Voices of Vietnam…Larry Bultena remembers his service and sacrifice

2025 marks 50 years since the end of the Vietnam War. Events will be taking place throughout the country concluding on Veterans Day for the conclusion of the US Vietnam War Commemoration. Local residents who served are sharing their stories for the first time to bring awareness to what they went through. Larry Bultena is just one of the Vietnam Veterans in the area willing to share his story.

During the Vietnam War, a combination of local draft boards and lottery systems were used to determine who would be called into serve overseas. Men across the country learned from local leaders or through the newspaper if their birthdate had been called. Local Lennox resident, Larry Bultena was one of those whose number was called. 

“I remember the day I found out about it, I was bummed, but like everyone else my age, I knew that it was something we needed to do for our country,” Bultena said.

After being drafted, Bultena and other members focused their efforts on getting their affairs in order and saying goodbyes to family and friends. 

“They didn’t give us hardly any time after we found out we were drafted; it was maybe two weeks at most before we left for training in the fall. Everything moved so fast at the time you just had to try to keep up,” he said.

As fall turned to winter, the soldiers trained for battle. 

“I landed in Fort Boone, Washington for my training, which was eight weeks of intense, intense training. They needed us to be ready for a war we knew little about and we needed to know how to fight because a lot of the guys I trained with had never even been in one before,” Bultena said.

During their training, the soldiers learned of the various departments that they could be working in over in Vietnam.

“When you were done with your training they would give you your Military Occupational Specialty for Advanced Individual Training. I got into the infantry division, so a lot of our training was focused around learning how to survive, fight, and live in the jungle,” he said.

Finally, in the cold of January, training was completed and the soldiers were allowed to return home before heading to Vietnam. Never having traveled outside of the United States, Bultena had reservations as he returned to his childhood home to say another goodbye to his family. 

“We were able to come home for just a couple of weeks before we left for Vietnam. It was a weird feeling because you didn’t know if you’d see anyone again, but you were so glad that you just got to be home and see everyone again,” Bultena said.

The flight over is still easily recalled in Bultena’s mind. 

“They didn’t tell us where we would be going exactly or what all was happening there before we deployed. The flight over was so quiet you could hear a pin drop. We all knew that we would be there for a year and that there was a chance all of us wouldn’t be coming home,” he said.

The day Bultena left was a cold windy day in South Dakota. When the plane landed hours later, Bultena and his team were faced with a whole new climate. 

“The weather was hot, miserable, and rainy, every day. It was monsoon season and it would just pour for days at a time. I’ve never seen anything like it. It would rain all day and night and there were times that we would think it would never quit because for months it didn’t stop,” Bultena said.

As the year went on Bultena and his team worked tirelessly to fight the fight they were ordered to do. 

“Our days included going out on patrol to patrol the jungle from Vietnam soldiers. There were three of us that would go out for three days at a time and we would listen as closely as we could to hear if they were coming. Any noise whatsoever that we heard we would immediately call in over the radio back to base on the main perimeter and tell them what is was,” he said.

There was no sight seeing of Vietnam, or a moment to let your guard down as the year continued. 

“I don’t remember us ever getting a day off when we were there. Just like in training, everything moved so fast that there never would have been time for that. We tried really hard to make the best of it in the main perimeter. Even though we had to sleep on the ground, it was at least a little sleep,” Bultena said.

As the year continued, Bultena could see the end of his service time coming and was thankful to still be alive through his missions. 

“The main goal of each and every mission was just to not get killed; that’s it. But for a lot of us, they weren’t that lucky,” Bultena said.

On the flight home, Bultena recalls the same stillness in the plane. 

“The flight back home was just as quiet as the flight in, but not for the same reasons. Going in, we were scared kids, but once we left, and reached safe airspace, it was a pretty big sigh of relief for every single one of us left standing,” he said.

The soldiers landed in New Jersey on their return trip. Knowing very little of what welcoming celebration would be held for their return, the soldiers were stunned to be standing in an empty room. 

“There were no celebrations, there was no welcome home. We simply landed, got picked up by our families, and were expected to return to normal life and not talk about any of it,” Bultena said.

After serving two years, Bultena knew his time in the service had come to an end. 

“I experienced so much going to Vietnam, that I knew I needed a quiet life for myself back home. I knew I wanted to see my country and what we had here, so I became a semi-truck driver and left the military,” he said.

As the 50th Anniversary of the end of Vietnam continues through the year, Bultena hopes that everyone takes a moment to thank the Vietnam veterans in their life. 

“I can’t speak for everyone, but for me, I don’t know if there is a way to welcome us back home anymore, we’ve already passed that, but it sure is nice when I wear my Vietnam Veterans hat and someone stops me on the street and tells me thank you. I get more thank you’s by wearing that hat than I ever got when I got home,” Bultena said.