Corporal Raymond Ramirez Gutierrez enlisted in the United States Marine Corp in Los Angles County in 1968, and was sent to Recruit Training Depot at San Diego, CA, Camp Pendleton. His Tour in Vietnam began November 19, 1968. On May 26th, 1969, he was positioned at a Fire Support Base on a mountain located in Quang Tri Province. After a Mortar Round accidentally fell short of his gun pit area and exploded, he and another marine, PFC Robert C Van Fleet died of their wounds. Eight other fellow soldiers were injured in the blast. Their death is listed as “Misadventure”, (Friendly Fire). Both had just celebrated a birthday earlier that month. They had just turned 19 years old.
This brave marine, CPL Raymond Gutierrez, paid the ultimate sacrifice. He gave up his life in service to his country. CPL Gutierrez is memorialized on the website Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund. vvmf.org Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund
YOUR BIRTHDAY, 70 YEARS AGO TODAY
Raymond, I have read about you from various sources even though we had never met. We were born and raised in Los Angeles County. We lived not far from each other, you in La Puente, me in West Covina. You were a year older, one grade ahead of me. One important memory we both shared is that of being paperboys for the Tribune probably around the same time in the early 1960’s. We were just kids.
So many our age saw military service, in fact 350,000 of us from California during the Vietnam years. But you had the courage to join the Marine Corps, even though there was so many other ways to serve. I know you went to Camp Pendleton for your boot camp. I remember back in 1968-69 so many Marines like yourself served in provinces of Quang Tri and Quang Nam.
A lot of us are well into our 60’s and 70’s now, and you remain 19 years old. I read about the fact that you were a casualty of a misadventure, a mortar round fell short, (friendly fire). A fellow marine serving with you who survived, Mike Stanger, wrote a lengthy explanation about the day you died and how it affected him.
It was riveting to me the way he explained it.
I will continue moving forward with you in my thoughts as I let others know about you, who can tell others, so that “never again shall one generation of veterans abandon another”
Forever Peace to you