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Korea veterans muster peers They want to make sure others remember 'Forgotten War' By PAUL FATTIG Many call it the Forgotten War, although some 54,000 Americans died there. But Don Elliott, Allen Forrette and Herb Robb have never forgotten the war in Korea. Nor do the three Rogue Valley veterans who served in Korea want others to forget. "American people know very little about the Korean War," said Forrette, 67, an Army veteran who served in Korea in 1954. "Yet many historians believe it was one of the significant wars of the 20th century," he added. "It stopped communism at the 38th parallel." North Korean troops plunged across the 38th parallel into South Korea on June 25, 1950, triggering the conflict. Although open warfare ended July 27, 1953, periodic hostilities have continued to this day, the veterans observe. All told, 33,686 Americans were killed in fighting in Korea, although the death toll rises to some 54,000 when considering accidents and illness, Forrette said. Of those, 298 were Oregonians. Total deaths from all the participants, including military and civilian, have been estimated at more than 4 million. "When the veterans came back from Korea, they were overshadowed by the great second world war," said Forrette, who served in an artillery unit. "We understand that. We went on with our lives. The second day I was back, I was working as a carpenter for my father again." That self-imposed disconnect has continued today, he said, noting that less than 20 percent of Korean War veterans belong to any veterans' association. In addition to educating others about the war, the three veterans hope to drum up interest among Korean veterans in joining the Oregon chapter of the Korean War Veterans Association. Anyone who served during the war or during the post-war period ending in January 1955 is eligible to join. Forrette wants other Korean War veterans interested in joining to call him at 779-2716. "What we did for Korea was a fantastic thing," Forrette said. "Here we took a people that had been enslaved by the Japanese for 50 years and turned them into the fifth largest industrialized nation in the world. I'm real proud of America for doing that." Robb, 72, a former Marine who served in Korea in 1952-54, agreed. He served in a motor transport battalion. "World War II guys are going fast," Robb said of those older veterans who are dying at a higher rate than the Korean veterans. "But the Korean veterans are going to fade away. We don't want to leave a void of information of what we did there." Elliott, 72, an Army veteran who was in Korea in 1946-48, would also like to see Korean veterans receive more recognition. "I felt like we helped Korea," he said, adding, "I was anxious to get out of there, but I was grateful for the experience." Forrette also cites the United Nations for working together in that conflict. "It did its job," he said. "The thing that impressed me the most was when we took the First Battalion, First Marines up on the front line to relieve the Turkish contingent," Robb recalled. "There was the spirit of comradeship of getting the job done, even though no one spoke the same language." But some things didn't need explaining, he observed. "When I first got to Korea, I got a ride to my unit in a Royal Scots Regiment vehicle," he said. "We stopped at their compound before they took me to my unit. There were seven bodies under British flags on their parade ground. I knew I had arrived." The UN troops worked well together, he stressed. "It was a team effort," he said. "In my mind, it showed what we could do when we worked together." Reach reporter Paul Fattig at 776-4496 or e-mail him at [email protected] Mail Tribune Home | Ottaway Newspapers, Inc. | Dow Jones & Co., Inc. | Privacy | Contact Us Copyright � 2001 Mail Tribune, Inc.