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Clifford Trudeau
U.S. Army
1967-1968
555th Combat Engineer Company,
Chulai, I-Corps
D.O.V.E. Fund member since 2015
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I was married in 1965 and was drafted Oct. 6, 1966 at Ft. Wayne, Detroit.
Zero week was in Ft. Knox, KY then off by bus to Ft. Hood, TX where my wife
and I spent the next 10 months in preparation for a tour in Vietnam.
I joined the newly formed American Division in 1966 and was in the first
wave to be sent to Vietnam. Though most of my comrades flew over, about
6,000 of us took The William H Gordon, a 623’ 1944 ship converted to a troop
carrier that took us over in 21 days. My daughter, Renee, was born Dec. 29,
1967 but it took the Red Cross over 24 hours to let me know I was a new Daddy.
I was trained as a combat engineer, construction and demolition expert.
Being just 22 years old and an E-4, I was assistant squad leader and spent
the first several months honing my skills as a tunnel rat and mine sweeper.
I started out in the 555th Combat Engineering Company and spent my full tour
in Chulai in the I-Corps on LZ Bayonet. When not performing our daily duty
in the tunnels or mine sweeping the roads – we spent the majority of our days
clearing fire zones on various LZs.
During TET 1968 our whole division was transferred to the 26th Engineering Battalion.
We flew all over – carrying latrines which could be “ready for use” in a matter of hours!
I returned to the states as a SP5 on September 26, 1968.
My involvement with the D.O.V.E. Fund and my first return trip to Vietnam has made me
realize that there is a lot of work to be done – and I believe that is one of
the reasons I was spared.
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