Theresa Scheets
Oct 14, 2024
The 2024 Reunion Season has come to a close!
Four reunions, four different states and over 6000 miles of driving! Phew!
In May, The Steel Thread Project (TSTP) traveled to Clarksville, Tennessee for the Hamburger Hill Chapter Reunion, then off to the Alpha Company Reunion in Louisville, Kentucky in July. In August, it was back on the road to Springfield, Missouri for the 101st Airborne Division Association/National Rakkasan Association Reunion, followed by a road trip in September to Lake Murray State Park for the annual gathering of the Rakkasans who served in the Republic of Vietnam in 1967-1968.
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What does TSTP do at these reunions? Good question! We set up tables for our many binders, filled with 3/187th, 3rd Brigade and 101st Airborne Division Reports obtained from research trips to the National Archives and Records Administration. We set up picture board displays, relevant to each reunion, so that Veterans and families can view photos from multiple collections. We sit, talk, network and make new connections.
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Why does TSTP attend these reunions? There are many great reasons! For starters, it is a great way to meet and talk with Veterans and their families, face to face, and hear their stories. By making records available, it sometimes helps Veterans answer questions, bring clarity to certain situations or reinforce their memories (many of the records we bring have not been previously seen by the Veterans). It allows Veterans to view photos they haven’t seen in a while or have never seen before. The photos also spark conversations with fellow Veterans, friends and/or family members. It is great exposure for TSTP and lets others know what we do.
But most importantly, reunions are about honoring those who served as well as remembering those who did not make it home.
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Now that the 2024 Reunion Season is over, it’s time to get back to research and website building!
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Speaking of researching, I was able to squeeze in two days at the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) in St Louis, Missouri. This NARA facility allows public access to Morning Reports from 1967 and 1968, which are on microfilm. Unfortunately, Morning Reports from 1969 to 1971 are with the National Personnel Records Center and need to be requested through the mail. Regarding the Morning Reports for 1967-1968, many of the daily reports are missing (about a quarter to half for each month are missing). Plus, Morning Reports for the entire months of September and October of 1968, as well as first half of November are completely missing. But, I was able to scan and save several hundred pages of documents from 1967 and 1968.
One last important connection to mention. Kelly Sutton Blain of the non-profit Hear Our Heros joined TSTP at the Alpha Company Reunion in Louisville, Kentucky. She was of great assistance and was able to interview several of the Veterans. Hear Our Heros is collaborating with TSTP to add some very dynamic aspects to the TSTP website. But details on that in a later News Update!
Thank you all!
Theresa Scheets