"I Got the News Today" usually chronicles the fallen of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, as announced by the Department of Defense. But among the announcements of recent deaths, there are other, older lives that have come to an end: service members missing in action in Vietnam, their remains only recently identified and returned home. This is a diary about four of them.
It's sobering to remember another generation of mourning families and friends. I hope that those who knew and loved Lance Cpl. Kurt E. La Plant, of Lenexa, Kan., Lance Cpl. Luis F. Palacios, of Los Angeles, Calif., Lance Cpl. Ralph L. Harper, of Indianapolis, Ind., and Pfc. Jose R. Sanchez, of Brooklyn, N.Y. are comforted by the knowledge that these men are coming home at last.
On Wednesday, the Department of Defense announced that the remains of four Vietnam War-era U.S. Marines have been identified. Tonight we bear witness to the sad homecomings of Lance Cpl. Kurt E. La Plant, Lance Cpl. Luis F. Palacios, Lance Cpl. Ralph L. Harper and Pfc. Jose R. Sanchez.
On June 6, 1968--the day Robert F. Kennedy died--they were among 23 passengers and crew of a CH-46A Sea Knight helicopter "that was attempting an emergency extraction of elements of the 1st Battalion, 4th Regiment, 3rdMarine Division then engaged against hostile forces in the mountains southwest of Khe Sanh, Quang Tri Province, South Vietnam," says the DoD. "The helicopter was struck by enemy ground fire and crashed, killing 12 of the 23 crewmen and passengers on board. All but four of the men who died were subsequently recovered and identified." (More details are available here and here.)
The thanks go to joint U.S./Socialist Republic of Vietnam (S.R.V.) teams, led by the Joint POW/MIA Accounting Command (JPAC). According to the DoD, members of the teams scouted the crash site several times and talked to witnesses to the incident. They found some wreckage and a piece of military-style boot. That was enough for an excavation of the suspected crash site, beginning in 2006. La Plant's identification tags were found. There was more to come. "While at the site, a Vietnamese citizen turned over to the team human remains the he claimed to have found amid the wreckage," writes the DoD. "In 2007, another team completed the excavation and recovered additional human remains, life support material and aircraft wreckage."
The remains of La Plant and Palacios were individually identified. Those of Harper and Sanchez will be interred at Arlington National Cemetery, where La Plant's remains will also be buried.
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Lance Cpl. Kurt E. La Plant, 19, of Lenexa, Kan.
Kurt La Plant was just 19 when he died, and his mother has spent the last four decades wondering, weeping and waiting. "'He graduated from school and he wasn't 18 yet, so his dad signed for him,' (his mother, Marie) La Plant told KMBC's Lara Moritz. 'He went to California for basic training. When that was over, he came home for six or seven days on leave, and that's the last time I saw him. He was a true Marine. He thought there was nothing like it,' La Plant added," according to Kansas City's KMBC-TV.
One of La Plant's high school classmates, Vonda Wiedmer, remembers Kurt La Plant:
Kurt sat in the seat next to me all through High School. He was fun. He always had a smile. He made me laugh. He would have been a good father, husband, neighbor or friend. He was a good person. We were in the class of 66. If his family ever reads this, I want them to know I will never forget him. I have looked up his name on the Wall in DC many times and I think about them and their lose and want them to know I care. You raised a fine young man. God Bless America and God Bless You and give you comfort. Men like Kurt are what makes this country great.
Wednesday, April 07, 2004
He will be buried this spring at Arlington National Cemetery with full honors.
Godspeed, Lance Cpl. Kurt E. La Plant.
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Lance Cpl. Luis F. Palacios, 19, of Los Angeles, Calif.
Robert Martinez watched the flag-draped coffin of his half-brother, Lance Cpl. Luis F. Palacios, as it was borne on the shoulders of six Marines. "Today we buried my brother, an American hero, a Marine, a Marine forever!," he said. "Semper fi!"
He remembers getting the news, according to the Long Beach (Calif.) Press-Telegram:
"When he was reported missing on June 15, they came to the house and told my mom and stepfather he was missing," Martinez said, "and that the helicopter was hit and fell down a hill, and was still being hit by fire and burst into flames."
(snip)
"I didn't know what to do, I was still in the military, and they tried to just ease the situation, asking me if I was OK," he said.
"Months later, it hit me like a ton of bricks about what was going on. There's nothing you can do, you feel helpless, and there's no one to blame, it was war."
But there was something that the family did. Palacios' sister, Yolanda Montiel, submitted her own DNA to JPAC's Family Reference Samples program. On April 30, 2006, she wrote "I pray that someday your remains will be returned to us. until then I pray for you always." Her prayer was answered when JPAC found a match.
"It's closure for the whole family," brother Pete Palacios told KCAL-TV. "Not knowing where he was, we always thought he was MIA, captured. We never knew. My mom never gave up, neither did my sister, none of us."
He has come home at last.
Members of the Patriot Guard were there to escort the remains of Lance Cpl. Luis F. Palacios from Los Angeles International Airport to the funeral home, and from there to services at the Holy Family Catholic Church in Artesia, Calif. and to his final resting place in the Forest Lawn Memorial Park in Cypress, Calif. "Each taking a moment to reflect on his long journey and to rejoice that Luis is back in the arms of his loving family and on the soil he bravely fought to protect," said. As one Patriot Guard rider wrote:
L/CPL LUIS S. PALACIOS THANK YOU FOR YOUR SERVICE AND SACRIFICE. REST MY BROTHER AFTER FORTY YEARS YOU ARE HOME. MISSION ACOMPLISHED, JOB WELL DONE. GOD BLESS YOU AND YOUR LOVED ONES. I AM DEEPLY HONORED TO HAVE HELPED BRING OUR BROTHER HOME LAST NIGHT FROM LAX. LAST NIGHTS MISSION WILL HAVE A SPECIAL PLACE IN MY HEART. STANDING WITH MY PGR BROTHERS, TO CARRY OUR FALLEN HERO INTO THE CHAPEL IS SOMETHING I WILL NEVER FORGET. SEMPER FI / NEVER FORGET...Pegger
Godspeed, Lance Cpl. Luis F. Palacios.
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I was unable to find information on Lance Cpl. Ralph L. Harper, 20, of Indianapolis, Ind. But he is remembered. From The Wall-USA:
I just want everyone to know that Ralph Lewis Harper will never be forgotten. Even though I was young when he went to war and gave his life for this country. I still hold his picture and menories close to my heart. Thank-You for listening. His half brother Carl Harper.
Sunday, August 19, 2001
we grew up together and knew each other since we learned to talk. i followed him to vietnam 2yrs after his chopper was shot down. i gave some. he gave all.
Wednesday, September 22, 1999 (john apeinis)
Godspeed, Lance Cpl. Ralph L. Harper.
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Likewise, I was not able to find any information about Pfc. Jose R. Sanchez. He, too, is remembered at The Wall-USA:
DESCANSA EN PAZ, MARINE
...
Nam Vet from Tejas
REST IN PEACE, MARINE
DESCANSA EN PAZ, ESE. Rest In Peace, Pfc. Sanchez. Jose, no nos hemos olvidao, carnal. You are not forgotten, ese. 37 years ago you gave the ultimate and supreme sacrifice for Our Country. You served honorably and died gallantly in the field of battle. A True Marine, a Hero. We won't forget. Semper Fi, my brother.
Monday, June 06, 2005
Arlington waits to welcome him. May he rest there gently and in peace, home at last.
Godspeed, Pfc. Jose R. Sanchez.
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About "I Got the News Today" (IGTNT)
"I Got the News Today" is a diary series intended to honor service members who have died as a result of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan; its title is a reminder that almost every day a military family gets the terrible news about a loved one. We also remember the fallen from Vietnam when they return home thanks to the efforts of the Joint POW/MIA Accounting Command. Diaries about the fallen usually appear two days after their names are officially released, which allows time for the IGTNT team to find and tell their stories.
The series was begun by i dunno and is maintained by Sandy on Signal, monkeybiz, noweasels, MsWings, greenies, blue jersey mom, Chacounne, twilight falling, moneysmith, labwitchy, joyful, roses, SisTwo, SpamNunn, AGirlinMI, JeNoCo, mediaprof and Pager.
Please bear in mind that these diaries are read by friends and family of the service members chronicled here. May all of our remembrances be full of compassion rather than politics.