Page 105 - Senior Link Magazine Fall 2021- Online Magazine

arMY
VieTnaM War

His next duty station was to be Ft Hood, Texas. At challenges and always put family first. Dad is a great
the in-processing center, he was assigned to “hump” husband and father. He now has seven grandsons to
the M-60 Machine Gun. Back to war games! He was pass on his legacy. He says, “God has been good to
extremely disappointed. He walked across the street Rhetha and me.”
to the finance building to get paid. He heard the
officer ask for volunteers to work in finance. After Michael Mings is my hero. He is proud of serving his
reviewing his files, Michael was given a secondary country in Vietnam, but, like most of his compatriots,
MOS – Pay Specialist – much more desirable to him he paid a price. The new VA Clinic in Lubbock is
than being a gunner! helping. “I have discovered that it is worth the 120-
mile drive where I receive the most professional care
After his discharge, Michael went to work. He started from people who care.” The staff at the VA is helping
his own heating and air-conditioning company which fix “the Fixer”.
he operated for 20 years. He worked really hard to
support his family, rarely missing work, and often
working long hours to make sure his customers were
taken care of. After that, he worked many more years
doing maintenance for Allsup’s convenience stores
all over West Texas and Eastern New Mexico. It was
hard work, but he still enjoyed fixing things.

Dad had to work extra hard because his health
had been compromised so much, due to his time
in the jungle. His stomach problem, misdiagnosed
in Vietnam, turned out to be a duodenal ulcer. His
pancreas quit working because of his exposure to
Agent Orange, and he has been an insulin-dependent
diabetic for decades. But he never complained, and he
never said “No” to anyone who needed help. It took
him 28 years to finally get full disability. It was a long
hard battle, requiring intervention from his NM state
representative and a disability attorney.

Mom and Dad have been married for 52 years.
They raised two daughters, myself and my sister
Molly. Dad and Mom laid a strong foundation for Michael and Rhetha with great-grandson Kole
us, showing us by their example how to overcome

Ramon Marquez
Operations Manager

Lubbock, Midland,
Hobbs
Electric c: 575-602-8077
o: 575-393-1417
NM Lie. 379444 r.marquez @ ipsaecorp.com
TX Lie. 30622 www.ipsaecorp.com

Lubbock Senior Link 105