09 May 2008 We both grew up in the same neighborhood, but hung out with different friends. I knew you by sight and am not sure if you even knew me. I had heard you were killed in Vietnam from "Solly" at the 76th Street Lounge. For almost four years I have monitored this site waiting for someone to post your name. After waiting I decided it was my duty to insure you are not forgotten. I too served in Vietnam, and was one of the lucky ones to make it home (I often wonder how all that got decided). Rest in peace, you are not forgotten. From a friend, Bob Matonte rjmatonte@aol.com

 

A Note from The Virtual Wall On the first day of the Tet Offensive of 1968 a mixed Viet Cong/North Vietnamese Army battalion captured the village of Hoc Mon while enroute to join the attack on Tan Son Nhut Air Base. Elements of the 1st Battalion, 27th Infantry, were tasked with kicking the VC/NVA out of the village. When the 1/27th Infantry found themselves grossly outnumbered, elements of B and C Troops, 3/4 Cavalry, were committed to provide armored support for the infantrymen. The fighting in and around Hoc Mon continued until 12 Feb 1968, when air strikes and continued ground pressure finally destroyed the last remnants of organized VC/NVA resistance. American losses were heavy - 29 dead from the 27th Infantry, 14 from the 3/4 Cav, and a total of 177 wounded - but the VC/NVA left 623 dead on the field of battle. On 08 Feb eight Americans were killed in an engagement 1 kilometer east of Hoc Mon: A Co, 1st Bn, 27th Infantry SGT Randy H. Brock, Austell, GA CPL James L. McCoy, Dyer, TN B Trp, 3rd Sqdn, 4th Cavalry SFC Donald E. Moore, Pratt, KS C Trp, 3rd Sqdn, 4th Cavalry SP5 Alger L. White, Bay City, MI SP4 Michael J. Longabardi, New York, NY SP4 Robert R. Lord, Flint, MI PFC Joe W. Grigsby, Kansas City, MO (Dist Svc Cross) PFC Charles C. Hale, Williamsburg, VA

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