PFC Lynn Blessing
Remains of Vietnam veteran killed in 1975 will be buried
at Arlington
Intelligencer Journal
Lancaster New
Era
Updated May 10, 2013 18:12
Lancaster
PFC Lynn
Blessing
Originally Published May 10, 2013 16:53
By
JACK BRUBAKER
Staff Writer
jbrubaker@lnpnews.com
Lynn
Blessing probably thought he was home free when the Vietnam War
officially ended in the early spring of 1975.
But a month
later — May 15 — the Lancaster Marine died with 12 other American
servicemen when their helicopter crashed while trying to recapture
the SS Mayaguez in the Gulf of Thailand.
Private First Class
Blessing, 19 years old, was Lancaster's last casualty of the war.
On Wednesday, 37 years to the day after Blessing died, his
remains and the remains of others who died with him will be buried
in a common grave at Arlington National Cemetery.
Blessing's
only son, Tom, and Diane Gerber, the best friend of Lynn Blessing's
widow, will travel to Arlington, Va., to attend the 11 a.m.
ceremony.
"I feel honored and blessed to be able to go in
honor of this great Marine and in memory of my best friend," said
Gerber, of Lancaster.
Tom Blessing, who also lives in
Lancaster, could immediately not be reached for comment.
Lynn
Blessing's mother, Thelma Blessing, of Lancaster, knew nothing about
the ceremony when informed by a reporter Friday morning.
The
Marines did notify her when the first remains of her son were found.
Blessing was listed as officially missing in action until 1995,
when his remains were discovered under water and returned to
Lancaster. They were buried at Riverview Burial Cemetery in 2000.
His mother attended that service. So did his widow, Anita, and
their son, Tom, then 26 years old. Anita Blessing died in 2009.
If Blessing's remains were buried here 13 years ago, why would
more remains be buried at Arlington next week?
"A lot of
times they'll have commingled remains that they can't identify as an
individual," explained Jennifer Lynch, a spokeswoman at Arlington
National Cemetery.
All of the remains will be buried in one
place and the names of all of the men who died at that time will be
inscribed on a cemetery memorial, she said.
Blessing was
riding in one of six helicopters dispatched to free the Mayaguez
three days after the Khmer Rouge captured it and took it to an
island off Cambodia.
The Khmer Rouge shot down Blessing's
helicopter just before it reached the island. Half of the 26 men on
board were rescued from the water. The other half remained
unaccounted for until 1995.
Blessing was born in Lancaster
and baptized at St. Mary's Catholic Church. He attended Lancaster
city schools.
He enlisted in the Marine Corps in August 1974
and was stationed in Okinawa. He was promoted to private first class
before being transferred to service in Vietnam.
Read
more:
http://lancasteronline.com/article/local/848110_Remains-of-Vietnam-veteran-killed-in-1975-will-be-buried-at-Arlington.html#ixzz2TmKdVakE
