The Veterans' Voice © 2009
Seeing A Lady Warrior Off to Iraq
When Tanna Bia came to Aztec VFW Post 614 to celebrate a birthday and going away party she had no idea what else was going to become a part of our Post History.
Tanna is being shipped out to Iraq and her family and friends were there in the Post Dining Room to see her off. She was surprised beyond words when the VFW Officers and some Army Personnel walked to the podium and asked her to please come forward.
Commander Abe Saiz then made a few opening remarks and presented her with a New Mexico State Flag. The New Mexico State Flag has a yellow field with a red Zia Sun Symbol in the center. It seems appropriate that a state with so many Native American Warriors should have such a flag.
As a Life Member of Post 614 and the proponent for Mount KIA/MIA it was my pleasure to present a Mount KIA/MIA Challenge Coin to her.
While there are already a few of these challenge coins in circulation, we expect them to become very popular. They will be sold for fifteen dollars each and a part of the proceeds will go toward continuing efforts toward a Mount KIA/MIA Memorial, and we are hoping that there will be a memorial built in the city of Saguache. We are also searching to find a place where people can bring, or send, dog tags honoring killed or missing military personnel. Since these stainless steel tags are almost indestructible it is hoped that there will be a perpetual place of honor for them. We really don’t think they should be on the mountain, but more likely at a “memorial” to be built for this special purpose in Saguache.
New Mexico is proud of all its warriors and I was honored to present the Challenge Coin to one of our Lady Warriors. We wish her a safe journey and look forward to seeing her again when she returns home.
A sunny day and a clear blue sky greeted us as we memorialized Army Cpl. John Spruell. As I stood there I could not help but feel the warmth of this December day and compare it to the cold of the Korean War. The people of Cortez can be proud of the event.
On Saturday, December 06, 2008 more than 100 family members, classmates and friends gathered at the Cortez Cemetery to see the memorial for Army Cpl. John A. Spruell dedicated. It was 58 years to the day since Spruell went missing West of Chosin Reservoir while fighting the Communist Chinese Forces in North Korea.
I traveled to Cortez because of my interest in honoring our heroes, because I was invited, and because Cpl. Spruell was part of a military unit that I had been researching for over six years. He was a member of Btry. B 57th FA Battalion, 7th Infantry Division.
When I read the data on Cpl. Spruell I realized that he had been in the same unit as Sgt. Jimmie Jumbo who I have often written about. Jimmie was from Toadlena, New Mexico and he and Spruell went missing on the same day at Hagaru-Ri North Korea, at the Chosin Reservoir. Spruell and Jumbo were from the Four-Corners Area and being soldiers I believe they would have talked about home. They may have discussed Fry Bread, Mutton Stew, Home Fries and Tacos, and probably family and girlfriends were discussed.
A funeral for my friend of many years, Glen Gabehart, was being carried out in Aztec, New Mexico on the same day as Spruell’s memorial and I thought of Glen as I stood there watching the dedication. Glen and I are members of Farmington High School Class of 1949 and the last time we visited we were looking forward to our upcoming 60th Class Reunion.
As we stood beneath a bright sun viewing a clear blue sky I gave thanks for the weather. This man deserved good weather on the day his memorial was dedicated. As I watched the wonderfully performed ceremony my eyes focused beyond the Speakers and the Honor Guard and the crowd as I looked toward Sleeping Ute Mountain behind them. Surely John Spruell saw this mountain every day he lived in Cortez, and it is fitting that his memorial be within view of this famous landmark
When I visit Cortez I will always stop for a moment at the Southwest corner of the Cortez Cemetery and stand at Cpl. Spruell’s memorial stone to say a prayer for him and his buddy Sgt. Jimmie Jumbo and gaze to the West to enjoy that same Sleeping Ute Mountain that I first viewed as a five year old boy when my family moved to Cortez in 1935
I have a younger brother who lives in Cortez now and who is also a Korean War Veteran, and I am sure that George will be pleased to place a fresh red rose on John Spruell’s memorial stone now and then.
A donor who asked not to be identified provided seed-money to the Cortez cemetery to establish a Memorial Fund in Cpl. John A. Spruell’s name. The fund will be used for maintaining the Veteran’s Section of this cemetery. The fund will repair older headstones and provide a buffer if a family cannot afford the hundred and forty dollar cost of stone-setting. Should you desire to contribute to this fund please contact Dennis Spruell, The Cortez Cemetery, or the Cortez Journal Newspaper.
Even after 58 years, it was evident that John Spruell was a favorite with his high school friends and the younger family members who had never met him. Now they will learn about the events of late November and early December 1950 when a small American Force held off the Chinese Army “East of Chosin” just long enough that the Marines and the few surviving Army personnel were able to fight their way out to the sea, and live to fight another day.
When I arrived at home I could not help but think of the love these “Chosin Few” have for each other, so I telephoned my friend Sgt. Carson Gentry who lives in Johnson City Tennessee. Gentry was a part of that unit and had survived having been a prisoner of the Communist Chinese for years. He was the one who first contacted me with a photo and information about Jimmie Jumbo and has put me in contact with others of these brave men who survived the battle West of Chosin. When you look at the photo of Gentry and Jumbo please remember that Gentry still had this photo over 50 years after the event, and that he has fond memories of Jimmie and his other buddies.
The story of the Korean War, which is called “the forgotten war”, is the story of men who still care about each other. Those who fought in this war will never forget!
Bruce L Salisbury
© 12 December 2008
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The Great Raid
by Rick Mowles, BS, DC, DICAK, DABCO
Vietnam Veteran 1968-1970. 1st Battalion 9th Marines, 3rd. Marine Division
History has repeatedly shown patterns of great events happening simultaneously. Sometimes when there are several events within a short time span then some are overshadowed and forgotten. This is seen in the following article about the “Great Raid.” Many people, including veterans, aren’t aware of the Great Raid. We will examine this mark in history and see that it would later be designated as one of the greatest military rescues in history.
This story has to begin with the Battle of Corregidor in World War II. The stronghold at the entrance of Manila Bay in the Philippines was a fortress. The 14th Japanese Army had to take Corregidor. As long as the island remained in American hands, the Japanese would be denied the use of Manila Bay. This was one of the finest natural harbors in the Far East. Corregidor fell to the Japanese in April 1942. It was one of the largest military surrenders in history. At this time, the American forces were to experience first hand the brutality of the Japanese military. The Japanese adhered to the philosophy of Bushido, a code of war that dated back hundreds of years to the Samurai. This Bushido code emphasized that surrender is never an option in war. The act of surrender is a sign of weakness and cowardice; a disgrace worse than even death. The Bushido code played on the idea of honor and discipline. Dying in battle is an honor and surrender is a disgrace. So, the Japanese looked at surrender as a disgrace, dishonor and something worse than even death. .
The famous Bataan death march where prisoners from the surrender of Corregidor were marched and many died over some hundred miles was a symbol of the many atrocities awaiting captured combatants. These prisoners were marched to prisoner of war camps and those who were more healthy put on ships and sent to Japan to work in labor camps. Many of the prisoners were sent to Camp Capanatuan following the Bataan Death march. There were approximately 500 American and other Allied POWs and civilians who stayed in the camp.
Camp Capanatuan was a death camp. Prisoners were brutally tortured and beaten by the Japanese. Food rations were cut so low that many died from starvation or diseases such as beriberi, pellagra and scurvy. Others succumbed to diseases such as malaria, typhus and dysentery. Anyone attempting escape was dealt with swiftly and brutally by the Japanese. They would execute 10 prisoners for every person attempting escape.
As the War in the Pacific raged on with the savage island fighting campaigns, the Japanese were slowly being driven back to Japan. There was fear that the Japanese would kill any prisoners rather than release them. In late January 1945, a plan was developed by Sixth Army leaders and Filipino guerillas to send a small force to rescue the prisoners at Capanatuan.
The unit chosen to rescue the prisoners was the 6th Ranger Battalion. They had been stationed for over a year in New Guinea training in commando a guerilla tactics. They were eager to have a combat assignment to prove their worthiness in combat. Leading the 6th Ranger Battalion was Colonel Henry Mucci, a West Point graduate.
The mission facing Colonel Mucci and his men was a challenge. They were to march with 128 Army Rangers th
rough 30 miles of Japanese controlled jungle to the camp. If they made it that far, there were other obstacles. Camp Capanatuan was in the middle of the jungle. The Japanese had cleared the jungle surrounding the camp. It was approximately 100-150 yards of clearing surrounding the Camp. There were an estimated 220 Japanese guards and soldiers within the camp. Near the camp there were estimated another 1000 Japanese. Probably the most difficult problem was the removal of the prisoners from within the camp. A lot of these prisoners couldn’t walk due to sickness and malnutrition.
Colonel Mucci put Captain Robert Prince in charge of planning the actual attack on the camp. Captain Prince used reconnaissance information from the Alamo Scouts and Filipino Resistance to lay out the specifics of the attack. The Filipino Resistance volunteered horse drawn carts to move the injured and diseased prisoners.
The 6th Rangers started the mission with moving through 30 miles of jungle towards their final destination. Numerous times they encountered Japanese patrols but managed not to be seen. The Rangers had to crawl on their bellies the last 150-200 yards across the cleared area surrounding the camp without being seen by the Japanese. If their presence were known anytime before the actual attack, then the mission would have been a disaster. The entire operation depended upon speed, aggressiveness, stealth and unit coordination.
On January 30, 1945, the attack commenced. It was swift, detailed and highly coordinated. In a short period of time the camp was secured and the prisoners were being mobilized. Some walked, some were carried by fellow soldiers and others were hauled in carts. The entire operation had come off as planned with 2 Americans killed; 4 wounded; and 1 prisoner dying from malaria. There were estimated between 530-1000 Japanese killed. It was one of the most successful military rescue missions in history.
Colonel Henry Mucci was initially put up for the Congressional Medal of Honor. However, Colonel Mucci was friends with General Douglas MacArthur. He wished his award be presented by his close friend, General MacArthur. Thus he elected to be awarded the Distinguished Service Cross. Colonel Mucci died at the age of 88, in Melbourne, Florida, on April 20, 1997. Death was the result of a stroke. Colonel Robert Prince, the mastermind of the plan for the rescue was also awarded the Distinguished Service Cross. In the late 90s, he was added to the Army Ranger Hall of Fame. Captain Prince died at the age of 89, in Port Townsend, Washington, on January 1, 2009.
The enthusiasm over the Raid was soon overshadowed by other Pacific events, including the Battle for Iwo Jima and the dropping of the atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki.
This story hopes to enrich the memory of a great event in history concerning a daring rescue, the confrontation of good against evil, and courage. Courage, not for the brave Rangers, Alamo Scouts and Filipino Resistance fighters but the prisoners of Capanatuan. A place easily described as “hell on earth.” A place where man’s inhumanity towards man was displayed on a daily basis. A place where the enemy showed no remorse, empathy or compassion towards those captured. We must never forget those brave men who died and those who returned with the physical and emotional scars from that ordeal.
“Courage doesn’t always roar. Sometimes courage is the quiet voice at the end of the day saying,
I will try again tomorrow.” ----Mary Anne Radmacher
Rick Mowles
Click on picture for bio.
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