Richard Pforr (Additional Photographs)

As for me, I was born and raised in northern New Jersey (Teaneck) and joined the Corps right after high school. After P.I. and about six months with the 8th. Marines (artillery) at Camp Lejeune, N.C., I went to ET School (electronics technician) in San Diego, CA. for nine months. Then off to Kaneohe Bay, Hawaii. I worked in the electronics shop which was located at the motor pool. I remember pulling guard duty on the 12 to 4 shift and trying to stay awake.

In 1961 the company went on a problem in the Philippines by ship that lasted 3 months. I made Cpl in about September of 1962 and I joined subunit #1 to go to southeast Asia. I remember that after finding out we were going, we ran into the Company office to look at the world map to see where Vietnam was.

We flew over on a C130 by way of Clark AF Base. We went in civilian clothes with passports. I still have mine. After some time down south we flew up to Pleiku. The exclusion area was in some old French barracks.

I was the only ET (2771) in the unit so I pretty much worked my own hours repairing radios and maintaining the two 8 KW generators we had for power.

I was there when the Commandant visited and have pictures of him there. I well remember celebrating the USMC birthday. One of the pictures on the website is of the dinner we had. I'm the Cpl on the left side of the table looking directly at the camera.

I had nothing but great times and unbelievable experiences in Vietnam and was was given a Meritorious Mast for the work I did. (see attached) My four years in the Corps were some of the best years of my life. I could go on for hours but then you were there so you know.

I got out of the Corps in 1963 and went to work as a electronics technician for Fairbanks Morse Scale Company. I married the perfect woman from Sioux Falls SD in 1965.

We had two boys which are in their late 30's and they both have a boy and a girl.

In fact one of my sons went on to follow in the footsteps of his father, and was a "Second Generation" Marine.

In 1979 I was offered a job with the US Dept. of Agriculture in Washington DC. I moved to Fairfax, VA and worked in DC for 24 years I retired in 2002 and moved to California, MD where we kept our boat built our retirement home.

We only got to enjoy it for a year because my wife passed away last May.
 

Susan and Richard