deltahounds.com

AS TOLD BY PAUL "WEDGE" WEDLOCK

LT. Fucci was a big bear of a man with a Boston twang. He took over 2nd platoon of Delta 2/27 some time just after the 12th of Sept. of 69. The reason the date is so easy to remember is because Delta left Cu Chi on that date to go to Kotrc. We weren't happy. We had been in two battles with charlie there in the last few weeks and weren't looking forward to the trip.

Lorenzo "The Deacon" Lont was a Rochester NY boy of Italian descent who looked like Sal Mineo, and always had an incomprehensible look on his face. He was nervous as a cat, and you never knew what would come out of his brain to make him say or do something crazy. But he was always there looking nervous and twitchy. And he loved to freak out newbies, especially new LT.'s.

There was a canal that run close to the south side of the wire, close enough you could spit in it. 2nd platoons bunker faced the canal and had the 105 gun emplacement right behind the bunker. Somtime in the night there was a probe of the perimeter. A few shots were fired and everyone stood down. The next morning 2nd platton went out to see what if anything was there.

After crossing the under water bridge to the other side we encountered 3 or 4 dead bodies an RPG and 3 or 4 RPG ROUNDS.
Lt. Fucci called it in and HHC said they would send a chopper to collect the weapons and bodies. So, as all grunts do, if
they have a chance to sit down and smoke a cigarette, they do. Sitting talking and warming up in the sun. The Deacon got
up and walked over to one of the bodies and said "hey buddie how ya doing, you don't look to good, you want a
cigarette?"and procedes to put a cigarette in the dead gooks mouth.. Wedge seeing that the Deacon is busting the newbies
chops' says " Lont that isn't right" the Deacon says' "what"? Wedge says' "you got to give him a light". .

At that point Lt. Fucci said, "alright every body up let's be alert". Well, everyone got up and kind of shuffled around looking like they wanted to find a new place to sit or just get back from the Deacon. The Deacon got up and shuffled around like everyone else, but then turned back to the dead gook. He gave him a swift kick in the leg and said " hey didn't you hear the Lt. get up". All the new guy's moved further back, and the Lt.
gave The Deacon a look that would have scalded the skin off a bear and said " leave the bodies alone".

There is more to the saga of the Deacon and the LT. But you have come and read the end, it was many months later, that the Lt. and he
bonded on a very bad night of terror, and loss for them both.