a year goes by . . .

One year ago today we posted the first story about Donald McNamara.  Since then we have been able to locate his photos, on a mission to salute him on the Virtual Wall and the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Foundation site, have discovered numerous individuals who knew him, as well as his son and grandchildren.

Now we look forward to renewing friendships with all those who were involved in the story, and a reunion should be held in the next couple of months.

VVMF.org is a website with information about the thousands lost in Viet Nam, with a link to the Education Center now under construction.  A YouTube on the Center shows it is built to commemorate all those individuals.  Here it is -

On Veterans Day, I might have shed a tear . . .

You may have seen the post-campaign speech by Obama to his campaign workers in which he shed a couple of tears while talking to the younger workers, addressing their hard work, loyalty, and commitment.  This post is not a political statement because presumably the tears shed will apply to most campaigns at this and down-ballot levels.

The passion and beliefs on which so many campaigns are founded can yield huge emotional results, whether in victory or defeat.  And it has led me to speak here of a number of events and observations that I have been mulling over for the past several weeks, events that have caused me to have my own "moments."  Emotion is personal to me, whether from success, joy, or sorrow.

Some time ago I watched a report on Paul Newman's "Hole in the Wall" Camp, founded for children with cancer and serious blood diseases.  Camp Counselors were creating an environment that few campers may have believed was within their reach until they were sitting in a circle, smiling and singing.  And by the end of the televised report, I felt a tear in the corner of my eye.

Wisconsin Lions have opened a similar camp in Rosholt, WI, for kids who didn't think they could go to camp because of their blindness.  Since the founding, the camp has expanded to kids with diabetes, and cognitive or physical disabilities.  Now many of the campers have themselves become counselors, bringing their experience full circle.

A DVD made available by the camp shows kids slogging through a mud pit, canoeing, walking a rope bridge, and enjoying all the activities that "normal" kids do at their own camps, activities they thought beyond their reach.  I've watched the video, during which a tear comes to the corner of my eyes.

Those examples perhaps illustrate a point. Most of the emotion-impact scenes I have witnessed seem to be tied to young people succeeding, perhaps beyond odds, or just because they put heart and soul into the effort and reap a reward.  Perhaps it's the opposite, where all the hard work and effort do NOT lead to success, but either way, it's the young people and their commitments that count.

As I have aged I have had more emotional reflection of America's finest going off to war, often never coming home.  When "Platoon" came out several years ago I can recall leaving the theater when the movie ended, with a very quiet crowd, few people including myself making eye contact with anyone, and indeed there were several cases of sniffling going on.

A few months ago I added "Platoon" to my Netflix Instant Queue, but have yet to watch it.  You know why.

So you can imagine that during the entire Project McNamara process late last spring my heart was full and my eyes were often wet.  On the day of the first meeting of the principals of the group we were tied by emotion, yet at this moment the engagement was not particularly deep.  Still, many tears were shed, and Marv Everhart said in a later email, "I had tears in my eyes all day."

There were two moments from Project McNamara that fully engulfed me, and both happened in Florida, where we drove for vacation immediately following that first event.  I took with me several photos gathered from Marv and others so I could scan them to include in later posts, but the primary need was to find the photo suitable for posting on the two websites, vvmf.org and thevirtualwall.org.

Once we arrived in Florida I spent a little time digging for information about Ray Calhoun, the fellow who lay on his back with Donald McNamara singing to the top of their voices.  And I found him.  We had gone back and forth without connecting until the day I went to a Walgreen's to scan all my photos.  As I was leaving the store, my phone rang, and it was Ray Calhoun.  I asked if he could confirm that he was the fellow who lay on his back singing "Up Up and Away" with Donald, and he did.

From that point on the conversation was difficult for me, as I did my best to listen and learn.  It was just a normal Project McNamara extraordinary moment of coincidence that as I finished scanning Donald's photos his fellow Marine Ray would call me. And I had more than one tear in my eye.

Back at our apartment I later made a choice on photos, uploaded them to the websites, and got a notice at completion that I would be notified when they were approved.  That took a few days, and when I checked my email several days later, one email from the Virtual Wall was a notice of approval, including a link to click to take me to his page.

When I clicked the link, the full-screen photo of Donald McNamara leaped out at me.  That was a difficult moment.  I expected to see the photo, but not the surreal full-screen version that was in front of me and I was lifted to a new peak.

I was proud to have played a part in providing recognition for this lost Marine, honored to have met his son along the way, but mostly grateful that the online photo makes it more difficult that he would ever be forgotten.  So yes, I might have shed a tear.

Today is Veteran's Day, and on the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month, we honor all veterans, with a special salute to my unknown friend, Corporal Donald Woodward McNamara, United States Marine Corp.

Shane's Story

For months we chronicled the story of Donald Woodward McNamara, his death in Viet Nam, our discovery of the photos from cousin Marv and niece Amber, the shocking appearance of a son who did not know his father.

Recently his son Shane was asked to write his story for a local newspaper and we've asked to reprint it here as well.

Memorial Day, 2012 - Marv Everhart, cousin of Donald McNamara,
presents the wreath laid in his honor to Shane Edgar, Donald's son.

My story,

When I was twelve years old, I realized I don’t look like my brother and sister. I was told that my father died in Vietnam and I had been adopted by the man I called Dad. Satisfied for the moment, I knew that my parents loved me and that was all that I needed to know.

A few years passed and I asked my mother again.  This time she gave me his name, Donald McNamara.  The name sat in my heart, and in time I looked for more information about this mystery man.  No one seemed to know him, and my mother said little.

Over the past few years it has become more important for me to find my roots and solve the mystery. As a father myself I began to look at things differently.   Increasingly I wanted to get more information about my roots.  

After my 45 birthday last March, I was in a church group on a Wednesday night asking questions of the people in the group. How should I be thinking about my father and the lack of information I had?  Were my feelings of being lost and confused about this man okay? Or should I find out more?  How?

After the meeting a member came to me to tell me she and her mother had been studying genealogy and she wondered if she could get dad’s full name so she could research it. I gave it to her thinking she would run into dead ends like I had.

The next week she came to see me with information she’d gotten off the Internet.  A group of people from Northwood, IA, preparing for a 50^th Class Reunion were emailing each other.  One of the emails told of a Virtual Wall replicating the Vietnam Memorial in Washington DC, where every American who died in that war was recognized.

They were surprised to discover a Donald McNamara died in that war – and was the only casualty listing Northwood, IA, as his hometown.  None of the Class of ’62 knew him since he transferred in a year after they left.

A search led to Nancy, who had graduated three years later.  She was a good friend of Donald’s, had taken long walks with him, and recalled him as a good-looking guy.  She was able to fill in more blanks, pictures were found, and the story was posted in a blog created for that Class of ’62 , the same information given to me by my friend from the church group.

I emailed the blogger more questions.  He answered what he could, and then asked “What is your interest in Donald?” I replied by email and said, I have been told he is my father.

The blogger called immediately. The door was opened, and for the next few days I was getting information on him daily and at times hourly. Not even a week went by and we were talking of getting together with the Northwood people to discuss an overwhelming amount of information, and meet family, for the first time ever.

There are few of the family left. Donald’s twin brother, Ronald, passed away about 18 months after Donald in a car accident. The boys had a half-sister (Deb) who lost a battle with cancer.  My grandparents had passed also. Donald’s cousin Marv (who escorted his body back from Vietnam) lives in the Northwood area.  Deb has a daughter Amber, my cousin, who lives in Albert Lea, MN, with a daughter Vanessa, and that’s it.

We gathered in Northwood and the stories of Donald flew about the room. Mostly I recall what others tell me about this day, that Marv said when I broke the plane of the door, “Oh my God, Its Donnie!”  Those words will always be held close to my heart. Yes, I belong and I know he really is my Father.

 He is a father to be very proud of, a Marine who died in a six hour gun fight in Nam. He was manning an M-60 and his squad had broken off from him. They tried several time to regain the ground but Donald gave his life to protect others in the field, taken out by mortar fire. Several of his squad did not come back to camp that day.

In conversation with those who served with him, my father Donald was a Marine’s Marine, a great leader in the field. He was kind and gentle when needed and tough as nails when the moment called for it, as my wife has described me. That sounds like a great man who has left me with a great gift. I believe he would be proud of me and would love and cherish his grandchildren. Thanks DAD for giving me life so I can carry on your name.

The Education Center at the Wall

Yesterday a 2013 Calendar arrived, sent to me by the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund.  It's a chilling reminder of Project McNamara and many sacrifices.

Certainly it was a solicitation for a donation, so I went to their website to do just that, and discovered this video, available on YouTube, that shows what they are planning to put into their Education Center.  It looks to me like an extraordinary project.  Check it out, and if you'd like to make a donation, go to vvmf.org and click on their "Donate" button.

More about McNamara

An email from Ann Johnson fills in more background on Donald McNamara.

Yesterday we bumped into some long-time friends of ours whom we haven’t seen for ages; Curt and Sue Evans who farm near Joice.

Curt wanted to tell me how much he enjoyed reading about our search for Donald. He was very, very complimentary about all that we had done and all that was involved. He grew up in Joice and graduated from Lake Mills High School with Jan in 1964. She had told him about our project and directed him to the NKHS 62 website.

LIGHT BULB!!!

Knowing his age, I said, “I’ll bet you knew Don and Ron McNamara when you were in school”!

He said, “I sure did! We rode together on the school bus to Lake Mills but we knew them as “Carberry.” Then he started talking about Don and what a nice kid he was. Curt said the twins’ birthday was one day after his birthday so they called each other “Brother”. He spoke so well of Don and said they were really good friends.

He said both of the boys were very good athletes...he said so many things about the boys, I can’t begin to remember all of them. I told him I thought Shane would love to hear stories about his dad as a kid and Curt said, “Oh, you need to get in touch with Barry Anonson. He still lives in Joice; he and Don were really good friends. They both lived in town...I wasn’t around them so much because we lived in the country but those two were together all the time.”

He chuckled and said, “As I remember, the game warden took their guns away once because they were shooting sparrows around town.” There were stories that Michael (Shane's son) would like to hear...Curt said that Don was “a heck of a baseball player”. (He also said Don and Ron teased Deb (their sister) unmercifully....he even told us the name they called Deb but I can’t remember it. Curt was really enjoying talking about his friend.

The story continues . . . Ray Calhoun will be pleased that it does.

in commemoration

On this day in 1967, Corporal Donald Woodward McNamara lost his life in a six-hour firefight with the enemy near Highway 9 at Ca Lu, Viet Nam, four months after the birth of his son Shane, the child he never met nor held in his arms.  McNamara was the only casualty in Viet Nam who listed Northwood, IA, as his hometown.

Yes, "Don", it is ME!

"Little, Lyle"

My best friend, Larry S. Nelson, USMC introduced us just before you TWO headed to Okinawa.

Remember, Blue and Red? First Marines, Third Marines?

Life WAS simple!

Blue and Red!

The more you DRANK, the more your threw your head back and and said "GAWD".

You said "GAWD" many times before the night was over.

You had such "inner peace"! Was there something you wanted to tell us besides "GAWD"?

More than once the "fellas" who served with you TRIED, really TRIED to recover the ground they were PUSHED back from. Ground that YOU held. Overrun, pushed back! Overrun pushed back! Overrun - pull the pin!

That (now hallowed ground) could NOT be recovered. Those Marines knew they were NOT "supermen".

In the end, you destroyed the M-60. "One last grenade"! You hugged the "60" until the end!

Thanks, Don!

--  Lyle C. Frazer, posted at VVMF.org  

The story of Donald McNamara and the discovery of his son Shane has been an emotional one for all involved, a testament to the sense of hometown one feels being raised in Northwood Iowa, and a statement about the importance of remembering those who served our country in uniform.  I personally never served, and this project has become a way for me to contribute, and an honor to do so.

In the words of a Marine who served with McNamara, Lance Corporal Ray Calhoun, San Diego, CA: This all reminds me a quote from a WWI Belgium man who as a kid was liberated by the US Army. He came to America, became a famous architect and married into wealth. To thank the USA for all this he established a military museum and library in Santa Barbara, Ca. Asked about his special feelings for the military he said: “I still feel an obligation to the United States, especially to the military. That’s why I am behind the idea of a Museum to honor the soldiers who died. To be killed in a war is not the worst that can happen. To be lost is not the worst. To be forgotten is the worst.” 

Searching for his gravesite at Graceland Cemetery in Albert Lea, MN, Larry Patterson finally found the headstone, overgrown by sod.  Since restored to a presentable condition, it remains a sad statement that for years it had been slowly forgotten.  Today we remember, 45 years later.

Editor's note: the above post was scheduled to be published on Saturday, July 21, the anniversary date, and is published today due to an error.  My regrets.

Donald Woodward McNamara - an Epilogue

The story is drawing to a close, but the memories will last a lifetime.  These pictures tell their own story.  Click on any photo for a larger view of all.

JoAnn Lower from the Northwood Anchor met us to write the story for the Anchor, and took this photo of some of us.  From Left, Ann and Dale Johnson, Lonna and myself, Kim and Shane, Marv and Shirley.

Shane and Kim are living a new life and have found a huge extended family.

On Memorial Day, Marv lay a wreath in honor of Donald McNamara.  After doing so he stood at attention, then snapped off a salute that spoke volumes about his memories.  Major John Meyer, USAF, retired, seated in this photo, gave a memorable speech about service, sacrifice, and community.

The best photos are the ones when people are not posing.  Marv and Shane shared a moment when most of the cameras had turned away, and this, too, spoke volumes.

The grandchildren of Donald have been told the story just recently, and are proud of their grandfather, whom they never knew, and only recently learned about.  When they are our age they will appreciate it even more and take greater pride.  We hope the NK62 Blog will help them to do that.

Memorial Day

Northwood's VFW will host the Memorial Day services on Monday the 28th.  Arrangements have been made for Marv  Everhart to place a wreath in honor and memory of Donald Woodward.

We're glad to know the VFW is taking this step, and wanted our readers to know about it in case you'd like to make a contribution.  Several individuals have already stepped forward to say they want to contribute towards the wreath so we're suggesting that anyone who would like to do so could send a check to VFW Post 6779 Our Buddies Memorial, Northwood, IA.

Make a note that the contribution is for the wreath-laying for Donald Woodward McNamara, and whatever excess funds are contributed that way could be used in his memory.

a letter from a Marine

Lee,

This all reminds me a quote from a WWI Belgium man who as a kid was liberated by the US Army. He came to America, became a famous architect and married into wealth. To thank the USA for all this he established a military museum and library in Santa Barbara, Ca. Asked about his special feelings for the military he said: “I still feel an obligation to the United States, especially to the military. That’s why I am behind the idea of a Museum to honor the soldiers who died. To be killed in a war is not the worst that can happen. To be lost is not the worst. To be forgotten is the worst.” 

The Pierre Claeyssens Veteran’s Museum and Library Foundation is committed to carrying out the mission of building a world class destination Museum to carry on Pierre’s dreams that American military history will never become lost in the fog of time.

Don was a very good man, special to both Joe and me and I hope and trust Shane found some roots and peace from your hard work. You guys have done very well with this project. Thanks for caring enough to make the connections and remember our long ago friend. Thanks to you he will never have the worst thing happen to him, to be forgotten.

As combat veteran Marines, most of us have a condition known as Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. While it would be untruthful to say we think about our lost comrades every day, we do have some special days where we are a bit extra stressed/depressed. Those dates are the annual anniversary dates of battles where friends like Don were lost. For me the dates of April 30, July 21, August 21, December 9, 10 & 28, are firmly embedded in my brain. Every year I get these trigger dates to remember and reflect about the guys who were KIA on those days. Most of my reflections are about how they were as people and not just the method and manner of their deaths.

I have been so blessed to have survived and to be given another chance. I have a wonderful family and life. At least I now know that Don too has a wonderful son. Hopefully he will stay in touch with his other extended family, the guys from 2nd Platoon, Mike Company, 3rd Battalion, 3rd Marines.

Semper fi and God Bless!

Ray Calhoun

Where he died

Through Ray Calhoun we have gotten background on the military movements, topography, and location of the ambush where Donald Woodward McNamara died.  The photos and italicized commentary below came courtesy of Calhoun.  There may be question as to the suitability of including this information with Project McNamara but it is the initial horrible reality that put this project in play.  Note all photos should open in a new window and a larger version if you click on them.

The battle on July 21, 1967, took place at the far end of this valley, near the river that runs the distance.  According to Calhoun the exact location is about one inch below the "S" in "Sahn."

This is the basic map where Donald and I operated. We spent the majority of our time between the Rockpile and Khe Sanh. Donald was KIA just east of Ca Lu on the road to Khe Sanh. Sadly my squad was on the eastern or southern side of the Thach Han River. We couldn’t do much except to coordinate air strikes.

This map is a topo to show where we spent most of our time around the Rockpile and Razorback. You will hear about locations like Old Payable and the Dustbowl so now you can put them into perspective. Route 9 is at the SE tip of this map.

This photo is showing an air strike that we called in to try and give Donald's part of the platoon some support. You can see the distance and foliage to get a sense of what was going on. To my knowledge this may be the only photo from that day. When you are busy no one is taking many photos.

Had Ray Calhoun's squad made it across the river to support the Marines being ambushed, this story may have ended differently.  Or had Donald's parents not moved to Albert Lea shortly after he joined the Marines, NKHS Alumni would have been more aware of his ultimate sacrifice.

As it is, the Freeborn County Courthouse in Albert Lea, MN, has honored him in a Memorial Walk where a brick with his name has been placed in the KIA section.  It's as if he knew his fate when a photo was taken when home on leave, perhaps his last, as if he knew the brick would one day be there.

Project your own thoughts on his frame of mind here regarding his family, his mission, and his future.

The face has pride, confidence, satisfaction, maturity, and the inner peace his fellow Marine reported in a Remembrance.  By all accounts, his death was a huge loss.   He belonged at home and not in the valley pictured above, but it's where the world took him.

For the Class of '62 he's the schoolmate we didn't know - until it was too late.

Donald Woodward McNamara - in tribute

At last the photo of Donald Woodward McNamara has been posted on the Virtual Wall (see above) and also on the Vietnam Veteran Memorial Fund (VVMF) website.

There's no need to revisit all the stories posted previously, though you can view the group by clicking on the menu label "Project McNamara" on the right.  Let it just be said that numerous people have been involved in bringing this young man home, elevating the local awareness of a quality person who gave his life in war.

We've discovered his cousin Marv Everhart served to accompany the body home, at the request of Donald's mother, and is pictured here with the flag-draped coffin.

Marv, who was serving at the time in the Army in Viet Nam, was there for the funeral and the burial, and had a joyful first meeting with Donald's son Shane just last month.  He was the one who in 1967 presented Donald's mother with the Purple Heart Medal, the dogtags, and the flag draping the coffin.

The story of Donald Woodward McNamara has taken so many surprising twists since it first came to light on March 13, and has brought together an unlikely, disparate group of people looking for the next bit of news on a daily basis.  The remaining family of Donald have, in some respects, found a new life.  Then Lance Corporal Ray Calhoun entered the story.  A fellow Marine who served with Donald, he elevated the story even further by confirming the personal quality of the young Marine, and sent out an "all call" to the Marines who had served with him.

Shortly, an email came from another Marine who served with Donald, recalling him as a friend, a good man and a great, intuitive leader, at the youthful age of 20:  I am Joe Cordileone. Don was my squad leader for a time. We went on R&R together. Don was a hardcore Marine's Marine, but he was also very compassionate. He had a young man in his squad, a draftee (very rare in the corps), who just wasn't really suited for combat in the jungle. It was obvious to everyone and it wasn't his fault. Don took care of him. He wouldn't let him get in a situation where he would be in over his head. Don led by example. I am proud to count him among my friends.

Here is Donald in uniform, a man proud to wear it, and ready to serve his country, as documented by the remembrance of a fellow soldier Lyle Frazer who was there at the end:

Remember, Blue and Red? First Marines, Third Marines?  Life WAS simple!  Blue and Red!

You had such "inner peace"! Was there something you wanted to tell us besides "GAWD"?

More than once the "fellas" who served with you TRIED, really TRIED to recover the ground they were PUSHED back from. Ground that YOU held. Overrun, pushed back! Overrun pushed back! Overrun - pull the pin!

In the end, you destroyed the M-60. "One last grenade"! You hugged the "60" until the end!

No doubt he was a "Marine's Marine."  

At the first "reunion" of Project McNamara held last month, his son Shane posed with the Purple Heart awarded posthumously.  Along with a coffin flag and other medals previously in the safekeeping of his cousin Amber, Shane accepted it with grace and awe, pride, and respect.

Whatever this NKHS62 blog has contributed over the past two years is just meaningless in comparison to the impact of this story and the role we've been able to play.  From time to time I question whether the stories and the blog itself make any difference or have any value.  

Now it makes no difference.  

I've never been involved in anything as personally satisfying as this in my life - posting the photos of the hometown hero we didn't know, and being a part of helping a young man to discover who he is.  This story has made the blog worthwhile, and nothing else matters.  Today marks one month since this story was brought to life, even though it has been nearly 45 years in the making, and it's a good time to draw it to a close.

Donald was a hero who gave his all, so we salute him, as well as Marv and all his fellow Viet Nam Vets.  Even if belated, we thank you.

On behalf of all who have been involved in Project McNamara let me say we are grateful to his service and proud to have re-established him in our community.  For however short a period of time, he was one of us.

Lee Leidal

The McNamara Circle Widens

Ray Calhoun, USMC

If you read the tributes posted for Donald on the Vietnam Vet memorial Fund website you would recall a quote from a Ray Calhoun:   Don and I would lay on our backs, looking at the stars, and singing Up Up and Away to the top of our lungs. They all thought we were crazy.

A search with The Google provides a great deal of information about Mr. Calhoun, including a story about his receiving a Silver Star medal. Mr. Calhoun is pictured at left, a photo taken from that story.

His email address was included somewhere in the many stories about him, and when contacted, his reply came back shortly:  Donald was a good friend of mine. Please call me.

Ray has confirmed that he was indeed the guy who sang with Donald.  They both served in the same platoon but different squads, Ray in the 2nd and Donald in the 3rd.  They normally worked patrols together, but on the day that Donald was killed, they were separated by geography, so Ray was not there when it happened. Donald's squad was ambushed and by the time Ray's squad was able to get there, it was all over.

Ray described him as a happy guy, a great leader, and a friend. He has since sent an email wherein he copied two other Marines who also recall Donald as a great friend, and more information and insights will be forthcoming.

Cpl McNamara was not a member of the Class of '62 and to our knowledge none of the classmates know who he is, so one might say the blog is skewing away from its mission.  So be it.  He is one of so many Viet Nam Vets who never made it back, and one who listed Northwood as his hometown - without ever receiving any local acclamation for having given his life.  This is all about us - and we will see it through.

His photo has been posted on the Viet Nam Vet Memorial Fund site, and the remembrance can be viewed on their website, vvmf.org.

Original Mission Complete

From the beginning - March 13, less than a month ago - the blog mission has been to find a photo of Donald Woodward McNamara and post it on the Virtual Wall and the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund websites.  A number of photos have arrived, and the official military portrait shown here has been submitted to both sites, though it may easily be a week or ten days until they are viewable.

Our reporting is not yet complete, so stay tuned.


Clearly Donald was proud to wear the colors of the USMC, as illustrated below.  We'll have additional photos to show later.

Project McNamara - the Reunion

It's the story you couldn't make up.  A man who doesn't know his father or his family.  The father who died in Viet Nam.  Extended family unaware the son exists.  People who are strangers try to fit the pieces together - and they all become friends and meet in a Reunion barely two weeks after the story comes to light.

The experience has to be unlike any that the participants had ever experienced in their lives.  As the story came together a half-dozen individuals kept emailing and asking questions about the only soldier to die in Viet Nam who listed Northwood as his hometown.  Ultimately Donald McNamara's son Shane Edgar was reunited with Donald's cousin Marv Everhart and Shane's cousin Amber Carberry in a glorious, emotional event..

Party Hostess Ann Swensrud Johnson said it best:  hugs and tears, pictures and stories, more hugs, more tears!  You can see it here - when Amber greeted Shane:

And in this impromptu move by Shane when he sat down next to Marv for "official photos" of the event:

The NKHS 62 blog helped to glue the parties together; Ann was the straw that stirred the drink; and Nancy Hengesteg was the link to the past who got it rolling.  Jan Mielke found the photos of Donald in the '63 LMHS Yearbook.  Art Kuennen was a link to the Carberry family since he had lived with them for a period of time.  (Whatever else I had to do today didn't matter - I had to be here, he said.)

And all of these folks, who were basically strangers just three weeks earlier, were bonding like they had known each other their entire lives.  From time to time they were shaking their heads at the incredible series of coincidences that led to this meeting.  As the pictures were passed around, people gasped when they saw Amber's daughter next to one of Shane's - but for the age difference, they looked like twins!

You'll recall from the last post that Kim Edgar's niece is dating Ann Johnson's grandson - unbeknownst to Ann.  And in another little twist, Shane reports his son Michael isn't too keen about attending family gatherings - unless Ann's grandson Nate will be there!

There's more to come for the Project, with a second reunion tentatively scheduled for July 5th, so some of the principals who live out of town will be able to join this unlikely gathering.  Until then, here are the folks celebrating with Shane on Wednesday the 28th:

Seated: Kim, Amber, Shane, Marv, Shirley
Standing: Nancy, Jan, Dale, Ann, Lee, Art

It was an amazing day, and typical for Project McNamara, was pulled together in about 48 hours.  Smiles.  Tears.  Pride.  Joy.  Sorrow.  Strangers once, now friends forever, all in memory of Donald Woodward McNamara.

PS: Ann served pie and coffee before we left.  Of course.

Donald Woodward McNamara, Part II

Ronald McNamara, on the left
Donald McNamara, on the right, ca. 1962

Just ten days ago the story of Donald McNamara, who attended NKHS from the fall of '63 until he enlisted in March, 1964, was reported on the blog.

Without a complete re-write of that story, suffice it to say that Donald enlisted in the Marines, presumably with his mother's permission, rather than graduate, at age 17 1/2, then died in Viet Nam on July 21, 1967, at the age of 20, three months short of his 21st birthday.

Since the original posting, other NHS and NKHS graduates have been engaged in uncovering more.  They have found that Marv Everhart, '61, is a cousin, was serving in Nam in the Army, was part of the detail that escorted Donald home, and was present at the funeral and burial at Graceland Cemetery in Albert Lea.

Ann Swensrud Johnson, NHS '56, has led the search at the local level and coined the term "Project McNamara."  Through her friend Jan Mielke of Lake Mills, she found the above photo in the 1963 LMHS yearbook, with the twins on either side of Steve Kvale, the fellow with glasses.  Donald and Ronald had been students at LMHS prior to transferring to NKHS, and the photo caption identifies them as Ron and Don Carberry.

At this writing we have no other photos of Donald to share, though Ann has discovered that Marv and the daughter of a half-sister have several - which will allow us to meet the original commitment of posting his photo on the Virtual Wall and the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund site, where his military information is available.

Donald and twin brother Ronald were buried at Graceland, Donald with proper military rites, having been transported to an Albert Lea mortuary from Minneapolis.  Thus Northwood was left "out of the loop" if you will, which is not surprising given his short attendance at NKHS, from September '63 to March '64, yet he enrolled as a Northwood resident, and his military records reflect that.

At this point we are researching any connection or commemoration for him at the Northwood VFW.  Marv has a copy of a short obituary that appeared in the Anchor on July 27, 1967, and notice of his funeral service two weeks later, August 3.

If you happen to be standing right now, you may want to sit down for this next part.  The bigger story for all involved in this research came four days after the original post.

We received an email request from a fellow named Shane Edgar, asking if we could provide more information about Donald McNamara.  He had Googled the name, found our post, and sent the email.  We told him we had posted what we knew, and asked Shane, as a point of curiosity, what his connection would be.

His email answer:  I am trying to get some information on him because I was recently told he is my father.

We were all shocked, and our search went into overdrive, resulting in much of the information above.

We have since spoken directly with Shane, who is piecing together his own story, have invited him to meet with several from Northwood and Lake Mills who were connected to Donald in some way, and invited him to meet with several from the Class of '62 during the 50th Anniversay Reunion this summer.

The story of Donald Woodward McNamara is certainly being fleshed out, with help from players like Ann and Marv, who not only was a cousin but a good friend of Donald, and is himself learning things he did not previously know, along with Amber Carberry, the daughter referenced above.

If anything good has come following the Viet Nam War, this just about has to be at the top of the list. Strangely, there have been so many coincidences that have brought it about including, in shortened format, the following events:

• I had been copied in the past on emails sent to Ann Johnson, and beginning March 10 I connected with her more personally about our parents and family, with a series of email discussions. 
• On March 13, Stan sent the email about the Virtual Wall, asking if anyone knew Donald Woodward McNamara. I forwarded his email to Ann Johnson, and the day following, she ran into Nancy Hengesteg and Vickie Perkins at the Northwood Theater. They knew him, and the story took wings. 
• On March 16, as cited above, the story was first posted, and on the 20th, for the first time ever, Shane Edgar Googled the name of Donald Woodward McNamara. 
• Then, in a bizarre twist, on Saturday, March 24, Shane told me on the phone that his wife's niece, Mary, from the Lyle, MN, area, is dating a fellow by the name of Nathan, who is the grandson of Ann Swensrud Johnson.

What a story. You just could NOT make this up.




Look for additional information and photos to be posted here on the blog as well as the two websites listed above. Donald Woodward McNamara may have slipped through the cracks 45 years ago but we will pay him due respect today. We salute his service.

Donald Woodward McNamara, 1946 - 1967

Stan Arendts sent along an email about a "Virtual Wall" that memorializes those Americans who gave their lives in Viet Nam.  The website, VirtualWall.org, lists names and hometowns, and photos if any are available.

The lone casualty listed from Northwood or Kensett is Donald Woodward McNamara, and Stan asked if anyone knew this guy.  He was a member of the class of '65 but apparently he and his family were not district residents for very long, so little information has turned up as to his local impact, other than his being a nice, nice, handsome guy.

Don's name and photo are not listed in the '62 or subsequent yearbooks, and there is no photo of him on the Virtual Wall website.  There is, however, a profile that reveals he died outright of hostile enemy action in Quang Tri Province, South Vietnam, and a report from the Virtual Wall:

The 3rd Bn, 3rd Marines' Command Chronolgy for July 1967 reports that at 2:15 PM, 21 Jul the 2nd Plt, Mike 3/3, while escorting a road sweep team on Highway 9 southwest of Ca Lu, encountered two enemy soldiers. The Marines killed one of the NVA soldiers, retrieving the dead soldier's body. Shortly afterwards, the platoon found itself under heavy attack by what seemed to be most of an NVA battalion. The remainder of Mike 3/3 came to help, while Kilo 3/3 and a light tank section mounted out from Ca Lu to assist. By 8:15 PM Mike Company reported they had broken contact and were withdrawing. While the number of enemy dead is not known, the Marines lost eleven men killed in action - and another died from wounds three weeks later.

The Vietnam Vets Memorial Fund has a page dedicated to him online.  One of his fellow Marines reports on his page that he is buried in Graceland Cemetery in Albert Lea, and the VVMF has a link that will allow you to make donations to their cause in his honor.

The page also includes links to Remembrances left at the Wall in his honor.  Lyle Frazer tells from a Marine's point of view about Donald and the incident leading to his death.

Ray Calhoun says Don and I would lay on our backs, looking at the stars, and singing Up Up and Away to the top of our lungs. They all thought we were crazy.

When he turned 18 he chose to enlist rather than finish school, and being a Northwood resident at that time he is listed that way in all the war records under his name, though sadly few that we've contacted can recall who he was.  Yet review the remarks of Frazer and Calhoun and you get a sense, a feeling, that this fellow was indeed one of our nation's finest. Perhaps we can find a photo that could be posted, not just here in the NKHS 62 blog but on the Virtual Wall, all to his honor.

He may have had few worldly possessions when he was at home or when he went away, and in the end, he gave his all.