A guy at work showed me a super book, published by the 2nd Marine BTN.  It is quite unique and is the closest thing I've seen yet that I'd like us to put together.  I hope the following photos represent the content of this book.  It has short stories, longer stories, sad stories, funny as hell stories, photos, map reproductions, hand-written letters, etc. 

 

The guy that had it (our maintenance man) showed it to me because his dead brother is mentioned in one sentence.  He's so proud of that.  Think how proud our families and descendants will be, and how they will perceive who we were and what we did.  Perhaps even more so, the families of our KIAs, WIAs and yes, MIA (we have them).

 

I'd like to add a lot of other stuff, like a historical summary, from training as the 3/17th, Lessons Learned, orders, Daily Logs of significant happenings, descriptions of our losses and almost losses.  Other stories like "How Birdman Got His Name", Cavalier Monk stories.  Tiger kill.  Patches. CO'1st SGT list, historical timeline, photos of our reunions, you name it.  In fact YOU NAME IT!

 

Of course, it will take some shaking and baking to loosen up some folks.  Maybe our "minis" need a tape recorder along. 

 

Just remember that none of us has a perfect memory, and talking to others scrambles and doubts our own, but it is our own and it will be written, perfect or not!

 

How 'bout it?  Ideas - we have lots.  It's the "beef" from you folks that's needed to fill this book out. 

 

I'll get it started with a couple of my own recollections and photos.  I have a trove of "stories" on e-mails and hastily written lined pads from telephone calls.  Some were with guys no longer with us.  And that's part of the point, eh?

 

Please take a look at some randomly chosen pages and think of the possibilities.

 

Walker