…. On and off for the past week or so, I have been attempting to research an old photograph of my Father…. it’s the only photograph that I have of him (other than the standard pre-graduation shot from bootcamp) where he is wearing his dress blues…
.. the whole thing hasn’t really turned out as I expected… initially I was curious about a piece of his uniform…. And after researching the item, I found myself laughing about finding my Father out-of-regs and out-of-uniform (… trust me, there is nothing that a Marine loves more than catching a fellow Marine that 1/8th of an inch out of alignment with his ribbons or badges…. Hey, attention to detail is followed as a religion almost…) ….. and to think that I caught dear ole Dad, well, I laughed….
….but as I did more and more homework, the “gotcha” moment faded as I realized just exactly what I was looking at when I held that photograph in my hands….
… most US Marine uniforms hold only the most basic of information…. rank, awards, ribbons, badges, medals, and service stripes…. And they usually lack unit patches or devices of occupation…. So when you see a Marine in his blues, well, all you see is a Marine…. Not a cook, artilleryman, or office pogue…
… there are, of course, a few exceptions to this rule…. And those exceptions are what triggered this information-chase and possible discovery… mainly, well, the wearing of the French fourragère by the 5th and 6th Marine regiments .. however, before I go any further, I will say that what I have concluded is still up for debate…. So if anyone can identify the uniform item differently from my own deducing, then I will be very interested to hear your ideas…..
… and so, here is the shot that I’ve been talking about…. behold, my Pa circa 1966….
….. alright…. for those of you non-Military types, here is what we’re lookin’ at…. He is a Lance Corporal that qualified as a “Rifle Expert”…. And he wears three ribbons above his shooting badge…which, from left to right, are as follows….. the National Defense Medal, the Vietnam Service Medal, and the Vietnam Campaign Medal…. The fly in the proverbial ointment is the gold-braided fourragère which he is wearing around his left shoulder….. as far as I can figure, the gold braid signifies that he is perhaps an attaché to either a general, admiral, or The President (… which he most certainly wasn’t as he was a combat engineer…)
…. any ideas?..... yeah, quite a mystery…..
…. I’ve dismissed this curiosity for years… simply assuming that because he was attached to 1st Battalion, 5th Marines during his first tour in Vietnam that this was their fourragère…. But after some major groundwork, I find theirs is green and scarlet…. This bit of news got the ball of discovery rolling faster than ever….and pieces of information began to fall into place…
… for one, this photograph was dated 1966…. He didn’t arrive in Vietnam until January of ’67… which means that he hadn’t earned the two service medals that he was wearing yet and was only authorized at that time to be wearing the National Defense Medal…. Secondly, I know that he qualified as a “Sharpshooter” in bootcamp and not an “Expert”… and after doing his Combat Engineer training, he went directly to his AIT in California and never re-qualified with his rifle….. so he remained a sharpshooter for his entire time in the military….in short?... well, that ain’t his shooting badge…..
… thirdly (and I cannot believe that I overlooked this glaring fact for so long), he was never issued a set of dress blues… and he never purchased a pair either since he spent his entire enlistment deployed…..and yet, here is this photograph in my hot little hands…….
…. So after a week of searching and head-scratching and wondering why he was so blatantly out of uniform, it slowly came to me…..and it caught me quite unaware…..
… I made some phonecalls to a few Vietnam-era Marines, and they confirmed much – but not all – of what I suspected….
…. Wearing dungarees everyday, far away from home for the first time, and preparing to enter a combat zone for 13 months, he must have been wondering if he’d make it back alive…. personal cameras were still expensive items, and I seriously doubt that he could have afforded one on a 1966 Lance Corporal’s pay….. so what would someone in his situation do to ensure that if he didn’t make it back from the war his family would have a nice keepsake?.... a cheap snapshot of him in herringbones taken by a buddy?.... or a quick ride into Oceanside to use one of their backless, anonymous sets of dress blues for a ‘proper’ momento?...
… how incredibly scared and uncertain he must have been – being so incredibly far away both mentally and literally from the rolling farmland of eastern Tennessee….I can barely even imagine….
… and that is when my original curiosity – that had morphed into a laughable attempt to catch my Father (and fellow Marine) in a uniform hiccup slowly led to the realization of what I was really looking at - Quite possibly the last image that his family would ever have of him…. A cheap five-dollar portrait from a California street-booth….
…. I’m still blown away by it all, actually…..but I do understand a bit of where he was coming from…. And a bit about how he’d much rather have his folks remembering him sitting straight, clean, and dressed in a polished uniform… instead of sweating, muddy, and bone-tired……
…. I suppose that I’d have done the same as he if I’d been in his situation… that last minute photo before being sent off to combat….for them to remember me looking handsome and proud…..
… even if I was out of uniform….
When a photo finally speaks, most times it speaks volumes. Quite moving, bro. I enjoyed it.
Bullshitted by bitterman on September 2, 2007 01:09 PMThe one thing you can say is that you came from a seriously good gene pool!
Bullshitted by dick on September 2, 2007 02:01 PMMost likely you are correct. I was Army, and early in Basic the civilan photogapher shows up on base to rip us off. We were given a prop cap and dress jacket to put on for the photo. Often it was to large or small. But hey, the 1st shirt was getting a kick back form the monkey with the camara and both were in a hurry, the 1st shirt to torture us and the camara monkey to move on to the next Company of new boots.
But still, you have to admire you Father for what he was doing in a very uncertian time in his life. Thank you for sharing it.
Bullshitted by Wm H on September 2, 2007 04:10 PMI think your theory is probably right, Eric.
Gives me chills and tears to read it.
What a handsome, handsome man...
Thank you for this.
I am sitting here trying to put into words the thoughts and emotions this post evokes. Nope. Can't do it. Thank YOU so much for sharing this.
Bullshitted by Lemon Stand on September 2, 2007 08:25 PMOf course, you are assuimg that the date on the photo was correct, or that indeed the date of his service in Vietnam was actually. 1967. Maybe that fourragère was is one as described on Wikipedia:
"The Republic of Vietnam Cross of Gallantry is the equivalent of the Frency Croix de Guerre. It was created by Decree No 74-b/Qt dated 15 August 1950 and Decree No 96/DQT/HC dated 2 May 1952. Both individuals (denoted by a star) and formations (denoted by a palm) cited for gallantry were awarded the decoration. Formations that were awarded the Gallantry Cross for two or more occassions were initially authorised to wear a fourragère."
Maybe dad was a hero afterall, anyway I am sure he was your hero. Sounds like a good man.
All the best,
Glenn B
From what I can gathe rin a few online searches, gold Fourrageres were, and still are, often awarded to students of special merit both in military schools, police training academies, and in civilian colleges.
Could have been for that maybe, or maybe as you hypothesize.
All the best,
GB
Everything that could be said has been said, so I can only reiterate... Thank you for sharing.
Bullshitted by Tink on September 2, 2007 11:46 PMWow -- what a cutie your Pops was! And I would surmise that your theory about what he was doing in that particular uniform is probably spot on. Totally makes sense given the dates & the locations, etc. Now you want to hear something really (okay, settle for kinda) funny? In 1967 I was a freshman living in an all-girl dorm at UC Riverside. Almost every weekend they'd come around wanting to bus a bunch of us over to 29 Palms or down to Pendleton to do our patriotic civic duty and go to a dance with the Marines. I never went but lots of the girls did -- just think -- if I hadn't been such a geeky hick from the mountains, I might've danced with your Daddy! And if I knew that a Marine could look that good, I probably would have gone!! How weird would that be? But actually, I graduated HS in June and thus didn't arrive at UCR until September of '67, so I would've missed your Dad by a good 6 months or so -- but that's still close enough to get a giggle out of. I love small-world stories!!
Anyway, it's an incredible picture and a great story, as always. Thanks for sharing it.
yes indeed, that was moving. thanks for putting this on your blog.
chilli
God bless your father for his service.
God bless you for sharing this. Really wonderful.
(And yes, he is quite handsome!)
Great story, makes me wonder about two old photos I have. Grandfather on my mother's side in full uniform, army infantry with cap and all, looking magnificent, square-jawed, strong nose, wide-set, deep sensitive eyes. All the bloom and pride of youth. The other is his son Jimmy, same setting, looking almost identical, army air force, just before deployment to italy to be a tail-gunner on a B-25. I had them put on one photo for comparison and display when I was about twelve. Still has a wow factor, but now I wonder at the uniforms and such..Grandpa went over to europe in some behemoth of a ship with horses and cannons and all, fierce storms sickened everyone, some horses died. When they got to France the war had ended, they were greeted as heroes, having done nothing, really. Lucky. Jimmy flew twenty-some missions, shot down several times, but made it home physically intact, but shell-shocked and damaged, not so lucky...Photos can have so much power. No wonder some cultures fear they steal your soul..
Bullshitted by Bindersix on September 3, 2007 11:23 AMEric, have you been to www.togetherweserved.com If not, I think you'll find it a wealth of information.
Great story
Bullshitted by Sissy on September 3, 2007 12:00 PMWhat a great post...it's rare when things hit me like this one did. I don't understand much about the military, but I can understand loving your family enough to want them to remember you in a good light and at your best. Out of uniform or not.
I thank him for serving...and you for sharing.
Bullshitted by Mia on September 3, 2007 03:32 PMIn one of the last letters we received from the boy he said that they had already taken a bunch of mock graduation photos in dress blues for the wife.
His company should be in the Crucible this week. Perhaps tomorrow. Almost there...
Bullshitted by Richard on September 3, 2007 05:22 PMYour Dad was one handsome man. He definitely adds more proof to my saying that 'God didn't make any ugly Marines'.
Bullshitted by Bou on September 3, 2007 05:27 PMI have a black and white of my Dad before he was shipped off to Korea. (He was 16...he lied to get in)
He looked so confident and handsome-and young. That picture is one of my treasures.
Thanks for your story.
That is one hell of a story, Eric.
Good on your dad for thinking of his family.
Bullshitted by Mark on September 3, 2007 06:05 PMThat was beautiful, Eric.
Such a very handsome man, your dad!
Bullshitted by Rosie on September 4, 2007 08:01 PMEric,
Great story. I've sent the link to my mailing list. This is a must read.
Bullshitted by CJ on September 5, 2007 07:27 PM