Serving Aboard USS Frederick During The Vietnam War And Volunteering For Honor Flights

Mick Mason was born in 1950 in North Dakota, although the family ended up in Iowa. His mother was a homemaker, and his father worked in Radion as an announcer and sports broadcaster. There were six children in the family, three boys and three girls. Mick grew up playing in the woods and enjoying sports like football and basketball. He graduated from high school in 1969, and with a low draft number (#47) he followed the advice of one of his brothers and joined the Navy in October. He felt he had to serve; his father was a P-38 pilot in Europe during World War II, and an older brother was already a veteran. He froze in basic training at the Great Lakes training center and caught pneumonia. He fondly recalls the camaraderie he felt with his fellow Sailors. After training, he reported to San Francisco with orders for Vietnam in 1970. His ship, an LST (Landing Ship, Tank), USS Frederick (LST 1184), was based out of Subic Bay in the Philippines and shuttled troops and equipment to various ports in South Vietnam. He served as a boatswain’s mate aboard Frederick and was a coxswain on a landing craft, which took troops on missions throughout the Mekong Delta. Mick describes the spartan lifestyle aboard the LST and his duties while underway. He recalls standing watch in rough weather, surviving a typhoon in which the ship listed 52o and crested 90-foot waves (he was seasick for three days). He remembers how close the crew of 208 was, and how accommodating their chef was, making him a special meal after he recovered from his one bout of seasickness. He describes carrying 7,000 bombs to Vung Tau, and struggling to get underway during a VC mortar attack when Frederick became stuck in the mud as the 28-foot tide went out. He recalls humanitarian aid missions in the Philippines, and the yearly “Return” to the area where MacArthur made his famous vow. He remembers taking liberty in the Philippines and Australia, swimming at the equator, and becoming a Royal Shellback. After Vietnam, he married his wife, who had been the maid of honor at his brother’s wedding. Once he left the service, he found that “nobody wanted us (veterans) for work.” He eventually got a job working for John Deere but suffered repeated instances of being laid off. Eventually, he was able to get a stable job, and he and his wife raised a son and a daughter. He began volunteering for the Honor Flight, which he views as a way to give back to his military brothers and sisters. He describes the importance of giving them a better “welcome home” than he received. At the end of the interview, he describes his best memory of an Honor Flight, and what his service means to him.