Jay

Married the young lady who wrote to me while I was in Nam (met her when I returned to Valley Forge Hospital). Spent 25 years in PA state government. Worked in Governors Office, Legislature, Attorney Generals Office. Also served as Director of Child Welfare-1 year, State Commissioner for the Blind-7 years, Director of Vocational Rehabilitation-3 years. Avocation as a professional tennis umpire-worked at 3 Olympics (LA, Seoul, Barcelona), Wimbledon, Australian and French Opens, US Open and in more than another dozen countries. Left government to be US Director of Tennis Officiating in NYC, then became Director of the US Open in 1993 and retired in '02. Still do sports consulting and occasional umpiring for senior events-McEnroe/Aggasi/Sampras etc.

Serving with the absolute best trained soldiers in the military, in the most respected Company in the Infantry-Charlie Co. Trip to VN as a unit on the USNS Geiger-reruns of Combat tv shows, repeated showings of The Longest Day, on-deck PT. Old fashioned landing on the beach @ Qui Nhon-LSTs, cargo nets and all. Then the press, etc as we landed -we expected the enemy (maybe we weren't far wrong). Never forget the sign-Welcome to Jones Beach! On to An Khe in the rain and more rain. First few short missions, then it got real. Kool Aid, Chaplain Lord, Falstaff beer, Sin City, pay jumps, more rain, leeches, Charlie Black. For the rest of it read my book "Mail Call" when it's published or my short articles in O Dark Thirty, the publication of the Veterans Writing Project.

2nd Platoon Leader