Comments by Randoph S. Sprinkles, Lt.  

I was the brand spanking new LT (just in country and out of the little indoctrination program from the 3rd Brigade, 9th Inf Div at Dong Tam) given command of the 2nd Platoon of Delta Co. about a week before his death.  I had a little time (4-5 days of stand down) to get to know the 20 or so fellows in the platoon before we went out into the field.   

 It was when we air lifted out of Dong Tam (on 8/16/69) about 2 clicks to the east of the perimeter and set down in some rice paddies, that Gee started to come to my attention.  Being the new guy on the block probably showed, and he took a little time to "clue" me in on some of the nuances of that particular Area of Operation and Battalion/Company/and Platoon SOPs.

 We spent the night primarily watching for rockets being fired into Dong Tam for triangulation purposes.  The next day (8/17/69), the platoon was ordered to enter the heavily booby-trapped jungle that bordered the Eastern side of the Dong Tam perimeter and to sweep it to the North.

 In that wood line, we lost half the platoon to booby traps and Gee took shrapnel in his heart.  It must have taken 40 minutes to get a medevac chopper low enough to sling Gee out of there and it was the longest 40 minutes of my life.  I like to believe that he was still alive when we put him on the chopper.  The medic and I worked on him with artificial respiration and heart massage for the whole time.

 I took his death very personally.  He was the first man to die under my command and he had displayed all the hallmarks of what makes Americans into fine soldiers.  I came to like and trust him as he helped me get my feet on the ground on that first day.   And he never shirked his duty (or even blinked an eye) when I asked him to walk point that day through a wood line that he knew was heavily booby-trapped.

 I will carry his courageous memory with me to my grave.

 Randoph S. Sprinkles, Lt.

Platoon Leader of 2nd Platoon, Delta Co., 6/31 Inf.

Gregory Gee

Gee, Soa ( our Tiger Scout ), Holt , Hennessey ( Crash ). I think I am right in this on the back of the picture,  I just wrote Crash but I think that was Hennessey.

Gregory Gee standing