Vietnam veterans who returned to an angry nation honored on this Veterans Day

On this Veterans Day, while men and women in Tarrant County and nationwide honored those who worked, lived and died during war, President Trump was spending his second day in Vietnam.

On Friday, the White House issued a proclamation honoring those who survived the Vietnam War, as well as those who died, were captured or were never found.

“During my Administration, I promise to continue coordinated efforts to recognize all veterans of the Vietnam War for their service and sacrifice, and to provide them with the heartfelt acknowledgment and gratitude that they and their families so richly deserve,” the proclamation stated.

This 13-year-long commemoration of that war is an effort to make up for what could be characterized as the “chilly reception” many Vietnam veterans received when they returned to the United States, said Pixie Wetmore, one of the parade organizers.

Some Vietnam War veterans who watched the Veterans Day parade in Fort Worth said they have only recently recovered from the pain of their homecoming while others say they remain wounded and expect they will be that way forever.

The country “labeled us drug addicts, ne’er do wells and malcontents,” said Douglas Spellman, 67, who manned a machine gun while serving with the U.S. Marines in Vietnam from June 1969 to June 1970.

“They can never make up for it,” Spellman said. “The reception we received was hard on us and a lot of people were hurt, are still hurt by that. We couldn’t even get jobs. Some who came back early on got hired at General Dynamics [now Lockheed] and Bell [Helicopter]. When I came back I finally got a job as a parking attendant.”

J.R. Gramado, 70, a veteran military police officer with the U.S. Air Force, said he is proud of his service and proud of those who served with him. The United States military won every major battle in the Vietnam War, Gramado said.

But Gramado said he would not wear his vest or hat proclaiming himself a Vietnam War veteran until seven years ago because of how he and other veterans of that war were treated when they returned. Four years ago his body began showing signs of Agent Orange exposure, Gramado said.

“But even knowing that, if they asked me, I would go back again,” Gramado said. “All my friends who came back from Vietnam say the same thing. I love the U.S.A.”

The men and women who came back from more recent wars such as Desert Storm and Desert Shield were treated better when they returned, said Dan Zmroczek, a helicopter crew chief with the U.S. Army during the Vietnam War.

“I think it’s a well deserved thank you that we never did get,” Zmroczek said. “It’s a recognition that the guys who got spit on and got stuff thrown at them deserved. One sergeant told us not to wear our uniform when we went out because it could be trouble.”

Zmroczek, 69, said he was discharged from the Army in 1970. Vietnam-era military veterans made sure veterans of other wars would be treated better than he and his fellow Vietnam veterans were, Zmroczek said.

“It made us realize it could never happen again,” he said. “It made us realize that never again could one generation turn its back on another.”

This story was originally published November 11, 2017 at 5:19 PM with the headline "Vietnam veterans who returned to an angry nation honored on this Veterans Day."