Philip Raymond Shafer
Specialist Six
478TH AVN CO, 11TH AVN GROUP, 1ST CAV DIV, USARV Army of the United States Grand Junction, Colorado May 13, 1949 to September 02, 1975 (Incident Date April 19, 1968) PHILIP R SHAFER is on the Wall at Panel 51E, Line 2 |
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Dear Philip,I had the honor of wearing your MIA bracelet for many years. I had the opportunity to go to Washington D.C. in March of 2006, so I looked up your information on the internet and discovered your remains had been recovered in 1999 and identified in 2001. I tried to find family contacts to return your bracelet, or to see if anyone had written memorials to you, but I found very little ... and this saddened me. When I went to D.C. I was asked what I wanted to see. Though there were many things, my priority was to see your name on the "Wall" and to take your bracelet "home". I printed out a 3 page bio on you I found on the internet, along with your picture. I put your bio, along with your bracelet, in a plastic bag, and left it at panel 51E. I no sooner put it down than people were reading it ... I went back several hours later on a night tour of D.C., and people were reading about you by flashlight. Philip, I don't know where your family is, or if they are still around ... but on March 25th 2006, many knew who you were and the sacrifice you made ... God bless you!
Susan Christiansen A Note from The Virtual WallLanding Zone Tiger was located in the upper reaches of the A Shau Valley. Following initial air assaults by 1st Cav elements, larger helicopters were needed for resupply. Three of the aircraft, all hampered by sling loads, were shot down as they approached the LZ:
At day's end, the heavy helicopter companies had five injured and nine missing in action. Over time the Secretary of the Army approved Presumptive Findings of Death for the missing men; the dates are shown above in parentheses. The four men from the CH-54 - Major Lord, CW4 Millard, MSG Werdehoff, and SP6 Shafer - were repatriated in 1999 and positive identification of their remains announced on 19 Nov 2001, but as of 09 Apr 2006 the five men from the two CH-47s remain among the missing. |
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