On March 29, America celebrated National Vietnam War Veterans Day for its eighth year in existence. National Vietnam War Veterans Day was first announced by President Barack Obama in 2012 when he called on it as a day for Americans to observe and remember the war. Donald Trump, during his first term as president, signed the National Vietnam War Veterans Day into law in 2017.
Currently, there are 5.4 million Vietnam veterans living in America, with 9 million having served during the war. Fort Benning chose to highlight Vietnam veterans Sgt. Maj. Robert E. Spencer and 1st Sgt. Willie “Sam” Brown, who are now retired.
Spencer served for 26 years in the Army, He enlisted in 1959 just a few days after graduating from High School. "I desired to go into the military because at the time, living in Washington, D.C., I was hanging out with the wrong crowds," Spencer said in an Army press release.
Brown enlisted in 1968, also at the age of 18, rather than allow himself to get drafted. "When I received my draft card in the mail, I was registered as number two in my county, so I decided to go ahead and enlist instead of being drafted for the Vietnam War," Brown explained.
Spencer went on to serve as a Squad Leader in Vietnam on his first tour and on his second, he was training the local Vietnamese how to defend themselves. Brown served as a point man in his unit and was even temporarily promoted to lead his platoon due to manning shortages.
Spencer retired from the Army after serving as the Sgt. Maj. of the Ranger Department and spent another 30 years working as a Dept. of Defense civilian employee. Spencer also went on to become a Ranger instructor at Fort Benning and retired after 24 years of service.
Both men reflected on the war during the national holiday. "Many Vietnam veterans gave the best times of their lives to sacrifice for the constitution of this country," Brown said.