Korean-American Vietnam Vets Honor Bergen County Clerk John Hogan

County Clerk John Hogan of Northvale is honored Feb. 7 at the Fort Lee VFW for acknowledging the service and sacrifice of Korean-American veterans of the Vietnam War. | Photo courtesy Marla Aras.

BY JOHN SNYDER
OF NORTHERN VALLEY PRESS

Bergen County Clerk John S. Hogan is the recipient of the first Korean-American Vietnam War Veterans Association “True American Patriot” award, which recognizes Hogan’s work “acknowledging the dedicated service and sacrifice of Korean-American veterans who participated in the Vietnam War.”

Introduced by Freeholder Joan Voss at the Fort Lee VFW on Feb. 7, Hogan pointed out that South Korea was “our greatest ally during the Vietnam War,” with the number of troops from South Korea throughout the Vietnam War second only to the United States military force for foreign troops in South Vietnam.

Hogan added that approximately 320,000 South Korean troops, under the administration of Park Chung-hee, served alongside American troops in South Vietnam from 1964 until 1974 to stop the spread of Communism into South Vietnam.

He said of these troops, mostly men, that 5,099 were killed and another 10,962 were injured.

On hand to cheer their Democratic colleague were U.S Sens. Robert Menendez and Cory Booker, Rep. Bill Pascrell, State Sen. Loretta Weinberg, Assemblywoman Valerie Vainieri Huttle, Assemblyman Gordon Johnson, County Executive James J. Tedesco III, Sheriff Anthony Cureton, and the Bergen County Freeholders.

According to the Department of Defense, South Koreans deployed to South Vietnam were with the ROK Capital Mechanized Infantry Division (Tiger), 2nd Marine Brigade (Blue Dragon), and 9th Infantry Division (White Horse).

The average salary for service in Vietnam was $37.50 per month, higher than the base pay of $1.60 per month back home although much of it was taken by the Korean government, according to a J. William Fulbright Foreign Scholarship Board report.

Taekwondo to the rescue

In his remarks, Hogan noted the South Korean military particularly impressed Gen. James L. Jones, commandant of the U.S. Marine Corps, who had first served as a platoon commander in Vietnam, with their taekwondo skills in combat.

Hogan said Jones would go on to incorporate the techniques of taekwondo into the creation and development of the Marine Corps Martial Arts Program, which combines existing and new hand-to-hand and close quarters combat techniques with morale and team-building functions and instruction in the Warrior Ethos.

Brothers in arms

Barbara St. Martin Cho, communications director for the Korean-American Vietnam War Veterans Association, told Northern Valley Press on Feb. 13 the award “is a huge deal” to the regional Korean-American community, with several veterans coming from out of state to lend their support.

She said 2,800 former ROK troops who had boots on the ground in Vietnam survive as American citizens living in the United States, with approximately 200 in Fort Lee and about as many in the greater New York City area.

That’s in keeping with U.S. Census figures showing persons of Korean ancestry in Bergen County totaled 63,247, or 6.9 percent of the population, the greatest percentage for any county in the United States.

Of the ROKs, American troops in Vietnam sometimes called them “Rocks,” Cho said, and in turn they called their American partners “U.S.A.s.”

Cho explained that work is ongoing to get these veterans access to U.S. Veterans Administration care, including for complications for exposure to Agent Orange; membership to American veteran service organizations; and the right to state veteran license plates—disabled or otherwise.

Some related U.S. benefits have long been extended to other troops from nations allied with the United States in the United States Army Forces Far East, a military formation of the United States Army active 1941–1946.

A service-minded family

Reached for comment, Hogan, 61, a former mayor of Northvale, told Northern Valley Press that he is grateful for the award and is proud of his outreach with the Korean-American community.

He said that his father had 14 siblings and that all but one of the men in his family in that generation had served in combat.

He said one of his uncles was identified as killed in action in the Philippines in World War II. His family has been trying to recover his remains for the past four years.

Last year, Hogan extended Bergen County’s Veterans Service Card—which many business and organizations in Bergen County honor with discounts and offerings—to the former ROK troops who served with America and now are Americans living here.

Hogan said of extending the Veterans Service Card to this group, “It’s the first statewide acknowledgement of the service they made, the courage they showed, and their sacrifice. They served during difficult times and they should be entitled to something.”

He also had election ballots printed in Korean well before he was required to.

Veterans, note: To obtain a county Veterans Service Card, fill out an application and present a copy of your separation papers along with valid photo identification. There is no charge to do so.

For more information on veterans benefits, visit the Division of Veterans Services at https://co.bergen.nj.us/division-of-veterans-services.