By: Jacob Kessler
THE VILLAGE REPORTER
jacob@thevillagereporter.com
Larry Dunbar is a Fulton County native who served in the Vietnam War. Larry graduated from St. Mary’s School in Assumption, which is now called Holy Trinity. Outside of school, he worked with his dad and uncle at Metamora Hardware before he received his draft notice.
Following receipt of that notice, Larry attended basic training at Fort Riley in Kansas under the 9th Infantry Division.
Following his completion of basic, he was sent for schooling in communications before later returning back to his division just in time to be shipped to Vietnam.
He later returned after completing his first tour and was stationed at Fort Carson by Colorado Springs. In Colorado Springs Larry was attached to the 5th Division and was reactivated to be sent back over to Vietnam.
While it may have been the same country, the second tour was much different from his first. On September 11th, 1968, Larry and his fellow soldiers came under fire from mortar rounds.
Larry explained that he is not sure how many were wounded, but 11 men from his unit were killed. He was also injured and was taken to a M.A.S.H. Unit. From there he was taken to another facility before arriving in Japan where multiple surgeries took place.
Following the surgeries, he was flown to Fitzsimons Army Medical Center in Colorado, where he was discharged after spending four months in their care.
Larry then came home and started a family. He also began working at Metamora Hardware again, before then going to work at Parker Hannifin for 27 years. Larry was also on the Metamora Fire Department for 37 years before retiring as Chief.
Since then, Larry has also been active in the Metamora Amvets Post and civics-related activities. He also makes little wooden toys in his home workshop.
Larry also explained that when he came back home from Vietnam, it was not like what soldiers experienced when his father returned from WWII, or even what soldiers experience now.
“When we came home, we weren’t treated like my dad and they were from WWII. We were treated badly. Name called and everything when we came home.” This unfortunately has been a story told by a great deal of Vietnam War veterans.
Even so, Larry went on to explain that he had a great deal of people around him to look up to. His father, who was killed in a car crash when Larry was 8, drove a landing craft on D-Day.
When his mother remarried, she married another WWII Vet who fought the Japanese on the Aleutian Islands before also going to fight in Europe. Larry’s Father-In-Law was also a veteran who was torpedoed on the USS Pennsylvania.
Another influence for Larry was the Metamora Fire Chief at the time who was wounded during WWII in France.
These individuals were there for Larry to look up to as time went on. Also as time went on, Larry explained that he started to suffer from PTSD like so many other soldiers who come back from war.
He also explained that he knows how to cope with it now, but that it took a long time to get to where he is at. He also noted that “It is hard to ask someone for help.” Larry Dunbar explained that it would be okay to include this so that others may know they are not alone.
If you are an active member of the armed forces or a veteran and you are having issues with PTSD, there are resources available to help you.
The Vet Centers National Center can be reached by calling 1-800-905-4675. Additionally, if anyone is experiencing a crisis or suicidal thoughts, please dial 988 or visit the nearest Emergency Room. Veterans who call 988 can press 1 to speak with a responder qualified to support veterans.