A Kenosha soldier who died in the Vietnam war was given a military funeral in his hometown on Tuesday, 47 years after he went missing in action.
In 1967, James Van Bendegom’s undermanned Army unit was ambushed by Communist forces.
“We just got overrun,” said Edward Moody, who was there with Van Bendegom on that day, albeit in a different platoon. “A lot of people died.”
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More than 50 soldiers died, including some that otherwise might have lived had the Communist forces not killed many of the wounded on the battlefield.
Van Bendegom was wounded and captured and listed as missing in action. Recently, however, a bone given to officials by a Vietnamese woman was given a DNA test, and was determined to be Van Bendegom’s.
Moody, who’s from North Carolina, was in Kenosha to attend Van Bendegom’s funeral.
“Today’s a great day,” he said. “We got one of our own back. That’s very important.”
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