Terry Rexroat

Terry Rexroat of Cedar Rapids, Iowa, who fell in 1969. Today would have been his birthday. He is remembered by his sister, Debra: "At 6'7" tall, my brother Terry towered above most of the people in his life, and yet he was most gentle and loving and tender. He decided upon graduation as honorman of his platoon from bootcamp at Camp Pendleton, that against the odds (and some very basic geometry), he wanted to be a tank driver, which meant learning to telescope his large frame into the tight space in the driver's seat. A witness to his final moments told me that it had been raining that day, and they were escorting a medical evacuation, when the clouds suddenly parted and the sun illuminated the beautiful lush green valley that stretched out before them ... and then Terry's tank hit a land mine and burst into flames. I am told that others risked their lives frantically trying to retrieve him, but that the flames were too fierce. I know that those who knew him then still miss him to this day. I love and miss him more with every passing year . . ."