Echo Company Two-Seven Tooter
 
Echo Company 2/7
Vietnam Veterans Chapter
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New Chapter Member
WELCOME!!

A warm welcome to our newest chapter member: Ken Senft of Wittmann, AZ 

Ken Senft is one outstanding Marine. Ken served as Corpsman in Vietnam with Echo Company 2/7 during 1966-67.
National Golf Tournament
The chairman of the fund raising committee is holding a national golf tournament on February 20, 2010 in Sun City, Arizona. Here is a link to a copy of the flyer with all the information you will need. 
 
It's never too early to start planning for the 2010 Reunion in San Antonio Texas.
THE ALAMO CHAPTER WELCOMES THE 63RD ANNUAL
1ST MARINE DIVISION ASSOCIATION REUNION AUGUST 23-29, 2010
Click on the link below to access the Reunion Schedule and Registration Form
 
The Alamo Chapter will be working with Armed Forces Reunions Incorporated (AFR) as our Reunion Organizer and Planner. AFR is providing pre-planning, pre-registration, on-site management and reunion tours. More information to follow in future Tooters.
  
QUICK VOTE SURVEY
Q: Are you planning to attend the FMDA Reunion in San Antonio this August?
CLICK ON SELECTION TO REGISTER VOTE
*One vote per Tooter is registered     Results
Famous Quotes
 
"I go where the sound of thunder is."
 ~ Lt Gen Alfred M. Gray USMC
"Take me to the Brig. I want to see the "real Marines"."
~ Major General Chesty Puller, USMC - while on a Battalion inspection.
 
"Hell, these are Marines. Men like them held Guadalcanal and took Iwo Jima. Bagdad ain't shit." 
~ Major General John F. Kelly USMC
 
MARINE CORPS FACTS 
The Marine Corps Seal
 
The Marine Corps Seal, designed by the Marine Corps Uniform Board in accordance with instructions of the Commandant of the Marine Corps, then General Lemuel C. Shepherd, Jr., was adopted by Presidential Executive Order 10538 of 22 June 1954. The traditional Marine Corps emblem-eagle, globe and fouled anchor-forms the basic device of the Seal. Of these three, the eagle and the fouled anchor are the most venerable, dating from 1800 when they first appeared on the Marine uniform button-a button which has remained to this day virtually unchanged from its original form. Influenced strongly by the design of the emblem of the British Royal Marines depicting as their domain the Eastern hemisphere, the U.S. Marines adopted in 1868 as their emblem a globe showing the Western hemisphere. To this was added the spread eagle and fouled anchor from the button. Twelve years later the motto, "Semper Fidelis," completed the design.
The scarlet and gold surrounding the emblem are the official Marine Corps colors. These in turn are enclosed by Navy blue and gold signifying the Marine Corps as an integral part of the naval team.
 
Echo Company 2/7 
Memorial Monument

88 Fallen Hero's of E 2/7

The Memorial Fund has made great progress again this month and now totals over $33,045!!

WOW, Thirty five veterans donated this month, most of them first time donors. Thank You! Your donations have sent us over the top. Yes, we have met our goal of $32,800.00. Never did we think it would happen so fast. We plan to close out the Echo 2/7 Memorial Fund on April 30, 2010. This will give veterans one final opportunity to be part of history. If you haven’t donated yet, this is it- even if it’s just a few dollars. You want to be a part of this! We want you to be a part of this!

To everyone that has contributed we thank you. It's an extraordinary feeling to see Marines making this commitment to our fallen brothers.

Semper Fi,
The Monument Committee 
Donate & More Info Here!!
 
"America's Few"
New Marine Corps Commercial  
Those who answer the calling will find out if they have what it takes.
 
Battle Colors of the
 Marine Corps
 
 
 
Marine Barracks, Washington, D.C., holds the official Battle Colors of the Marine Corps. A duplicate is maintained in the office of the Commandant of the Marine Corps in the Pentagon. The Battle Colors bear the same fifty streamers authorized for the Marine Corps as a whole. These streamers represent U.S. and foreign unit awards as well as those periods of service, expeditions, and campaigns in which the Marine Corps has participated from the American Revolution to today.

During the Marine Corps' first 150 years, Marines in the field carried a variety of flags. It was not until 18 April 1925 that Marine Corps Order Number 4 designated gold and scarlet as the official colors of the U.S. Marine Corps. These colors, however, were not reflected in the official Marine Corps flag until 18 January 1939 when a new design incorporating the new colors was approved. This design was essentially that of today's Marine Corps standard, and was the result of a two-year study concerning the design of a standard Marine Corps flag, and the units to which such a flag should be issued.

The 54 colored streamers which adorn the Battle Colors represent the history and accomplishments of the Marine Corps. The newest streamers to be added to the Battle Colors are the Afghanistan and Iraq Campaign Streamers,
 
Current Award, Campaign, Service, and Expeditionary Streamer Entitlement, to the Battle Colors of the Marine Corps can be seen by clicking on the link below.
View all 54 Streamers of the Marine Corps Battle Colors Click Here
 
This Month in History
Selected February Dates of Marine Corps Historical Significance

February 1967: Operation Prairie II was begun in Quang Tri province by elements of the 3d Marine Division. During the 46-day search-and-destroy operation which terminated 18 March, 93 Marines and 693 of the enemy were killed.
February 1967: The first full day of Operation DECKHOUSE VI, which lasted until 3 March, was conducted near Quang Ngai city. The Special Landing Force (BLT Y4 and HMM-363) accounted for 280 enemy killed.
 
February 1968: Two reduced Marine battalions, the 1st Battalion, 1st Marines with two companies, and 2d Battalion, 5th Marines with three, recaptured Hue's hospital, jail, and provincial headquarters. It would take three more weeks of intense house to house fighting, and nearly a thousand Marines killed and wounded, before the imperial city was secured.
 
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Join Our Mailing List 
 We look forward to keeping you informed. Semper Fidelis! 
 
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Enroll Online Here!!
  
"Ready for Anything 
Counting on Nothing"
 		15 February 2010 
   
USMC Tunnel Rats
Underground Warfare in Vietnam
 
During the Vietnam War, originally called "Tunnel Runners" by the Army, and "Ferrets" by the Australian Army, the term "Tunnel Rat" soon became their official accepted name. A special breed of Marines was sent out to hunt and kill Viet Cong soldiers in man-to-man combat in the endless tunnels underneath the jungles of Vietnam.
 
  
 
The tunnel rats were American, Australian and New Zealand soldiers who performed underground search and destroy missions during the Vietnam War. According to R. Lee Ermey, host of the television program Mail Call, "Tunnel rats were the smallest guys with the biggest cojones."
 
In the course of the war, the Viet Cong created extensive underground complexes. Whenever troops would uncover a tunnel, tunnel rats were sent in to kill any hiding enemy soldiers and to plant explosives to destroy the tunnels. A tunnel rat was equipped with only a standard issue .45 caliber pistol and a flashlight, although most tunnel rats were allowed to choose another pistol with which to arm themselves. The tunnels were very dangerous, with numerous booby traps and enemies lying in wait. Often there were flooded U-bends in the tunnels to trap gas. Guards manned holes on the sides of tunnels through which spears could be thrust, impaling a crawling intruder. Not only were there human enemies, but also dangerous creatures, such as snakes, spiders, scorpions, ants, and Black-Bearded Tomb Bats.
 
The tunnel system, built over 25 years starting in the 1940s, let the Viet Minh and, later, the Viet Cong, control a huge rural area. It was an underground city with living areas, kitchens, storage, weapons factories, field hospitals, and command centers. In places, it was several stories deep and housed up to 10,000 people who virtually lived underground for years.... getting married, giving birth, going to school. They only came out at night to furtively tend their crops.
  Viet Cong Tunnel Systems VC tunnel complex images 
 
To Become a Tunnel Rat
Qualifications: CPL or below and small, weighing less than 150 lbs and no taller than 5' 6". Little Grunts always got the honors!
 
"Tunnel Rats" were hand picked men with nerves of steel, being selected for their particular ability to stay calm in highly tense situations. They could not suffer from claustrophobia and had to be of a strong but small stature. They would enter the tunnels armed with only hand grenades, a pistol and a flashlight, to do battle with the enemy. They frequently ended up in hand to hand combat and were subjected to snipers, booby traps, rats, snakes and scorpions. The Tunnel Rats received "hazardous pay" as extra compensation and would generally not serve for more than an average of four months.

Tunnels in Nam or tunnels anywhere in a war zone for that matter, have to be checked out. Grunt rats always end up blowing the hell out of them, but, you never know, many times there were documents, maps or other interesting material that can enhance intelligence gathering missions. That's why they always picked the most intelligent grunts to go into those tunnels!!!!!!! 
  Have a Tunnel Rat Experience? Post it to the Tooter Message Board
 
Going down into a tunnel system was a very risky business fraught with danger. Usually armed only with a pistol or a knife and a flashlight. The tunnel rat would descend into a pitch black, claustrophobic, dark hell, to play a deadly game of hide and seek with the enemy. Carefully probing the floor, sides and roofs of the tunnels became second nature to the tunnel rat as he gently inched and probed his way along. Feeling for wires or tree roots that didn't quite feel right, knowing that anyone of them could detonate a booby trap and blow him to smithereens.
  Tunnel Rats Vietnam War YouTube Video 2:35 Min  
 
Tunnel entrances were sometimes mined or covered by concealed firing positions. On other occasions an entrance would drop into a punji stake pit which would be covered by two riflemen, one either side. Another way in which the unsuspecting tunnel rat could meet his death was by garroting him or cutting his throat as he came up through a connecting trapdoor. Besides the booby traps the tunnels also held other nasty surprises. Living along side the VC was a whole plethora of animals which had also made their homes in the dark confines of the tunnels. Bats (the cave dwelling nectar eating bat and the black bearded tomb bat) would use the tunnels as a roosting ground during the daylight hours. A tunnel rat crawling through a tight tunnel would wake them from their rest causing them to fly right at him, getting tangled in his hair and running and crawling all over him. Snakes were also encountered underground. Two of the most deadly being the bamboo viper and the Krait. Sometimes the VC would deliberately tether a snake in a tunnel to use it as a sort of natural booby trap. Scorpions were also used as booby traps, the VC would take boxes of them into the tunnels. The box would be rigged with a trip wire, the tunnel rat tripped the wire and the scorpions would fall on him stinging him in the process. Being stripped to the waist and slowly crawling along on their stomachs also exposed the rats to bites from fire ants that inhabited the underground labyrinths. Other nasties to be encountered in the tunnels were real rats and spiders like the Giant Crab Spider. Sometimes whole chambers were crawling with a thick black mass of tiny spiders the size of a thumb nail, giving the illusion that the walls were moving.
 
Due to the confined space, the tunnel rats disliked the intense muzzle blast of the comparatively large .45 caliber round, which would often leave them temporarily deaf, and it was not uncommon for them to use whatever handgun they might find. The Soviet-made pistols the enemy carried were particular favorites, but they were rare, and the Marines would often have someone at home send them a civilian pistol or revolver. Among the favorites were the smaller German Luger or less-common double action Walther pistols, both chambered in 9 mm. Many of these were brought home by American troops returning from World War II. Others would trade their pistols for revolvers used by other personnel. Many used improvised suppressors on their pistols to further reduce the noise.
 
Tools of trade for a Tunnel Rat
  
It was soon discovered early on that, to fight in the tunnels, the tunnel rat had to do away with most of the infantry man's basic load. In fact the total lack of equipment carried by a rat was a distinct advantage, which greatly increased his chances of survival. The basic tools of the tunnel rat were the knife, the pistol, and a flashlight.
 
  South Viet Nam: The Tunnel Rats Time Magazine Friday, March 04, 1966
  Tunnel Rats - Movie Trailer  (Marines only- very graphic)
 
With their motto "Non gratum anus rodentum - Not worth a rats ass" the tunnel rats were among the bravest in Vietnam, doing a job that not many others could, or would dare to do.
 
Vietnam War Combat Boots
Tropical Jungle Boots
There are several basic "patterns" of boots used during the Vietnam War. There are two versions of the all leather combat boot which was the principal boot worn when US troops deployed to Vietnam. The leather boots saw continued use through out the war in rear areas, aviation, and other circumstances where a nylon boot was not desirable. Here is a listing of the different type of boots we wore while in-country during our tour.  
 
Combat Boot, Leather: The boot that most troops deployed to Vietnam with. This was the most common footwear in Vietnam in 65 and early 66. As jungle boots increased in supply, the leather boots were relegated to rear support areas and to aviation personnel (to reduce risk of injury in event of a fire). The early "McNamara" Boots featured a stitched on sole that was relatively smooth with a small diamond tread pattern around the ball of the foot. The direct molded vulcanized sole came out in 1967 and often referred to as "Ripple" pattern sole.
 <CLICK ON ANY BOOT TO ENLARGE>
First Jungle Boot: There is some discrepancy as to when these were released, but they can be clearly dated back to 1962. They were the basic "black leather and green canvas" of all of the Vietnam era boots. However, they were distinctive in that they had a leather band at the top of the boot and a leather backstay that ran from the heel to the top of the boot. They also lacked the nylon ankle reinforcing band of the later style boots. The first pattern boots featured the first Direct Molded Sole where the sole was bonded to the upper in a vulcanization process in the Vibram pattern.
 
Second Pattern Jungle Boot: This was an improvement over the first pattern in that the top band of leather and the backstay running from the ankle to the top of the boot were changed to nylon. As for the time introduced, once again there is no "perfect date", but the earliest pairs issued to Marines in Vietnam was July 1965, and became standard 782 gear in 1966. 
<CLICK ON ANY BOOT TO ENLARGE>
Third Pattern Jungle Boot: This boot featured the same all cotton upper construction like the first and second pattern. However, they were improved in 1966 with the introduction of the new Spike Protective Sole which consisted of a steel plate bonded into the foot bed. The earliest pair of Third Pattern Jungle Boots with the Vibram sole are dated November 1965.
 
Immersion Foot / Trench Foot
Many Marines came down with immersion foot in Vietnam. No boot protected you from immersion foot. Tropical immersion foot (also known as "Paddy foot") is a skin condition of the feet seen after continuous immersion of the feet in water or mud for two to ten days. Trench foot, also known as fat foot, is a medical condition caused by prolonged exposure of the feet to damp, unsanitary and cold conditions. It is one of many immersion foot syndromes. The use of the word "trench" in the name of this condition is a reference to trench warfare, mainly associated with World War I.
 
Marine Corps Mascot
Mascot: English Bulldog
Thanks to the German Army, the U.S. Marine Corps has an unofficial mascot. During World War I many German reports had called the attacking Marines "teufel-hunden," meaning Devil-Dogs. Teufel-hunden were the vicious, wild, and ferocious mountain dogs of Bavarian folklore. 
 
Soon afterward a U.S. Marine recruiting poster depicted a snarling English Bulldog wearing a Marine Corps helmet. Because of the tenacity and demeanor of the breed, the image took root with both the Marines and the public. The Marines soon unofficially adopted the English Bulldog as their mascot.

At the Marine base at Quantico, Virginia, the Marines obtained a registered English Bulldog, King Bulwark. In a formal ceremony on 14 October 1922, BGen. Smedley D. Butler signed documents enlisting the bulldog, renamed Jiggs, for the "term of life." Pvt. Jiggs then began his official duties in the U.S. Marine Corps.
 
Tough, muscular, aggressive, fearless, and often arrogant, they are the ultimate canine warriors. English Bulldogs. Teufel-hunden. Devil Dogs. They symbolize the ethos of the Warrior Culture of the U.S. Marines.
 
Famous Marines
You Would Never Have Guessed !! 
Some people have been a bit offended that the actor Lee Marvin is buried in a grave alongside 3 and 4-star generals at Arlington National Cemetery. His marker gives his name, rank (PVT) and service (USMC). Nothing else. Here's a guy who was only a famous movie star who served his time, why the heck does he rate burial with these guys? Well, following is the amazing answer.
 
In a time when many Hollywood stars served their country in the armed forces often in rear echelon posts where they were carefully protected, only to be trotted out to perform for the cameras in war bond promotions, Lee Marvin was a genuine hero. He won the Navy Cross at Iwo Jima . There is only one higher Naval award.... The Medal Of Honor! If that is a surprising comment on the true character of the man, he credits his sergeant with an even greater show of bravery.
 
Dialog from 'The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson': His guest was Lee Marvin, Johnny said 'Lee, I'll bet a lot of people are unaware that you were a Marine in the initial landing at Iwo Jima and that during the course of that action you earned the Navy Cross and were severely wounded'.
'Yeah, yeah... I got shot square in the bottom and they gave me the Cross for securing a hot spot about halfway up Suribachi. Bad thing about getting shot up on a mountain is guys getting' shot hauling you down. But, Johnny, at Iwo I served under the bravest man I ever knew... We both got the Cross the same day, but what he did for his Cross made mine look cheap in comparison. That dumb guy actually stood up on Red Beach and directed his troops to move forward and get the hell off the beach. Bullets flying by, with mortar rounds landing everywhere, he stood there as the main target of gunfire so that he could get his men to safety. He did this on more than one occasion because his men's safety was more important than his own life. Sergeant and I have been lifelong friends. When they brought me off Suribachi we passed the Sergeant and he lit a smoke and passed it to me, lying on my belly on the litter and said, 'Where'd they get you Lee?' 'Well Bob... If you make it home before me, tell Mom to sell the outhouse!' Johnny, I'm not lying, Sergeant Keeshan was the bravest man I ever knew. The Sergeant's name is Bob Keeshan. You and the world know him as Captain Kangaroo'.
 
America's real heroes don't flaunt what they did; they quietly go about their day-to-day lives, doing what they do best. They earned our respect and the freedoms that we all enjoy. Look around and see if you can find one of those heroes in your midst. Often they are the ones you'd least suspect, but would most like to have on your side if anything ever happened.

Semper Fi,
Echo Company 2/7 Vietnam Veterans Chapter