Memoirs of a Chinese American Officer

By Wesley F. Fong

This story is one exploring the experiences of a Chinese American who found himself as an unexpected but dedicated officer in the US Army. It is a story of a man wanting to share his experiences with family and fellow Americans--one that begins when he first donned a military uniform in high school leading to his tour of duty in Vietnam. It is about the courage and sacrifice of soldiers during the war in Vietnam--a war that divided a nation.

This story is also one about how an Army medical company helped to save lives during the Vietnam War, both American and Vietnamese, rather than take them. For the American soldiers who served during this era, their general welcome home was not one defined by collective thanks for their respective service.

This story ends after the war and his completing thirty years of military service. It continues to follow his military career in the US, Army Reserves, and his rise to the rank of colonel. This story defines the true meaning of respect and commitment to duty, honor, and country.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Newman Springs Publishing, Inc.
• Release date: Feb 24, 2022
• ISBN: 9781636926964

Book preview

Title Page

Copyright © 2022 Wesley F. Fong

All rights reserved

First Edition

NEWMAN SPRINGS PUBLISHING

320 Broad Street

Red Bank, NJ 07701

First originally published by Newman Springs Publishing 2022

ISBN 978-1-63692-695-7 (Paperback)

ISBN 978-1-63692-696-4 (Digital)

Printed in the United States of America

To my family and fellow Vietnam veterans

CONTENTS

Chapter 1: The Beginning of a Military Career

Chapter 2: Preparing for War

Chapter 3: Off to War

Chapter 4: My New Home

Chapter 5: Daily Life and Morale

Chapter 6: Drugs, Whisky, and Sex

Chapter 7: Lessons Learned (And Never Forgotten)

Chapter 8: To Save a Life

Chapter 9: Staying Alive

Chapter 10: Rest and Recuperation (R&R)

Chapter 11: Life as a Lawyer in Vietnam

Chapter 12: Coming Home

Chapter 13: After the War

Chapter 14: Military Education

Epilogue

CHAPTER 1

The Beginning of a Military Career

High school through university and law school

In 1958, as a freshman at Punahou High School¹ at age fifteen, I thought that wearing a military uniform would impress the girls. But what I soon learned was that my uniform came with extreme weight of duty. In 1951, the Junior ROTC (Reserve Officers Training Corps) program at Punahou School and other Hawaii high schools was mandatory for all male high school students. Each Punahou high school class, freshmen to seniors, had about four hundred students and about half male. It made for a large JROTC unit at Punahou.

We had to drill in uniform one day a week. During a typical morning drill, the JROTC cadets would assemble on Punahou’s upper field. The formation was always an impressive one consisting of teenaged soldiers (some of them commanders) in their starched khaki uniforms, a color guard, a military band, and female sponsors. The general understanding among the guys was that the female sponsors were selected for their good looks and a certain amount of popularity and politics. But they also earned their positions through military bearing, and many recalled the rigor involved with learning how to drill.

I began my military career playing a trumpet in the school band. We learned how to play our instruments and march in cadence at the same time.

During my senior year, I was fortunate to be selected by the JROTC cadre of instructors as the company commander of the band. There I was in my uniform with my saber on my left and Susie, my blonde sponsor, on my right. This was my first taste of being an officer in uniform, and I had to admit that I not only looked good but felt good as well.

As background, my father was a chemist, and my mother was a schoolteacher, and both were second-generation Chinese American citizens. I was their only child. Like many other Chinese parents, they believed that education was very important and hoped that their children would be a doctor, lawyer, accountant, or engineer.

In the old Chinese culture, the hierarchy would be nobility, gentry, artisans, and merchants. Soldiers were not listed in this hierarchy.

In 1961, I entered the University of Hawaii (UH). I was eighteen, and my parents had already hinted that they thought that it would be nice to have a doctor in the family. I decided that I wanted to be lawyer since I was not fond of the sciences and enjoyed speech and was on the debate team in high school. Being a Chinese Perry Mason (famous trial lawyer on TV) sounded more exciting than being a doctor. However, I don’t think I disappointed my parents because I did eventually get a doctor’s degree, but not in medicine. It was a doctor of jurisprudence (law).

By my junior year of college, I had to declare a major, and my college career adviser recommended political science in preparation for law school. In retrospect, I should have declared a business major to learn how to make more money. When I looked in the job ads, I couldn’t find a listing for a political scientist.

At the UH, Army ROTC was again mandatory for males during their freshman and sophomore years and an elective course during junior and senior years. I decided to continue my military career during the last two years of university.

I decided to continue my military career because (1) I respected the importance of discipline and organization; (2) I could earn some money for tuition and law school—$50 a month (equivalent to about $420 today); and (3) I felt good in a uniform as it instilled pride and some self-esteem. I was also able to save some of my money with the idea that I would attend law school on the mainland since there was no law school in the islands at the time. This way, I could be