TBS 2-67 Cruisebook_Updated_7Jan23

After Vietnam: At El Toro my first assignment was in
the G-3 where I learned that the mysterious "They and
Them" actually did know what they were doing and
weren't enemies of the squadrons. Got to run the helo
and C130 desks a few times when their primaries were
on leave or deployed and participated in VIP activities
for the Western White House in San Clemente. After a
year I was sent down to Squadron VMCJ-3, which had
just gotten its first four EA6s from WestPac.
Unfortunately, they came without avionics, still
needed in WestPac, so we drilled holes in the sky for
the next four years until the war ended. Hard to train.
But I was flying and I was in California! Spent my last
year in the Marine Corps at H&MS-11where I was the
S-3 of a squadron without aircraft.
After My Initial Obligation was up: After four years
at El Toro it was time to go overseas again. The
prospects were not bright. After an eighteen month
unaccompanied tour in Iwakuni the Navy wanted
Marine EA6s in the Med on carriers with a six year
rotation of six months in the Med followed by six
months at Cherry Pt. Also the CMC decided that there
were soon to be no two seat A/C in the M.C. and all
NFOs needed to look for work. To avoid further family
separation, I resigned my commission in June 1974
with the best rank in the officer's corps, Captain. Have
done a few things since getting out----mostly without a
plan . Sold office equipment, got a Business degree.
Ran a large deposition firm in L.A. Ran my own small
landscaping and plant maintenance firm for twenty
years with my third wife. Traveled widely, especially
with my middle daughter 's family in Europe where
she's lived for the last 20 years.
Second Platoon
My Current Life: Now fully retired, but life continues
to change. Youngest daughter and my ten and twelve
year old grandsons have moved in to my formerlyquiet
Mission Viejo home and child care is now part of
my routine. Have been involved in adult-ed for the last
six years and routinely take two to four classes a
semester. Continue to be active in the market so that I
can continue to live as I want without a paycheck or a
M.C. retirement.
Plans for the Future: No longer married and no longer
looking but still enjoy adult conversation and contact.
Still traveling but knees are no longer what they were.
After the disappointments and resentments after the
results of the war I have no desire to return to
Vietnam, certainly not to Olongapo let alone any Third
World country.
What I Learned from My Time in the Corps: From the
basic military skills class I taught at El Toro as prep for
an IG inspection to the "Hearts and Minds" tour of the
rural village outside Da Nang with an I Cap platoon, to
a fuel stop landing at Gitmo, a low level bird strike over
the Grand Canyon at 460 knots, and a wailing "Missile
Launch" siren over the Red river delta---all of my eight
years in the Marine Corps are the most alive, most
meaningful, most fulfilling experiences of my seventysix
years.
My Home Address: 26692 El Mar Dr., Mission Viejo, CA
92691
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