"It Was An Extremely Emotional Day For All Of Us."

Christmas 1970

        It is December 24, 1970. I am the commanding officer of the 720th Military Police Battalion. At that time we had four letter companies, and from those companies we staffed about l6 or l7 separate detachment locations from platoon size and lower. I had a personal helicopter pilot that ferried me around the Southern half of Vietnam for my tenure as commander. He, I, SGM Peter Pauli, and our Battalion Chaplain (a wonderful black Captain whose name now escapes me) took off from Long Bihn about seven that morning and between then, and eight o'clock that night we visited every company headquarters and every detachment throughout the Southern half of the country.

        It was an extremely emotional day for all of us. The smallest unit we visited was about ten fine military police in size, and the largest a little larger than a platoon. We tried to spend half an hour or so with each unit and tried to talk to every man present, and share a cup of coffee or some other libation. As should be obvious, there was a lot of time spent in the air getting from one location to the other. We closed the visit at each location with a Prayer from the Chaplain which came after words from the CSM and myself.

        We arrived back at the Battalion Headquarters in Long Bihn some time after the mess hall had closed, but my Executive Officer, Major Jerry Burns, and Adjutant, Captain Ray Cox, had gathered together some cheeses and cakes and cookies (along with a little bourbon and gin) to have a quiet Christmas celebration in the deck area outside my quarters.

        It is a Christmas I will never forget and frequently tell others about. I think it was meaningful for all who took part in the events that day.

        Christmas Day was a work day as usual until late in the afternoon when the officers gathered at the 18th Brigade Officer's Club for steaks (scrounged from someone somewhere) and a few cups of cheer.

LTC Robert P. Schmitz, (LTC Ret.) Commanding Officer, 720th MP Battalion, August 1970 to January 1971