Salute to Veterans The Wilmington In recognition of Veterans Day November 11, 2019 Club Veterans share their histories of military service In advance of Veterans Day 2019, members of the WIlm- armed service and comment on what it meant to them. Here ington Rotary Club were asked to describe their time in the are their answers. Larry Anderson Joseph F. Augustine Maryland U.S. Army National Guard U.S. Army, Private First Class Specialist 5th Class My education at UNC Chapel Hill was I served in the Mary- interrupted when I en- land Army National listed in the United Guard from 1965 to States Army. I was sent 1971. I started with the to Medical and Surgi- 29th Infantry Division, a cal Tech School at Fort high-priority unit during Sam Houston. Upon the Vietnam War, where I completion of the re- was a member of a rifle quirements, I became a platoon. During the last member of the Medical Corps. I was sent to the 98th General Hospital in Munich, Germany and was in the WWII Army Occupation. For 14 months as a physi- cal therapy instructor, my duties were to help rehabilitate injured soldiers. At that time Munich was 95% destroyed year and a half of my service from the bombings and had not time, our company became part been reconstructed. My abil- of the 729 Maintenance Battal- ity to speak fluently in German ion. My final job was serving gave me a unique opportunity as an accounting specialist in to get to know the local people charge of controlling the com- of Munich. pany’s inventory programs. Later, I was a major in the Civil Air Patrol as well as com- Editor’s note: An earlier version of this mander of the Chapel Hill Civil publication was distributed at the club’s Nov. Air Patrol. I was the pilot on 5, 2019 meeting. This updated edition includes many NC missions where we information about additional Rotarian veterans searched for missing civilian who chose to submit statements and photos. and military aircraft. 1 Scott Betz Henry Brown U.S. Navy, U.S. Army, Major Petty Officer Second Class I graduated from the Virginia Military Insti- I served in the United tute with a BS in civil en- States Navy from 1970 gineering in June, 1960. to 1979. I was stationed I received a commission aboard the USS John as a second lieutenant in F Kennedy, CV-67, for the U.S. Army on June three and a half cruises. 14, 1960. I was assigned For two and a half cruis- to Fort Benning, Georgia es I was a member of and graduated from the Attack Squadron VA-72 Officers Basic Program. where I worked on the I was subsequently as- jets’ radar and bombing signed to Fort Jackson, computers. For my final S.C., where I served as commander of a basic training company. In 1961, I was assigned to serve as post engineer at Fort Jackson based on my engineering background. cruise I was a member of ship’s I subsequently applied for and company. It was an incredible received a branch transfer to time in my life. The experienc- the Army Corps of Engineers. es and places I traveled shaped I was promoted to first lieuten- my adult life. I was honorably ant in 1961. At the end of my discharged and am still proud active duty obligation in 1963 I of my service to our country. entered the Corps of Engineers Reserves, being promoted to captain and later major during Ken Bishop my tenure. U.S. Army, Corporal Kathryn Bruner I was drafted into the U.S. Army January 21, U.S. Coast Guard, 1953. I was sent to Camp Gordon in Georgia, Operations Specialist where I was placed into Joining the U.S. Coast the Signal Corps. I com- Guard felt like my call- pleted my basic training ing. I have a younger sis- plus six weeks of radio ter I wanted to set an ex- repair. After my training ample for. I had the great I weent to Camp Loe- privilege of working in der in Salzburg, Austria. Washington at a Small This is a beautiful city, Boat Search and Rescue divided by the Salzach River. I worked in a small house on a mountain with Morse Code and teletype equipment. I worked Unit, in Oregon at a Search and with the teletype equipment Rescue Air Station and finally in keeping the signals 5/5, which North Carolina working for the went downtown to the crypto Command Center for the State. guys. I received an honorable Serving in the Coast Guard was discharge as a corporal on De- an honor and I would do it all cember 21, 1954. over again if I could. 2 Bunny Donohue William Bryan Fuller U.S. Navy, Lieutenant U.S. Navy, Lieutenant I served in the United States After finishing Offi- Navy Nurse Corps from 1969- cer Candidate School, 1973. I began at the hospital I served as an officer in Portsmouth, Virginia as an aboard a ship where we ICU nurse. I then served on the replenished the United USS Sanctuary hospital ship in States Sixth Fleet in the Vietnam where I worked in the Mediterranean Sea. My Intensive Care Unit 18 hours a day taking care of wounded U.S. soldiers and Vietnamese Nationals that were brought in on helicopters. I then served at the Subic Bay Air Station in the Philippines where I took care of men and women assigned to the base and those arriving on incoming ships. Finally, I served on Parris Island in South Carolina where I took care of Ma- main job was performing offi- rine recruits and I met my husband who was a Navy doctor. cer of the deck bridge watches. I grew up in a Navy family. My dad served in the Navy for I served active duty from 1964 30 years and both of my parents are buried in Arlington through 1967. National Cemetery. James L. Edge Robert Greer U.S. Coast Guard Reserve, U.S. Army, Sergeant First Class Port Securityman Second Class I served in the United States Army 82nd Air- I joined the US Coast borne Division from Guard Reserve in the mid- 1952 to 1955 and for sixties. I was going to college six years as an active and worked as a lifeguard at reserve. This included Wrightsville Beach in the sum- mer. We worked closely with the Coast Guard. I was getting close to graduation and the draft was in play. I decided on the Coast Guard rather than be drafted. I stayed in the reserves until September of 1972 when I was honorably discharged with the rank of Port Securityman Second Class. combat action in Hay Street Bars. I grew up in and around Fort Bragg and always planned James Hundley to be a trooper and earn a GI bill. U.S. Air Force, Major Special thanks to: I served in the Air Force as an • Rotary Veterans Committee – Scott orthopedic surgeon at Carswell AFB in Fort Worth, Texas for Betz, Matt Mylott, Noah Woods, and David two years. Grandey • John Meyer for layout and design of this publication • John Lyon for printing this publication 3 Bill Humphrey Russ La Belle U.S. Army, Corporal U.S. Army, Sergeant I served for two years I served in the Civil during the Korean War Air Patrol, which pre- doing cryptography code pared me for being draft- work under the “for eyes ed into the U.S. Army, only” classification for where I served from 1962 to 1964. I began in Fort Hood, Texas, do- ing artillery surveying as an Army MOS 153a. I then served in the 2nd Armored Division. High- lights included amphibi- ous training and being on the trains headed to Cuba and then the Army, which was the high- turning back around when the est classification they had. I Missile Crisis subsided. We was an S3 corporal and served were also air-lifted to Germany at a well-secured location. to perform maneuvers for three weeks to prove to NATO that the Army could deploy a divi- Wilbur D. Jones, Jr. sion vs. having to have a per- manent presence. Finally, Pres- U.S. Navy, Captain ident Kennedy was supposed to I was commissioned from Officer Candidate School in review our division on his fate- 1956. As both a Regular Navy and Navy Reserve officer, ful day in Dallas. I served on six ships in the Pacific and Mediterranean with a specialty in amphibious Howard H. Loving Jr. warfare. I commanded two Navy Reserve units U.S. Navy, Captain including an amphibi- I am a retired United ous assault support unit. I States Navy captain. served for four and a half I served from 1960 to years as a captain in the 1990. I served in combat Pentagon and served on during the Vietnam War the staff of the chief of na- from 1971 to 1972 and val operations as the Na- in the Persian Gulf and vy’s weapons systems in- North Arabian Sea from tegrated logistics support 1980 to 1981. During coordinator. I retired in my career I had four 1984 after 28 years of ser- tours as a commanding officer. The Navy vice. I served the Department provides significant leadership of Defense nearly 41 years as opportunities to young officers a Navy officer and civilian, in- serving at sea starting with cluding seven and a half years underway officer of the deck at the Pentagon.