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Similar Lives Lead to Friendship

November 1, 2024 at 7 a.m.
Ruralite

By Craig Reed

Dale, left, and Terry Weakley became close friends in 2017 after meeting at a
Vietnam Veterans of America meeting in Roseburg. Photo by Craig Reed

Vietnam War veterans discover a bond after service and careers.

Dale Orwick and Terry Weakley have had much in common throughout their lives. But the longtime Douglas County residents didn’t know about the similarities until they were closing in on their 70th birthdays. Through their common journeys, they could have unknowingly crossed paths or even bumped shoulders.

  • Both graduated from RHS schools: Terry from Riddle High School in 1967 and Dale from Roseburg High School in 1968.
  • Both were drafted into the U.S. Army: Terry in July 1969 and Dale in September 1969.
  • Both were in the same unit, the 101st Airborne Division: Terry in the Bravo Company 2nd Battalion of the 501 Infantry Regiment and Dale in Charlie Company 2nd Battalion of the 502 Infantry Regiment.
  • They both went through basic training and then advanced infantry training at Fort Lewis, Washington.
  • Both deployed to Vietnam for 11-month tours in combat zones: Terry on Jan. 3, 1970, and Dale on Jan. 7, 1970.
  • Both suffered non-life-threatening wounds in action. Terry was shot in the leg in April 1970, and Dale was hit by shrapnel in the shoulder in May 1970.
  • Both spent several weeks recovering at the 6th Convalescent Center at Cam Ranh Bay.
  • Both returned stateside in December 1970. Dale finished his military time working at a Fort Rucker, Alabama, survival school for helicopter pilots in training.

“I guess they figured since I’d been there (Vietnam), I could help the pilots learn how to evade and escape if needed,” Dale says.

Terry spent 11 months in a Vietnam combat zone. Photo courtesy of Terry Weakley

Terry finished his military time at Fort Hood, Texas, training with tanks.

Both left the service in mid-1971. Dale was discharged as a buck sergeant with hard stripes, earning the stripes through a field promotion. Terry was discharged as a corporal.

Dale and Terry were happy to return home to their Douglas County roots but understood the need to serve in Vietnam.

“I thought it was worth being there because the communists wanted to suppress democracy,” Dale says.

Both men left Vietnam and the service with myriad medals and awards, including the Combat Infantry Badge, Bronze Star, Purple Heart (two for Dale), Army Commendation Medal, and Air Medal.

“We didn’t choose to be infantry, we were just placed,” Dale says. “Infantry is considered the bloody tip of the spear. Of all those who survived, most have received the Purple Heart medal.”

Army veteran Dale Orwick served in Vietnam in 1970. Photo courtesy of Dale Orwick

Back home, Dale worked for Roseburg Forest Products for 43½ years, mainly operating a bulldozer and helping build logging roads.

Terry worked in the logging industry for Huffman & Wright Logging of Canyonville for 27 years and then was a part owner of Cascade Thinning, a logging business, for 10 years.

“Dale probably helped build roads that I then used while logging,” Terry says.

These common bonds didn’t come to their attention until they met in 2017 at a Umpqua Valley Chapter of Vietnam Veterans of America meeting in Roseburg. They were drawn to introduce themselves to one another by the 101st Airborne vests each was wearing.

“It took several months for us to begin to realize we had parallel stories,” Dale says. “It was like, ‘Hey dude, I think you’re my brother. We’ve lived the same life, just several yards apart.’’’

In sharing their lives and stories, the two discovered they both attended the 1976 Elvis Presley concert in MacArthur Court at the University of Oregon in Eugene.

Dale finds his name and photo, as well as those of his father, Donald, on the Veterans of Foreign Wars Remembrance Wall in Roseburg. Donald served in World War II. Photo by Craig Reed

“Maybe we were sitting just a few seats apart,” Dale says.

Terry, 75, and Dale, 74, continue to be active veterans. For years, they were members of the Honor Guard for funerals at Roseburg National Cemetery and of the Flag Line. They have retired from the Honor Guard, but continue to participate on the Flag Line. In 2023, they attended most of the cemetery’s 140 burials, most of them Vietnam veterans.

They are also involved with the Oregon Memorial Traveling Wall, helping to set it up, being present and then taking it down at most of the eight events where it is on display annually.

“We have so much in common,” Dale says. “We have the same values. We’re the best of friends.”

Terry agrees.

“We’ll be friends until we die,” he says. “We’ll probably die together.”