The Fort Wolters Trumpet (Fort Wolters, Tex.), Vol. 11, No. 21, Ed. 1 Friday, November 24, 1967 Page: 1 of 14
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The FortWolters Trumpet
"To win the
publifc '.s
confidence .
confide in
the public."
Published by Weatherford Democrat, a private firm, in no way connected *cith the Department of the Army. Opinions expressed by the publishers and writers herein are their own and are not to be considered an official expression by the Department of 'Hie Army
The appearance of advertisements in this publication does not constitute an endorsement by the Department of the Army of the products or services advertised.
VOL. XI, NO. 21
FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 24, 1967
FORT WOLTERS, TEXAS
Nineteen Receive Distinguished Flying Cross
Aviators Cited For Their
Heroic Actions In Vietnam
Nineteen Fort Wolters avia-
tors — all Vietnam veterans —
received the Distinguished Fly-
ing Cross at an awards cere-
mony held on the 900 area pa-
rade field November 17.
LTC WILLIAM M. EDWARDS JR.
LTC William M. Edwards,
Jr., received the first oak leaf
cluster to the Distinguished
Flying Cross (DFC) for valor-
our actions while serving as
commander of the 119th As-
sault Helicopter Company.
While engaged in a routine troop
lift mission, he received an
emergency call to airlift a re-
action force into a landing zone
near a small force of friendly
troops which were surrounded
by the enemy and in immediate
danger of being overrun. He
made a quick reconnaissance of
the area and issued orders to
his company.
As the air assault began, nine
enemy anti-aircraft guns open-
ed fire on the formation. Three
of the escort ships attacked the
positions, but were downed by
the fire. Colonel Edwards flew
his aircraft through the area,
dropping smoke grenades to
mark the enemy positions.
# New Sergeant Major
Is Veteran Of WWII,
Korea And Vietnam
A Silver Star holder and com-
bat veteran of WWII, Korea and
Vietnam has succeeded Ser-
geant Major L.D. Person as the
senior enlisted man at Fort
Wolters. Sergeant Major John
G. Stepanekbecame the new U.S.
Army Primary Helicopter Cen-
ter sergeant major in cere-
monies held on November 17 at
Center Headquarters.
Sergeant Major Person has
been reassigned to Fourth U.S.
Army Headquarters, Fort Sam
Houston, Tex., where he will be
the sergeant major of the Ad-
jutant General Reserve Divi-
sion.
It was like a reunion at the
helicopter center for Sergeant
Major Stepanek as he joined
many old friends here at Wol-
ters.
The tall grey-headed Iowa
native served with many Wol-
ters' aviators in Vietnam when
he was the sergeant major of
the 13th (Delta) Combat Avia-
tion Battalion at Can Tho from
September, 1965-1966.
As the center sergeant major,
he is the enlisted representative
to the Center commander. Fill-
ing the role as the only enlisted
member of the commander's
staff, he is an advisor to the
commanding officer on enlisted
men's affairs. And he oversees
the morale, welfare and in-
terests of all enlisted men of the
command through non-com-
missioned channels.
Sergeant Major Stepanek
came to Fort Wolters from Fort
Eustis, Va., where he was the
sergeant major of the Aviation
Maintenance Training Depart-
ment, Army Transportation
School.
Remarking on his assignment
to the primary helicopter cen-
ter, he statedthat he was "tickl-
ed pink." His enthusiasm is re-
inforced by his belief that the
United States "could not win in
Vietnam without the helicop-
ter." Surely, he exclaimed, "It
is a helicopter war!"
The 25-year veteran lists
golf, fishing and reading as his
off-duty interests. Healsofinds
time to do some writing.
Recently, he had an article
published in THE ARMY DI-
GEST. In it, he emphasized the
need for greater understanding
between the enlisted and officer
ranks. He related that the Army
"needs more harmony and less
antagonism" between the ranks.
He also stressed the necces-
sity for greater compassion be-
tween officers and their men.
It is his belief that officers
should "treat each soldier as
an individual, with individual
problems."
Other awards of the Sergeant
Major include two awards of the
Bronze Star Medal, two awards
of the Army Commendation Me-
dal and the Purple Heart, the
Air Medal and Combat Infan-
tryman's Badge. His decora-
tions also include several for-
eign awards.
A resident of Cedar Rapids,
Iowa, the sergeant major is
married and has four children.
His family is to join him here
in the near future.
While still exposed to the enemy
fire, he purposely remained in
the area to draw fire away from
the formation. With the aid of
his smoke grenades he was able
to direct artillery fire and air
strikes into the enemy emplace-
ments with deadly accuracy,
completely destroying them.
After completing this mis-
sion, Colonel Edwirds was call-
ed upon to provice direct rein-
forcement of the ground force,
since contact hadbeentempora-
rily broken. He led his unit to
the battle area ordering his
aviators to fly it treetop level
while he remaiied at a higher
altitude, fully sxposed to the
enemy's weapois. Heguidedthe
formation arouid the enemy po-
sitions and directed them safely
into the landin, zone.
MAJ PURVS L. PARKER
MA J Purvi. L. Parker dis-
tinguished hiiself while serv-
ing as sectio leader of a flight
of armed heicopters during a
reconnaissaue mission near
Phan Thiet Vietnam. Major
Parker's arcraft came under
intense eneiy fire. He attack-
ed the enen7 positions with re-
peated maciine gun and rocket
firing runs continuing in the at-
tack until he enemy positions
were coniletely neutralized.
His actios allowed the other
helicopter; in the flight to evac-
uate the rea without damage.
CPT />SEPH K. HODGES
CPT itseph K. Hodges dis-
tinguishd himself while serv-
ing as cmmander of his squad-
ron's caimand and control hel-
icopter^ a mission to observe
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SERGEANT MAJOR CHANGE OF COMMAND - At a brf ceremony Friday, Nove_mber_17, SGM
L. D. Person, left, the departing center sergeant majo extended best wishes to his successor,
SGM John G. Stepanek. The ceremony was witnessed^ the Center Commander, COL Lloyd G.
Hugginsj the deputy commander, COL Robert O. Lamtrt; and the ranking post NCO's. In back-
ground is the 328th U. S. Army Band.
FIRST THERE WERE THREE . . . .NOW THERE ARE FIVE - Fort Wolters Es-
cadrille Flight Team has grown from a three-helicopter group to five. The TH-55A
flying team is proving to be a top attraction with U. S. Army Primary Helicopter
Center visitors.
and dirct ground troops opera-
ting injvar Zone C in Vietnam.
While airborne, he moni-
tored call from a forward air
contr<ler who had seen an
F100tighter plane go down and
was k que sting any helicopter
in thfvicinity to rescue the pi-
lot. 2 immediately proceeded
to tli site of the downed craft
and fircled the location to de-
terrjne the pilot's exact loca-
tion When he spotted the pilot,
he iided his aircraft to a near-
by ingle clearing and immed-
iate received intensive enemy
fir'from the tree line. Captain
Hcges remained in the clear-
ing and directed his gunners to
fij on the tree line, suppress-
iif the hostile fire and allowing
tl downed pilot to get aboard
tf aircraft. As he was leaving
tp area, his aircraft took a
jund severely damaging the
Hor blade. Despite the severe
(Continued on Page 2)
Flight Team
Growing-Five
' Copters Now
The one-month-old U. S.
Army Escadrille Flight Team is
now a five-helicopter group.
Originally composed of three
TH-55A helicopters, the flight
team is proving to be a top at-
traction at U. S. Army Primary
Helicopter Center flight demon-
strations.
Since the two additional heli-
copters have been added, the
group has expanded it# reper-
toire to include"V" formations,
the inverted "V", a360-degree
auto rotation, back up-autoro-
tation, diamond formation, a
diamond twist, the yo-yo.
barreL roll and the star burst
followed by the cloverleaf
cross-over.
Pilots of the original three-
plane group included CPT Guy S.
Kimzey, Chief Warrant Officers
Paul J. Murphy and Gary
Waller. Piloting the two addi-
tional aircraft are Chief War-
rant Officers Marvin Schmidt
and Wallace Royles. A standby
pilot is Chief Warrant Officer
Ronald Bean.
The pilots, all Vietnam veter-
ans, are assigned to the Flight
Evaluation Division. ESCADRILLE TEAM — The five-helicopter team performs one of its maneuvers — the modified diamond twist.
—Photos by SSG Phil Dodson
'EARLY-OUTS' ALSO AUTHORIZED
liberal Leave Planned For Holidays
HQ, US CON ARC - "Home
for the holidays" may well be
the title of the Christmas-New
Year leave policy announced
this week by the United States
Continental Army Command
(USCONARC).
As an added Christmas gift,
the Army will authorize the
early separation of personnel
whose normal release from ac-
tive duty would otherwise occur
between mid-December and
Jan. 2, 1968. Individual release
dates will be timed to permit
them to be home for Christmas.
Release dates will vary to help
prevent an overload of commer-
cial transportation facilities
and to help avoid highway traf-
fic jams.
More than 200,000 Army
trainees and USCONARC School
students will head home during
the pause in training which be-
gins December 16. Training and
classes resume January 2.
Although commanders are
Two More Performances Planned
By Wolters Little Theatre Group
Theater-goers who missed
the first three performances
here by the Fort Wolters Mas-
quers have two more chances to
see the productions — two short
plays, "THE LADYOF LARKS-
PUR LOTION" and "FIVE
DAYS," and musical selections
from "CAMELOT." The pro-
ductions, which are Wolters'
entry in the Fourth UjS. Army
Drama Contest, will goon stage
again tonight and tomorrow
night. Curtain call is at 8 p.m.
Performances are free, and
open to the public.The plays are
presented at the Service Club.
Fourth Army Contest judges
were in the audience last night
to judge the plays. Judges were
Cyril Heiman,Special Services,
Department of the Army, and
Dr. William S. Naylor, Staff
Entertainment Director, Fourth
UjS. Army.
According to Eugene J. Tho-
mas, Fort Wolters entertain-
ment director andplay director,
Fort Wolters entries have a
very good chance of winning. In
all three plays, he said "The
actors give fine performances.
Each performer is completely
believeable in the role he por-
trays."
Tennessee Williams' "THE
LADY OF LARKSPUR LO-
TION" takes place in the early
1930's. The setting isawretch-
edly furnished room in the
French Quarter of New Orleans.
In the cast are Mrs. Dee War-
ren who plays Mrs. Harwicke-
Moore; Mrs. Carol Newhouse
and Mrs. Mary Lou Wolcott as
Mrs. Wire, and Jack Stanley
as the Writer.
From "CAMELOT," musical
selections include King Ar-
thur's rendition of "Camelot,"
sung by PFC James Wilson and
"The Simple Joys of Maiden-
hood" by Guenevere, Mrs. Pat-
ricia Wolters. Merlynthe Magi-
cian, the Narrator, is playedby
Edward Blondell.
Henry Zeiger's "FIVE
DAYS" is set during the Russian
Civil War. Each of the scenes
represents events occurring
during one day of a march to-
ward a prison camp in the rear.
The cast includes PFC John
Zucker who is Narrator, Jack
Stanely as both the White and
Red Officer; SP4 John Humin-
ski as the Prisoner and SP5
Gary Moeller as the White
Guard. The Peasant isplayedby
PFC James Wilson. His wife is
played by Mrs. Dee Warren and
Mrs. Mary Lou Wolcott. A White
Soldier is played by Warrant
Officer Candidate Jan Wolcott.
Musical accompaniment for
the selections from "CAME-
LOT" are by PFC Floyd J. Tho-
mas.
The crew includes CPT Gary
Hill, Mrs. Gloria Hill, SP4 Ken
Wolford, Mrs. AliceSmith, PVT
Irwin Manes and 2LT Steven
Dohme.
required to maintain essential
readiness, as many permanent
party cadre, instructors, and
support personnel as possible
will be permitted to go on holi-
day leave. Some will have leave
for Christmas; others will take
leave during the New Year
period. For those whom mili-
tary duty requires that they
stay on the job during the holi-
days, extensive programs of
holiday cheer will be provided.
Most Army posts have spent
as much as six months in ad-
vance planning for the home-
ward trek at Christmas. A var-
iety of activities, ranging from
increasing installation airport
bus schedules to bringing travel
agents onto a post to expedite
ticket sales, was conducted last
year.
ON THE INSIDE...
SECTION A
NINETEEN AVIATORS
CITED. ........ Page 2
ALLIED STUDENTS
HONORED Page 3
WASHINGTON MEMOS. .Page4
NEW ARRIVALS .Page 5
NEWS FROM VIETNAM. J>age 6
MOVIES Page 7
SECTION B
SPORTS. .1^ ..... •. .Page 1
CANDIDATE'S CORNER .Page 2
SOCIETY NEWS .Page 3
BOOTS AND SADDLE CLUB
PLAYDAY(Pictorial
Review)... .. .Page 4 & 5
OFFICER
OBSERVATIONS... .Page 6
The United States Army Re-
cruiting Command (USAREC)
will offer advance leave to men
and women who enlist during
December 21-29. They return
to their respective Armed
Forces Examining and Entrance
Stations after the New Year to
begin active military service.
The Army attempts to in-
sure that all its personnel —
the new recruit or the senior
officer—have a happy holiday
season.
Scholarships
To Be Given
More than 1,600 Army ROTC
Scholarships will be awarded
for the 1968-69 school year.
These awards, added to the
scholarships presently in force,
will bring the total to 4,000
in effect next year. The Army
pays tuition, fees, books, and
laboratory expenses incurred
by the scholarship cadets, and
in addition each cadet receives
$50 per month for the duration
of the scholarship. During the
advanced summer encampment
this figure is increased to
$151.95 per month.
A total of 800 new four-year
scholarships will be awarded on
a competitive basis to outstand-
ing high school graduates. Ap-
proximately 845 two-year
awards will be made to select-
ed college students who have
completed two years of ROTC
training.
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The Fort Wolters Trumpet (Fort Wolters, Tex.), Vol. 11, No. 21, Ed. 1 Friday, November 24, 1967, newspaper, November 24, 1967; Weatherford, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth476252/m1/1/?q=war: accessed July 18, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Boyce Ditto Public Library.