Bob and John Runtz: True Brothers in Arms

By Carla Khan, Honor Flight Chicago Veteran Interview Volunteer

John and Bob Runtz are siblings from a Chicago family of five.  John, born in August, 1943 and Bob born in June, 1945, instantly became members of a military family. Their dad, Edwin, had been drafted into the U.S. Marine Corps during WWII.  He served from November, 1943 to February, 1946 and was stationed in San Francisco where he worked at the fleet post office.

John and Bob, a.k.a. “the brothers” attended Notre Dame High School in Niles, IL and graduated respectively in 1961 and 1963.  Both worked for Illinois Bell until they were drafted, just 5 months apart in 1965. During their initial Army interviews, it was soon clear that their work experience with the telephone company directed both Runtz recruits toward Army positions in communications.  Their dad, with his WWII military experience, saw each boy off with the wise advice not to let the drill sergeant get to him, “It’s his job to yell at you and make you toe the line.” 

Since both boys were used to discipline at home, Basic Training did not present any problems for either one of them.  Bob, who had been on his high school football team, thought Basic Training was actually very easy.  Once Bob completed Basic Training at Fort Knox, KY in December, 1965, he was sent to Radio Repair School at Fort Gordon, GA.  Because of the on-going war, the instruction time had been reduced from 28 to 12 weeks and no allowance was given for the difficulties due to the accelerated schedule.  Recruits who didn’t pass the exam were sent to an infantry division.  Bob, who was determined not to fail, made friends with the smartest student in the class.  As a result, when his friend finished the course in first place, Bob followed as a close second. 

As there were so many recruits at the same time because of the Vietnam war, the Army was swamped with paperwork and consequently mistakes were made somewhere.  While Bob was waiting for his assignment at Ft. Gordon, GA, his paperwork was lost and suddenly the Military Police showed up to arrest him.  Fortunately, the matter was cleared up quickly. Bob flew to San Francisco, then on to his next base in Vietnam where he was assigned to the 11th CAV Infantry Cavalry. When they arrived, there were no accommodations; initially they slept on the ground and then set up tents.  It was the same with their food; at first only C-rations were available, then some food could be cooked in makeshift tents until the Seabees came and built proper accommodations.  

In the meantime, Bob’s unit also repaired radios.  The enemy had figured out that an easy way to halt our troops was by eliminating means of communication, so the radios were always shot at first.  If they missed, the officer who was talking on the radio was the next target.  Bob was very busy with radio repair.  Since spare parts were in short supply, damaged radios were used for parts.

John was drafted in May, 1965 only a few months before his brother’s number would come up.  Because of his employment with the telephone company, after completion of Basic Training in Fort Knox, KY, he got to specialize in communications and was sent to Radio School in Ft. Knox, KY to learn Radio Communication.  His course too was reduced from 25 to a mere 11 weeks.  He learned to become fluent in sending and receiving the Morse Code.  The minimum requirement was to send and/or receive 18 “words” a minute and one “word” consisted of 5 or more Morse code letters.  He had to become proficient as well in map reading.  Upon completion, he was not assigned to any specific unit because every team needed a communication specialist. 

John did not get the usual 13 days of furlough between training and assignment.  Instead, he had a four hour layover at O’Hare airport in Chicago.  His family met him and they only could spend a little time together before he left for Phuoc Vinh, South Vietnam.  His team was lodged in a small hotel and army buses provided transportation to and from meetings.  After a few weeks, John flew by helicopter to Phu Loi Base Camp where he was one of 6 communication advisors and served with a special advisory team.  They assisted 2 officers and several sergeants.  On the base, John manned the radio and checked the batteries for power because every radio had a battery in it.  Once the batteries were dead, they had to be destroyed so the enemy couldn’t use them to make incendiary devices.  During the day, they went on patrol with Vietnamese troops.  Because he was the one who carried the radio, he managed to pick up the basics of the spoken Vietnamese language.  Occasionally, they helicoptered into a village and were always surprised to find only women and children. However there were huge supplies of items such as rice and guns. The villagers were very friendly and usually invited them for a meal.

When asking “the brothers” what their lasting impressions of Vietnam were, Bob’s response was the whistling sound of mortars coming in, and seeing the jungle with big scorpions and poisonous snakes.  John’s recollections also were that of the sounds of mortars hitting and exploding.  John even had the experience of having a rat run across his chest in the middle of the night.  The local carpenter provided him with a small cat that solved the rat problem.  In spite of their brutal war experiences, both brothers agreed that Vietnam was a beautiful country.

When John had completed his tour on November 23, 1966 and was ready to go home, Bob had just arrived on October 13, 1966 and stayed until October 6, 1967.  The brothers had a short overlapping period in which they both served in-country.  John left Vietnam in November, 1966 and finished up his service at Fort Bliss, TX until his tour finished in May, 1967. As luck would have it, on a blind date he met a young lady, Eileen McMahan who a few years later became his wife.  

However, while the brothers were still in “Nam”, John was only looking forward to going home, eating a hamburger and drinking a tall glass of milk.   Bob, too, was looking forward to beer and a burger at home. Bob received his honorable discharge when he left Vietnam in November,1967.

Both brothers rejoined Illinois Bell after they returned and were happily surprised to find that during their absence, not only had their pay been continued and put into a savings account, but they also had received pay raises!

John retired after 38 years, while Bob retired after 37 years with the telephone company. Now they both have time to enjoy their combined 6 children and 12 grandchildren.  They live in Park Ridge, IL and are active participants at regular Veterans’ meetings where they are known as The Dunkin Boys!

Brothers John and Bob, thank you for your courageous service.  Welcome Home and enjoy your well-deserved Honor Flight!