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WAR: They used snow to make coffee and hot chocolate
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East Oregonian
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he said. “The Korean War
reached an inconclusive
armistice.”
Murdock emceed the
event, noting that his own
father was in World War II,
but rarely talked about his
experiences. He said the day
his father was called up, he
was in the middle of coach-
ing football at a high school in
Washington.
“There are many individ-
uals in this room who could
tell similar stories about the
disruption of their lives and
families,” Murdock said.
“Some of you, I am sure, bear
scars inflicted as part of your
service.”
Tom Tangney, a Korean
War veteran and Pendle-
ton resident, was the keynote
eat them while they were still
frozen.
“If you were wearing two
or three pairs of pants, you
didn’t want to have the runs,”
he said.
He remembered using
snow to make coffee and hot
chocolate, and a horse, “Reck-
less,” that made several trips
unaccompanied.
He acknowledged that
returning from the war was
difficult.
“I was called ‘shell-
shocked,’ combat fatigue, or
just crazy as heck,” he said.
“But I’m proud of my country,
and what I’ve done,” he said.
Larry Nelson and Muryl
Navratil were two of the vet-
erans honored at the service.
Navratil was in the Army,
and served from 1950 to 1952
as a squad leader.
speaker. He reminisced about
some of his experiences in
Korea, where he was for about
a year.
Tangney, 86, said there was
little about the Korean War in
history books.
“It was known as a ‘con-
flict’ until 1953,” Tangney
said.
Though he recalled some
of the hardships he and other
soldiers went through while
there, including the loss of his
brother, Clarence, Tangney’s
speech focused mostly on
memories of the day-to-day
experiences of being in Korea.
“It was a very cold place
to live,” he said. He recalled
trying to sleep, layering up in
as many pairs of pants as they
could. He remembered eat-
ing from rationed food, not-
ing that it was a bad move to
Tuesday, November 13, 2018
“I got there when the first
cavalry got run over by the
Chinese, and there weren’t
many people left,” he said.
“They grabbed me, and
handed me a rifle. They said,
‘You’re going to be a staff
sergeant.’”
Nelson, now a Umatilla
resident, said coming to the
service was somewhat emo-
tional for him.
“I was drafted three blocks
from here,” he said.
A mechanical engineer, he
didn’t go to Korea, but served
during the end of the Korean
War, from 1953 to 1955,
working in communications
for the Army.
“This is kind of an event,”
he said, looking at his con-
gressional certificate. “I didn’t
expect anything like this, for
goodness sakes.”
Korean War
veteran Ray-
mond Slabik,
of Pilot Rock,
smiles after
receiving a
certificate
during a spe-
cial tribute to
Korean War
and Korean
service veter-
ans on Sun-
day at the
Pendleton
Convention
Center. Sla-
bik’s uniform
still fits.
Staff photo
by Kathy Aney
VIETNAM: Morehead was offered more than $11,000 to serve another six years
Continued from 1A
“They classified me 4F,”
he said.
That worked to his bene-
fit. Employers were eager to
hand jobs to men not bound
for the military. Morehead
got on at the Pilot Rock
mill as a saw filer keep-
ing the blades sharp. Three
years later a dear friend
from high school died in
the Vietnam War. More-
head said he wanted to join
again — for revenge.
A doctor told him to
avoid bacon and eggs
before the physical and his
albumin level would be
fine. Morehead joined the
Navy on April 23, 1968,
and weeks later was on the
burly M-6.
“We were mostly with
the 9th Infantry and the
25th,” he said, providing
artillery support to troops
on the ground that were
part of the Army/Navy
Mobile Riverine Force.
His first duty was to han-
dle one of the 20-mm guns,
and the last third of his
18-month tour he was the
mount captain on the how-
itzer. The Navy gave him a
written commendation for
a firefight that occurred two
Contributed photo
Mike Morehead of Pilot Rock on board the Monitor M-6 riverboat during his service
in Vietnam.
years to the day he joined.
“Typical of Petty Officer
Morehead’s performance
under fire was the night of
April 23rd, 1970,” accord-
ing to the letter. “Of partic-
ular note is the fact that the
whole boat crew was not
present on the boat during
the firefight. Petty Offi-
cer Morehead immediately
upon receiving the fire,
he and his shipmate com-
menced to deliver a devas-
tating barrage of return fire
upon the enemy position.
They continued this retalia-
tion until all enemy fire had
been suppressed.”
Morehead reached the
rank of Radioman 3rd
Class and received numer-
ous awards, including the
National Defense Ser-
vice Medal, the Meritori-
ous Unit Commendation,
the Vietnam Campaign
Medal and the Presiden-
tial Unit Citation that Presi-
dent Richard Nixon signed.
After Vietnam, the Navy
stationed Morehead at
Pearl Harbor as supervisor
of the message center. He
said he was shy on tech-
nical expertise, but was a
good supervisor. And those
decorations looked good on
his dress uniform, so base
command liked to have him
around when brass visited.
The medals also proved
enticing to a thief.
While taking a shower
one day, he said, he left
open a locker door and
someone stole all the
awards.
He left the Navy at the
end of 1971. Morehead
said the Navy offered him
more than $11,000 cash to
give another six years. He
went back to the mill.
And his wife, Barbara
Morehead, went after the
medals. She contacted then
U.S. Rep. Bob Smith. The
congressman for the Ore-
gon 2nd District looked
into Mike Morehead’s ser-
vice records and helped
restore the medals.
Morehead put in 35
years at the mill, then
worked 13 years at the
Umatilla Chemical Depot
until its closure in 2012. He
helped remove toxic sub-
stances, including mustard
gas and worse, from the
weapons there.
He retired afterward
with Barbara on about 6.5
aces on McKay Creek near
Pilot Rock. Morehead is
an outdoorsman. Monday
he was busy preparing an
elk carcass. He also is a
lifelong member of VFW
Post 922, Pendleton, but
he said he does not partic-
ipate in many of the post’s
activities.
“I’m a proud vet, and I
know too many vets that
talk it up when they have
nothing to talk up,” he said.
Rather, he said, he and
his fellow river boat crew
members get together for
their own reunions, gath-
ering in Wisconsin or Ten-
nessee or wherever is next.
He said he suffers from the
trauma of war, but enjoys
sharing his military expe-
riences, and can’t help
but think about Vietnam
everyday, from the sud-
den violence to the quieter
moments, such as when he
tried plow a field. He could
not get that to work, he
said, but it all adds up.
“It makes you who you
are,” Morehead said. “I
think so.”
501 South Main Street, Pendleton
(541) 276-7411
www.pendletonchamber.com
Partnering with local business since 1893.
CHAMBER MEMBER SPOTLIGHT - PENDLETON TRIANGLE
What made you decide “this business”?
How can people contact you?
I noticed a need for quality housing in Pendleton.
With my background in construction and my knowl-
edge of the housing market, I took the opportunity
to build outside of the Portland metro area.
Email is the best way to contact me:
thesouthhills@outlook.com. You can follow
Pendleton Premier Properties on Facebook and
Instagram.
Why be a Chamber member?
What’s your favorite part of doing business in
Pendleton?
I choose to be a Chamber member to get more in-
volved in the business community in Pendleton and
meet other local business owners.
How long have you been in business?
I have been in the real estate business for about 15
years as a builder/broker/investor/developer.
Why do you love Pendleton?
My favorite part of doing business in Pendleton is
working with the city. The city staff has been easy to
work with and available to answer questions. There
is little red tape and the permit fees are reasonable.
As a developer in several communities how do you
keep work/life balance?
What’s the most rewarding part of your job?
I keep my work/life balance by involving my family
in any way I can. I bring them to the site, ask their
opinions on details, and keep them up to date on the
progress.
The most rewarding part of my job is seeing a need
and being able to help fill it. I enjoy providing qual-
ity housing that people really appreciate. I love being
my own boss and I love to build things.
Though you reside in Portland we know you spend
an enormous amount of time in Pendleton, what
surprised you most about the community when
you first arrived?
What should people know about your property
that they may not?
What surprised me most about Pendleton was the
amount of family friendly amentities. My family
and I have enjoyed the many parks, the Children’s
Museum of Eastern Oregon, the Pendleton Center
for the Arts, the Pendleton River Parkway, and the
Pendleton Aquatics Center.
I love the dry climate, the beautiful views, and
friendly people.
The new townhomes are very energy efficient, have
a modern layout, stainless steel appliances, large
rooms, washer and dryers in the units, and garages.
Located on the top of the South Hill, we are a few
minutes drive to the hospital or downtown.
This week’s Member Spotlight is sponsored by
This section sponsored by The East Oregonian. For sponsorship opportunities
for your business please contact The East Oregonian at 541-966-0827.