Community Corner
Veterans Share their War Stories at Historical Society Museum
The Korea-Vietnam Exhibit runs through mid-April 2014.
With every name of a Royal Oak veteran there is a story.
"I was inducted at 123 S. Main Street. In the upstairs (above what is now Ariana Gallery) there used to be the draft room," said Dennis Andrzejak at the opening of the Korea-Vietnam Exhibit at the Royal Oak Historical Society Museum on Monday.
"When I got my notice I walked up there, walked downstairs, got a bus, the bus went to Fort Wayne, we were inducted, got on a train and went to Kentucky and that's where I did basic training."
Andrzejak, who served with the Military Police during the Vietnam War, stood next to his uniform and explained the various medals, brass and ribbons trimming the nearly half-century-year-old garment.
Less than 10 feet away, John Roger, Jr., a former sergeant in the U.S. Marines Corps, talked about photos of the Echo Company, 1st Platoon.
"That's me in the back. I am 19 years old," he said of a photo of the Echo Company.
Then he points to a picture of two squad leaders in Vietnam.
"This photo is kind of poignant," Roger said. "The day after this picture was taken, their platoon was hit by mortars and Bob lost both of his hands."
Korea-Vietnam Exhibit opens
The Royal Oak Historical Society Museum is filled with photos, military uniforms, paraphernalia and documents on loan by area veterans and their families for Korea-Vietnam Exhibit, which opened on Veterans Day with Royal Oak Mayor Jim Ellison thanking Royal Oak's many vets for their time in the service.
"We certainly owe our vets a debt of gratitude," Ellison said.
The exhibit also features memorials to local MIA soldiers along with memorials to Michigan military personnel on loan from the Frankenmuth Military and Space Museum, Frankenmuth.
At the opening, Mary Pineau, of Berkley, remembered her brother ATC Roland Pineau, who was born in Royal Oak and lived here until he was about 10 years old before the family moved to Berkley.
"Both Royal Oak and Berkley kind of want to take possession of him," said Mary. "He was a great guy."
A career man in the U.S. Navy, Pineau joined at age 17 and did three tours of Vietnam.
"On his last trip - he was a radar technician - his plane went down (on October 8, 1967) and exploded," said Mary. "It took 40 years to find the crash site and find the remains of the men that were on the aircraft. We buried him at Arlington five years ago."
As she looked at the display of her brother's items, she recalled her mother taking her brother downtown to take an exam to enlist.
"She didn't want him to go in," she said. "The officer that gave the exam came out of the room shaking his head and my mother said, 'Oh thank you, God!' And the guy said, 'I've been giving this exam for 25 years and no one has ever aced it but your son did.' So she had to let him go."
The family of 1LT Marty Massucci lost their beloved brother on Oct. 1, 1965. Missing in action, Massucci, 25, was a co-pilot assigned to a reconnaissance mission outside of Hanoi. His flight took hits from anti-aircraft fire and began to trail fire. One parachute was seen.
Massucci's siblings, Art and Ann, remember Marty as being very outgoing, very funny and very relaxed.
"He was someone who lived everyday like it could be his last day on earth and he celebrated," said his sister, who noted it didn't hurt that he looked like Cary Grant.
"All the girls love him."
Michigan Vietnam Wall Returns to Royal Oak
Also part of the exhibit is the Michigan Vietnam Veteran Traveling Memorial, which remembers the 2,654 Michiganders who died for their country in the Vietnam War.
The exhibit includes bios that tell the story of each veteran from Michigan who did not come home from Southeast Asia.
For the 37 men from Royal Oak on the wall, this is a trip home.
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If you go
The Korea-Vietnam Exhibit runs through mid-April 2014. Museum hours are 1-4 p.m., Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday.
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