Ronald Clayton Kissinger

Ron Kissinger was a friend of my father’s, Roger Cook. The men met at Camp Pendleton and formed a friendship that ended only a short time later in Vietnam, but was never forgotten. Ron took leave one weekend with Roger and went to Santa Barbara to visit Roger’s then girlfriend (my mother). This picture was taken on that trip. Roger and Ron left for Vietnam together, were stationed together and had the same job for the USMC. Roger was actually in the jeep directly behind Ron the day he was killed. Seeing the first man in your unit killed is very traumatic for a 20 year old man, but it is devastating when that man is your best friend. Roger was fortunate enough to finish his tour in Vietnam, marry his Santa Barbara girlfriend and raise a family. But he always remembered Ron and talked about him until the day he died in car accident in 1987. Roger has a daughter RONDA named for his hero friend, RON Kissinger.

Shelly Cook Kiser  shellycook70@hotmail.com