Shayana+&+Stella

Biographical Narrative Lawrence John Thompson Highest Rank: E-5 Shayana Celmer & Stella Yakunin

Mr. Lawrence Thompson was a Vietnam Veteran. He was born on May 16, 1949. His highest rank was an E-5. His services dates were from August 14, 1969 to January 5, 1972. When he was drafted, his parents wanted him to go to Canada. They didn’t want him to go into the war. His parents cared for him and wanted him to give up his citizenship so they wouldn’t risk him being dead. Even though they wanted him to go to Canada, he stayed. Mr.Thompson was brave. Most guys did try to go to Canada yet his courage shined through. He was going to join the fight. Mr.Thompson felt it was his duty to serve in the war. While others fled to Canada he went to war. He could have been working or learning about snowmobiles, they were new at the time. No, instead he went to war. He went through basic training and slept instead of in a nice house, in a bunker. During his time in service, Mr.Thompson was in the first Aviation Brigade. He went through a lot of training and schooling to get to that position. He had basic training to build more muscle and learn to shoot a rifle. Mr.Thompson fixed planes for the military. When an aircraft was shot down or even if it had a malfunction Mr.Thompson was part of the group that fixed the planes. His fellow crew members fixed and inspected any plane they needed to. Without him, many soldiers would have died from a mechanical failure. Mechanical failures were very common. That is why planes were checked after coming back to the landing area. Also, without Mr.Thompson many planes wouldn’t have been fixed or ready to go into combat. Imagine, a soldier dying without any fire or harm caused to him. If a soldier died because a plane malfunctioned it’d be a tragedy. Yet, Mr.Thompson and his crew stopped such a thing from happening. Mr.Thompson would not allow his work to be anything less than the best of his abilities. A loss of one soldier could be a loss of the war. No soldier wanted to lose, he added on to the fight in hopes of victory. Victory was what Mr.Thompson had wanted from the start. Yet, when he came home, people didn’t support the war effort. A soldier coming home should have been naturally welcomed. However, this is far from true when it came to Vietnam vets. They came home to a world that hated them. Some soldiers were beaten and even spit on if recognized as a Vietnam soldier. Mr.Thompson was well aware of this hate, and yet he knew he wasn’t going to give up. He fought for what he believed was right, even if US citizens didn’t believe. Mr.Thompson wrote home. He knew about the mixed feelings people had at home. Writing home and being aware of the situation made him less likely to be affected. He still proudly wore his uniform and medals home. As was said earlier he was affected very little. Mr.Thompson was very proud of his medals and himself. His favorite medal was his Oak leaf cluster. It was given to him for serving in two conflicts at one time. Mr.Thompson was very happy to receive that award and I don’t believe any US citizen, no matter the profanities could take that away. After the Vietnam war ended for Mr.Thompson, he went home and back to his former job. Mr.Thompson went back to the same job he had before because they held that position for him. Soon after he was working he met a lovely woman and started a family. He is still looked at as very strong and courageous. He may not like to speak of the war, but you can tell he was an amazing soldier.

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__Transcript__ Veteran: Lawrence John Thompson Shayana Celmer & Stella Yakunin Shayana Celmer: I’m here with Lawrence John Thompson. He was born May 16, 1949. He served in the army in the Vietnam War. His highest rank was E-5. We are in Dushore Pennsylvania on March 3, 2012. I’m Shayana Celmer and I’ll be conducting this interview for my grandfather, for the Veterans History Project for the Library of Congress.

Shay: Why did you decide to enlist in the army?

Mr.Thompson: Well first of all I was drafted. Then, I wanted to go to a special school so I enlisted an extra year to make sure I got the school.

Shay: After you enlisted where did you go to do basic training?

Mr.Thompson: Basic training I went to Fort Brag North Carolina, where the 82nd air borne was stationed at.

Shay: Could you please describe basic training experience?

Mr.Thompson: Up early in the morning doing P.T, then go eat breakfast. Then go out different places for different training, military training.

Shay: Where did you learn certain skills at, like your special skills?

Mr.Thompson: Well first of all you went to basic training to learn military courtesy and to learn how to shoot a rifle. Second, you went to a different school which was you’re A.I.T your advanced individual training. That everyone went to, it was at different places and I happen to go to, Newport News Virginia, for air frame repair.

Shay: Your secondary training how was that like was it a rough experience, like was it easy?

Mr.Thompson: No it was easy than basic training because in basic training you have to concentrate on everything. Where after you got to your A.I.T, your military training is all ready pounded into you. Where you were left to do your class work.

Shay: What was it like to know you where in the first aviation brigade and the 42 trans company?

Mr.Thompson: Well that was after I went to Vietnam and they have different companies and brigades and stuff that different people were assigned to for different things. They were aviation and that’s what I went to school for so that’s why I went.

Shay: When you were going to base, how did you get there like travel wise?

Mr.Thompson: Well actually we lived on base. We had our housing on base. We had our hangars and stuff on base. So we walked to work.

Shay: How was it walking to work?

Mr.Thompson: It wasn’t too bad. It was about a half a mile walk, because everything was separate we had our housing at one place, and then the hangar and stuff at the other end.

Shay: How was the food and like the sleeping area at the base, like was it good?

Mr.Thompson: The food wasn’t the best. It was tolerable. The sleeping quarters, you did the best you could, you had a bed to sleep on, with a mattress.

Shay: Tell me about the food, the barracks, and what you did at base?

Mr.Thompson: The food was tolerable it was okay. As far as sleeping arrangements and stuff, they had it broke down to what we called hooches. There was six men in a hooch and you could put walls up in between ya if you wanted to.

Shay: Did you like being at base or on missions?

Mr.Thompson: I liked being at the base. I had a bed to sleep on.

Shay: Where was your first mission?

Mr.Thompson: Actually right there because when I first went over we were going into Laos and they required a lot of work.

Shay: Did you have friends in Laos or on that mission?

Mr.Thompson: That I don’t know, because I had friends all over the country that you didn’t know where anybody was at one time.

Shay: In that particular mission what was your job?

Mr.Thompson: My job then was working on helicopters that had been shot up or damaged.

Shay: What was your first mission experience like?

Mr.Thompson: I knew war was bad, but I didn’t think that things could get shot up as bad as what they did. Then to have people keep going back for more.

Shay: Was it easy or hard in your perspective?

Mr.Thompson: I learned to tolerate it after awhile. It was hard at first, but then as the days went on you learned to tolerate it.

Shay: Please tell me about the greatest and most interesting missions in your eyes?

Mr.Thompson: Biggest one was when we went back into the Ashall valley, and then went into Laos, because the Ashall was where the marine corps were at. And they got hammered up there pretty good. And then they demanded it, and then when we went to Laos, they went back and reclaimed it. But they done it different this time. Instead of just staying in the Valley, they put men on the hills too. So that they could protect it.

Shay: What was going on in the location at that time?

Mr.Thompson: We were still looking for Charlie. He was a hard guy to find.

Shay: Did your friends come home with you?

Mr.Thompson: I had several friends come home with me that I was stationed with. About seven of us came home at the same time. But, then on the way home I found a couple more at the airport when we were waiting for a plane that I didn’t know were over there at the time.

Shay: While you were in or at missions did the weather affect you in any way?

Mr.Thompson: The heat was something else for a lot of people especially the humidity. Living here in Pennsylvania I was used to the humidity that we get here. It was the constant rain when the monsoons come in it rained for three months everyday. It was hard to stay warm and dry.

Shay: Was there any diseases like trench foot?

Mr.Thompson: Trench foot, malaria, and other stuff. You had to watch all the time.

Shay: Were you hospitalized for any of those?

Mr.Thompson: No I wasn’t, I took my medicine like I was supposed to.

Shay: When on missions what was your attire?

Mr.Thompson: We all wore jungle fatigues but the guys that were out in the field, they had camouflage fatigues that they wore. We wore just a standard jungle fatigue.

Shay: Did you communicate with family while on missions or even at base?

Mr.Thompson: At base it was mostly letters, because we didn’t have the internet and stuff that we have today. So, it was just basically letters. But, I did a lot of writing because I had to.

Shay: Did you tell family in letters what medals you received?

Mr.Thompson: It’s part of writing home to let them know how you are and what you do. So that they be proud of you and brag.

Shay: How did you receive those medals?

Mr.Thompson: Ones that I received was because of the action that we were in. A lot of guys got the same thing.

Shay: Could you please explain those medals?

Mr.Thompson: Well the first one I got, I forget what it was called, it was for Cambodia and then the second one that I got was the Oak Leaf with cluster on it. Because I was in two conflicts while I was stationed there.

Shay: Did you wear your medals home?

Mr.Thompson: Yes I did. Showing everybody.

Shay: How’d you get to Vietnam?

Mr.Thompson: Well we left on a jet plane. We went to Alaska, then we flew into Japan, and then we flew into Tomsinu air base in South Vietnam.

Shay: Could you please describe your travel?

Mr.Thompson: Long and tiring flight to get there.

Shay: Do you prefer that type of travel?

Mr.Thompson: If you have a long distance to go, I would rather go by jet than drive. Because it only takes but a few hours to get near anyplace. And after you get there you can rent a car and go see whatever you want to see then.

Shay: Why was there a war in Vietnam?

Mr.Thompson: It all started back with the French when they settled it really. It was called French Indonesia. After years and years of fighting they walked away and then South Vietnam asked us to help keep the North out. That was in the late 50’s, when we started sending advisors to Vietnam to help them. Then in the 60’s of course then we started sending our own troops to help.

Shay: What was the setting of Vietnam?

Thompson: It’s an Asian country with people that are willing to work. It was beautiful country actually; if you stopped and looked at the scenery it’s a beautiful country.

Shay: What was the food like in Vietnam?

Thompson: Our food or their food?

Shay: Your food.

Thompson: Our food it was American food. But you had to have a taste for what the cooks managed to put out.

Shay: Did you ever have guard duty?

Thompson: Oh yes, everybody pulls guard duty. We used to pull it for two weeks at a time and then we would trade off to someone else over for two weeks, and it was a position where somebody had to stay awake all night long and keep watch.

Shay: Were you ever shot at during guard duty?

Thompson: Oh yes several times, and it’s a frightening sight to see them green tracers coming at you and then next thing you know they’re going over the tower that you’re setting in. Or you’re setting there and they’re walking borders in toward you and then when the last one goes off it’s right by you and it wakes you up real quick.

Shay: How did that war end?

Thompson: We finally got North Vietnam to come to peace tables so that we could get out of North Vietnam and it was a slow process of bringing the entire men home.

Shay: How long were you in the War?

Thompson: I was there for 19 and half months. I spent 12 months there and volunteered to go back.

Shay: Did you know when coming home there were mixed feelings on Vietnam soldiers in the US.

Thompson: Yes I did, we seen that and read it in the newspapers.

Shay: When you came home did those mixed feelings affect you?

Thompson: Yea because you’re off doing a job where you can die protecting them and fighting for your flag and your country and they end up spitting on you and calling you names.

Shay: If you could, would you go back and change anything you did in Vietnam?

Thompson: If I could go back and change anything… I would like to go back and see Vietnam as it is today. Because there’s no war, people aren’t dying even though they are under control of North Vietnam. Now it’s a whole country.

Shay: Do you have any other memories or thoughts about the war that you would like to share?

Thompson: Hmm…a lot of I’ll just keep to myself. It’s funny how war brings people together.

Shay: Thank you for your time this was a pleasure I’m glad I got to interview you.

Shay: When you first got drafted what did your parents have to say?

Thompson: Oh neither one liked it, but my mom, she wanted to give me money to go to Canada. My dad said no but I stayed I went into service because I thought it was my duty because my father had went into WWII.

Shay: What did your friends think about it?

Thompson: My friends felt sorry for me. But shortly after I left they all left too into the service.

Shay: How long did you have to be in the service?

Thompson: I was scheduled to be in for three years, but I got out early because I extended my stay in South Vietnam.

Shay: When you came back from Vietnam, was there any new advancement in technology?

Thompson: Yea because I come back in the winter time with snow on the ground and the first thing I run into new is my cousin had a snowmobile and I had no idea what they were. Until, we went out and looked at it and took a ride, and then I had to get me one.

Shay: Why Canada?

Thompson: Well a lot of guys would go to Canada when they were drafted just to get away from the draft, that way the government couldn’t touch them.

Shay: Was that common?

Thompson: A lot of them went.

Shay: What was the reason you extended your stay?

Thompson: Reason why I extended my stay in Vietnam was because of my brother was getting ready to be drafted. And they had a law that stated that anyone in the combat zone they were only allowed to have one. Since I was there there was no sense of him coming.

Shay: What are fatigues?

Thompson: Fatigues, you have they were you work clothes for the military. They have different ones, but the ones they have now are basically jumbled fatigues what they called them. They have a lot of pockets that you could put a lot of stuff in, easy access. They were made to keep you cool in hot climates and if its cooler out they’d keep you warm and if you’d get wet they’d dry real quick.

Shay: What physical activities did you do in basic training?

Thompson: Basic training you did everything they wanted you too sit ups, jumping jacks, running a lot, push ups, pull ups, obstacle courses, they just kept you on move all the time to get you in shape.

Shay: Tell me how that training affected you?

Thompson: Oh the first week was murder. The second week really wasn’t any better, but as the weeks progressed you become used to it and you did get physically fit.

Shay: What are some of the immediate life style changes after being drafted?

Thompson: After being drafted…after being drafted you go in it’s all restricted. They tell you what to do, when to do it, how to do it. It’s different than being a civilian because a civilian you could talk back where in the service you’re in the army way or no way.

Shay: How did your schedule change like breakfast and all the other stuff?

Thompson: Basically their time eating never changed. You had breakfast say like 5 in the morning till seven. Lunch was 11 to 1 and supper was around 4 to 6. But when I went to my AIT I went to school at nighttime so my breakfast was at 9 o’clock in the morning till 10. Then we had to do different jobs and stuff and you always had something special to do. Then it was 1 o’clock you had lunch and at 4 o’clock you went to school. Well at 7 o’clock you marched back to your kitchen to have supper and then at 9 o’clock you went back to school. Sometimes we got done at 12 o’clock at night or at 1 o’clock in the morning.

Shay: Did you have to get your hair cut?

Thompson: When we went to basic training you had to get your hair cut. You went from long hair to no hair. Then once to week every week you went back to get a haircut there was nothing to cut, but you had to get it cut and it cost you a dollar every time you got it cut.

Shay: How did you feel that you had to pay to get it cut?

Thompson: Well in civilian life I had to pay to get it cut it was no different. The only thing is they weren’t cutting anything but stubbles.

Shay: So, what exactly is the picture with the big tower?

Thompson: This is a picture of one of our guard towers that we used to pull guard in. We had three guys go to each tower and there were I forget how many towers all the way around. But each guy had to carry his rifle. One guy carried a machine gun and the other guy carried an M-79 grenade launcher. The tower that I showed you we used to call the penthouse because in the penthouse we had a mini gun established in it, which shoot about to 5,000 rounds a minute.

Shay: How long did it take you to climb the tower?

Thompson: It’d take you about a minute to climb up with all the weight that you had on you with the stuff that you had to take with you because we used to take the starlight scope with us and you had to pull that up. That was for seeing at night that was your night vision the very beginning of night vision and it was a helpful thing.

Shay: What’s the other picture.

Thompson: The other picture is a picture of a smaller tower with intermediate bunkers. The main tower was bigger than the intermediate bunker. Which held three guys. The intermediate bunkers were if we were on the yellow or orange alert we would put two guys in that for extra help just in case we got hit.

Shay: Did you ever get hit?

Thompson: Yes several times we got hit with rocket fire and border fire but they never, the NVA never come around to try to get into the compound.