This Vietnam vet spent 45 years not knowing whether his fellow soldiers who saved his life made it out of the war.
During the Vietnam War, Mike Gude served in the army as part of a four-member recon unit. After the war ended, he had no news of his fellow soldiers, including whether they even made it out of the war alive, until nearly 45 years later.
Not only were these men Gude’s comrades in the war, but two of them actually saved his life. Talking to CBS2’s Tom Wait, Gude explained that this group was working to gather enemy intel in a jungle in Vietnam back in 1969. They noticed that there were booby traps in the area, but not in time. Gude accidentally set off one of the land mines and lost his leg. He told CBS2:
“I heart this big blast – the blast is not sharp. I saw a big black cloud. I thought I fell in a hole.”
Somehow, his fellow soldiers stopped the bleeding. The team was airlifted and brought to an aid station, but then Gude didn’t get to see them again. All four were separated when they got to the station and have spent decades wondering what happened to their brothers in arms.
After nearly four and a half decades, the four members of the recon unite would finally discover their brothers in arms were alive – and reunite.
Thanks to an online message board, the men were all able to find each other again. They met about 45 years after that last time they had seen each other at the Ontario airport. The reunion for these members of the 173rd Airborne unit was understandably emotional for all present, including observers.
Gude finally got to embrace his fellow soldiers, Bob Bodemann, Grady Fox, and Howard Hunt. In a video posted on AOL but captured by KTLA, you can see the emotional embraces of these soldiers as they finally got to see each other again after so many years of uncertainty.
Gude told reporters:
“When I found out they were alive, I was crying. I can’t imagine them being alive. […] Our recon team surviving, no way.”
The men were finally able to find each other thanks to hard work by Bodemann and messaging boards.
According to the Press-Enterprise, following his retirement from law enforcement, Bodemann began therapy to treat post-traumatic stress disorder, something all four men are under treatment for. This rekindled his strong desire to find Gude, Hunt, and Fox.
In an interview with the news website, Bodemann told reporters:
“I had never forgotten them.”
The biggest challenge was that he didn’t know the men’s names, only their nicknames. Bodemann’s search began in 2011, but he didn’t find Fox until 2013. Bodemann then got copies of some war records he had previously lost and discovered the names of the other men: Michael Gude and Howard Hunt Jr. He posted these on a website for the 173rd Airborne.
A private detective ended up tracking down Hunt while Matt DeWitt, Gude’s son-in-law, found the message while trying to find more about the man’s military service.
From there, the group began arranging the reunion for the four men, something they had all been looking forward to for decades.
The reunion wasn’t just emotional for the four soldiers, but for their families, as well.
As J.P., the oldest son of Gude, who now goes by the last name Gunfrinck, told the Press-Enterprise:
“Without what these men did for my dad, we wouldn’t be here. They are our saviors.”
This emotional reunion only goes to show what dedication to a search can do. We hope these men stay in contact with each other and thank them for their service. You can watch the video of their heartfelt reunion here
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Source: AOL, Press-Enterprise
