Retired general recalls sacrifice of young soldiers

The vast majority of Americans will likely spend this Memorial Day holiday weekend reveling in the pleasures of the first long weekend of the summer. A few — the patriotic core — will spend some time remembering the many brave men and women who have made the ultimate sacrifice so that we can all enjoy personal liberties.

But for one Gonzales resident, retired U.S. Army Gen. Sam Turk, Memorial Day brings back memories about not only his heroes from the greatest generation who served in World War II, but especially a few of the men who died during his time as a helicopter pilot in Vietnam.

“One of these officers had only been in Vietnam for two weeks,” Turk said. “He was killed during a combat assault mission as his helicopter was shot down with heavy machine gun fire. He was a 21-year-old pilot fresh out of flight school with much energy and desire to serve his nation. His life was cut short way too soon.”

“Another pilot was a first lieutenant who lived across the hall from me in our hooch (our quarters). He had been in Vietnam over 11 months and was preparing to depart for home in 26 days. The fact is the hazardous mission he flew that day was voluntary. He was dedicated and committed to serve and that he did, even though it cost him everything,” Turk said.

Clearly, these two pilots are etched on his mind since he recalls so many details about their life and death 50 years later.

“A crew chief I remember was severely burned as one of our helicopters crashed during a combat mission.  He was evacuated to Fort Sam Houston to the burn treatment center and after two weeks we received word that he didn’t make it. Many others died or were incapacitated with severe wounds to their bodies. We must remember with reverence those that paid the ultimate price with their service to our nation. But we must also remember their families.

The pain, the loss, the suffering and yet life still has to go on for these families. These families experience many hardships physically, financially and in so many other ways. They too must be remembered without fail.

Memorial Day was originally a time to decorate the graves of fallen Civil War soldiers that began even before the war ended, later it was extended to honor members of the military who lost their lives in any war.

The cost of war is escalating dramatically today as millions of veterans are returning with injuries that, in previous conflicts, would not have been survivable. These soldiers, sailors, airmen and marines will require a lifetime of care and our veteran’s health care system is embroiled in controversy over whether they are being transparent about how the care they promised to provide is being delivered.

Turk agrees that many of the veterans returning today are suffering from a whole different type of injuries than troops experienced during his era.

Many of today’s returning troops are suffering from devastating mental health issues in addition to their physical injuries and those have to be faced directly, Turk said.

Whether soldiers are suffering from the stress of multiple deployments or as a consequence of traumatic brain injury, Turk emphasizes that military leadership should step up and support their people to get the help they need.

Memorial Day is a time of reflection and remembering so as to focus on the true cost of war and the supreme sacrifice that has been paid by so many of our service members. A price that has allowed us Americans to be free and live in a country that’s free. We as a people must never forget or take our freedoms for granted.

We must take care of our service members. Timely and quality medical care of the highest standards is essential and we must demand our government fix the veteran’s administration problem immediately and without fail. To do anything less is criminal.

Gen. Turk is a native of Gonzales. He enlisted in the Texas National Guard at the age of 17 and served four years as an enlisted soldier. He attended Texas A&M University and upon graduation with a degree in agricultural economics was commissioned a second lieutenant in the United States Army.

Gen. Turk attended both fixed and rotary wing flight schools. He was deployed to Vietnam where he served as a helicopter pilot with the 121st Aviation Company, Soc Tran Tigers. This highly decorated unit is having a reunion in June in Branson and Gen. Turk will attend.

Gen. Turk served 42 years of military service and commanded aviation units at every level of command. He served as the Adjutant General of Texas commanding both Texas Army and Air National Guard. Gen. Turk is married to his wife of 58 years, Pat Turk. He attributes his success to having a wife that totally supported him throughout his career, but most importantly a wife that faithfully prayed for him.