Roy Stephen Spurgeon

The database page for Roy Stephen Spurgeon

18 Aug 2005 REMEMBERED by his family. Placed by his niece. E-mail address is not available.

10 Sep 2005 Roy Spurgeon was my brother. He loved the mountains here in New Mexico. He loved to hunt and fish and play sports. I was not quite 13 years old when he was killed. I was the youngest and the only girl, always tagging along... He tolerated me better than my other brothers, helped me learn things. I have always thought of him and missed him ... as all the family does. He was so proud to be a Marine! We, his family, are proud of his sacrifice for our country. He is buried in Santa Fe, New Mexico, at the National Cemetery ... alongside our father who died 2 years before Roy. They were both very young ... and a lot alike:) Many have died over the years in wars. But our freedoms come with a high price. We shall always remember. From his sister, Sharon S. Spurgeon 02 Nov 2005 Steve My brother, young, strong and proud, Always tried to do what was right, even in a crowd. Hard headed and a temper to match, Not loud or obnoxious, but serious and deep. Didn't give him no guff or you would be knocked off your feet! A fighter and scraper ... tough to the core. Everyone knew Steve ... He was never ignored. Patriotic and not afraid.. His convictions ran deep, that's how he was made. Proud of his heritage and name, Became a Marine, and things were never the same. He is gone from us now, but not forgotten, His sacrifice a thing to stand tall for, Always a Proud Marine. Did what he felt was right, Fought to the end, till he met that eternal night. He fought for what he thought was right! Written by Sharon S. Spurgeon... his sister... I Miss you Steve... 1970 14 Dec 2005 Roy Spurgeon and all our Spurgeon family are direct blood cousins to the famous preacher Charles Haddon Spurgeon. I have done our genealogy all the way back to the year 800... Originally the Spurgeons were Vikings who raided the coasts of England. We have a original book written by Charles Haddon Spurgeon. We have always been a patriotic family and believed in God and good overcoming evil. From his sister, Sharon Spurgeon From his sister who has worn his KIA bracelet since 1968, Sharon S. Spurgeon 11100 Gibson Blvd S E # A-8, Albuquerque, New Mexico 87123 opy42@comcast.net The military service of both Roy Spurgeon and his father George are remembered at the Vietnam Veterans National Memorial, Angelfire, New Mexico.

07 Oct 2006 Here's to you and to our Corps, Which we are proud to serve, In many-a strife, We've fought for life, And never lost our nerve. If the Army and the Navy Ever look on HEAVENS scene, They will find the streets are guarded by THE UNITED STATES MARINES. Nothing rings truer. From a brother in arms, John Spurgeon trouble@comantenna.com

A Note from The Virtual Wall In late February 1968 the 2nd Battalion, 5th Marines, were conducting clean-up operations around Hue in the aftermath of the Tet offensive. These operations frequently involved very close-in fighting by the Marine infantrymen, a fact that either reduced the utility of or increased the risk from friendly air and artillery support. The 2/5 Marines Command Chronology for February 1968 contains two entries for Hotel 2/5 on 26 February: "At 261335H, Company H, vicinity (YD758206), received small arms fire from (YD757198). Small arms/automatic weapons, 3.5 rocket fire, and M-79 was returned as the unit advanced through the enemy position. Results: 8 NVA/VC KIA (CONF)." "At 261620, Company H, vicinity (YD757197), received automatic weapons/small arms fire and 30 rounds of 60mm mortar fire from the vicinity of (YD756197). Automatic weapons/small arms fire and 40 rounds HE 81mm mortars were returned, and air strikes were conducted. Trail 30 [a USAF Forward Air Controller] came on station and controlled 2 flights of A-4, Hellborne 532 and 533 [from Marine Attack Squadron 121], dropping a total of 20 D-1A's near Company H's position causing the below listed casualties. There was excellent coverage of target. Company H continued to assault the position. Air destroyed two machine guns and 2 mortar positions. Air Strikes resulted in 4 USMC KIA, 2 USMC WIA, and 21 NVA/VC KIA (CONF)." The grid coordinates cited indicate that the Marines were within 100 meters of the enemy positions when the air strikes were authorized by the ground commander, whose judgement undoubtedly was that the known risk from enemy machine guns and mortars outweighed the potential risk of friendly fire casualties. As the entry above indicates, Hotel Company's Commanding Officer both won and lost - the strikes destroyed men and weapons which could have inflicted heavy losses on his Marines but at the cost of four Marines dead and two wounded. The Marines killed by the air strikes were Pfc William M. Bagshaw, Catskill, NY; Pfc Michael S. Garrett, Santa Susana, CA; Pfc Roy S. Spurgeon, Albuquerque, NM; and Pfc Miles B. Stuart, New York, NY.

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With all respect
Jim Schueckler, former CW2, US Army
Ken Davis, Commander, United States Navy (Ret)
Memorial first published on 18 Aug 2005
Last updated 08/10/2009