Six years, nine months and four days — that’s the length of time 1959 Conroe graduate Col. James E. Ray spent as a prisoner of war in North Vietnam.
He was shot down on Mother’s Day 1966 and was released two days before Valentine’s Day 1973. Upon his return home to Conroe, the city hosted a parade around the downtown square and celebration at Tiger Stadium in early March 1973 where the stadium was filled with supporters.
Sgt, Richard Perricone’s hometown gave him a rousing welcome today — something they had been waiting to do for more than six years. Uniondale Avenue, the main thoroughfare, was lined with American flags and banners were strung across the street proclaiming “Welcome Home, Richard.” And as the fire chief’s red
Donna Bowers was a teenager in the early 1970s, when she received her POW bracelet. The name on the bracelet was Col. Leland Hildebrand. There was a date with the name: 12/18/71. Those bracelets were worn in honor of American soldiers missing or taken prisoner in the Vietnam War. That’s something we
In his 21-year career as a pilot for the United States Air Force, Maj. James Marrott logged more than 7,000 flying hours. During a yearlong tour in Vietnam alone, he flew 108 combat missions. But the flight he remembers best, the one that means the most, hands down, had nothing
Retired Navy Capt. Collins Henry Haines refers to the years 1967 to 1973 as the time he spent in jail. Between June 8, 1967, and March 3, 1973, Haines, an F-8 Crusader pilot, was moved between a series of North Vietnamese prisoner camps, where he endured torture, disease and isolation. “We
Ted Sienicki was an Air Force Weapon Systems Officer in May 1972, when his F-4 was hit by anti-aircraft fire and he was forced to eject over North Vietnam. He spent 11 months as a prisoner of war. This weekend he will be in Hudson, Massachusetts, where the American Heritage Museum is