Vietnam veterans

9 Stories

He Recalled His Winter With No Heat. Out Came His Wallet

Florida businessman ponies up $4.6K to pay off utility bills for 36 families

(Newser) - When Michael Esmond saw the Dec. 26 due date on his utility bill, he had a flashback to 1983. "My gas was shut off, and we had no heating for the whole winter," one of the coldest ever in Florida, the 73-year-old father of three tells CNN . Indeed,...

Man Pens Poignant Obituary to 'Damaged' Brother, a Vietnam Vet

Bill Ebeltoft was never the same after return from war, but Paul Ebeltoft's tribute recalls the old Bill

(Newser) - In an obituary that CNN calls more of a "journey" than a death notice, a New York man penned a tribute to his brother, Vietnam veteran Bill Ebeltoft, who died Sunday at age 73. The now-viral obit, which appeared in the Dickinson Press in North Dakota, where Ebeltoft and...

An Early Holiday Bonus for This Worker: Early Retirement

Boss Rudy Quinones paid off Albert Brigas' mortgage so he could go spend time with family

(Newser) - Albert Brigas, a 69-year-old Vietnam vet from Texas, has been working for Renown Auto Restoration in San Antonio for 13 years, and he had his eye on retiring sometime in 2020, after plunking down the final mortgage payment on the house he's lived in for nearly a quarter century....

Patton Oswalt Got Trolled on Twitter. His Troll Is Now 'Humbled'

Comedian directed fans to donate money to sick man's GoFundMe

(Newser) - A Twitter troll went after Patton Oswalt—and the comedian managed to turn it into one of the most uplifting stories of the week. It started Wednesday, when Oswalt made fun of President Trump on Twitter , which provoked snarky reactions from 64-year-old Michael Beatty, including saying he was happy Oswalt'...

Gun Collector Gets 7 Years for His 'Piece de Resistance'

Vietnam vet Alfred Pick had illegal M14

(Newser) - The fully automatic M14, spotted at a Texas gun show in the early 1980s, reminded Alfred Pick of the weapon he'd carried as an Army lieutenant in Vietnam. So he bought it, even though the gun was illegal to own and its serial number had been scratched out. Decades...

Search for Vietnam War Buddy Goes Viral

His platoon called him 'Louisiana,' and hope social media outreach can track him down

(Newser) - All they have is a photo from the 1970s, a nickname, and social media—but the veterans from one Vietnam War platoon are hoping that will be enough to track down the buddy they called "Louisiana." Posting from her husband's Vietnam reunion earlier this month, Susan Waldrop...

'I Dodged All Those Bullets, Then Get Killed by a Fish': Vietnam Vet

Veterans afflicted with rare cancer brought on by fish-borne parasite

(Newser) - They were the lucky ones who managed to make it home from Vietnam. Now, a half-century later, some veterans are finding out they, too, are victims of the war. The enemy is a known killer in parts of Asia: parasites ingested in raw or poorly cooked river fish, the AP...

Each Thought the Other Died in War. 47 Years Later, a Miracle

Herman Johnson and Fred Rivera reunited, and much more

(Newser) - Fred Rivera believed his best friend, Herman Johnson, died in his arms after a rocket hit them during a Vietnam War firefight in 1969. "Surviving comrades of that horrid day presented me a bracelet fashioned from the leather laces of Herman’s boots," Rivera writes of what followed...

Acts 'Lost in the Fog' of Vietnam Honored

Obama bestows Medal of Honor on Bennie G. Adkins, late Donald P. Sloat

(Newser) - President Barack Obama honored the acts of valor by two Vietnam War soldiers who risked their lives to protect fellow troops, bestowing the Medal of Honor on them in a White House ceremony today. Army Command Sgt. Maj. Bennie G. Adkins, who attended the ceremony, and Army Spc. Donald P....

9 Stories