ON THE COVER: Soldiers assigned to the U.S. Army John F. Kennedy Special Warfare Center and School don their green berets for the first time during a Regimental First Formation at Fort Bragg, North Carolina, May 12, 2022. The ceremony marked the completion of the Special Forces Qualification Course where Soldiers earned the honor of wearing the green beret, the official headgear of Special Forces. How Miller, Chapter 78 member and Sentinel Editor, attended the November 17, 2022 SFQC graduation. Story on page 2.(U.S. Army photo by K. Kassens)

From the Editor:

I left 3SFG at Fort Bragg more than 50 years ago for a “paid vacation in the sunny tropics” with the 5th Group, as the junior medic at an A camp on the Cambodian border — A325 Duc Hue.

I got the opportunity to represent Chapter 78 at events for the Q-Course Class 331 graduation, at Fort Bragg in November and packed in as much activity as time allowed, along with Duc Hue team mate Lew Chapman, commo man.

Our first story covers the barbecue co-sponsored by Chapter 78 (SoCal) and Chapter 1-18 (Fayetteville) as an introduction to SFA and what it has to offer the graduates in the future. That was followed by our attendance and support for the new Green Berets at the graduation.

The JFK Special Warfare Museum was a treat to visit, and that was topped by meeting Director Roxanne Merritt, who has been working there for forty years. She and her staff are part of the SF Family. The displays that they have put together and maintained, are informative, interesting, and leave you both appreciative of the accomplishments of SF and wanting more.

The fascinating story of Sully deFontaine in the rapidly deteriorating, newly-independent Republic of the Congo, came to us in a Letter to the Editor. Jack Lawson was able to extract the story from the soft-spoken Sully, and they collaborated to bring out an SF success story that virtually nobody knew about. Jack sent me the book “The Slaver’s Wheel” to review and I insisted he let us publish a couple of riveting chapters.

John Stryker Meyer was another Green Beret whose story, along with those of his intrepid peers in SOG, was not allowed to be told until many years afterward. John has written several books about SOG, including his Across the Fence series, about the super secret war behind enemy lines in Laos, Cambodia, and North Vietnam. He shares with us one of those stories centered around New Years, the enemy never letting up, and loyalty.

SGM James O. Schmidt has left us. Remarkable doesn’t begin to describe his life. He made a combat jump into Sicily at 15 and continued to have an amazing career. He earned a very rare 3 CIBs and fought in Korea at Chosin Reservoir, and was CSM of 5th group in Vietnam. Add in a stint with Air America and a long civilian career. This tribute was written by his fellow SF Jack Williams.

We end with our chapter meeting pictures.

Enjoy.

How Miller

Sentinel
Editor

SENTINEL Awards

  • Awarded best Special Forces Association Monthly Newsletter at SFA National Convention June 2011 and 2014
  • Awarded Golden Quill at SFA National Convention June 2015 and June 2016
  • Best Newsletter Award for 2017 from Special Forces Association National Board of Directors at the International Convention in Fayetteville, NC
  • Special Forces Association (SFA) Cross Arrow Award for Excellence, 2018, First Award Presented by SFA in this category
  • The War Reporters Award, Presented by Alex Quade – (War Reporter and Film Producer) for Chapter 78 Sentinel’s Commitment documenting Special Forces History, July 2018
  • The Golden Arrows for Excellence in Newsletters 2019 awarded by SFA National
  • The Golden Arrows for Excellence in Newsletters 2020 awarded by SFA National
Funding for the SFA Chapter 78 Sentinel is provided by the Veterans Affordable Housing Program, a program of the American Veterans Assistance Group 888-923-VETS (8387) VeteransAffordableHousing.org

The Sentinel is published monthly by Special Forces Association Chapter 78, Southern California — art direction and design by Debra Holm, Dinwiddie Holm Graphics. The views, opinions and articles printed in this issue do not necessarily reflect the views of the United States Army or the United States Special Operations Command, the Special Forces Association, or Special Forces Association Chapter 78. Please address any comments to the editor at sfachapter78@gmail.com.