BOMBER MEMORIAL
MARK STEPHEN "BLACKIE" BLACK ~ Class of 1966 Honorary
November 7, 1947 - March 29, 1966
~
Mark was born November 7, 1947 in Wichita, KS. He attended Jason Lee Elementary School, Sacajawea Elementary School, Chief Jo Junior High School and was an honorary member of the Class of 1966 of Richland's Columbia High School.
He enlisted in the U. S. Marines on November 18, 1964 and was killed in action on March 29, 1966 in Da Nang, Vietnam at the age of 18. He is buried at Resthaven Cemetery in Richland.
Published in the Tri-City Herald.
"SECOND TRI-CITIAN KILLED IN WAR AFTER EXTENDING TOUR SIX MONTHS."
"Mark Black could have been safely home in Richland yesterday.
Instead, he lay dead in a Da Nang hospital, the Tri-Cities second victim of the Viet Cong.
Black, 18, son of Mr. and Mrs. J. A. Webster, 604 Torbett Street, Richland, was scheduled to come home from Vietnam duty with the Marines last month, but he volunteered to stay six months more.
His stepfather said Mark had written him asking if it would be all right for him to extend his tour another six months, but Webster advised him to come home.
So Mark planned to come home in August to visit his family and then volunteer to return to fight the Viet Cong."
"AWAIT TELEGRAM"
"His parents today were waiting for the telegram which will officially notify them of Mark's death, hoping it will tell how he was killed.
So far all they have is a 36-word message from Vietnam saying their son was hit at 9:45pm Tuesday near Da Nang and died at 4:45pm yesterday in a military hospital.
He was wounded in the body by an "unknown explosive device", according to a message delivered to them by a Marine captain from Yakima. He said a telegram would follow.
Just two days ago the Webster's received two post cards from Mark. They were about three by seven inches, cut out of the side of a rations cardboard box.
His last letter had told of an operation his unit was preparing to launch. The cards made no mention of it but would seem to indicate he was in the field.
Combat was nothing new to the boy who had carried the Tri-City Herald for six years up to the time he enlisted in the Marines in November 1964. He arrived in Vietnam in August 1965, while still 17 years old. He turned 18 a day before President Johnson ordered all 17-year-olds to be shipped home from Vietnam.
Earlier letters had told how he once outswam a Viet Cong pursuer.
In one letter Mark wrote his parents, "We must help them (the Vietnamese) because we are their only hope. Would you want me to stay home and deny these people the hope we have in life?"
The notice of his death listed him as a Private First Class, but his mother said in his last letter Mark said his Captain had told him he was a Lance Corporal, but he hadn't received the promotion orders.
Danny Neth, son of Mr. and Mrs. Guy Neth, 1524 Hunt Avenue, Richland was the first Tri-Citian killed in Vietnam. He died early this month in a helicopter explosion."
Mark is on the Vitual Wall at Panel 6E, Line 62
The following are messages left on Mark's Virtual Wall:
29 May 1998
"Mark was killed in Quang Nam province in an ambush while on a search and destroy mission.
I was on patrol with him at the time."
William McIntosh
30 Oct 2002
"I was a high school classmate of Mark's. He may not have known me personally, but I have known about him since I returned from Vietnam in 1969. Mark has the distinction of being the first of my classmates to serve and die in Vietnam. I found his name on the Vietnam Memorial in Washington, DC. I have mentioned his service often. May he rest in peace."
Steven R. Simpson
First Marine Air Wing
DaNang, Vietnam
Richland High School
Class of '65
srsimpson@prodigy.net
28 Nov 2002
"Mark and I were neighbors, classmates and hung out together before he enlisted in the Marines. I was shocked to hear of his death. I joined the Army 3 weeks later and went off to Vietnam to avenge him. I wound up doing 3 tours in Vietnam and 21 years in the Army. I often thought of Mark in those days and still do. He will always be 18 years old in my mind's eye. Peace to you, my friend."
Loren Holloway
SGM, US Army, Retired
30 Dec 2002
"For the family, friends, classmates and Marines buddies of PFC Mark S. Black:
I've provided a brief history of his life in the Marines. Who am I? ... just a neighbor ... a somewhat older friend ... a mentor, maybe ... watched out for him during our football games at the corner of Stevens and Van Giesen in Richland ... just someone who wanted to remember his bravery and sacrifice by adding something to a solitary name on the Wall.
Mark enlisted in the Marines November 18th, 1964, eleven days after his seventeenth birthday, and shortly after beginning his junior year at Columbia High School, Richland, Washington. On June 30th, 1965 Mark's unit sailed from San Diego to Okinawa, then to Vietnam, arriving Da Nang on August 15th, 1965. Initially, 3/9's mission was to defend Da Nang Air Base. Starting in late Sept they moved southwest of Da Nang, taking over for 2/9. After more than 2 months of intense operations in that area 3/9 once again took over the defense of Da Nang Air Base.
December 1965 and January 1966 were relatively quiet for Mark and the 3rd Battalion/9th Marines. On February 16th, 1966 3/9 removed from Da Nang Air Base, and relieved 1/9 in the field. Operating primarily east of the Song Vinh Dien, combat got more intense during February and March 1965 for Mark's unit. On March 29th all 3/9 companies except Kilo began Operation Alabama. Mark's company was assigned to Operation Golden Fleece, which was designed to prevent the VC from stealing rice from local farmers. It was during a March 29th night patrol while on Operation Golden Fleece that PFC Mark S. Black, age 18, detonated a booby trap.
After 5 years of researching Mark's life in the USMC I had lost hope that I would find someone who was in the same outfit. Unbeknownst to me, Mark's best friend in K/3/9, PFC Joe Kennick, was also looking for information about his best friend, "Blackie." Miraculously our paths crossed! Joe only knew him as "Blackie" ... he wanted very much to know his full name so he could pay tribute to him at the Wall. At 9:45 pm that night Joe, who was in the rear of the squad, heard an explosion; Mark was down. Joe ran to help him and was with him until a helicopter evacuated him to the hospital at Da Nang. According to the letter Capt. Bob Brooks wrote to Mark's mother, at 2:45 pm on March 30th, 1966, Mark passed away.
I received a note from another Marine was said he was on the same patrol that night, was wounded during a separate explosion, and was in the hospital bed next to Mark. We are working on corroborating this information.
Anyone who wants a full copy of the documentation I've assembled please contact me.
[The efforts of Major General James N. Mattis, USMC (1968 graduate of Richland High School) should not go unnoticed. While at the Pentagon Gen. Mattis's staff copied and sent me many documents about PFC Mark Black's tour of duty in Vietnam and the circumstances surrounding his death.]"
From a friend,
James Johnson
Marietta, Georgia
jjohnson@heery.com
05 Nov 2003
"I just returned from a visit to the 'MOVING WALL' on display in West Richland, WA.
I went there in honor of a classmate who volunteered to defend the freedom of many who never met him.
Mark S. Black
I went there to honor his memory because I knew of no other way. I remember how many of our fellow countrymen disgraced themselves as they protested the war in the 60s and 70s, calling those serving in our military "war mongers."
Mark and the others who served were not 'war mongers.' He and they served nobly.
It isn't much, but I wanted to thank you, Mark, and all the others who served and did what they could to preserve and promote our freedom and that of others around the world.
For those who made it back home alive,
'Welcome Home and Thank You.'"
From a High School classmate,
Gary Bush
grbush@televar.com
02 Jun 2006
"Mark S. Black is my brother-in-law. Mark was killed just three months before his oldest brother (Jon K. Black) and I (Marie) were married on July 2, 1966. This was 40 years ago.
Over the past forty years Jon has viewed most of the movies made about that time - looking to see if he could spot his brother, Mark.
After their mother (Betty Webster) passed away Jon and I now have all the letters Mark sent home and the pictures from the couple of years he was there. The letters, I have read a few times - in reading them you have a 16 year old boy become a fighter in a war - which he wrote in a number of his last letters - to his mom and to Jon.
Jon and I named our first son in memory of his fallen brother, Mark. Our Mark is now 37 with a family of his own ... three children: Ryan James (age 18), Brittney Nicole (age 16) and Austin Kent (age 12).
This is our way of extending Mark S. Black."
From his sister-in-law,
Marie A. Black
1200 Fairview Lane
Montesano, WA 98563
mablack47@comcast.net
25 Nov 2006
"Mark and I were friends from elementary school on. I guess we bonded because we often felt like we didn't 'fit in' anywhere. He was SO determined to enlist in the Marines when he turned 17. Some of us tried to talk him out of it; we were afraid we'd lose him in Vietnam. Turns out our fears were justified. He was a good Marine, and I'm proud to have been his friend. I think of him often, visit his grave, remember his freckles, his smile and the sound of his voice.
Rest in peace, Mark 'Blackie' Black."
From a friend,
Karen Upchurch Bowman
Bomber Memorial put together by Shirley COLLINGS Haskins ('66).