
Jack S. Bergman Jr.
William Clark Jr.
Charles W. Clinard
Ronald P. Daley
Raymond R. Davis
Terry W. Deal
Joseph Grisafi
William Harrison III
Tommy M. Hawker
Robert M. Kikkert
Edward R. McEleney Jr.
Robert T. Moore
Stanley G. Pilot Jr.
Ralph L. Robinson
Wesley H. Rose
Ricky L. Rucker
Jeffrey L. Scheller
David L. Scott
Richard C. Tessman

They ranged from 18-year-old sailors to a 37-year-old Gunner’s Mate First Class.

They came from Louisiana, Maryland, Georgia, Texas, Massachusetts, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Virginia, Indiana, Missouri, New Jersey and Connecticut.

They served aboard the same ship.

And their names now appear together on the Vietnam Veterans Memorial.

The tragedy aboard USS Newport News became the largest loss of life aboard any U.S. ship on the Vietnam gun line during the war.

But the ship survived.

Her crew fought the fire.

They cared for hundreds affected by toxic smoke.

And less than three weeks later, USS Newport News returned to the gun line.

Turret Two never fired again.

Today we remember the twenty sailors who died aboard her—and every sailor who served offshore supporting those fighting on the ground.

Vietnam was fought in jungles, rice paddies and mountains.

It was also fought from flight decks, engine rooms and gun turrets at sea.

Every service mattered.
Every mission mattered.
Every name matters.

HONOR • EDUCATE • PRESERVE

Vietnam Veterans Memorial Project

CHVMP.org

Please LIKE and SHARE this remembrance so these twenty sailors—and their story—are not forgotten.

10/01/2026

CHVMP is proud to be out at the Whitney Oaks Golf Tournament today alongside our partners at Catholic Funeral & Cemetery Services of the Diocese of Sacramento.

Stop by Hole 1 for a free b**r, say hello, and learn more about the Citrus Heights Veterans Memorial Project.

We are currently accepting donations to help build a permanent Vietnam Veterans Memorial Wall here in our community—a place of honor, remembrance, and reflection for generations to come.

Every donation helps move this project closer to construction.

Thank you to Whitney Oaks, CFCS, our volunteers, and everyone supporting this mission today.

Donate or learn more: CHVMP.org

09/30/2026

THIS DAY IN VIETNAM HISTORY — SEPTEMBER 30, 1968

On September 30, 1968, something not seen in combat for fifteen years happened off the coast of Vietnam.

The battleship USS NEW JERSEY (BB-62) opened fire.

Her target was an enemy supply area near the Demilitarized Zone.

The massive 16-inch guns fired—and America’s battleships were back in combat for the first time since Korea.

USS New Jersey had been recommissioned specifically for Vietnam.

Her mission was naval gunfire support: destroy hardened positions, disrupt enemy supply routes and put enormous firepower onto targets ashore without sending an aircraft over them.

But September 30 was not one battlefield.

Southwest of Đà Nẵng, U.S. Army Green Berets of Detachment A-109 and CIDG troops were fighting for survival at Thường Đức.

North Vietnamese forces had attacked the camp on September 28, capturing surrounding positions and portions of the nearby village.

American and allied defenders held.

AC-47 and AC-130 gunships circled overhead.

A-6 Intruders struck enemy positions.

B-52s attacked troop concentrations.

A MIKE Force was flown in.

By the morning of September 30, the North Vietnamese assault had been driven back.

Elsewhere that day, 2nd Battalion, 5th Marines was fighting during Operation Mameluke Thrust.

Four Americans were killed near Cu Ban:

HM3 Gary R. Shepperdson — U.S. Navy
HN Philip A. Beasley — U.S. Navy
LCpl David L. Judy — U.S. Marine Corps
LCpl Gary R. Townsend — U.S. Marine Corps

Townsend was awarded the Silver Star.

Three years later, September 30 brought another kind of air war.

A UH-1C gunship of the 117th Assault Helicopter Company was struck by heavy machine-gun fire while operating across the Cambodian border.

The helicopter caught fire and crashed.

All four crewmen were killed.

That same day, an Air Force F-4E disappeared during a reconnaissance mission over the Ho Chi Minh Trail in Laos.

Capt. Michael Donovan and Capt. Ronald Bond never came home.

Different years.

Different services.

Different battlefields.

The same date.

Today we remember every American whose life ended on September 30, and the South Vietnamese and indigenous allied forces who fought beside them.

From the sailors firing sixteen-inch guns offshore…

to the Green Berets and CIDG defenders at Thường Đức…

to Marines and corpsmen fighting together on the ground…

to Army helicopter crews and Air Force crews over Cambodia and Laos—

Every name matters.
Every story deserves to be preserved.

HONOR • EDUCATE • PRESERVE

Vietnam Veterans Memorial Project

CHVMP.org

Please LIKE and SHARE this remembrance. Every share helps carry these names and stories to someone who may never have heard them.

Vietnam Veterans Memorial Project

10/09/2026

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