Premsore
01-15-2017, 10:11
I'm posting in this forum, although I realize it really should be in the POW/MIA thread, but the site doesn't allow me to start a thread there, and I'm going to get this out today instead of waiting for and going through Analysis Paralysis.
46 years ago today, a friend of mine went MIA. Sgt James Harwood, a great SF medic and great guy, was working with and training Cambodians in Vietnam when their patrol was ambushed. Back then SF was much smaller in size and was by nature very tight, not that it isn't now. Anyway, a couple of weeks after this happened, we in the 6th Group back at Bragg got the word and we were told that Jim had been wounded and the last time he was seen by the Cambodians, during the firefight Jim was being dragged away by the VC, that he did not appear to be conscious. As far as I know his body has never been recovered, and every year on January 15 (actually more often than that), I think of Jim, his sense of humor, his easy-going way. I remember we used to kid him about the size of his head, it was huge. He wore the largest size beret made, didn't need to put a sweatband in his helmet liner/steel pot on jumps. Jim actually came to the 6th out of Phase 2 (Robin Sage now), but he really wanted to go to VN, in those days there was a waiting list in SF to go to VN. He took a couple days leave and went to DC to take Ms Alexander to dinner to convince her to cut orders for VN. She was the person that could do it and more than one SFer visited her and took her to dinner to get orders for VN. I remember that tall red-headed Texan smiling from ear to ear when his orders came through. Although Jim and I weren't best friends in the 6th, we were friends, hung around the team room together, ate together, I guess because we both hit the 6th at close to the same time.
Please remember SF medic Jim Harwood on the 46th anniveersary of him going MIA. Many things in life he will never be able to enjoy, but knowing him, with no regrets. RIP brother.
46 years ago today, a friend of mine went MIA. Sgt James Harwood, a great SF medic and great guy, was working with and training Cambodians in Vietnam when their patrol was ambushed. Back then SF was much smaller in size and was by nature very tight, not that it isn't now. Anyway, a couple of weeks after this happened, we in the 6th Group back at Bragg got the word and we were told that Jim had been wounded and the last time he was seen by the Cambodians, during the firefight Jim was being dragged away by the VC, that he did not appear to be conscious. As far as I know his body has never been recovered, and every year on January 15 (actually more often than that), I think of Jim, his sense of humor, his easy-going way. I remember we used to kid him about the size of his head, it was huge. He wore the largest size beret made, didn't need to put a sweatband in his helmet liner/steel pot on jumps. Jim actually came to the 6th out of Phase 2 (Robin Sage now), but he really wanted to go to VN, in those days there was a waiting list in SF to go to VN. He took a couple days leave and went to DC to take Ms Alexander to dinner to convince her to cut orders for VN. She was the person that could do it and more than one SFer visited her and took her to dinner to get orders for VN. I remember that tall red-headed Texan smiling from ear to ear when his orders came through. Although Jim and I weren't best friends in the 6th, we were friends, hung around the team room together, ate together, I guess because we both hit the 6th at close to the same time.
Please remember SF medic Jim Harwood on the 46th anniveersary of him going MIA. Many things in life he will never be able to enjoy, but knowing him, with no regrets. RIP brother.