Ray Hasting Combat Vet Vietnam 1968
May 26, 2023 21:09:27 #
BruceRoscoe
Loc: Arizona
Ray Hastings – A Friend to Veterans
By Sue Tone
Photograph by Bruce Roscoe
Three weeks into his combat tour in Vietnam, Ray Hastings realized his father was right:
enlisting was a mistake. His father, a World War II veteran, knew what was ahead. But the
younger Hastings chose the route to escape an abusive home life; and so, with his high school
buddies, he joined the U.S. Army.
“It happened real fast once I was in-country,” Hastings said about the TET Offensive that
occurred in 1968 three weeks after his arrival. “We lost 38 helicopters in the first week. Every
day, those walking point got ambushed. I wrote letters home saying goodbye.”
He suffered from bouts of malaria, head trauma, exposure to Agent Orange, and back issues that
continue today from jumping out of helicopters unaware of how far it was to the ground.
“When we were in the line of fire, we expected to get wounded. We considered it ‘no big deal.’
We were told not to get friendly with the new guys, wait four months,” Hastings said. Yet the
bonds he felt with his fellow brothers – some he never would have met from his city life
background in San Francisco – were the closest he experienced in his life.
Combat “rocked my world,” he said. “It made me more angry, which is not my personality. I was
non-confrontive, pacifistic. It was a conundrum. The anger built up and I looked for ways to
vent. I realized I had become my dad, and that scared some of the anger out of me.”
Hastings has received treatment for his PTSD, volunteered at The Vietnam Veterans Memorial in
Washington, D.C., visited Vietnam, and founded a speakers bureau in California. His faith and
the support of his wife has helped tremendously with healing.
Today, when he meets veterans, he offers a Thank You coin and his card. He tells them, “I’m
willing to help and be a friend.”
Ray Hastings’ video will be posted on the Vision of Vets website soon. Visit visionofvets.net to
hear other veterans tell their stories
By Sue Tone
Photograph by Bruce Roscoe
Three weeks into his combat tour in Vietnam, Ray Hastings realized his father was right:
enlisting was a mistake. His father, a World War II veteran, knew what was ahead. But the
younger Hastings chose the route to escape an abusive home life; and so, with his high school
buddies, he joined the U.S. Army.
“It happened real fast once I was in-country,” Hastings said about the TET Offensive that
occurred in 1968 three weeks after his arrival. “We lost 38 helicopters in the first week. Every
day, those walking point got ambushed. I wrote letters home saying goodbye.”
He suffered from bouts of malaria, head trauma, exposure to Agent Orange, and back issues that
continue today from jumping out of helicopters unaware of how far it was to the ground.
“When we were in the line of fire, we expected to get wounded. We considered it ‘no big deal.’
We were told not to get friendly with the new guys, wait four months,” Hastings said. Yet the
bonds he felt with his fellow brothers – some he never would have met from his city life
background in San Francisco – were the closest he experienced in his life.
Combat “rocked my world,” he said. “It made me more angry, which is not my personality. I was
non-confrontive, pacifistic. It was a conundrum. The anger built up and I looked for ways to
vent. I realized I had become my dad, and that scared some of the anger out of me.”
Hastings has received treatment for his PTSD, volunteered at The Vietnam Veterans Memorial in
Washington, D.C., visited Vietnam, and founded a speakers bureau in California. His faith and
the support of his wife has helped tremendously with healing.
Today, when he meets veterans, he offers a Thank You coin and his card. He tells them, “I’m
willing to help and be a friend.”
Ray Hastings’ video will be posted on the Vision of Vets website soon. Visit visionofvets.net to
hear other veterans tell their stories
May 26, 2023 22:51:37 #
May 27, 2023 04:04:00 #
May 27, 2023 10:05:04 #
The eyes. Look at the eyes. In some ways he's still there. Welcome home fellow vet. You made it. John
May 27, 2023 11:09:09 #
I want to thank for his service to our country and all who served, Bruce.
May 27, 2023 11:54:14 #
I thank him for his service. The look in his eyes reminds us how sad it is that they have to go through all of that just to keep us living free. I lost the sweetest step brother in that war. (helicopter pilot...shot down flying wounded to the medics).
May 27, 2023 14:52:13 #
NDMarks
Loc: Dublin, Ca
As a vet that spent his year (68-69) in various Vietnam/Thailand places, I salute all Chopper pilots. They risked their lives every time they flew but they helped save so many lives. I was actually asked about becoming a Warrant Officer working on a chopper but turned it down because of the high death rate.
May 27, 2023 15:40:52 #
NDMarks wrote:
As a vet that spent his year (68-69) in various Vietnam/Thailand places, I salute all Chopper pilots. They risked their lives every time they flew but they helped save so many lives. I was actually asked about becoming a Warrant Officer working on a chopper but turned it down because of the high death rate.
Welcome Home Ray.
May 27, 2023 20:15:02 #
May 27, 2023 20:22:40 #
May 28, 2023 13:49:48 #
BruceRoscoe wrote:
Ray Hastings – A Friend to Veterans br By Sue Tone... (show quote)
Thanks for sharing the photo and amazing story, Bruce!
May 29, 2023 09:48:35 #
May 29, 2023 20:47:15 #
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