A Reminisce From Doug Elliott

I attended the dedication for Michael Christmas in December and have followed news and memories on Fred’s blog, but until now have not contributed. I feel that it is fitting that on this Memorial Day weekend that we should remember the contribution that Michael made for us and his country. I knew Michael from Little League baseball and City League basketball, and of course our days in school at Camden Junior High and Camden High –it seems as if I had always known him.
The last time that I talked to Michael was in the summer of 1968…he was at a gas station and we spoke briefly…about college …he didn’t think that that he was going back to USC in the fall and that he would probably get drafted.
Then, in the spring of 1969 someone told me that he had been killed in Viet Nam. I was finishing final exams at Clemson-what a shock!
Michael was a member of Company D, 1/52 Infantry, 198 Brigade (AMERICAL).
The Americal Division consisted of 3 brigades, the 11th Brigade, the 196th Brigade, and the 198th Brigade. The 196th area of operation was from Da Nang to Tam Ky a distance of about 40 miles. The 198th area of operation was from Tam Ky to Quang Nai a distance of about 40 miles, and the 11th area of operation was from Quang Nai to Duc Pho a distance of about 40 miles. All of the brigades operated from the South China Sea to the border with Laos. The Americal Division Headquarters was located at Chu Lai…if you have Google Earth you can type in the following coordinates to locate this on the map: lat=15.455004, lon=108.693237…….if you pan down to the lower left, you will be in Quang Nai Province-this is where Co D, 1/52 Infantry was located.
I know these facts, for you see, some 18 months after Michael was killed, I went to Viet Nam and was assigned to the Americal Division in Chu Lai…flew over Quang Nai Province and most of the areas that I described above.
I have struggled writing this because until this past December during the dedication program, I did not know that Michael was in the Americal Division ….. I have tried to remember the names of some of the firebases (FB), landing zones (LZ), and units but the names escape me now.
I hope this helpful,
Doug Elliott
If you want to know more about the Americal Division go to: www.americal.org.