bennycash-2

I made a decision to speak with Benny's family about him. I thought that they needed to know what happened
to him from one of the last people to see him alive. And, I guess too, for me to get some closure about him.
Below are the comments on the WALL and email's.

kerry pardue
kerrypardue@hotmail.com

Fresno, ca 33 years ago tomorrow night
Dear Benny, Hello, my friend, I am so glad that I am able to write you like this. I finally kept the promise I made to myself and got
in touch with your family. You can sure tell that they love you and miss you, and really look up to you. They seem very nice
Benny. I spoke a long time with your sister Annette and your brother Don. I didn't get to speak with your sister Loretta but I will
or to your best friend Bobby Clark or your wife. I did speak with your niece Debbie, she was very kind to me. I sure wish I had
done this sooner so that I could have talked to your Dad & Mom. You are not forgotten at all and they are SO PROUD of you. I am
thankful to you for pushing me down. I've missed telling you thank you for that before you died. THANKS MY BROTHER I
LOVE YOU.
Doc pardue
Sunday, April 29, 2001

Bobby Cook
bobby@hcdirect.com
Good friend
PO. Box 362
Ashville, Al 35953 USA
Hello good friend.
We finally meet again. I have missed you my Friend. Not much has change here in Ashville. Things have gotten bigger and more
confusing. I go to your grave site occasionally to say hi. I spent some time looking for you in Viet Nam. But when I found you it was
too late. I was waiting for my orders to return to the states. I wanted to warn you about Charlie. You know now he has many faces.I
was wounded three times myself, but I beat Charlie. I made it home. Sometimes I wonder if I beat him or not. The only winners of
that war were the people selling ammo and caskets. I received a message from your friend the "Doc". This is how I found you. He
tried to take care of you, but someone needed you more than we did. I will stay in touch now that I have found you again. I love you
and miss you my BROTHER.
Monday, April 30, 2001

From: WDumais@aol.com
To: kerrypardue@hotmail.com
Subject: Benny Dale Cash's Niece
Date: Sun, 29 Apr 2001 23:23:25 EDT

Kerry Pardue,
Thank you for contacting my mother, Annette, this evening by phone. I was
thankful that I happened to be there on a visit. We were also thankful to
talk to you and we wished that we could have talked to you before now. It was
a surprise moment to hear from someone who knew Dale from Vietnam. Tomorrow
(April 30) will mark the anniversary of his death.
As I mentioned on the phone, I was 9 years old when my Uncle Dale was
shot and killed. I have very vivid memories of that time. I am the oldest of
the grandchildren of his parents' lineage and I am his only niece. In 1968,
his nephews were all younger than me or had not been born yet. So, I am able
to share a lot of Dale's memories with my mother and her siblings. My
grandparents had a difficult time for the rest of their lives with the
acceptance of losing their youngest son in Vietnam. My grandfather died in
1981 and my grandmother died in 1994. They are both buried beside Dale.
To help keep my uncle's memory alive, I wrote an article in a genealogy
book about his life. The name of the book is The Heritage of St. Clair
County, Alabama. I used the information that was given to the family about
his time in Vietnam. I will gladly send you a copy of the article if you are
interested in it.
Please feel free to share any more memories of Dale with me. Even though,
Benny was his first name, he was Uncle Dale to me.
Again, thank you for calling my mother.
Take care and keep in touch.
Debbie Dumais
wdumais@aol.com

From: "kerry pardue" <kerrypardue@hotmail.com
To: WDumais@aol.com
Subject: Re: Benny Dale Cash's Niece
Date: Sun, 29 Apr 2001 21:12:20 -07

Debbie,

Thank you for your kind words. I just wish that there was some way we never had to go through this part of our life's. Each year
Dale's date of his death has always been hard for me. Of course, I know that his family suffered alot more than I did, in particular his
mom and dad. I wrote his mom once but I don't know if she ever got the letter she never wrote back. Hopefully, we will all
understand the scarifies families made to their Country . I am very proud to have served with your Uncle Dale and we are free
nation because of his service. He will never be forgotten because he is a part of my heart and all that I am. He was a hero is every
sense of the word. He reached out to push me down when the bullets started flying and because of him doing that I am alive today.
God bless America and your family. My prayers will always be with you all.
Doc Pardue

Message left at www.thewall-usa.com