St. Joseph resident Mike McDonald (pictured with wife Mary McCarney and children Scott McDonald and Mariah Bautch) was honored as a Vietnam veteran Sept. 9 by the Minnesota Twins at Target Field. The Twins are recognizing Vietnam vets by selecting one to raise a ceremonial flag before every home game. The following brief bio was read during the ceremony: “Mike joined the Navy with some expectation of avoiding being stationed on-land in Vietnam. That did not quite work out. His first set of permanent orders found him serving at three different in-country sites in Vietnam (Danang, Phu Bai and Chu Lai) including a Patrol River Boat base floating in a river very near Hue. His next set of orders took him onboard a Destroyer Escort (USS Hepburn DE 1055) that spent another seven months on and off the coast of Vietnam providing Naval Gunfire Support. Mike served four years active duty plus an additional 17 years in the Naval Reserves before retiring. Mike is proud of his Naval career and even more proud of the men and women currently devoting part of their lives protecting and serving our country in the military.” “It was a great experience to be able to hear the crowd of thousands applaud after the completion of the ceremony,” McDonald said, “with the realization they were applauding ALL Vietnam veterans who missed that show of appreciation so many years ago.”
St. Joseph resident Mike McDonald (along with wife Mary McCarney and children Scott McDonald and Mariah Bautch) was honored as a Vietnam veteran Sept. 9 by the Minnesota Twins at Target Field. The Twins are recognizing Vietnam veterans by selecting one to raise a ceremonial flag before every home game. The following brief bio was read during the ceremony: “Mike joined the Navy with some expectation of avoiding being stationed on-land in Vietnam. That did not quite work out. His first set of permanent orders found him serving at three different in-country sites in Vietnam (Danang, Phu Bai and Chu Lai) including a Patrol River Boat base floating in a river very near Hue. His next set of orders took him onboard a Destroyer Escort (USS Hepburn DE 1055) that spent another seven months on and off the coast of Vietnam providing Naval Gunfire Support. Mike served four years active duty plus an additional 17 years in the Naval Reserves before retiring. Mike is proud of his Naval career and even more proud of the men and women currently devoting part of their lives protecting and serving our country in the military.” “It was a great experience to be able to hear the crowd of thousands applaud after the completion of the ceremony,” McDonald said, “with the realization they were applauding ALL Vietnam Veterans who missed that show of appreciation so many years ago.”