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Retired USAF Master Sergeant, Roy G. Coggin, age 69, passed into heaven on Monday, January 30, 2017 at his home in Cooper City, FL after a long battle with health problems.
Roy is survived by his wife, Barbara Ammann and three children: Sean Coggin of Union City, PA; Noel Coggin of Lakebay, WA and Ian Brooks of Santa Maria, CA. He also leaves behind seven grandchildren: Devon Coggin, Brandon Coggin, Arianna Brooks, Keara Brooks, Jonathan Brooks and Rylee Coggin. He is also survived by his sister Andrea McQuain of Fort Collins, CO and two brothers, Bruce Coggin of Lompac, CA and Robert Coggin of Algona, WA.
Roy was born on December 26, 1947 at Eglin Air Force Base and is the oldest son of the late Colonel Roy J. Coggin and Francis Coggin. He attended Robert E. Lee High School in Springfield, VA and participated in track and field and was in an Acapella Choir. He graduated from General H.H. Arnold High School in Wiesbaden, Germany in 1967.
Roy enlisted into the United States Air Force in May of 1969 and was a supply specialist. Roy is a veteran of both Vietnam and Operation Desert Shield. His medals include the Purple Heart, Defense Meritorious Service Medal, Meritorious Service Medal, Air Force Commendation Medal, Army Commendation Medal and Air Force Achievement Medal. His last assignment before retiring in 1989 was to McDill Air Force Base in Tampa, FL where he served as Chief of Supply for Headquarters Central Command. He served 20 years with distinction. The discipline and patriotism he learned from the Air Force never left him, as friends and family will attest.
A memorial service will be held this Saturday, February 4, 2017 at 3 pm at New Horizon United Methodist Church in Southwest Ranches, FL. A full military honors ceremony will be held at the National Cemetery in Lake Worth, FL on Monday, February 27, 2017.
Living in the Florida Keys. Fishing in the Sportsfishing Capital of the World and playing golf when I can.
If you think you are beaten, you are;
If you think you dare not, you don't;
If you'd like to win but you think you can't,
You can almost be certain you won't,
If you think that you'll lose, you are lost,
For out in the world you will find
Success begins with a person's will;
It's all in the state of the mind.
If you think you're outclassed you are;
You've got to think high to rise.
You've just got to be sure of yourself
Before you can win the prize.
Life's battles don't always go
To a stronger or faster man;
But sooner or later the person who wins
Is the person that THINKS they can.
- Anon.
"The Mansions of the Lord"
Words by Randall Wallace
To fallen soldiers let us sing
where no rockets fly nor bullets wing
Our broken brothers let us bring
to the mansions of the Lord
No more bleeding no more fight
No prayers pleading through the night
just divine embrace, eternal light
in the mansions of the Lord
Where no mothers cry and no children weep
We will stand and guard tho the angels sleep
All through the ages safely keep the mansions of the Lord
Other Comments:
I grew up in the USAF and lived all over the world as either a dependent or on active duty. When we were in Nebraska, I saw the 1st KC-135 the AF received land at Offutt. Looking back, I couldn't have had it any better...just wish I have known that when I was younger..
With the exception of the Gettysburg Address by President Lincoln, this is from the greatest speech ever given by a president:
Let the word go forth from this time and place, to friend and foe alike, that the torch has been passed to a new generation of Americans -- born in this century, tempered by war, disciplined by a hard and bitter peace, proud of our ancient heritage, and unwilling to witness or permit the slow undoing of those human rights to which this nation has always been committed, and to which we are committed today at home and around the world.
Let every nation know, whether it wishes us well or ill, that we shall pay any price, bear any burden, meet any hardship, support any friend, oppose any foe, to assure the survival and the success of liberty.
This much we pledge -- and more.
This is why we fight in places like Vietnam and Iraq.
Throughout the summer and fall of 1970, USAF aircraft flew interdiction and close air support missions in Cambodia to help ensure that the major
towns and cities stayed in friendly hands. Gunships proved especially effective in defending Phnom Penh. the Cambodia: capital; the town of Kompong Chorn. 50 miles to the northeast; and Kompong Thom. about 65 miles north of the capital. On August 8 Cambodian troops, backed by USAF close air support, drove North Vietnamese forces from Sltoun, an important highway junction between Kornpong 1hom and Phnom Penh. Despite these efforts, Communist forces controlled about half of Cambodia by November and kept the highway closed between Phnom Penh and the seaport of Kompong Som, 100 miles to the southwest. The Cambodians had to resupply Phnom Penh and their troops by transporting goods up the Mekong River. and Allied aircraft escorted the river convoys to protect the ships from attack.
The chaotic military situation in Cambodia during 1970 closely resembled the one to the north in Laos. With the coming of another wet season. Laotian forces began 2 new offensives in an effort to wrest control of the Plain of Jars from the Pathet Lao and the North Vietnamese. 'l‘he first offensive occurred between August 2 and 23 and the second from August 31 to October 23. The Communist forces retreated slowly to the southeast rim of the plain. inflicting heavy losses on the Royal and irregular Laotian forces. During the Laotian offensives, the USAF provided close air support and continued to attack supply routes in both the northern and southern parts of the country.
In South Vietnam, the withdrawal of U.S. forces gained momentum. The USAF redeployed the 31st Tactical Fighter Wing to the United States in
September, 1970 and inactivated or redeployed several of its A-1, A-37, and F-105 squadrons. Meanwhile, on September 1, Gen. Lucius D. Clay. Ir.. assumed command of the Seventh Air Force. Six weeks later, on October 12, President Richard M. Nixon announced that the U.S. would withdraw 40,000 more troops from South Vietnam by December 1, 1970. leaving about 33S.(510 military personnel in the country. Subsequently, in November, the USAF redeployed 2 tactical reconnaissance squadrons from South Vietnam to the United States.
Whatever the rate of U.S. disengagement. intense fighting continued. The Allies mounted a helibome. multi-brigade operation between July 12 and August 5 to disrupt Communist transportation networks in the mountainous border area near the Kharn Due airstrip, only 55 miles southwest of Da Nang. Allied ground forces received extensive close air and airlift support from the Seventh Air Force. but reported few contacts with the enemy.
Later in the year, on November 21, the USAF and the U.S. Army attempted to rescue U.S. prisoners of war believed held at Son Tay, a
prison camp 70 miles northwest of Hanoi. Two C-130s led a rescue force of helicopters and A-1 aircraft from bases in Thailand to Son Tay,
while F-105Fs suppressed North Vietnamese surface-to-air missiles. The C-130s illuminated the prison compound and marked targets for the A-1s‘ suppressive fire while 1 helicopter crash landed in the compound and the rest landed outside. The raiders found no POWs and withdrew without loss of personnel, although the helicopter in the compound was blown up and 1 F-IO5F was destroyed by enemy fire.
A few hours after the Son Tay raid, some 200 U.S. tactical aircraft, supported by 50 other airplanes, bombed SAM sites, antiaircraft gunsites, and supply and transport facilities in North Vietnam near the Mu Gia and the Ban Karai Passes, and in the DMZ. Within a few days, on November 25, 1970, the North Vietnamese and Viet Cong delegation again boycotted the Paris peace negotiations.