whatyareckon

About halfway through my tour of duty in Vietnam, I was picked by the Battalion CO of First Battalion, 4th Marine Regiment (¼) to be his personal driver and bodyguard. I was taken out of the field, slept on a bed, ate food in a mess hall, and took showers. I hit the lottery of assignments.

I had my first of three Purple Heart medals and welcomed the break from continual combat. My new boss, a WWII and Korean veteran, was at the end of his career. He was a very decorated Marine with two Navy Cross medals and several Purple Hearts. Lt. Col. “Black Jack” Westermann was a Marine’s Marine; he was a true warrior!

I drove him around in fairly safe places (were you ever totally safe in…