Here is a short story about Ken’s time in the Marine Corps.
Ken “Bad Moon” Guthrie in Vietnam, 1966
I was lucky enough to get home alive.
The only welcome home I got was from my family.
~ Ken Guthrie
Ken enlisted in the Marine Corps in mid 1965. He did basic training at Marine Corps Recruit Depot, San Diego.
Ken served in Vietnam in 1966 with Alpha Company, 1st Battalion, 9th Marines, a rifle company.
While there, his primary area of operation was southwest of Da Nang, mostly near and on Hill 55. There, Ken and his battalion fought the Vietcong and NVA (North Vietnamese Army).
Below are a few photos of Ken in Vietnam. Click on each image to view full sized.
Click the images to view full sized
Ken Guthrie Receives the Purple Heart
On June 22, 1966, while on patrol across the river from Hill 55, Ken was wounded by what is now called an IED (improvised explosive device).
They medevacked Ken out of Vietnam, to Japan, and eventually to the U.S. for recovery.
After Ken’s Recovery
After recovery, Ken served at Headquarters Regiment, Camp Pendleton, in Regimental S-3 for a period of time before being accepted for embassy duty. S-3 is typically an intelligence unit. However, at Camp Pendleton, it was a training unit.
After successful completion of Embassy School in Washington, D.C., he was assigned to the American Embassy, Belgrade, Yugoslavia. His tour there was for one year, from January to December, 1968.
Embassy duty in a Communist country was considered a hardship post, so the tour there was one year. He was then posted to the Embassy in Vienna, Austria. Ken was there from January to December, 1969.
The photos below are of Ken and others at the Marine Corps Birthday Ball at both embassies.
Back then, the Marine Corps Birthday Ball was the biggest social event of the embassy. Invitations were highly sought after by people in the foreign service personnel and military attaches of many other embassies.
Belgrade Ceremony 1 is Ken on the right and Chuck Wells on the left. They are entering the gathering to lead the Marines in and begin the ceremonies.
Belgrade Cermony 2 is the Ambassador, C. Burke Elbrick, making the toast to open ceremonies. Ken is standing second from the left.
Vienna 05 is a shot of the receiving line. The Marines would be the receiving line for all the guests. Ken is the one shaking the hand of the lady.
Vienna 11 is the entire Marine detachment at the beginning of the opening ceremony.
Vienna 17 is a group of the entire detachment with their dates. Ken is the second Marine from the right front row, with his date.
After Embassy Duty, Ken returned to the U.S. and received his separation from active duty.
Ken was honorably discharged on May 5, 1971.
Note: The photos of Ken have been restored from the original photographs and some of the images have been colorized from black and white.
After Service
As the saying goes, once a Marine, always a Marine!
Ken continues to honor active military, veterans, and friends who didn’t make it home.
The name on the Vietnam Veteran’s Memorial Wall panel Ken is pointing to in the photo above was Ervell Guevara. Known as just “Guevara” to the guys. He was in Ken’s squad and killed the same day Ken was wounded.
The wall is known as “The Traveling Wall.” It travels around the country for people to visit who can’t get to Washington D.C.
It is smaller in scale than the actual wall, so it can be transported. This photos was taken when it came to Knoxville in 2022. Also traveling with it is a semi trailer that has been turned into a Vietnam War museum.
This is Ervell Guevara, a grenadier in Ken’s squad. Just called “Guevara” by everyone.
Here you see him preparing a C-ration meal near Hill 55. Ervell was a great friend and a fine Marine. He was one heck of a grenadier! Ken still misses him very much.
National Vietnam War Veterans Day, 2021.
Here is a photo of Danny Redhorse who served in the US Marine Corps with Ken in Vietnam.
Danny was a Native American (Lakota Sioux) from South Dakota.
According to Ken, Danny had an infectious good humor and positive attitude, which can be difficult to come by in a war.
Danny was also totally fearless. He won the Silver Star single handedly silencing an enemy automatic fire position that was causing considerable difficulty. In that action, Danny was wounded. Fortunately, he emerged from the skirmish with only minor wounds.
Sadly, Danny has passed now. But Ken thinks about him and all the others often, even after all these years.
Thank you all Veterans for serving our County!
A Memorial Day Tribute
Ken remembers “the guys” most days, not just Memorial Day. On Memorial Day, he likes to share about one of the guys who did not come home. That way, you get to know more about the person, not just a name that is on the Vietnam Memorial.
A Brave Marine, Ralph (Willie) Williams (1947-1966). He served with Ken in Vietnam and gave the ultimate sacrifice at 19.
Ken and Libby had the privilege of visiting his gravesite in Burns, Oregon in September of 2019. Ken had this plaque made to honor Willie and his ultimate sacrifice.
Rest in peace Private Williams and Thank You for your service to our country.
U.S. Marine Corps Ball
The two photos below are of the 245th Marine Corps Birthday Ball at the Marine’s Memorial Club Hotel in downtown San Francisco in 2019.
You can connect with Ken on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/ken.guthrie.54
