These memories begin with those of Mark Clirehugh, Robert's brother.
Bob received a reserve officer commission in 1966 after graduating from Cal in 1966. He turned down an opportunity to go into Armor (Tanks) and was accepted into the Judge Advocate General program and went to law school at Hastings, working one weekend a month at the Presidio as a law clerk (weekend warrior).
He rolled out of Hastings Law School after one year, still hard for me to believe.
He was then assigned to the infantry and went to Ranger School. He was assigned to the 5th Mechanized Infantry division in Fort Carson, Colorado. He was promoted to Captain and became a Company Commander (250 men and six officers). He was awarded the Army Commendation medal for exemplary service while leading his men in a joint training mission with the British Army in England in the fall of 1968.
After marrying Leslie in December of the same year he received orders to Vietnam, also with the 5th Infantry division and was in country by February 1969. My last letter from him was March 1969 and he told me that Vietnam was a beautiful country and that he had seen a wild Tiger the week before.
After first serving as a support officer, at the battalion level (five companies to a battalion); he was made a Company Commander in April. He turned 25 on the 19th and was killed on the 25th, by a fragmentation grenade.
Over 57,000 Americans were killed in Vietnam from 1962-1975.
Revision: 12-10-2006.