Part V "Paddy" Putting Paddy to rest

Part V- Requiem for Paddy

 

 

                                                    Putting Paddy to rest

 

June 8^th, 2004

All Hands,

 

          Patrick M. Martin was buried this morning, Tuesday, June 8th, 2004, at the New Hampshire State Military Cemetery, on Rte. #3, just North of Concord, New Hampshire. Taps were played as he was interred. The headstone has been ordered and should arrive in 5-6 weeks. I list the location of the grave site below, so that each of you will know where he is buried. I think Paddy might have liked knowing that his family knew of his final resting place.

 

         Mary and I will be visiting the grave site, in Concord, N.H. on Sunday, June 26th. We will lay a wreath and two American Flags, on the grave site, on 

behalf of all of us.

 

         Vaya Con Dios.

                                                              Joey

 

 

                                                 From U.S. Veteran’s Grave locator site- Veteran’s Affairs dept.

40.         MARTIN, PATRICK M  

      PFC   US ARMY

      VIETNAM

      DATE OF BIRTH: 10/18/1942

      DATE OF DEATH: 03/03/2004

      BURIED AT: SECTION 1  ROW E  SITE 612

      NEW HAMPSHIRE STATE CEMETERY

      110 DANIEL WEBSTER HIGHWAY (RT3) BOSCAWEN, NH 03303

      

 

 

 

 

Dear Joe,

    I feel better that at least we know where Paddy is and someone has been there to pay our respects. 

    I am grateful to know that he will be honored as a veteran. His life had so little meaning after Viet Nam.

 

Love, Mary

 

 

 

 

 

                        A Visit with Paddy

 

Hi guys,

 

           Mary and I stopped by the Macawawn Veteran's Cemetery on Sat. It is about 20 miles North of Concord, N.H. The facility just opened in the late 1990's and is fairly "empty." A good-sized chapel and an Administration building flank an entry road, lined with American flags in a pine tree forest. A small traffic rotary is surrounded by section of small plots for Veterans like Paddy. We parked at the Chapel and soon found his temporary grave marker in section #1, row E, grave #612. His permanent headstone won't be installed for a few weeks yet.

 

 We placed two crossed American flags, a pot of flowers and a sheet of paper with his name and dates on it. We said a few prayers and remarked that though he was a long way from home, he will be honored and remembered here instead of some anonymous plot in Latin America.

 

Memories of my receipt of Paddy’s personal effects floated through my head. Paddy’s watch and old leather wallet had arrived at my home in Amherst, N.Y. The watch was a beat-up Timex, on its last legs. The aged leather wallet must have been worn for many years, The only item inside was a yellowed I.D. Card for Patrick M. Martin. It was odd for me to look at his visage. I had not seen Paddy in many years, yet the face was familiar to me,  if a much older one that I remembered. Thoughts of Paddy and his years with us on Seneca Parkside in South Buffalo drifted through my head. Whatever difficulties he had faced and however long he was gone, Paddy was “one of ours.” When my head clears, I will write of all of this, so that others in the family will know who and what he was. I will miss him.

 

           I then uttered a familiar Gaelic prayer and wished Paddy peace:

 

           May the Roads rise up to meet you, Paddy.

           And the winds be always at your back.

           And until we meet again, 

           May God hold you in the palm of his hand.

 

As we were leaving, we stopped by a small grove that is dedicated to NH Viet Vets. A few guys were setting up for a ceremony later that day. A NH's Vets remains had just been returned to them from the RVN after all this time.  They were to commemorate and bury him this afternoon.

 

I felt better after talking to these guys. They remembered their own. Paddy would be among men and women who had shared that awful experience in Southeast Asia. Now they are at rest. A light mist was falling as we left. I said goodbye for all of us and wished Paddy well on behalf of a family that remembered him. We have pictures of everything and will mail them out after we get copies made.

 

 We are still in Freeport Maine and won't be home till next Friday. Vaya Con Dios.

                                                        Joey

 

 

From:   Mary                               To:           jxmartin

Subject:         Pictures

Date:      Sun, 18 Jul 2004 15:19:36 +0000   

 

 

Dear Joe,

    Thanks for the pictures. It looks like a serene resting place after all the chaos of his life. It seems so far away but when I think of it all my loved ones are far away.

 

    I talked to Mother yesterday and mentioned I had had a mass said for Danny whose birthday was yesterday. She said she was just thinking of all the kids  and trying to figure out where they are. I prayed she wouldn't mention Paddy and she didn't. I don't mind not telling her but I don't want to lie about him.

 

    I'm still plugging away at the court trying to get access to the bank account. They wanted a surety bond which New Hampshire and Ca refused because of  out of state request. I asked to have the bond waved and it was if I would  sign $25,000 assurance that I would not make off with the funds.

 

    I pray that I do not lose my house pursuing this ongoing nightmare. Hopefully an end is in sight but it doesn't look like anytime soon. Michael, Linda and Nicholas visited last week and we were all together which is always fun. Enjoying the summer...

 

Love, Mary

 

 

       By late Summer, all of the issues surrounding Paddy’s passing had been resolved. He was interred in a respected Veteran’s Cemetery in New Hampshire. The family settled in to wait for the next human hailstorm that would inevitably sweep through our lives.