Sweet Home veteran reflects on service, 50 years later
Share
Tweet
Ethan Hoagland
Richard Lannom poses for a picture at The New Era office.
Fifty years ago, a young Coast Guard recruit from Sweet Home made his newspaper debut with a modest announcement of his graduation from basic training. Last week, Seaman Richard Lannom shared his story with The New Era.
Lannom's decision to join the Coast Guard might sound familiar for recruits who enlisted in 1972 – the final, bloody year of direct U.S. involvement in the Vietnam War. Struggling in high school, Lannom headed down to the recruitment office.
"I passed their test with flying colors," Lannom said. "They said, 'There's a problem we got.' I said, 'What's that?' They said, 'We...
For access to this article please
sign in or
subscribe.
