James Raymond Kelly IIICorporal

I CO, 3RD BN, 3RD MARINES, 3RD MARDIV

United States Marine Corps

12 March 1945 - 24 March 1967

Sacramento, California

Panel 17E, Line 036

Dear Jim,You were a wonderful husband, father and friend.

Mae Kelly

wife James, you saved a bunch of us.Rod Consalvo

with him when he died

This was my dad.I have often wondered

how our lives might have all been different had my Dad returned. One never knows.

I would have liked the opportunity to have known him.

The "war" has left us all scarred.

From his son,James R Kelly IV

For extraordinary heroism while serving as a

grenadier . . .

Even without Kelly at home, America moved along.

On March 7th, Jimmy Hoffa began his 8 year sentence for attemptingto bribe a jury….

On March 14th, the body of John F. Kennedy is moved to it’s permanentresting place at Arlington National Cemetery…

Kelly would never know. He was preoccupied by the bullets flying at his head in Vietnam, far from political and

social affairs.

During a search and destroy mission, Corporal Kelly's platoon was engaged in a heavily contested conflict against enemy forces.

The Khe Sanh base commander still refused to believe there to be a significant enemy force in the hills. A NVA soldier surrendered on April 25, and told the Marines he was from the 4th Battalion, 32 Regiment. If true, this meant there was a threatening force in the area.

As his platoon entered the village of An Hoa, it became subjected to intense enemy mortar and automatic weapons fire, which inflicted numerous casualties upon the Marines.

With complete disregard for his own safety and with full knowledge of the hazards involved, Corporal Kelly assaulted an enemy bunker single-handedly . . .

and destroyed it.

The enemy then attempted to flank the Marine platoon with six men armed with automatic weapons. Utilizing a well camouflaged trench line, the enemy was close to accomplishing their objective when Corporal Kelly suddenly observed their movement.

He rushed forward in the face of certain death, killed three of the enemy, and caused the remainder to flee. Mortally wounded during this action, Corporal Kelly by his bold initiative and selfless concern for others undoubtedly saved the lives of many of his comrades.

Corporal Kelly would never be returning to his wife and two children at home.

“They felt the rush of takeoff. Gone! they yelled. And then velocity- wings and engines- a smiling stewardess- but it was

more than a plane, it was a real bird, a big sleek silver bird with feathers and talons and high screeching. ”

Tim O’Brien,The Things They Carried

“I'll hold on to the wings of the eagles.Watch as we all fly away.”

Chad Kroeger,Hero

I do not fear an army of lions,

if they are led by a lamb.

I do fear an army of sheep,

if they are led by a lion.

-- Alexander the Great –

James Raymond Kelly

was a lion.

Jon Rice

Work Cited

Kelly, Mae. "Search." Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund. 16 February,2001. Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund. 27 May 2009 <http://www.vvmf.org//index.cfm?SectionID=110&anClip=29086>.

Consalvo, Rod. "Search." Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund. 25February, 2006. Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund. 27 May2009 <http://www.vvmf.org//index.cfm?SectionID=110&anClip=181397>.

Avery, Dave. "Search." Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund. 24 March, 2003.Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund. 27 May 2009 <http://www.vvmf.org//index.cfm?SectionID=110&anClip=74112>.

Schuekler, Jim. "James Kelly." Virtual Wall. 10 June, 2008.virtualwall.org. 27 May 2009 <http://www.virtualwall.org/dk/KellyJR01a.htm>.