Idaho State Journal

October 16, 1968

BLACKFOOT - Gary C. Smith, 24 of Pingree is the first Vietnam casualty of the 116th Engineer Battalion, an Idaho National Guard unit which was activated for Vietnam War duty in May.

Smith was killed last Thursday by a mortar shell which hit forward base camp. The shell, which exploded near a truck being unloaded, also wounded Brent B. Hayes of Lewisville and Delbert Brown of Blackfoot

The three Guardsmen were serving with Headquarters Company, composed primarily of men from the Idaho Falls area. Mrs. Dee Hayes, the mother of Brent Hayes said she had been informed by her son the unit had been detailed to moving equipment from the original base where the 116th landed at Phan Hang, north of Saigon and near Cam Hanh Bay, to forward areas where the other four companies of the battalion will operate.

Mrs. Hayes said her son suffered a broken right arm and a severe laceration of his left thumb. Brown's mother, Mrs. Walter Brown, said her son, suffered shrapnel wounds in his legs.

The 116th Engineer Battalion is the First Idaho National Guard unit to serve in Vietnam. The men arrived there about Sept. 1. The unit also was activated during the Berlin Crisis, the Korean War, and World War II.

Smith was born Nov. 5, 1943 in Blackfoot, the son of Clarence and Leona Hawkes Smith. He attended Snake River High School and was farming with his father at the time his unit was activated. He liked mechanical work and kept the farm equipment in good operating condition. His hobbies were hunting and fishing. He was a member of the Catholic Church.

The young man is survived by his father; three sisters, Mrs. Willilam (Rose Mary) Brower, Portsmouth, N.H., and Bernadine Smith and Susan Smith of Pingree; two brothers, Danny Smith and Deryl Smith of Pingree; and grandparents, Mr. and Mrs. Harold Hawkes of Blackfoot. The brothers, John and Robert, proceeded him in death.

Funeral services will be announced by the Sandberg-Hill Funeral Home

.