SEARCH RESULTS

Gary Cantwell

---

In his opinion, it was safer in the field than at the fire base. At the base, your position is fixed and they can find you. Gary Cantwell was staying at the base because of a sprained ankle and he experienced getting overrun by a large enemy force. He hung in there and was decorated for his actions during this battle. (5:05)

---

His last post in Vietnam was nice. Gary Cantwell had a room and cold beer but then it was time to go. It was a long flight home, and then a cluster of connecting flights to upstate New York, but he finally got there. It would be fifteen years before he would want to talk about the war. (6:28)

---

He enjoys hearing "Welcome Home" all these years after the war. Gary Cantwell didn't hear much of that when he came back from Vietnam. He pays tribute to one of his officers there who showed great leadership. (3:41)

Gary Howard

---

Gary Howard was just hanging around after high school learning carpentry when a friend suggested he enlist. He asked a recruiter if he could be a carpenter in the Army. Sure, but there's a six month wait to begin. I want to go now, though. Another recruiter leaned in and said, you look like a cop. (4:04)

---

Vietnam was winding down when Gary Howard enlisted. He remembers watching the news every night because he had cousins there. At the recruiter's office, they told him he could pick his duty station if he did well on tests. I don't care where, came the response. Well, are you married and do you like beer? (4:32)

---

As an MP in Cold War Berlin, Gary Howard witnessed the stark divide of East and West. His job was mostly regular police work but there were occasional incidents, like the time one of the MP's tried to smuggle his girlfriend out of East Berlin. (5:03)

---

The difference was like night and day. When MP Gary Howard would cross into East Berlin, it was very dismal. The cars were all the same and the people reticent. But the exchange rate made the shopping and restaurants a bargain. His encounters with Russians were very business like. They were both doing a job. (6:43)

---

After two-plus years in Berlin, MP Gary Howard was asked if he wanted to re-enlist and he asked, can I stay here? He decided to get out and joined the sherriff's department when he got home. He fit right in. (3:53)

---

The skills he learned as an MP in the Army helped Gary Howard thrive in his new career of law enforcement. He started as an entry level officer and rose to head the department as Sheriff. (3:08)

---

The tension between East and West in Cold War Berlin was a very palpable thing. Gary Howard served as an MP there and he had a constant worry that things could blow up quickly. (4:52)