In Memory of Captain Jeff Wilcox........ Company CO, 1970
A "Currahee Brother" who passed away in 2024. We invite Currahee Brothers that knew him well to share some comments.
"Thank you brother for a job well done". Until we meet again my friend ..... "Currahee"......"Stands Alone"
A Man of true conviction and honor, his heart was for the men that served under him . . .
Captain Jeffrey D. Wilcox ........ Age: 78 _ ____ _______________ __ Born in: New York _______________________________________________ Died on: March 11th, 2024 in Saugatuck, MI
Jeff D. Wilcox (Holland Sentinel)
Jeff Wilcox was a Veteran's Advocate, a Community Leader, and a Realtor. After graduating from the United States Military Academy he was a commander in Vietnam, earning a Bronze Star, Purple Heart, and Combat Infantryman’s Badge. Because of his work in veterans affairs he was invited to be an Aspen Institute Fellow. In 1998 he received the Historical Society’s Achievement Award for his leadership in establishing the museum. Jeff enjoyed cooking, schmoozing and rock n roll. He is survived by his wife Katherine and numerous others. No service is planned.
Four Captains, 1st Lt. Jeff promoted to Captain along with three others on FSB Ripcord
Captain Jeff Wilcox
Jeffrey Wilcox was born in New York and moved to Gary, Indiana as a youth. After high school, he attended West Point, and graduated in 1968. He was then assigned to an Army unit that was stationed in Berlin, Germany. He stayed there for a year, and was then shipped off to Vietnam. He joined the 101st Airborne Division in 1970, and was assigned to the 2nd Battalion, 506th Infantry Regiment, which was operating on and around Fire Support Base Ripcord. Arriving as a 1st lieutenant, he was assigned to command a platoon in A Company, but when his promotion to captain came through, he took command of E Company, which included the mortar platoon and the reconnaissance platoon. When the commander of C Company was killed on July 2, when the company's position on Hill 902 was overrun, he took over what was left of the unit. On July 8, he led C Company in an assault on Hill 1000, which went badly, and he subsequently challenged an order from his battalion commander, which got him sent to the rear as a staff officer, where he finished his tour. After Vietnam, he spent a year and a half in the Transport Corps in Washington DC. After his time in the service, he worked for various different veterans support and advocacy groups on the west coast and eventually settled in West Michigan.
Jeff receiving his 506th DMOR Award at Ft. Campbell 2014
Jeff with the Charlie Company Vets at the Currahee Pad 2014
Jeff at the Ripcord Association Reunion
I met Jeff about 15 years ago when he signed up to be interviewed for the Grand Valley State University Veterans History Project. He had a remarkable story, the climax of which, at least in his military career, was his participation in the campaign around Fire Support Base Ripcord in 1970. The campaign went badly wrong for a variety of reasons, and at a key moment when Jeff was commanding an infantry company, his superior officer gave him an order that would have gotten his men killed for no purpose. He refused the order, which essentially put paid to his military career, but made him a hero to his men. Jeff was actively involved with the Ripcord Association, whose membership were other veterans of that campaign, and he had contributed his story and photographs to the book written by Keith Nolan about the campaign. I used the book in my classes and brought Jeff in to talk with the students, and in 2011 he suggested that I attend one of their reunions. I've been attending ever since, and am now in the process of writing a new book about the campaign. Jeff's interview is accessible both on our YouTube channel and in our main online archive, both of which you can access via our project website at www.gvsu.edu/vethistory. I owe him a great debt, and feel privileged to have been able to record his story. ___ James Smithers
Jeff Wilcox (GVSU Veterans History Project)
https://youtu.be/A-O2l_BK7aQ?si=TAT2NcGOivnQkFdE
Charlie Company presents a Guidon Award to Jeff at our 2014 Ft. Campbell Reunion
The Charlie Comany Memorial Service for Ricky Scott
Bob Smoker with Jeff
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