A veteran's Thanksgiving memory and a note of gratitude

Thanksgiving 1970 will always be a day to remember for one Kelso man.

A year earlier, Fred Welter, in his early 20s, was only five weeks into a military assignment in Vietnam. A fellow serviceman behind him stepped on a "booby trap" fatally killing the man and seriously injuring Welter.

"The guy behind me stepped on it," Welter recalled when we spoke on Veterans Day. "There wasn't anything left of him. It blew him to pieces."

The explosion left Welter with severe head injuries, the loss of his left eye and shrapnel to the left arm. He underwent 15-plus operations and to this day feels the affects of the injury.

Welter said the explosion left him unconscious, and he wouldn't wake up until he arrived at Bethesda Naval Hospital. Based on Southeast Missourian reporting at the time and the recent interview, Welter was very complimentary of the medical staff who cared for him noting several times how well he was treated.

Fast forward to Thanksgiving Day 1970. After a year in the hospital, he was among a group of injured military members invited to have Thanksgiving dinner at the White House with the president.

"There was a hundred of us there," Welter said. "There was Mr. President Nixon, his wife, his daughter and Mrs. Eisenhower. And we sat down at the table, and he told us to act like we were at home."

Welter recalled having the opportunity to speak directly with the president, and after dinner Nixon had a group of musicians entertain the soldiers for a couple hours.

The Marine Corps rifleman was discharged in 1971 and soon after began a career at Saint Francis Hospital first as an orderly and later working with the gastroenterology doctors. He retired in 2010.

Welter regularly visits the graves of his buddies who didn't make it home, always making sure an American flag is next to their headstones.

"I think they should have a flag beside them at all times. They served our country," he said, noting his grandfather served in World War I and his father in World War II.

It's been 50 years since Fred Welter had Thanksgiving at the White House. Despite the scars of his injuries, this happy memory remains. Likewise, he offers us all a reminder to be thankful -- especially for those who give their lives for our freedoms.

A clipping of the 1970 Southeast Missourian story noting Fred Welter's Thanksgiving at the White House.Southeast Missourian

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On Veterans Day, I read a poignant note on social media by Amanda Huber:

"Today while at Cape Small Animal Clinic I happened to walk in on a touching moment that I feel the need to share:

"An older gentleman was struggling on how to pay his bill for what I gathered was surgery on his pet. He asked what his options were to pay and they offered some type of financing. I had just turned into the convo as I was checking out next to him. The man said something to the effect of 'not being able to do that' and stared at the debit card in his hand. The man standing on the other side of him said, 'What's his bill?' The cashier replied, '$475.00.' The man quickly replied, 'I'll pay it.' The older gentleman was shocked and said, 'I don't know what to say. I'm just shocked. Thank you.' The man said, 'Are you a veteran?' And the older man replied, 'Yes.' The younger man replied, "Well consider this a thank you for your service." The ladies behind the counter were all about to cry and I (being hormonal of course) about did the same. It was very sweet.

"In light of the division in the country, I hope regardless of your political affiliation, we all give due respect to the Veterans who've given us the amazing rights that we take advantage of daily."

Lucas Presson is assistant publisher of the Southeast Missourian. Get his email newsletter by signing up at www.semissourian.com/newsletters.