THE NEXT PLACE I GO WON’T BE LIKE ANY PLACE I’VE BEEN

My name is Don Crizer.

Dad was World War II Veteran who later became a mill worker for the Gary, Indiana steel mills. My father never said much at all about his war experience.

I was drafted and entered service on April Fool’s Day in 1969. Half of the inductees were drafted into the Marines. My infantry NCO training made me a candidate for infantry replacements on the front line due to multiple tours or death. My tour was under the 1st Air Cav, west of Tay Ninh on the Cambodian border. The cavalry was an elite fighting force on horseback dating back thousands of years. The term cavalry stayed, but instead of riding into battle by horseback, our group was flown in by helicopters that made it possible to drop us anywhere at any time. Our unit was on a continuous search-and-destroy mission, with one spanning 87 days straight.

The Vietnam War robbed me of a lot of family life. I am grateful to have an understanding wife who has put up with the years of post-traumatic stress. I hope to live long enough to make it up to her and my children.
~ Don Crizer, Army 1st Air CAV, Vietnam

The following is in memory of Don Crizer, a true patriot who passed away in May, 2014:

THE NEXT PLACE
The next place I go won’t be like any place I’ve been or dreamed of in the place I left behind. I will be free of the things that I held onto that were holding on to me. I take with me the love of those who loved me, the warmth of those who cared, the happiness & memories & magic that we shared. This light will shine forever in “The Next Place that I go.”
~Warren Hanson, author of The Next Place

We wish to offer special gratitude and our condolences to the friends and family of Don Crizer. May God bless all soldiers, each and every one.

Above is an excerpt from www.VietnamAndBeyond.com

Photos: Don and Elaine Crizer

#FamiliesServeToo #SupportOurTroops #HonorThem