Patrick Morello Vietnam War: U.S. Army Rank: E-5 HHB108 Artillery Unit 1968-1970

1. Patrick Morello Vietnam War: U.S. Army Rank: E-5 HHB108 Artillery Unit 1968-1970

2. Before the Army • Patrick was born in New York, in 1947. • In 1966, Patrick lived at home in California at the age of 18. • He lived with his parents and six younger sisters. • He was living a relaxed life, going around doing simple odd jobs.

3. Application • Patrick applied for the Air Force in 1966. • The Air Force paid the most money. • Unfortunately, Patrick had bad eyesight from an incident as a child. • The Air Force declined his application. • Patrick knew he would eventually be drafted into the army.

4. Army • Patrick did not wait long to be drafted, he was drafted in 1968. • He was sent directly to Basic Training. • After B.T. he was sent to Fort Stewart, Georgia • Then to he was sent to Vietnam as a replacement.

5. Vietnam Base • Patrick went to Vietnam and stayed there for 1 year. • At the base, the soldiers lived in underground sand-bag bunkers. • They were located 7 miles from the demilitarized zone.

6. Unit Background • Patrick was ranked E-5 in the HHB108 Artillery Unit. • His group was not a really well defined group. • The soldiers were transferred into and out of the base constantly. • The soldiers would be in one position for a few weeks and then be switched to a new position.

7. Patrick's Job • Patrick helped keep the guns in good working order. • The soldiers controlling the guns would report back to Patrick at Headquarters. • He would help direct them to where to aim the fire from the bunkers.

8. Guard Duty • When Patrick or the other soldiers were on Guard Duty: • They set off sirens and alarms in the bunkers. • The Vietcong would send rockets and missiles over the fences. • The Vietcong tried to destroy the guns on the base. • The Marines were stationed nearby and helped protect the base.

9. Monsoon • Vietnam was a center for Monsoons. • Monsoon season lasted 3-4 months of the year. • Monsoons consisted of rain and wind up to 150 mph. • Everything on the base turned to mud. • Nothing would stay clean, which made the living conditions really bad.

10. Almost an Early Release • President Nixon was considering getting rid of the department Patrick was stationed in. • Although, Patrick's commanding officer had never been to the base in Vietnam. • The officer persuaded Nixon to keep Patrick's department because of that fact. • Every soldier wanted to go home but the only way was to be shipped home, in a body bag.

11. Most Memorable Moment • While Patrick was in the the service, his most memorable moment was when his daughter was born. • He received a picture of his six month old daughter that he kept with him all the time. • Patrick kept the picture with him and it encouraged him to keep going on.

12. Most Memorable Moment • Another memorable moment Patrick had was when he first arrived in Vietnam. • When he stepped out of the plane, there was no air. There was so much humidity he could feel it pressing down on him. • He did not know where he was going or what he was being assigned to do.

13. Greatly Needed Releases • Since they were always surrounded by the war, the soldiers needed time away. • The soldiers in Patrick's unit had ways to have a release. • One way they did this was going to USO shows. • They would also project movies onto a sheet of plywood. • They even would occasionally take a trip to a town. • The soldiers would grab a beer and had singers who would put shows on for them .

14. Return Home • Patrick found it very depressing when he returned because there was nobody welcoming him home. There was no fan fair. • He felt bad because no person congratulated him. • Not until later on did they discover that Patrick suffered from PTSD.

15. Medals • Patrick received a few medals for his service: • NOSM GCMOL • VSM mkmm-14 • 2 OS Bar • He never received the actual medals, just the papers.

16. Thoughts On the War • Patrick questioned what he had accomplished while in Vietnam. • He did not feel like any difference had been made. • After the Army left, the government just took back over. • The same things are still occurring today as they were then.

17. What He Learned From War • He learned things about himself from being in the war. • Patrick learned how to trust and how to survive. • In order for him to survive, he had to trust the guys in his unit.

18. Life After War • Patrick had seen enough of the war and did not want to ever go back. • He did not like the violent nature of man that he had seen in Vietnam. • He wanted to stay home and raise his kids. • Patrick said that “Bad things are harder to forget than the good things.”

19. After War Beliefs • The violent nature Patrick saw made him question his beliefs. • He saw the way life was in Vietnam, and questioned how his God would let this happen.

21. Against the War • Vietnam was the first published war, and it was shown openly to the public. • Many people protested the war, and that discouraged the soldiers. • “Everyone should be the way they want and you don't have to believe in the war and what's going on, you just have to believe in yourself and your country.”

22. This is Patrick Morello of the US Army's story.