PORT ANGELES — When Norman Goodin came home from the Vietnam War in 1968, he was met quietly by his wife and family at the airport in Sacramento, Calif.
He put on civilian clothes and didn’t look back.
Until now.
Goodin, 63, has been instrumental in securing a proclamation from Gov. Chris Gregoire declaring March 30 as “Welcome Home Veterans Day,” to honor his fellow combatants.
“I wanted to do something special for the Vietnam vets,” he said. “This isn’t just for me, it’s for everyone.”
Scott Buck, veterans’ assistant at the Port Angeles Veterans Center, said Goodin “flew solo” in his effort to get the day on the state calendar.
Goodin began drafting the proclamation last June, honing it to a three-page document.
He then contacted Gregoire’s office, which referred him to the state Department of Veterans.
From there, the document was pared down to one page and approved late last year.
Gregoire signed it Feb. 2.
35th anniversary
The proclamation states that March 30 marks the 35th anniversary of the end of U.S. involvement in the Vietnam conflict in which 58,000 individuals died and 2,086 were still missing.
It says that the occasion “presents the opportunity to honor and thank our Vietnam veterans for all that they have given in the service of our country.”
“I urge all citizens to join me in this special observance,” Gregoire said.
Goodin was drafted into the Army at 20, and saw heavy combat while with the 1st Brigade of the 12th Battalion, A Company, of the 4th Infantry Division in the highlands of Vietnam.
He fought in several major battles, including the “battle for Hill 875” in which a Marine Corps bomber dropped two 500-pound bombs onto U.S. troops, killing 42 men and wounding 45 more.
Goodin contracted malaria three times and received shrapnel wounds while in Vietnam, but what still hurts is the emotional pain; he thinks about that one year of his life every day.
Better recognition
“I just want Vietnam vets to get better recognition,” he said.
“In all my years since Vietnam, all I heard was about World War II and Korean War vets. I don’t feel like we’ve gotten a good shake in this.”
Goodin said he has visited Washington, D.C., and seen the Vietnam War Memorial from afar, but he was too overcome with emotion to approach it.
“I couldn’t get close to it. It was too hard,” he said.
Goodin has planned several times in the last 10 years to revisit Vietnam in peace time, but has always stopped short of that goal.
He still hopes to go sometime soon.
Buck said ways of marking the day will be discussed at the next Clallam County Veterans Association meeting, March 10. There are currently no events slated.
Goodin is inviting all military veterans to join him for coffee at 10 a.m. on March 30 at the Cornerhouse Restaurant, 101 E. Front St.
“Let’s just talk,” Goodin said.
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Features Editor Marcie Miller can be reached at 360-417-3550 or marcie.miller@peninsuladailynews.com.
