FORT CARSON, Colo. -- About 20 Vietnam veterans who served with Company B, 1st Battalion, 22nd Infantry Regiment, from 1967-1970, and their families celebrated the seventh annual company reunion with the new generation of "Regulars," Soldiers at Fort Carson Oct. 6.
For the past seven years, veterans of Company B, 1st Bn., 22nd Inf. Reg., 2nd Brigade, 4th Infantry Division, and their families have reunited at different locations across the country to reconnect with old friends and comrades to reminisce about their past experiences and share new ones.
This year, the group traveled from around the nation to Fort Carson, where the newest generation of Company B Soldiers gave the veterans a taste of the modern Army.
"All of these guys here today served together in Vietnam, and it has been a great experience for all of us to come out here and see each other," said Gary Root, who served as a sergeant on an M60 machine gun squad in 1968 and 1969. "Even after all these years, these guys are family; we are all brothers."
The day began with a trip to the military operations on urban terrain site at Range 60 where the group received a tour of the site and an overview of the training modern Soldiers go through.
"We had a good time," said Albert Lake, a veteran with the group. "It was a different kind of search and destroy than what we went through 40 years ago."
The Regulars held a show and tell at the unit's central operating facility. Veterans and family members were able to interact with troops and see different weapon systems and equipment that are being used in today's military.
"I really like seeing these guys," said John Cortes, veteran. "Everyone has been very informative and, for me, this is great because I want to show these guys the appreciation that we didn't get when we got home."
Dennis Sowards, Company B veteran, said the reunions are cathartic.
"It's a good healing process because everybody can get together -- we've all been through the same things, we can reconnect. It's been really good," Sowards said.
Editor's note: Spc. Andrew Ingram, 4th Infantry Division Public Affairs, contributed to this article.
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