1/83 Artillery Update
March 10, 2015

1/83rd Unit News

1. Health Issue - I have an update on the VA health issue raised by Neal Schwartz (68-69) that I mention in the March 1 update. Neal had mentioned that when he tried to register online for the eHealth system the system kept crashing.

I subsequently got a phone call from Dave Sides who was "A" Battery CO in 1970. He was familiar with the problem Neal encountered when he  tried to enroll on-line. Dave had a similar experience. He lives in New Hampshire and found from the local VA that the notice to enroll went out prematurely in some areas. Apparently the system has not been rolled out to all VA Medical Center jurisdictions as yet and that is probably why Neal had a problem. If you have any other question on that, I am sure Dave would not mind if you reached out to him directly.

2. Hepatitis Advisory - awhile back I became aware of a Hepatitis Advisory for those who received inoculations in the military using the air guns that they were using. This advisory recommended that "if you received the air-gun vaccinations, you should be tested for Hepatitis C". I mentioned this to my family doctor and he had me tested to be safe. All was okay but I thought I would mention it again. I am also including the document I received so you can show it to your own Doctor. Here it is.

I was also informed that at least one of our group received a letter from the Army, way back then, advising the following...

"... the Army sent me a letter that warned about a disease (probably hepatitis).  The letter instructed all 1/83'ers to get a  shot.  Though I have no distinct recollection of the contents of the letter, I recall that promptly following receipt of the Army's letter, I went to the NYU student health center, where I got the injection described in the letter."

I know of no one who got such advice but if you did, let me know so I can pass that info along in a follow-up Update.

3. New Email Address - Mike Reetz (66-67) has a new email address, it can be found on the Roster.

4. New Email Address - JP (Pat) Malone (67-68) has a new email address, it can be found on the Roster.

5. Firebases - Rex Hon (66-67) sent this interactive map of Vietnam WAR - US Facilities. It appears to use Google Maps and is very interesting. You can look down the list on the left side for Bases, Firebases, LZ's, etc. If you click on a name it will allow you to zoom in on that location. In some cases, there are also links with more info on that spot. Just so you know, not all the links work but it is still interesting to zoom in on the location. I have also added this link on the 1/83rd website.

6. Agent Orange Spraying Missions - Don Aird (70-71) sent this map of Areas where Defoliants were sprayed. The map can be used to see defoliant spraying missions by U.S. and South Vietnamese forces over Vietnam, as well as Laos and Cambodia. The missions began in summer 1961 and ended more than a decade later, in spring 1971. I will be adding this link on the 1/83rd website.

7. Unit Operations for the 1/83rd - Norm Gallagher (66-67) and Pete Etchamendy (66-67) had previously offered to take the lead on a project to write up 1/83rd movements for the time we were in Vietnam (1966-1971). I had mentioned this at the Reunion and later in an update because Norm and Pete need your help. No one has contacted Norm to offer their help.

The idea was to get a timeline of Battalion and Battery movements from arrival in 1966 to stand-down in 1971. We all have some level of what we remember so please contact Norm if you can help. His contact info can be found on the Roster.

In the meantime, Norm sent me something he found on Wikipedia titled Lists of allied military operations of the Vietnam War. This site shows all allied operations by date and also alphabetically. I have also added this to our website. I think you will find this interesting.

8. Wally Wallace - I spoke with Wally recently and he continues to progress from his recent heart attack.

9. Unit Merchandise - See section below.

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Be sure to let me know what is going on in your life so we can share it with everyone in this section. See the latest 1/83rd News by clicking here.

Photo of the Week

8-inch Howitzer

(Courtesy of Barbara Bina (wife of Tony "B" Battery 1966-67)

General News

Interesting Links and More

2. Rich Webekind (66-67) sent this Patriotic Medley of Military Anthems.

3. Walt Noechel (69-70) sent this Awesome Machines Compilation video.

4. I received this link from a friend. It allows you to look up the song that was Number 1 the day you were born and the day you were conceived.

Website Updates

1. If you come across anything that you think may be a good addition to our website let me know. Also, if you have any questions or suggestions regarding the website, let me know.  

2. Check out all the latest updates by looking at the website Table of Contents.

Vietnam Veterans of America Update

2. VVA website

1/83rd Merchandise

Unit Merchandise - The proceeds from Cap, Decal and Patch sales will all go to the Reunion fund.

a. Unit Crest Patches (same patch as has been available 3.25"h x 2.75"w - $6 each. Here is a photo.

b. Unit Crest Decals (Decal is round 3.5" x 3.5") - $5 each. Here is a photo.

c. 1/83rd Caps (Adjustable) - $20 each. Here is a photo.

d. Unit Hat Patches (same patch as is on the 1/83rd cap - $6 each. Here is a photo.

If you are interested in any of these items, send me a check (my contact info is on the Roster). Make sure you supply your mailing address when making your request.

If you want an 83rd Artillery Unit Crest Pin, I have a link on the website where you can order them from one of the 3 vendors listed. I have bought from all 3 of them and they are identical in quality, all are very good. Please note that Uniform Accessories will ship 2 for one price where the other 2 only ship 1 for almost the same price.

1/83rd Roster

I am sure that each of us has someone they would really like to reconnect with. If we all pitch in, we may find many more of our old buddies. Here are some ways to do that:

1. If you are in contact or have contact info for any 1/83rd guys please contact them and tell them about our group or at least tell me and I will contact them.

2. Look through the roster on the website and if you know of others who are not listed, let me know who they are. Also, if you see any incorrect or missing info (including your own entry) let me know.

3. If you have copies of old orders tucked away someplace, send me a copy so I can make sure those names are on the roster.

4. Sometimes all it takes is a name and location and we can find someone but the more details we know the better our chances.

Please make sure that your email system allows emails to be received from both of my email addresses, bill_t_08012@yahoo.com  and artillery_83rd@yahoo.com

Please note that there are no blank spaces in email addresses. What you see in mine between words/characters is the underscore (_) character.

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