02 Sep 20 Foster Lee Sonnier was a very close personal friend, high school classmate, high school track teammate, high school bandmate, and R&B bandmate. He was a very soft spoken, gentle person, very understanding, very innovative, and talkative and entertaining. He worked very hard on a daily basis on his musical craft, especially practicing on his Coronet Horn, as a member of our high school band, and R&B band doing gig venues for financial support. His main specialty event on the track team was as a 880 meter runner, and he was very good at it. We spent many days, evenings, nights, and weekends together practicing our music, at my home in the country, or at his home in the city, until we got the music right with satisfied results. I was very influential in Foster joining the Army and going to Vietnam. We both loved following in each other's footstep. Now I feel partially responsible for the end result that I survived (20) months of combat duty in Vietnam as a helicopter doorgunner, and he departed this world three (3) months after his arrival in Nam. I surely do miss you, Buddy. I miss our long talks, jokes, laughs, humor, traveling together, watching all the good sites go by, and practicing our crafts as musicians, you on the Coronet, and myself on the Tenor Saxophone, playing harmony, riffs, solos, and just clowning around having clean, honest, happy fun, running away from so many of the young ladies who showed serious interest in us. We were well mannered gentlemen in every respect due to our good upbringing from all the great efforts of our parents. You are greatly missed, my friend. I feel at times you are the lucky one. I wanted to pay a special tribute to you in your honor. I want to thank you for your monumental sacrifice and honorable service to our country, from your grateful friend, classmate, teammate, and bandmate, who sorely misses you. Sincerely, Earl Marcel, Jr. SFC, U.S. Army Retired 335th A.H.C. Doorgunner Vietnam: Dec 67-Aug 69 Tenor Saxophonist 2810 Dairy Road #216, Garland, Texas 75041 jmarcelsax@verizon.net

 

A Note from The Virtual Wall A pre-dawn attack on Landing Zone CAROLYN on 06 May 1969 cost the lives of ten soldiers from the 2nd Battalion, 8th Cavalry: A Company: CPL William L. Negrini, West Covina, CA C Company: CPT Joseph Woodard, Winter Park, FL SGT Fruto J. Oquendo, New York, NY (Dist Svc Cross) CPL Jackie R. McKenzie, Gainesville, GA E Company: SGT Gilbert G. Palacio, San Antonio, TX SP4 Jose Soto-Concepcion, New York, NY PFC Paul J. Kronthaler, Buffalo, NY HQ Company: 1LT Oliver A. Best, New York, NY SP4 Foster L. Sonnier, Opelousas, LA PFC Richard J. Daley, New Bedford, MA

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