|
a.
|
Note: Roger East, 46, of Lone Oak died at 5:25 a.m. Monday at Lourdes Hospital in Paducah. Mr. East, a graduate of Southeast Missouri State University in Cape Girardeau, was employe d as a pharmaceutical representative. An Army Veteran of the Vietnam War, Mr. East was a major in the Missouri Army National Guard , and was a member of the National Guard Association and the Veterans of Foreign Wars. He was a member of the Kentucky Coaches Association and the Lone Oak High School Football Qu arterback Club. He was a special teams coach for the Lone Oak High football club and was acti ve in the Lone Oak High soccer league. Mass will be at 10 a.m. Wednesday at St. Thomas More Catholic Church, where he was a member . The Rev. Ricky Valleroy and the Rev. Henry Wieder will officiate. Burial with military rite s will be in Woodlawn Memorial Gardens. Mr. East is survived by his wife, Pam East; three sons, Kyle East, Nathan East, and Erik Eas t, all of Lone Oak; his parents, J. J. and Dorothy East of Cape Girardeau; five brothers, Wil liam East of Parma, Ohio, John East and Richard East of Cape Girardeau, David East of Jackson , Tenn., and Stephen East of St. Charles, Missouri; three sisters, Barbara Glueck of Kelso, Missouri, a nd Karen Altenthal and Mary Boeller, both of Cape Girardeau; and several nieces and nephews. Friends may call after 5 p. m. today at Lone Oak Funeral Home, where prayers will be said a t 7 this evening. Expressions of sympathy may take the form of contributions to Lone Oak High School Athletic s Fund, 225 College Ave., Paducah, KY 42001; or the American Cancer Society, P.O. Box 2615, P aducah KY 42002.--Paducah (Kentucky) Sun Democrat, January 12, 1999
Missourians make pilgrimage Years of anguish are laid to rest at Vietnam memorial By VICKI OSTROLENK Griffin-Larrabee News Bureau WASHINGTON -- The maimed, the unemployed and the mothers of dead sons came from Missouri, th eir common goal to put to rest the anguish that has troubled their lives since the Vietnam Wa r. Leading the Missouri contingent were veterans who concentrated on finding old friends and ou tfits from Vietnam -- hanging out together and drinking and finally talking aloud about the w ar experiences that their families and civilian friends could never understand. "It's hard to get them to understand -When you don't understand yourself," said Burr Lehman , an unemployed painter from Cape Girardeau whose wife divorced him because she could no long er stand his moodiness. Tears flowed as freely as the drinks. All the veterans said they were bewildered by the host ile homecoming they received after risking their lives. "It was the only war where the soldier was blamed for it, when all we did was what our paren ts and grandparents had done," said Richard Nigro, a T-shirt merchant from Kansas City. Charles Roberts, director of veterans affairs for the state of Missouri, was sent to Washing ton by Gov. Christopher S. Bond to act as coordinator for the group. He was wounded in Vietna m in 1968. "When I left for Vietnam, I sensed local support," he recalled. "But somewhere within that o ne year people changed. When I returned, 1 felt proud I had served, but something was wrong." The Missouri group agreed that the first view of the Vietnam War Memorial -- to be dedicate d as the climax of the week Saturday -- was the highlight of the trip. They carried flowers to put below the slabs bearing the names of their dead comrades. They c omforted the St. Louis Gold Star Mothers who had worked for years to get a proper memorial t o their sons. And they choked on their words of thanks for a long-delayed welcome home. Each had a positive reaction to the trip. "A lot of people, until they see and touch their loved one's or friend's name on the wall, d on't realize the magnitude of their loss and of the suffering as a result of that senseless w ar," said Roger East, who owns a roofing and building supply company in Cape Girardeau. "Whe n I was there I just wanted to get out alive for myself. It was only later I realized the suf fering of our parents." East said he recently wrote to his parents for the first time about the war and their suffer ing. "It was the first time in 10 years I could express myself," he said. Natalie Dingus and Mrs. Francis Corton, both of St. Louis, are active in the local Gold Sta r Mothers organization. Francis Edward Corton Jr. was killed in October 1969 and Michael J. D ingus in December 1967, only a few days. before he was due home for Christmas. Both young me n believed they were fighting for their country, and both died for nothing, their mothers sai d. Joe Dingus did not make the trip with his wife. "He never has been able to face this," Mrs . Dingus said. "Men hide their emotions so. He said he didn't think he would come, but he sai d for me to go on."-St. Louis (Missouri) Globe-Democrat, Nov. 13-14, 1982
|
