Sgt Grit Blog
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WWII Marine pilot remembered as ‘no frills kind of guy’
June 21, 2011
Abandoning his fighter plane to a watery grave was something John Zoellner hated to do, but the future funeral director didn't have much of a choice. As he was winging his way back from patrol, the engine conked out over the south Pacific.
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Goodbye Vietnam and PTSD from a U S Marine
June 21, 2011
Goodbye Vietnam and PTSD from a U S Marine Very well done, very powerful. He is also wearing a Sgt Grit customized golf shirt.
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Marine Corps Command Chronologies for the Vietnam War
June 20, 2011
This series primarily consists of command chronologies of U.S. Marine Corps units that served during the time of the Vietnam Conflict, and includes the records of those units that served in Vietnam as well as domestically and throughout the world. Most of these chronologies include four common sections of information: organizational data, narrative summaries of events, accomplishments and losses, sequential listings of significant events within the unit, and supporting documentation. More extensive chronologies include lists of commanders, lists of staff officers, lists of location(s) where units were stationed, lists of …
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WORST MOM EVER??..........from Dec 7, 2002 Newsletter
June 20, 2011
WORST MOM EVER?? Dear Sgt Grit, I feel like the worst mom ever. My son is in boot camp (Marine Corps) of which I am very proud. To make a long story short, he left in September, got hurt after 3 weeks, went to MRP, was kept there for 3 weeks and was told off and on that he would be sent home. His moral dropped to an all time low. After being given a clean bill of health he was picked up by another PLT and regained a good …
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New River flight memorial christens two new aircraft, honors fallen hero
June 19, 2011
A collection of legends of Marine aviation gathered aboard New River Air Station recently to dedicate two new additions to the air station’s aviation memorial and to honor a fallen brother. The memorial was dedicated in 2006, a simple plaque in honor of the pilots who had given their lives flying New River-based aircraft. Eventually, three of the air station’s signature choppers were installed as monuments at the memorial site — a CH-46 Sea Knight, a CH-53 Super Stallion, and a UH-34D Sea Horse.
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Vietnam Stats
June 19, 2011
Some stats I had not seen before. Staggering. There are 58,267 names now listed on that polished black wall, including those added in 2010. The names are arranged in the order in which they were taken from us by date and within each date the names are alphabetized. It is hard to believe it is 36 years since the last casualties. Beginning at the apex on panel 1E and going out to the end of the East wall, appearing to recede into the earth (numbered 70E - May 25, 1968), …
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One Man, Two Stories
June 18, 2011
Tex, as he is known, has spent his life with two identities. Some may argue that it would take a man like Tex to accomplish either of these lives. He is a Marine’s Marine and cattleman’s cowboy. Lynn Mattocks has been rodeoing since he was 16 years old; he turned pro at 19. He grew up in Kansas, and his only interest was to be a cowboy. He has always had horses. In 1952, Lynn decided to join a couple of his friends on a trip to the Marine recruiting …
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WWI Marine killed in France
June 18, 2011
Mount Mora Cemetery wouldn’t seem to be where one would expect to find the U.S. Marine Corps. But it is a place where young recruits found one of their own. “The original plan for the men was to do a car wash on Saturday to raise funds for next month’s poolee event,” said Staff Sgt. Gerardo Banda, one of the recruiters attached to the St. Joseph office. A father of a young recruit asked if the Marines could help get the cemetery, which is a National Register of …
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Marine Mathematics
June 17, 2011
Marine Mathematics A while back this story about Lieutenant General Lewis B. "Chesty" Puller appeared on the internet. It had been excerpted from the Burke Davis biography of Puller, "Marine" written in 1962. After receiving the story I did my analytical interpretation of the math involved in this exchange for the benefit of non-warrior civilians. The story… The Korean War, in which the Marine Corps fought and won some of its most brutal battles, was not without its gallows humor. During one such conflict a ROK (Republic of …
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THAT’S WHAT THE 8 ROUNDS ARE FOR…from 2002 Newsletter
June 17, 2011
THAT'S WHAT THE 8 ROUNDS ARE FOR This is in reply to Chuck Sarges comments about falling out to witness a Marine being "Drummed Out". I was also in the 2nd Service Regiment, H&S Co. Engineer Maint. Plt. Building #308. In fact I was sent to Lejeune the day after my graduation from P.I. I spent the next three years there in the same squad bay, April '54 to Jan.'57. I only remember one such incident. The reason I do is because the pvt. getting the D.D. had been someone …
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