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On January 18, 1970, Donald Lawrence Martin was killed in Vietnam. Donny and I became friends, despite my efforts to maintain distance between myself and the other guys in my platoon. You can read more about our relationship in A Tribute to Donny.
This is Donny’s tribute on the Vietnam Veterans Memorial:
This is Donny when he finished Basic Training:
This is Donny in the field in Vietnam. We were working to open the Song Be Corridor at the time.
T. W. Dittmer 
A beautiful tribute, Tim. Maybe if you had kept your distance from your fellow platoon members, you wouldn’t have the bitter-sweet memory of your friendship. I think that perhaps would have been worse. I’m sorry for your loss.
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Thanks, John. I think you’re right, that it would have been worse.
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😊
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I hope your remembrance of Donny is of some comfort to his family.
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Thanks, Liz. I do too. I contribute to the Vietnam Veterans Memorial yearly in his honor and others that were killed in the war that wasn’t a war.
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You’re welcome, Tim.
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Tim, I’m reminded of your goodness every year when I read your tribute to Donny. What an awful and difficult time it must’ve been for so many young men. That you became friends during that time speaks to your strong human connection, one that continues today.
Thanks to you, more people will know and remember Donny. You are an incredible friend for keeping his memory alive.
eden
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Thank you, Eden. I’m keeping the promise I made.
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Beautiful tribute Tim. I agree with John and perhaps because I haven’t served my Country I have no right to say anything but I can tell I would have liked him too. I am friendly, kind, believe but I am a person with a temper too. I often have to ask forgiveness for that. I pray about my temper and I feel like I get tested. I also know one man from Louisiana and let’s just say I thought he had the best manners, knew how to treat a lady and I had a terrible crush on him. It is so kind of you to share you and your friends stories who gave their lives for us. Thank you my friend for your lovely remembrance and for your service too. Blessings and love, Joni 🌹🦋
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Thank you, Joni. When I was in the field, my mindset was to not become close to the guys in my platoon because they could get killed. Looking back, my attitude caused me to miss out on some positive emotions.
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A beautiful tribute to your friend. It’s so hard to lose someone this way.
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Thanks, Robert.
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Thanks, Roberta. Sorry for the Robert. 🙂
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Haha, that is fine, a very common mistake.
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