Arlington Burial

Thanks to an outpouring of assistance from thousands of Veterans Mary Vanetta Bender was laid to rest this morning Friday 1 February 2002 in Arlington National Cemetery. She passed away on 10 January and at that time the cemetery denied her request simply stating that she hadn’t served in the military long enough.

Mary was born on 30 January 1940. She enlisted in the Women’s Army Corps (WAC) in May 1962. Though discharged three times she actually served nine years altogether.

She received three Discharge Certificates. This was not unusual as in years past each time an enlistment contract ended the service member was issued an official discharge. The first certificate was when her initial enlistment contract ended.

The next certificate was when she was required to leave the WAC because she had become pregnant. At that time women were not allowed to stay in the military if pregnant. In 1976 the 2nd District Court of Appeals ruled that involuntary discharge due to pregnancy was unfair, unequal and unconstitutional, as pregnancy should be treated as a temporary illness.

She was originally trained as a Counter Intelligence Agent (MOS-97B). But her next discharge certificate came about when she left the enlisted ranks. She became a Warrant Officer (WO) and trained to be a Polygraph Operator.

It is reported that she served two tours of duty in Vietnam. One of those tours she was with the 115th Military Intelligence (MI) Group in Saigon. Reportedly she was injured while there. She was interrogating a prisoner when there was an explosion. Mary was wounded in action and received a Purple Heart though she refused to accept it. It was also reported that she was assigned to Headquarters (HQ) 525th during her second tour. During the Tet Offensive the office she worked in was over run by the VietCong. Her Commanding Officer (CO) wanted to award her the Silver Star because Mary reclaimed the office herself. BUT women weren’t given Silver Stars.

Having entered the WAC as an enlisted woman Mary’s final rank was Chief Warrant Officer 2 (CWO2). She had received many ribbons and awards. She was proud of her service to our country.

Mary had been ill since serving our country. She developed Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) and cancer as a direct result of exposure to Agent Orange (AO) and suffered tremendously from Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). She was declared 100% disabled. She became a member of her local Disabled American Veterans chapter. Her name was listed on the roster of women who served in Saigon, Vietnam on the Vietnam Women Veterans website. AND yet Arlington still refused to allow her family to lay her remains to rest.

Her son, Joshua, found her service documents when he went through her belongings following her death. He asked the Cupertino Funeral Parlor in Saratoga, California to arrange for his mother to be buried in Arlington. That’s how this story came about. Arlington refused stating she hadn’t served long enough.

Joshua had enough sense about him to turn to the Internet for assistance. One of the groups he reached out to was Amendment5WACs run by Carolyn Tyler and Patsy Paluso. Carolyn and Patsy helped Joshua in his quest to bury his mom with honors. They opened up the story to the Veterans on the Internet. Thousands of emails and faxes were sent from around the world to Congressmen, Senators, and Arlington National Cemetery.

When faced with all the documents of Mary’s service to our country and the pressure of the Veterans and general public, Arlington officials approved her burial.

Services were held this morning at Arlington as Mary Vanetta Bender was laid to rest in the cemetery that honors our fallen heroes.

Three Movie Reviews

During the recent Christmas holidays there was squat on television. I decided it would be nice to catch up on a few movies that I hadn’t seen yet. Off to Blockbuster I went and came home with three war films. If you haven’t already seen these films—you might want to plan on it.

"Enemy at the Gates" was quite interesting. It was about the Germans attacking and trying to take over the Russian City of Stalingrad during World War II (WWII). I had no idea the German army had gotten that far into Russia before. But then again I didn’t immerse myself in studying WW II either. I’m not sure just how much of the story line was based on fact but if most of it was true then I am totally amazed.

The opening scenes were brutal and reminded me of the first half-hour of "Saving Private Ryan". They showed the Russians coming off a train. Every other soldier in line was handed a rifle; the next person in line was handed the ammunition. They were told if the person in front of you gets killed, grab the rifle and go on yourself. As they crossed the river to attack the enemy and defend their homeland they were virtually massacred. If the Germans didn’t kill them, their own officers were shooting them calling them cowards. One man, Vassily Zaitzev portrayed by Jude Law, came to the aid of another, Joseph Fiennes character Danilov. The way Vassily fired his weapon was certainly what made the story. He soon became a member of a sniper crew.

Thanks to Danilov his name and face was in the papers. His superiors made a big thing out of him. The country needed a hero and he was to be it. It wasn’t long before the Germans sent in their top sniper, Major Konig played by Ed Harris, to try to locate this now famous Russian. The movie then went back and forth between the two men and what they were doing.

The film was suspenseful. It had action, combat scenes, intrigue, heroes, villains, and a little romance. The ending left me bewildered but I’m not going to ruin it for you. This film was well worth watching.

"Men of Honor" was another excellent film but it left me wanting to know more. It was the fact-based story of the Navy’s Master Diver Carl Brashear. He was the first black man to attend and graduate from Diving School. Cuba Gooding Jr portrayed Brashear who at a young age decided he wanted to be a diver for the Navy. BUT when he entered the Navy blacks were only allowed in the kitchens.

After coming to the attention of his CO, Brashear was given an opportunity to attend the school he really wanted to. He came face to face with Billy Sunday played by Robert DeNiro. In many ways Sunday wanted to see Brashear complete the course but his commander portrayed by Hal Holbrook tied his hands. Eventually Brashear was successful.

As Brashear’s career progressed, Sunday’s fell apart. Then there was a terrible accident, which resulted in Brashear losing a leg. The Navy wanted to retire him but he fought to stay in. Sunday came to his aid and helped him recover from the amputation. He was by his side when Brashear had to go to court to fight for the right to stay in the Navy. The court scene was very moving.

Yes there was a little romance in the movie and yes there was vulgarity but this film was very good. However it left me wanting more so I will have to go find of copy of the book the movie was based on to learn more about this amazing man’s life. I wanted to see more of his training, more of what he went through, and more of the treacherous dives he went on that made him what he became.

I wasn’t born yet the first time our country was attacked. So I learned about Pearl Harbor and WW II as I grew up from my family and school teachers. As I got older I learned more about the war and the attack on Hawaii. Each time I saw various documentaries or movies that included the attack it amazed me that we were caught with our pants down so long ago. AND just a few months ago a similar event took place in my home state.

BUT I saw all the news clips and film trailers about "Pearl Harbor" and I waited to see the movie for myself. Having seen "Saving Private Ryan" in the movies the first time it came out I chose to wait for "Pearl Harbor" to come on video to see it.

Ben Afleck and Josh Harnett portrayed the two young men who became pilots just in time for the war. They also vied for the affections of a nurse played by Kate Beckinsale. While the beginning of the movie was a bit slow it picked up when they were sent overseas.

However—when the actual attack on Pearl Harbor started I was startled. Even though I knew it was going to happen, watching and hearing it was entirely different. The cinematography was amazing. Whether it was from the air or the ground, from the land or the sea, each bomb, each torpedo, each explosion showed me what it must have been like that awful morning.

Cuba Gooding Jr made another good appearance in this film. Portraying a cook who went topside during the bombing and armed a machine gun—something he wasn’t really allowed to do because he was black. Jon Voight made a brief appearance as President Franklin D Roosevelt.

I look forward to watching the movie again when I can sit in one place to watch it from end to end. Yes even though I had rented the video I still wasn’t able to watch it all in one sitting. But I would recommend this film also.

Now I hope that some more war films that are currently playing in the theaters hurry up and come out on video SOON.

We Were Soldiers

If you were not able to go to one of the private screenings of this movie I suggest that you go to your local theater now. This movie opened today nationwide and well worth the money.

Knowing some of the people involved with this true story and having met General Harold Moore and Joe Galloway a few years ago I felt a necessity to see the film ASAP. I read the general’s book "We Were Soldiers Once and Young" I already knew what to expect of the film. I knew that neither he nor Joe wanted just any Hollywood company to turn their book into a fiasco. They wanted the truth told and shown so Americans could learn about one particular unit and the major battle they fought in 1965.

I knew that Mel Gibson was at Fort Benning, Georgia preparing to make the film. I also knew that they moved the film crew out to Fort Hunter-Liggett in California for the actual battle scenes. I was aware that the producer, director, screenplay writer and company involved with making the movie had also done "Braveheart" which won five Academy Awards a few years ago. I felt they would stick to reality rather than sugar coating the true story. While some things were changed to make the movie from the book most of it was as real as possible.

The main cast consisted of Mel Gibson portraying (then) LTC Harold "Hal" Moore and Barry Pepper portrayed photo-journalist Joseph Galloway. Sam Elliott performed as SGM Basil Plumley, LT John "Jack" Geoghegan was played by Chris Klein, and Greg Kinnear portrayed chopper pilot MAJ Bruce Crandall. The two women who were shown the most were Madeleine Stowe who portrayed Moore’s wife Julie and Kerri Russell played Barbara Geoghegan.

The movie began by showing French soldiers being massacred in June 1954 in the IaDrang Valley by the North Vietnamese. This valley became known as the Valley of Death and was often compared to GEN Custer’s battle at the Little Big Horn. This was the first intense battle scene of the film but it was far from being the last.

The next scene showed LTC Moore, a West Point graduate, Korean War Veteran and graduate of Harvard, moving to Fort Benning for his new assignment with his wife and five children. There he soon meets MAJ Crandall, aka Snake Shit, a chopper pilot and SGM Plumley. The three of them begin the training process of their soldiers.

Meanwhile another scene shows the soldiers wives gathering and getting to know each other as well as the way things worked around the fort. Even the simple things like where to shop if the commissary is closed or where the best place to do laundry is since the fort didn’t provide washers or dryers in the housing areas are disadvantages to moving families. Remembering that this was the early 1960s one woman said the laundromat she used wouldn’t let her do colored clothing as she said the sign in the window said "Whites Only." She was naïve about the segregation laws then in the Deep South. This movie showed how these women helped each other as well as their spouses and children.

It also showed how important family and prayer was to these soldiers. In the movie when Barbara Geoghegan had her baby girl LTC Moore visited the hospital. He took the time to go to the chapel and pray with LT Geoghegan for his wife, new family member and their units safe return from their upcoming deployment to Vietnam. LTC Moore noticed the lieutenant had the baby’s bracelet on his left arm and said he could leave it there—something most officer’s frowned upon.

Before the group received orders to ship out most of them were wearing the 2nd Infantry Division shoulder patch or the 11th Air Assault shoulder patch. Upon notification of their upcoming deployment they were redesignated as the 1st Battalion, 7th Cavalry and soon replaced their patches with that of the 1st Cavalry Division. Following a party stateside they were headed for the Central Highlands of Vietnam.

After arriving in PleiMe they are soon briefed on their mission. Their group was headed for the IaDrang Valley. LTC Moore had told his men he would be the first to step foot on the ground and the last to leave. He promised them that they would all come home to their families—dead or alive. This was to become the first major encounter with the enemy. BUT the intelligence given wasn’t accurate.

On Sunday 14 November 1965 the 1/7, made up of about 400 US soldiers, arrived at LZ Xray and soon found themselves up against more than 2000 North Vietnamese soldiers. For the next three days the soldiers battled the enemy. Precise times and locations were scrolled across the bottom of the screen. This entire part of the film is very intense. There were firefights, hand-to-hand combat, and bombing missions, which were so close to our own men that there were friendly fire casualties.

One of the platoons was cut off from the rest of the company. Low on ammunition they were told to conserve and "one shot, one kill."

As darkness engulfed the battalion things got worse. LTC Moore walked among his soldiers reassuring them and telling them they did well to that point and to continue. Casualties were mounting. Moore was seen several times praying over the dead and wounded members of his battalion. This showed his compassion even more for his men.

As word was spreading back home of casualties the wives soon found out that the Army was not prepared for this. Taxicab drivers were delivering those dreaded telegrams. For whatever reason it showed that there were no chaplains or counselors there to handle this process. I don’t recall that ever really happening so I’m hoping that was just a little bit of the Hollywood effect put on the film. Whatever the case was, in this movie Julie Moore took it upon herself to deliver all the messages to the spouses of her husband’s soldiers.

Meanwhile Joe Galloway knew that there was heavy fighting going on and he jumped onboard a chopper to go see for himself. Armed only with several cameras he goes into the heat of the battle. When asked why he was there Galloway said to help the people home understand the war by shooting pictures not a rifle. More air strikes are called in and one of the men Joe came to know briefly was badly burned. He carried him to a waiting chopper. This was a rather gruesome scene.

The second day of battle wasn’t any better. The NVA kept bringing in fresh troops as our soldiers were trying to continue the battle themselves. LTC Moore asked for a head count of his men and when he found two were missing he went out himself looking for them. He found LT Geoghegan’s body—he was still wearing his daughter’s name band on his arm. The lieutenant died trying to save one of his platoon members.

More air strikes, heavy fighting, very graphic injuries and deaths and soldiers burned beyond recognition. BUT the 1/7 wouldn’t give up. On the third day of this extensive battle somehow they managed to break through the enemy lines and nearly run over the NVA’s HQs on the hill.

As Joe Galloway continued shooting pictures Moore said "I’ll never forgive myself that my men died and I didn’t." Joe commented, "I don’t know how to tell this story." And Moore’s response was "You got to Joe. Tell them how my troopers died."

LTC Moore refused to leave the IaDrang till all his men living or dead were taken off the field of battle. He kept his promise although 234 of his troopers died. LTC Moore wrote personal letters to each deceased soldier’s family. His compassion continued throughout the next 235 days his battalion was in Vietnam and to this day.

Before the credits rolled there was a brief narration about how our soldiers returned home with no bands, flags, or welcomes. The soldiers knew they fought for each other. The final scene was one of two soldiers, one in a wheelchair, going down what appeared to be an airport hallway. A woman with her children approached them and she pulled the children away from the soldiers as if they were diseased or something.

The names of the fallen soldiers of the 1/7 are listed on Panel 3 East of The Vietnam Veterans Memorial Wall. Moore and Galloway told their story well. Randall Wallace and Mel Gibson portrayed it excellently.

I watched as the audience left the theater. Men and women walked away slowly. Many sat through the credits like I did. Many were sullen and wiping their eyes. It was obvious that this was a powerful film.

Though graphic in nature this is a MUST SEE movie. Be prepared for a roller coaster of emotions. I believe the film has shown what the IaDrang Valley battle was really like. Those people who may be squeamish about blood, burns, broken burns, etc might want to stay home. BUT if you are a true fan and prefer seeing war movies—this is the one to go to! You not only see the battle scenes but also learn some of the relationship between the men, their wives, and families.