By Joseph Freeborn
On August 15, Bill Hudson and his wife Kim and Van Hall spent a day and a half with fellow Vietnam Veteran and Marlboro resident Joe Freeborn and his wife Angie as part of their 50th commemoration of their arrival in Vietnam, early August 1971.
The Hudsons came from Spanish Fort, Utah and Hall came from Brewster NY by way of his former residence in Southern California. Prior to their arrival, they visited another vet, Mike Detzi of Wind Gap, PA. After a nice visit with the Freeborn family, the group visited another Vet, Bob Hampell and his with Judy at their weekend cottage in Otis, MA, near Stockbridge.
These Vietnam veterans, all draftees, have kept in touch over the past 50 years and spent time going over memories, pictures and stories of their lives after Vietnam. Freeborn, Hampel and Detzi visited their west coast friends three years ago in Brush Prarie, WA. They were hosted by Reese Merrill and his wife Liz, yet another brother from Nam. Reese could not make the 50th reunion trip because his daughter was about to give birth to his first grandchild.
The Vietnam War is back in the rear view mirror for these men, but their comradery and concern for each other is still undeniable. Freeborn published a book, Letters from Vietnam, where he talked about his experiences and struggles as a young man confronted by war through the letters he wrote and received in Vietnam. All these men and more are mentioned in his book and their experiences were all similar to the author’s account.