Sergeant Al Peckham's Slide Collection, 4

    Al Peckham, up close and personal        Black Virgin Mt. viewed from Dau Tieng           Johnny Martel and Al            

               Hurry up and wait,                                      and wait, and wait,                          then dig in when you get there

            Mortar set up in the field                        Arctic tent setup, Dec. 1966                      Long way to the Head

           Thank God for this break                               and this break                                but this break was the best

                                                                                                                                 Al Peckham, going home, Sept. 67

 My final thoughts on this photo collection

Al Peckham allowed me three months to scan and work on his outstanding collection of photos that he brought home from his days with A/2/12. The compilation successfully shows what it was like for the original men from the unit as they arrived in Vietnam and spent their tour blazing trails that hundreds of others followed. Note that the original tents used when we arrived at  Dau Tieng to build the base camp were Arctic tents, not at all suited to tropical climates. It was all that was available at the time. It would be almost a month before the larger tents were delivered.

 Al  went to battle with buddies whose friendships were cultivated in months of unit training stateside. Our replacements were not so fortunate. Men like Al were highly respected cadre by the time the replacements  showed up. They understood the concerns of the new men and most of them tried to treat them with respect. We knew what awaited them and most of us were pretty well spent by this time. We appreciated the relief and longed to return to The World. This collection I'd like to dedicate to those outstanding men who continued the gallant history of A/2/12 . I'm sure that they have their photos that show their history. I don't suspect it differs much with Al's collection. It was just that kind of war.

Thanks Al,

  Bill Comeau, RTO, A/2/12, 66-67