Any Vets Wanna Share a Thanksgiving Story?

Free Republic ^ | Nov. 22, 2001 | IronJack

[IronJack]

I'm always interested in the stories vets have of their "holidays" on the job. Any of you ground pounders, fly boys, salts, or jarheads got a tale to share about a Thanksgiving you spent in uniform?

[IronJack]

It's always a pleasure to hear our veterans talk. And it's a great reminder of how much we have to be thankful for.

[WillaJohns]

I wanna hear the stories, too!

[OldEagle]

I spent a lot of holidays overseas. Probably the most memorable was a Thanksgiving spent on a lonely observation post on a mountaintop in Korea. About midday we became aware that someone was coming up the back side of the hill. We were pleasantly surprised when the visitors turned out to be from battalion headquarters bringing us a HOT Thanksgiving turkey dinner with all the trimmings.

[ErnBatavia]

Ha! I had mess duty at Camp Pendleton in 1967...I was "salad man", with lots of physical food contact therefore. I came down with a rash, reported to base hospital, and got quarantined with Rubella measels.

I kept my mouth shut; certainly a few others had their holiday spoiled by the likes of me.

[Dedbone]

Here's one from Army CSM (ret) James Mc Donald that came from our squadron (1/9th Cav) discussion board:

Vietnam: As the medic, I was on the roster to cook team Meals for the Advisory Team. Since it was Our First Thanksgiving with our Vietnamese Counterparts, I thought it would be nice to invite the Viet Regional Force Staff and to our team Thanksgiving Dinner.

The Viet Co, Xo, S1-4, Adj and SGM graciously accepted. I wanted to put forth the traditional spread of Turkey and the Fixens I labored real hard to get the necessary Menu items (Less minor substitutions: Jam for Cranberry Sauce and Duck for Turkey)

The Dinner was at first a success and the Thanksgiving skit was a hoot ( a Pilgrim (Large, White, Round Eyes in a CAV hat) meeting and accepting food from the Indians ( Short, Feathered, Mountainyard Type) I think the interpreter lost something in the translation because I heard the word Custer and then V/Staff rolled with Laughter.

The next day was a disaster: The whole V/Staff had Stomach Cramps and Diarrhea: Seems the buttered honey glazed yams, mince pie, apple juice and Jam were too rich for their restricted digestive systems (Plus to save face they all accepted a second helping when offered).

I provided apologies, medicine, and comforting words.. Blaming it on the BAD DUCK bought in the village (wink wink).

The Vietnamese Commander of the Regional Force, Laughed with me, when He said "I can't wait to think up the excuse for missing your Xmas Dinner".

Come to think about it, There were a few revisions in the mince pies ingredients and I don't remember, what all I stuffed in that DUCK !!!

Well anyway, The thought was there. I was there to WIN the HEARTS and MINDS and nothing else.

[pabianice]

While I was serving with Naval Air, those of us who were bachelors would volunteer to stand SDO on Thanksgiving so the married guys could be home with their families. While in home port, holidays at the squadron were usually really quiet, even tho we were between deployments to Vietnam.

One Thanksgiving I was sitting in the silent duty office, feeling lonely and very single, when the door opened and in came one of my best friends, Ramo. He was carrying several complete Thanksgiving turkey dinners with all the trimmings. He wished me and the ASDO a happy Thanksgiving from his family. So that day the ASDO and I had a great meal instead of solitary box lunches in a deserted hangar. I still remember it warmly.

Pabianice

USNR - Retired

[richwolo]

I had my 1968 Thanksgiving dinner at lunchtime at the USAF Tachikawa AFB (Japan) hospital with a fellow patient who I met at the table. We were both mobile and lonely and decided to go to Mt. Fuji via a narrow guage mountain RR. We got off the train where the route ended in Nov. We then hiked as high up as we dared in the snow. (not too far) It worked out real fine. we forgot it was Thanksgiving and that we were alone and away from our families. We partied on the way down with Japanes strangers who didn't even know what Thanksgiving was all about. Must have been memorable to me, for I remember the whole day quite clearly.

[d4now]

Good story! Thanks for posting!

[Aeronaut]

I experienced four Thanksgivings and three Christmases on active duty away from home. '66 - '69. The mess cooks always did a pretty good job for the holidays(it was a shore station). Most of the rest of the year the chow was not that good.

[IronJack]

Great stories!!!! Keep 'em coming.

[clintonh8r]

Since you asked, I can't remember much about my four Thanksgivings in the service except where I spent them:

68 Quantico

69 Camp Pendleton

70 I Corps, Hill 55

71 MCRD San Diego.

I guess the tides of time have washed away the details.

[1John]

Once upon a time, in an Air Force school far, far away......

It was the pounding that woke me up. Loud it was, and hard against my wall. I struggled to find my bearings and remember just where I had left myself the night before. There! The pounding began again, rhythmic and steady and hard against the wall to my room. It was coming from the room next to mine - or ours, I should say, as John Flarkey shared space with me at the time while we studied oh-so-important military topics.

In a slow motion, molasses-like fashion, I recovered enough of my senses to carefully remove myself to an upright position and, hangover in tow, began a slow stumble towards the door.

When I finally reached the next room, I found Sergeant Watkins hard at work, driving a nail into his wall - that drumhead wall that had so faithfully reproduced all the thunder. The odd thing was, he was using a very large turkey drumstick for a hammer. When Dennis sensed my presence, he stopped in mid-swing and, turning to me, said, "I just wanted to see if the damn thing really was hard enough to drive a nail. Turns out it is......"

"Oh," I said and wandered off to see if I could borrow enough loose change to afford a pizza. This because I had suddenly found a desperate, all-consuming need to avoid having to actually eatin our wretched chow hall one more time. A couple of beers would be welcome, too.

[JoeFromCA]

I was a UH 1B (helicopter) crew chief with the 1st Air Cavalry at Pleiku (Central Highlands, N. Vietnam), Thanksgiving '65. It was about two weeks after the Battle of Ia Drang, the first major military encounter with the NVA, in which we lost 234 US troops. General Westmoreland came to our camp to congratulate us on our great victory (estimated 14-1 kill ratio). We had to wait for our dinners to suit his schedule, and morale was low. Those were hard times; much better Thanksgiving '01.

[SolitaryMan]

Had a couple while underway on a Submarine, or while deployed. The cooks usually do their best putting out a great spread. One year after a port call in Norway, we had Reindeer and salmon along with turkey and prime rib.

Usually run “movie marathons” or card/game tournaments all day long. Generally, halfway day during a deployment was better. Open packages and other goodies the wives had put together and sent us, plus a big meal.

[PokeyJoe]

I spent my 19th Birthday, Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Years Day and Valentines Day learning to be a US Marine at MCRD San Diego in the early 80s.

Christmas Day - we sang a very wierd version of the 12 Days of Christmas (each day was a physical exercise, and we had to do the days reps on each verse - ie: "On the Six day of Christmas, my Drill Instructor gave to me - Six mountain climbers..." we all dropped "One Sir, Two Sir, Three Sir, Four Sir, Five Sir, Six Sir" - got back up "On the Fifth Day of Christmas my Drill Instructor gave to me five Leg Lifts" and then dropped "One Sir, Two Sir, Three Sir..." and it continued...

We were laughing, smiling as we were pushed with a Drill Instructor who seemed to not have a Christmas bone in his body - knowing that we were all sharing in something that we would never forget.

He later told us when we graduated - "you'll always remember our Christmas together Marine". I still do. My favorite Thanksgiving in the Marines was spent eating an Sake Basted Turkey with Rice stuffing in Iwakuni with Mamasan Hamamoto. (The resident MAG-11 ham/cheese sandwich and Soda shop lady) I miss her. Happy Thanksgiving Mamasan - whereever you are. You cheered many Marines.

[IronJack]

It's an odd mix of good friends, bad food, loneliness, and sudden comfort. I guess that's the military experience in a nutshell, eh?

Keep the tales coming ...

[klee]

Im not in the services. Or even American for that matter.

Just wanted to say Happy Thanksgiving America.

[Sub-Driver]

I spent Thanksgiving 1980 aboard a submarine in the artic ocean. The day was nothing special, I ate and then went on watch in the sonar room. We had turkey, real potatoes (no instant), peas, stuffing. I do recall we had table clothes put out. For mid rats we had turkey sandwiches and watched some loser movie.........I think this was @ our 50th day out.

[Fighting Irish]

Well......a couple called me late one Thanksgiving evening as my family sat around the table. Their Cocker Spaniel has swallowed a turkey bone and it lodged ......wait........you did say Vet Story right?

[1John]

right