Henry L. Alexander
Married: wife Jean Ann
Children:
Heather (age 24),
Chris (age 22),
Jason (deceased 14 December, 1995). Jason would now be 21.
Military Experience:
Lt. Henry L. Alexander
Co. C 612th Combat Engineers Battalion, 416th Group
Ohio Army National Guard 1971-1977
Vocation:
Engineer: Owner of Henry Alexander Engineering Inc.
Residence:
1367 Snyder Rd.
Norwalk, Ohio 44857
Phone: 419-663-6616
E-mail: [email protected]
Introduction
I wrote the following article as the 30th anniversary of Krag's death approached. I would be interested in hearing from any members of Krag's unit or anyone else who is interested. If you want any other information please let me know.
Remembering a Friend From the Class of '67
An anniversary is approaching which is of interest only to a relatively small group of people in Norwalk, Ohio, and several other communities around the country that are home to the family and friends of Krag Barry Roydes, a member of Norwalk High School's class of 1967.
I first meet Krag in the fall of 1958 when we both were beginning 4th grade at Pleasant St. Elementary School. My family had moved to Norwalk from Kentucky the previous year. His family had just moved here that summer from Pennsylvania.
We quickly became close friends, and I have many pleasant memories of the
times we shared. We would play together at recess, find seats at the same table in the
cafeteria, and walk home together after school. My family moved when I was in 5th grade.
Krag and I did not see much of each other again until we reached Junior High School.
Although we developed different interest and pursued different courses academically, we
remained good friends. I remember Krag as someone who was polite, kind ,and considerate of
others. I don't remember ever hearing him speak harshly to anyone.
Krag left school after our
junior year and joined the Army. While training in Radar operation and repair, he also
completed the necessary studies to obtain his high school diploma from the Army.
Krag returned to Norwalk and came to school while home on leave before going to Vietnam. The
last time I saw him, he was standing in the hall on the top floor of the Cole building talking
with several teachers. He was wearing his dress green uniform, and I remember noticing how
straight he stood and how proud he appeared to be. It left a feeling much the same as I still
feel when the Color Guard passes during the Memorial Day parade or when the flag is raised
prior to the start of a football game at Marsh Field in Monroeville.
On November 10th of
1967, the "Norwalk Reflector" reported on the dedication of a flag pole erected by the Milan
Jaycees in honor of Larry Libbee, the first resident of Norwalk killed in Vietnam. Directly below this article was a picture of Krag under the title "Norwalk Soldier Missing After Skirmish In Vietnam."
The next day, the paper published an article reporting that Krag had been killed in action in the Central Highlands of Vietnam. The list would grow to include Larry, Krag, Ron Coe, and Jack Lundell. A distant war in a previously obscure country had come home.
A memorial service was held on the 17th of November at Kubach-Smith Funeral Home after
which Krag was taken home to be buried in Cherry Tree, Pennsylvania. The feeling of shock,
sadness, and loss remained for a long time, and I thought of Krag often; but gradually, an
adjustment to reality was made, and life went on.
In the summer of 1994, I traveled to the small
town of Cherry Tree. After locating the cemetery, I searched for about half an hour and
eventually found a headstone with the following inscription:
KRAG BARRY ROYDES OHIO
PFC CO A 8 INF 4 INF DIV VIETNAM
MAY 20 1948 NOVEMBER 7 1967
There on the gentle sloping foothills of the Allegheny Mountains in a quiet and peaceful cemetery, a war now distant in both geography and time came home to me again. I was reminded that freedom is not free, that a price is paid for the liberties that we all enjoy.
It has been said that the value of anything is best measured by what a person is willing to give up for it. The paradox of freedom is that those who give the most for it, by their very actions deny themselves the opportunity to ever experience it. It is an expression of love one for another that is among the most noble and unselfish we as humans are capable of.
As I stood there I was reminded of the words of Christ as recorded in the Book of John, Chapter 15, Verse 13:
"Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends."
The war in which Krag gave his life was said to be unpopular (not that war is or should be popular), and those who fought it are often overlooked and forgotten for this reason. I vowed that day to never forget that my freedom is bought with a price ... that I owe a debt to Krag, Larry, Ron, Jack, and hundreds of thousands more who have fought and died to pay the price so that I, and millions of others, might live free.
The flag may not fly at half staff over our nation's capital, and speeches may not
mark its passage each year; but in a small rural community in north central Ohio, the 7th of
November will not go unnoticed by a former classmate and friend from the Class of '67 who
will always remember ...
KRAG BARRY ROYDES
... and the sacrifice he made for freedom.
Henry L. Alexander
Copyright © 1997 by Henry L. Alexander, All Rights Reserved
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