[editor’s note (That’s me, Robin, the son)… In the summer of 1990, while visiting my parents at their Florida townhouse, my dad suggested we go for a drive. We stopped in at a strip mall and walked right through a furniture store to an office in the back. That’s where I met Heine Aderholt mentioned in the attached letter. My dad addressed him as “Sir” and explained that I had been asking about his first assignment in “Southeast Asia” and that he didn’t know what he could tell me. I was really confused as my dad made no mention of the day’s plans. Heine was clearly glad to see my dad and said in his gravely voice, “You can tell him whatever the f*** you want. Sit down and let’s talk.” Then, just like a movie, Heine reached for the whiskey and glasses at the ready in his bottom desk drawer. Heine and my dad proceeded to tell me the story contained in the letter linked below.]
I have been wrestling with how to release to the public a short but interesting happening during my AF career. Richard Gobel found this article by searching the Internet, which tells the story of how I became a mercenary in the spring of 1961 and what we did during that spring and summer. I was part of project “Mill Pond”, there is much more information and history in the article than just “Mill Pond” but it covers that period pretty well, so I won’t try to improve it. Thank Richard for finding it because I don’t think I would have published this if he hadn’t. Thanks Dick… Bob
http://www.utdallas.edu/library/collections/speccoll/Leeker/history/Laos3.pdf
or download this copy:
Laos3
Here is page 1 and page 2 [editor’s note: my dad is listed in note 8 on page 2]… Continue reading →
Below are my dad’s letters he sent over a period of two years chronicling his life. He sent these as emails to a group of friends and family and later posted them to a blog. I’ve compiled the emails and blog posts here in reverse chronological order.