ROCKINGHAM — A solemn bell rang out for each of Richmond County’s sons lost during the Vietnam War during a special ceremony Saturday commemorating the end of the conflict.
AMVETS Post 316 hosted the event in the parking lot of Ella’s Ballroom March 29 to honor those who served during the fight against communism that lasted two decades.
March 29 was first recognized as Vietnam Veterans Day in 2012 by then-president Barack Obama, and President Donald Trump signed National Vietnam War Veterans Day into law during his first term in 2017.
Prior to the memorial for the fallen servicemen, veterans swapped stories of their tours and what their lives were like when they returned stateside. Several admitted they neglected telling family members they fought in the war.
More than 2.7 million troops served in southeast Asia during the war era. Of those, 58,260 U.S. service members were killed, including 1,302 from North Carolina.
According to the Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency, there were still 16,000 Americans unaccounted for by the end of 2023.
Richmond County had 14 casualties in four branches of the military:
U.S. Army - James Arthur Ashecraft, Donald Lincoln Covington, Benjamin Tally Dawkins, Jimme Lewis Ellerbe, Luther Harris Howard, Thomas Lee Lewis, James Edward McPherson, Wiley Barry Moss, Billie Grover Russ, Noah Leland Smith and William Thomas Waddell
U.S. Navy - Lonnie Elwood Hoopaugh
U.S. Air Force - Robert Austin Stubberfield
U.S. Marine Corps - Lonnie Ellerbe Jr.
After those killed in action were recognized, the Vietnam vets in attendance were invited to the microphone to tell what they wanted about their experience. Most just included their branch and the years they served.
Howard Rogers went into more detail, recounting the horrors of war and losing the majority of his comrades in one battle.
Rogers, of Cheraw, South Carolina, joined the Army in 1966 and went to Fort Benning, Georgia for Airborne training. Just a few months after returning to Fort Bragg, his entire division was deployed to Vietnam, attached with the 25th Infantry Division.
While jovial in the introduction to his story, Rogers’ demeanor turned tearful.
Rogers said his unit had been involved in several fire fights and would “lose one now and then.” But one day in early February of 1967, they lost a lot more.
“When they opened fire on us, the full platoon being the point platoon … everything behind us was mortared and machine-gun fire,” Rogers recalled. “Somebody hollered, ‘Pull back!’”
Rogers said they were unable to receive air support because of the foggy weather.
“I crawled over soldiers with busted guts, limbs torn off — eyes still open,” Rogers said. “The last thing I remember — it seemed like it was so quick, but it took a while — I remember seeing a chopper come in with a red cross on the side.”
“When I was crawling, I felt like I was hauling bricks,” Rogers said, adding that he later realized he was paralyzed from the waist down.
After being taken to a tent, Rogers said he heard one of the medics say, “We need more body bags…the full platoon has been wiped out.”
Rogers was later sent to Walter Reed Army Medical Center for recovery and can now walk.
“As we honor their sacrifice," Nadine Moss said during the event, "we must also remember the profound challenges they faced, both during and after their service.”
