Vietnam Service – United States Army
“I volunteered for the US Navy in June,1968 and served six years until June, 1974. After basic training and specialized training as a sonar technician, I was assigned to the USS John Paul Jones (DDG 32) stationed in Long Beach, CA.
“On February 13, 1970, the John Paul Jones began her second deployment to Southeast Asia. Upon arriving in Gulf of Tonkin off the coast of Vietnam, she proved her versatility by serving both as an escort to several aircraft carriers and by providing close gunfire support to our forces ashore.
“On duty as a sonar technician, I stood watches scanning the waters for any possible enemy submarines and ‘plane guarding’ to be ready to rescue pilots of downed air craft that may have not made it back to the carriers safely. My division assisted in maintaining and operating the various weapon systems. I served three West Pac tours in which the last one was for my ship to guard minesweepers during Operation End Sweep, an operation between February and July 1973 to remove naval mines from Haiphong Harbor in North Vietnam. This operation fulfilled an American obligation under the Paris Peace Accord of January 1973.”