1/7 Newsletter 2018 Reunion News and Notes June 2018 INCOMING 2020 Possible Reunion Locations 1. 29 Palms, CA 2. Dallas, TX 3. Reno, NV Look for more info in early 2019 In spite of the almost non-stop rain we all had a great time at the 2018 Reunion. A few of those SPECIAL moments included: Having the Secretary of Defense, James N. Mattis as our dinner guest speaker. Having the 8 th & I Color Guard bring in the colors at the Saturday Evening Banquet. Greetings from our President and Commander-in-Chief Donald J. Trump. A special performance of the USMC Silent Drill Team inside the National Museum of the Marine Corps.
A few words from our 2018-2020 Commander Terry Aldridge TO: Our Marines, Navy Corpsmen, and family members RE: 1/7 Reunion I would like to thank Alex Waigandt for his outstanding job towards creating a very successful 2018 Reunion. His dedication, his many hours of hard work, and his relentless determination to include The Secretary of Defense James Integer Mattis, metus. The Marine Corps Color Guard, and The Marine Corps Silent Drill team from 8 th & I, proved to be a great success with our Marines, Corpsmen, and guests. Lorem. I would also like to thank the entire Reunion Staff for their many hours of hard work in making the 2018 Reunion a success. Without all of them this reunion would not have been possible. byline [Name] I want to thank our 1 st time attendees for being with us this year. We know that you made a special effort to be at the reunion this year and we hope to see you at more reunions in the future. We hope you and your families enjoyed spending time with the Marines and Corpsmen you may have served with in Vietnam. We enjoyed meeting all of you and hope to see you at our 2020 Reunion. If you would like to make any comments about the reunion, please email them to me for sharing in our Newsletter or Facebook page. I want to thank the 43 Gold Star Family members for being with us as well. Many of you came up to me to express thanks for the Memorial Service, the Banquet, and the Hospitality room, where you had the opportunity to share your stories with us about your loved ones. Our hearts were moved by your memories of life before Vietnam. We were able to share with you our stories of your family member as we knew them in our Squads. Some stories brought tears, and some brought laughter. We invited you to share your stories at the banquet, and regret that we did not have the time for each of you to share more of those memories. If you would like to share your memories about your Marine or Corpsmen, and/or share comments regarding the reunion, please send them to me for sharing in our Newsletter or Facebook. On behalf of the staff of 1/7, we would all like to say Semper Fi and God bless you. Terry C. Aldridge President 1 st Bn 7 th Marines Vietnam Association 2018-2020 terryaldridge1@aol.com 2
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Friday Memorial Service We gathered together for a Memorial Service and reading of the names at the beautiful Medal of Honor Theater inside the National Museum of the Marine Corps. The Memorial Monument Dedication immediately followed the Memorial Service. Following a tour of the Nation Museum we were treated to a special performance of the Marine Corps Silent Drill Team one that was scheduled specially for our 1/7 Reunion Group after we were rained out at the Iwo Jima Memorial on Thursday. 4
Saturday Evening Banquet Saturday evening was the highlight of the reunion. Special guest speaker General James Mattis gave a wonderful speech that basically centered around Marines and military life in general. It was a subject that was perfectly tailored for our group and the 392 guests listening enjoyed every word of it. He also made special note of several 1/7 members and Gold Star family members who were in attendance as we remembered our fallen. He certainly seemed very comfortable with a room full of Marines and Corpsmen, and did not hesitate to pose for many pictures with our guys. As a former 1/7 Commander he definitely fit right in, and we would like to thank him for taking time out of his very busy schedule as The Secretary of Defense to spend a very meaningful evening with us. Semper Fi General Mattis. 5
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First Ladies Function - Saturday, May 19, 2018 We were thrilled with the turn-out at our first 1/7 Marines Ladies Function. There were a total of 56 ladies in attendance. After everyone enjoyed some light refreshments, our speaker Marie U Ren gave a very interesting talk pertaining to the value of the brotherhood of the Marines. Marie began with experiences from her early years of marriage when she had to face taking care of her injured Marine and her small children. The values that she found in the Marine brothers stepping up to the plate to help her during this time, as well as throughout the years, are phenomenal. She certainly reminded us of how important this bond of brotherhood is to each Marine as they extend their care and concern to the spouses and families of their Marine brothers. The ladies were grateful for her sharing with us her heartwarming and enlightening part of her life as a Marine wife. Thank you, ladies, for attending. We look forward to seeing you at the Ladies Function in 2020. We share so much as ladies of the BEST of the Marines the 1/7 Marines Vietnam Association. In addition, we would like to encourage all of the 1/7 Marine Ladies to join our FB page, simply search for 1st Bn 7th Marines Vietnam Association Ladies Group. 7
Raffle Winners Raffle Winners 8
1/7 Monument Engraved Bricks The Marine Corps National Museum and the Marine Corps Heritage Foundation has just informed us that the 1/7 Marines Vietnam Association will be permitted to place 10 more engraved bricks right in front of our 1/7 Monument, located at the Marine Corps National Museum, in the Semper Fidelis Memorial Park. Our 1/7 Association is not involved with the sale of the bricks. The Marine Corps Heritage Foundation is selling them for $300. Please use the form at: https://marineheritage.secure-donor.com/f11117?source=f11117 as a worksheet to lay out your brick inscription. Do not complete the transaction online, but instead contact Ms. Sara Hogan at the foundation (1-800-397-7585). She will then take your information and credit card details over the phone. *Please note that the Marine Corps Heritage Foundation will sell these 10 bricks on a first come first serve basis. You will receive a certificate on your brick after it is installed at our monument. All of the certificates are pre-printed so it will say that your brick is along the park path, but Ms. Hogan can assure you it will be in the pad right in front of our monument. KIA TABLE CARDS At the Saturday Evening Banquet we asked those present, including the Gold Star Family members to write a note of remembrance and place it on the Missing Man Tablet. Click on the link below to read some of those cards. 2018 Table Cards VISIT US AT WWW.17MARINES.COM FIND US ON FACEBOOK 1stBN7thMarAssoc on Facebook 1/7 LADIES GROUP 1/7 ladies group on Facebook 9
Please show your support for a fellow 1/7 Marine. Since it's inception in 1985, Tom Swanson has been one of the great driving forces for 1/7. Without his support through the years it is unlikely our association would be here today. Tom is facing some serious health problems and he needs your support. We ask that you take just a few minutes of your time to give back some of the untold thousands of hours he has given to you. Please send a card or letter wishing him well or letting him know what he has meant to 1/7. Send it to: Tom Swanson, 9120 Willow Ridge Rd. Charlotte, NC 2821 Attention on Deck! Please remember to let us know if your contact information changes. KEEP YOUR EMAIL ADDRESS UPDATED! 10
RECENT REPORTED DEATHS AMONG our 1/7 Vietnam MARINES AND CORPSMEN MUTCHLER, Robert M. PRESSLEY, Clarence W. HAKALA, Michael CARROLL, William R. MALLORY, Jeffery A H&S A H&S B D 12/02/2011 03/12/2012 03/18/2017 11/09/2017 02/23/2018 Please remind your family members to notify us of your passing, so that you can be listed in our taps section. TO EVERYONE WHO ATTENDED THE 2018 REUNION We are asking that all 392 people who attended the 2018 reunion send us a short email note telling us what your reunion was like. Tell us how you feel about the reunion. Please describe to us in your own words what it was like to be there. Send in your note to either Terry Aldridge at terryaldridge1@aol.com or to Terry Kirkland at terrylk@charter.net 11