ISU honors Storm Lake soldier killed in Vietnam
By Dan Gearino Journal Des Moines Bureau | Posted: Tuesday, November 13, 2007
AMES, Iowa -- The two friends met in seventh grade in Storm Lake, Iowa.
They went to Iowa State University together. They dropped out together. They were both drafted and both went to Vietnam. Only one them came home.
Steve Frederiksen remembered his friend, Sgt. Thomas Carrington, one of five former ISU students added to the school's war memorial in a ceremony Monday, the observance of Veterans Day.
Frederiksen, who lives near Troy Mills, Iowa, described his friend as smart and mischievous. "He was kind of everyone's confidante," Frederiksen said, speaking at ISU's Great Hall.
They dropped out of college midway through their sophomore year, knowing they would almost certainly be drafted. They went to basic training together before they went to Vietnam in separate units.
They exchanged letters while in Vietnam. "We'd talk about ISU. We'd talk about what we were going to do when we got home. We'd talk about the boredom punctuated by occasional panic and terror," he said.
Carrington was killed in a mortar and ground attack on Aug. 12, 1969. He had seven days left in his tour of duty. He was 20 years old.
Frederiksen arrived back in Iowa on Aug. 20 and learned of his friend's death. "A piece of me has been sad and angry for 39 years over Tom's death and the treatment of Vietnam vets," he said.
One reason for his anger is that Carrington was allowed to be in danger so close to the end of his tour, which Frederickson sees as a failure on the part of commanding officers.
Carrington had three family members at the ceremony, Bob and Marlene Mahoney of Mason City, Iowa, his aunt and uncle, and Connie Sorbe of Spencer, Iowa, his aunt. They said they are his closest living relatives.
"He was fun-loving and outgoing -- just everybody's friend," Sorbe said.
ISU honored three other former students who died in Vietnam -- Jerry Clark of Davenport, Iowa; Rickey Swaney of Grand Junction, Iowa; and Stephen Rushing of Ames -- and one who died in Iraq, Paul Finken of Earling, Iowa.
The names have been engraved in the Gold Star Hall in the university's Memorial Union, along with all the other known former students who died while serving in the military. All five were only recently identified by ISU as meeting the criteria for being recognized at the war memorial.
"The Memorial Union, as its name implies, is dedicated to remembrance," said Richard Reynolds, the director of the union.
Dan Gearino can be reached at 515-243-0138 and dan.gearino@lee.net.
They went to Iowa State University together. They dropped out together. They were both drafted and both went to Vietnam. Only one them came home.
Steve Frederiksen remembered his friend, Sgt. Thomas Carrington, one of five former ISU students added to the school's war memorial in a ceremony Monday, the observance of Veterans Day.
Frederiksen, who lives near Troy Mills, Iowa, described his friend as smart and mischievous. "He was kind of everyone's confidante," Frederiksen said, speaking at ISU's Great Hall.
They dropped out of college midway through their sophomore year, knowing they would almost certainly be drafted. They went to basic training together before they went to Vietnam in separate units.
They exchanged letters while in Vietnam. "We'd talk about ISU. We'd talk about what we were going to do when we got home. We'd talk about the boredom punctuated by occasional panic and terror," he said.
Carrington was killed in a mortar and ground attack on Aug. 12, 1969. He had seven days left in his tour of duty. He was 20 years old.
Frederiksen arrived back in Iowa on Aug. 20 and learned of his friend's death. "A piece of me has been sad and angry for 39 years over Tom's death and the treatment of Vietnam vets," he said.
One reason for his anger is that Carrington was allowed to be in danger so close to the end of his tour, which Frederickson sees as a failure on the part of commanding officers.
Carrington had three family members at the ceremony, Bob and Marlene Mahoney of Mason City, Iowa, his aunt and uncle, and Connie Sorbe of Spencer, Iowa, his aunt. They said they are his closest living relatives.
"He was fun-loving and outgoing -- just everybody's friend," Sorbe said.
ISU honored three other former students who died in Vietnam -- Jerry Clark of Davenport, Iowa; Rickey Swaney of Grand Junction, Iowa; and Stephen Rushing of Ames -- and one who died in Iraq, Paul Finken of Earling, Iowa.
The names have been engraved in the Gold Star Hall in the university's Memorial Union, along with all the other known former students who died while serving in the military. All five were only recently identified by ISU as meeting the criteria for being recognized at the war memorial.
"The Memorial Union, as its name implies, is dedicated to remembrance," said Richard Reynolds, the director of the union.
Dan Gearino can be reached at 515-243-0138 and dan.gearino@lee.net.
Story Comments
Read More and Post Comments 0 comment(s)
Please note: The following are comments from readers. In no way do they represent the views of The Sioux City Journal or Lee Enterprises. We will not edit or alter your comments, but we do reserve the right to not post or to remove comments that violate our code of conduct. No comment may contain potentially libelous statements; obscene, explicit or racist language; personal attacks, insults or threats. Terms of Service
