Vietnam Veteran says "I thank God they recognize the soldiers now"

Orangeburg soldier survives as others around him die in Vietnam attack
Times and Democrat
By DIONNE GLEATON
August 29, 2015

“I thank God they recognize the soldiers now. We go through hell in combat. It took me 21 years to get my disability (benefits), and they know what I went through,” he said.

Albert Shuler Jr. spent 11 months in the combat zone in Vietnam from 1967 to 1968, surviving six ambushes and a firefight.

The searing heat and drenching rain make the walk up hills and down through valleys longer.

Albert Shuler Jr. is not used to climbing through the Central Highlands of Vietnam, especially with up to 70 pounds on his back. Carrying his personal items, weapon, ammunition and rations, he moves through thick terrain, constantly looking for an enemy he knows is out to kill.

His reconnaissance platoon maneuvers the best it can. A sergeant gets hit. A member of the squad is hit too, and the infantrymen are pinned down amid the bloodshed.

The North Vietnamese Army unleasheas a barrage of fire. Artillery support is summoned. Planes drop bombs against the enemy, but there are two men whose bodies must be brought back.

Shuler and another soldier are asked to do the job. Fright fills him, and he is almost killed by a sniper. But he gets the job done. These men are his fellow soldiers -- even in death.

The dramatic experience is just one of many during the Orangeburg man’s time in Vietnam. Another comes just a week later.
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Today continues The Times and Democrat's print and online series, “Vietnam: They Served With Honor.” The stories based on interviews with local veterans of the Vietnam War will continue on Sundays and Wednesdays through Nov. 11, Veterans Day. For more photos and video, and earlier stories in the series, visit TheTandD.com.

This is from Wounded Times and shows that while some folks think what OEF and OIF veterans go through is new, it isn't.