Steve:  Early in 1969 I received orders to Tuy Hoa (pronounced Tooee Waa) AFB in the Republic of Vietnam. I could have delayed those orders because of Lynn’s pregnancy.  But I was advised by several older airmen that I should take those orders because Tuy Hoa was one of the safest AFBs in Vietnam.  This was because the Korean Marines were embedded in the mountains that surrounded the base.  So we opted for my safety over being home for the birth of our first child.  Wouldn’t you know it, the Koreans were redeployed two months after I arrived in-country.

Lynn:  My parents so graciously invited me back into their home when they learned that Steve was to go overseas.  Our first child and daughter, Stephanie, was born six weeks later.

Steve:  Thank God for Lynn’s and my parents watching over my family during this time.  A couple of days after Stephanie’s birth, the Red Cross gave me a pink 8.5 X 11” form advising me that I had a daughter named Stephanie Lynn.  It took me 6 hours to get a MARS (short wave radio) call to Miamisburg to talk to Mom Rajala.  She let me know that Lynn was fine, and that Stephanie was 7 inches long and weighed 21 pounds, (reception on those calls was never very good.)