Gerald Przyblinski
Lance Corporal Przybylinski died from small arms fire defending his battery on a small hilltop, a fire-support base named LZ Russell.
The fight for LZ Russell was one night; one fierce battle between North Vietnamese soldiers and United States Marine Corps Infantry and artillerymen. A fighting combination for the Marine Corps that had increased throughout 1968 into 1969.
One might consider "one night" as an engagement that would not leave the emotional scars of prolonged battle but these hilltop fights had become anything but "one night stands."
Facing superior enemy numbers, the Marines, infantry and artillery, fought in some cases, hand-to-hand, holding their position.
From the "fires of combat" they forged life-long bonds. They would always remember those who fell that night, their suffering was over; the living had to go on...
