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John Francis Plunkard
Sergeant
B CO, 1ST BN, 505TH INFANTRY, 3RD BDE, 82ND ABN DIV, USARV Army of the United States Frederick, Maryland March 01, 1947 to April 08, 1968 JOHN F PLUNKARD is on the Wall at Panel 48E, Line 54 |
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26 Jan 1999
I still think about you. You earned that Silver Star, but the cost was high. Thanks, Andy lefeu98@aol.com |
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08 Apr 2006
Dear Johnny, "Greater love has no one than this, that one lay down his life for his brothers." (John 15:12) I talked to your brother Joe today, and his devoted love for you is unabated. My family and I love you and so do all whose lives you touched. It was a privilege to go through Frederick High School with you and play on the same varsity championship football and track teams. As our kicker, you lived up to your name, the "Golden Toe." I pray that God will bless your family and provide His comfort now and forever. Blessings from the "Blazer." Semper Fi!SGT. Blaine E. Smith Mike Co (3rd Platoon) 3rd Bn, Magnificent 7th Marines 1st Marine Division, Vietnam 1966-67, US Marine Corps 1028 Ellston Street, Colorado Springs, Colorado 80907 bescoach@aol.com |
On 12 February 1968, the 3rd Brigade of the 82nd Airborne Division was alerted for deployment to Vietnam on in response to the Tet Offensive. Two weeks earlier, the division had begun preparations for deployment during the "Pueblo Incident" which made it somewhat easier to prepare to move to Vietnam. Many members of the 3rd Brigade had recently returned from Vietnam and were not required, by the Army's own regulations, to return so soon if they did not wish to do so. About two-thirds of those eligible accepted transfers out of the brigade, which was back-filled from other units in the Division. The Brigade deployed on "temporary change of station" orders using 5 Task Forces to facilitate control during deployment. It was expected that the Brigade would return to Ft. Bragg after the Tet 68 emergency was resolved. The brigade deployed in the following configuration and sequence:
The Brigades' destination was unknown so the brigade commander decided to leave with the 23 member Advance Party on 13 February for Vietnam. They arrived at CHU LAI on 15 February. The AMERICAL DIVISION had not been given any advance notice of the brigade but preparations began immediately for arrival of the main body, scheduled to arrive approximately 24 hours later. The Brigade main began to arrive via C-133 aircraft late on the 15th and the entire brigade closed by 27 February. They completed required in country orientation and moved to their forward bases of operation by 8 March and began OPERATION CARENTAN I (9 March to 31 March 1968) and CARENTAN II (1 April to 30 April 1968). On 1 April 1968, the 1st Battalion, 505th Infantry was relieved in place by 1/27th Marine Regiment at LZ DETROIT in AO CARP and moved to LZ SALLY at YD640275 to begin operations in AO CATFISH. Activites during the period 1 to 13 April included, a company heliborne assault for a Recon in Force and similar operations with NPFF Units. During the period 1 to 15 April 1968, the 1st Battalion, 505th Infantry Regiment lost 15 lives in those operations. They were: 4 April 1968
When it was decided to retain the Brigade in Vietnam its status was changed to "permanent change of station" and all soldiers who had deployed with the Brigade were given the option of continuing to serve a full tour in Vietnam or to return to Fort Bragg. Most (except for junior officers and junior enlisted men) had already served at least one combat tour and opted to return to CONUS. The Brigade was then filled with replacements from across USARV and from CONUS. Most replacements were not airborne qualified and the Brigade eventually became "Airborne" in name only -- just as the 101st Airborne Division and the 1st Airborne Brigade of the 1st Cavalry Division had already done during Vietnam service. After 22 months of fighting, the brigade had helped secure the region south of the DMZ and redeployed to Fort Bragg, North Carolina in December 1969, the only brigade of the 82d Airborne Division to participate in the Vietnam War. They lost 227 men to the war. - - The Virtual Wall, May 12, 2019
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173rd Airborne Brigade (Separate)
Photo below shows patch on left shoulder while
with 173rd Airborne Brigade in Vietnam (1966-1967). 
The News, Frederick Maryland May 25, 1966
Profiles of Bravery: Local Families with Servicemen in Vietnam
Bravery is shown in many ways by different people. For Mr. and Mrs. John L. Plunkard of RFD 2 Frederick, bravery means hopefully waiting for news of their 19-year-old son, John, who was reported wounded in action in Viet Nam, Saturday. The strain was obvious as Mr. and Mrs. Plunkard sat drinking punch at the Red Cross gathering Monday night for families with relatives in Viet Nam. Mrs. Plunkard quietly said she received the telegram Monday afternoon reporting that "John was hit in the arms, legs and back of the neck by grenade fragments." John who is with the 173rd Airborne Division, wrote his parents that he was leaving last Tuesday for 32 days of combat. "He operated an M-60 machine gun", Plunkard said, "the kind the Viet Cong are so afraid of." "He played football at Frederick High School - they called him the boy with the golden foot because out of 23 kicks, (for points after touchdowns) he only missed one," Plunkard added. The Plunkard's were one of 18 families who met at the Amvets headquarters last night to exchange news and pictures from their boys. During the evening, three service men recently returned from Viet Nam, answered questions ranging from the weather to the number of crocodiles in the water and to how to send cookies that stay fresh. A medic, U.S. Army Staff Sgt. Charles Nicholls who was stationed in Saigon, said, "The worst type of malaria is found in Viet Nam. It is not as susceptible to treatment as the other two types." U.S. Army Spec. 5 Donald Butterfield, stationed in Saigon for 10 months, and U.S. Army Capt. Marvin D. Brailsford, who spent a year in the central highlands a father asked "How do you tell friend from foe, that's what I want to know?" "That's the problem. It would be over real quick if we could solve that one," Capt. Brailsford said. After the questions, Capt. Brailsford told a reporter that he had been an advisor to the Vietnamese. "My Vietnamese counterpart and I established a definite rapport. There have been instances of the peasants working in rice paddies during the day and fighting with the Cong at night, but I went out on every operation with the Vietnamese and saw no instance of treachery. You have to believe in them until something happens," he said. Everyone at the gathering had something to add to the conversation. A smiling dark haired girl, Mrs. Bruce Rhoderick of Braddock Heights, said her baby is due in about three weeks. U.S. Army Spec 4 Rhoderick, who left Frederick Jan. 3, is stationed at Qui Nhom. "He doesn't write about the war very much," she said. "He's as excited about the baby as I am," she beamed. Joseph Rhoderick of Braddock Heights, Bruce's father, said "The boys are just waiting for the cigars, but they can't have them until the baby is born." As slides of Viet Nam sent from Nha Trang by U.S. Air Force Lt. Donald Brown of Point of Rocks, flashed across the screen, families watched intently. They were here in Frederick yet their hopes and prayers were with their loved ones 8,000 miles away in that puzzling land called Viet Nam. 10 June 1966, The Evening Sun, Hanover, Pennsylvania. 
10 August 1966, The News, Frederick Maryland. 
On January 19, 1968, Mr and Mrs Richard C Tucker of Thomas Avenue, Frederick Maryland, announced in The News, "the engagement of their daughter Judith Ann, to SGT John F. Plunkard, son of Mr and Mrs John L. Plunkard, RFD 2, Frederick." "Miss Tucker, a 1965 graduate of Frederick High School, was employed by the U.S. Atomic Energy Commission in Germantown." "SGT Plunkard, also a graduate of Frederick High School, is a veteran of Vietnam and is currently stationed with the 82nd Airborne Division at Fort Bragg, N.C." "A June wedding is planned." Photo below shows John with 82nd Airborne Division.
On right shoulder was war zone patch from his first tour as a member of the 173rd Airborne Brigade. 
Photo below taken as a member of the 82nd Airborne Division.
The News, Frederick Maryland April 16, 1968
Profiles of Bravery: Frederick Athlete, Paratrooper is Killed in Vietnam Fighting A 21-year old Frederick man, serving his second tour in Vietnam, died of gunshot wounds last week, while his unit, which was engaged in a combat operation, came under hostile rocket attack. Sgt. John Francis Plunkard, son of Mr. and Mrs. John L. Plunkard of RFD 2, Frederick, was serving with Company B, 1st Battalion, 505 Infantry, 82nd Airborne Division. He had been assigned to them since April 3, 1967. A 1965 graduate of Frederick High School, Plunkard entered the Army, Sept. 20, 1965. Surviving in addition to his parents are two sisters, Carol, 13, at home, and Mrs. Ann Plunkard Fritz of East Patrick Street; and his maternal grandmother, Mrs. Beatrice Tyler of South Jefferson Street. Prior to his military induction, Plunkard was a member of the Frederick Order of DeMolay Chapter, Francis Scott Key Boy Scout Troop, Frederick Lions midget football team, and the Araby and Linden Hills softball teams. During high school he participated in varsity and junior varsity football, junior varsity and varsity track, and the Recreation Council. The paratrooper was a member of the Disabled Veterans, and was previoulsy employed by Frederick Lumber and Supply Company. Prior to notification of their son's death, Mr. and Mrs. Plunkard had received word that John was missing in action.
16 April 1966, The Baltimore Sun
29 April 1968, The News, Frederick Maryland 
Orders for John's posthumous Silver Star showing events that took John's life.
Plaque dedicated on wall of enlisted barracks at Ft. Detrick, Maryland.
The Glen W. Eyler American Legion Post 282 in Woodsboro held a bridge dedication ceremony on Friday, September 21st, 2018 at 1:00 p.m. He became the first Vietnam War veteran killed in action from Maryland to have a bridge or road dedicated to him, according to Dwight Reynolds, American Legion Frederick County commander. The Maryland Route 355 bridge was dedicated to his memory. His childhood home was about a half-mile from the bridge. He served in the 173rd Airborne Brigade in Vietnam from 1966-1967, and then with the 82nd Airborne Division as a Section Sergeant. He was killed in action during his second tour of Vietnam at the age of 21. Roughly 75 people attended the ceremony. Randy Weddle, a childhood friend who met John in third grade at Parkway Elementary in Frederick, recalled him for his toughness. Weddle added that John was a selfless individual. "Johnny was a giver, not a taker," Weddle said. "He loved his family, he loved his friends and most of all his country. ... This is a prime example of why freedoms are not free." 
May 2019
Shadow Box on memorial wall by brother Joe.
John Francis Plunkard is buried with his mother Frances Lee (Everhart) Plunkard Staley (1927-1994), father John Leslie Plunkard (1920-1984), and brother James Edward Plunkard (1948-1949) in Mount Olivet Cemetery, Frederick, Frederick County, Maryland 
- - The Virtual Wall, May 12, 2019
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