My Story, Vietnam 1968, 196th Light Infantry Brigade
By: Gary L Lyles

My Story was written in an effort to capture my memories of the Vietnam War. I arrived in Vietnam on December 19, 1967, as a naive twenty-year-old private, E-3, and left on December 9, 1968, as a disillusioned Staff Sergeant, E-6, with two Bronze Stars and a Purple Heart. As a soldier assigned to Alpha Company, Third Battalion, Twenty-first Infantry, 196th Light Infantry Brigade, I fought the Viet Cong and North Vietnamese Regulars (NVA) in the flatlands and the mountains west of Tam KY and the NVA on the DMZ north of Dong Ha. Enemy fire, malaria, accidents, and the scorching heat all took a heavy toll on Alpha Company. The high casualty rate was a constant drain on the company’s experience and the lack of experience produced yet more casualties. On more than one occasion, stupid mistakes cost young men their lives. But at other times, like when we turned back the NVA on the DMZ, I can assure you that there wasn’t a better outfit in Vietnam on that night in May.