How 14 Friends From the Vietnam War Lost and Found One Another Again
Every week, The Friendship Files features a conversation between The Atlantic’s Julie Beck and two or more friends, exploring the history and significance of their relationship.
This week she talks with a group of Vietnam veterans who have been having regular reunions since the 1980s. They call themselves "The Cavily"—a portmanteau of cavalry and family. There are 14 vets in the Cavily, and the reunions have expanded to include their spouses, kids, and grandkids. In this interview, five of the veterans discuss how they got close during the war and then fell out of touch, and the letter one of them wrote that brought them all back together.
The Friends
Lee Barron, 71, who lives in Houston, Texas
Ed Bodzinski, 71, who lives in Belchertown, Massachusetts
Terry Bradley, 70, who lives in East Otto, New York
Jerry Hart, 71, who lives in Shreveport, Louisiana
Jim Teegarden, 74, who lives in Kansas City, Missouri
This interview has been edited and condensed for clarity.
Julie Beck: Could you quickly tell me, each of you, what your path to the Army was?
Lee Barron: I was going to college and got drafted in November of '67. Arrived in Vietnam in June of '68.
Ed Bodzinski: I got drafted in 1967. I went to basic training the day before Thanksgiving in 1967, and from there I went to Advanced Infantry Training (AIT) in Louisiana. By May 5, I was in Vietnam.
Terry Bradley: I graduated from high school in '66. I knew I was going to get drafted anytime. I got tired of waiting, so I did volunteer for the draft in '67. I went to basic training and then I went to AIT in Louisiana, where I met Ed.
