“To honor Dad’s service to our country, we (his four children, spouses and families) decided to have his name engraved on the Wall of Honor,” said Christy Duprey, the Army veteran’s oldest daughter.

The family took him on a surprise trip to the park on Father’s Day this year, where they presented him with the plaque that reads: Harry J. Uhl, SGT US Army Vietnam, Bronze Star.

“The surprise not only moved our dad to tears, but left him speechless,” she said. “If you know our dad, that’s no small feat.”

Uhl was invited by the park to be one of five veterans honored at the Veterans Day induction ceremony where his speech shared some of his life-altering experiences in Vietnam and his unwavering love for his country. Fourteen family members attended, including his four children, who stood beside their father as he read the following speech:

Harry J. Uhl, left, is presented with the Wall of honor certificate by Don Alessi, chairman of the board of directors at the Buffalo and Erie County Military and Naval Park on Veterans Day. Photo by Beverly Kehe-Rowland

“Good morning, family and friends. I am Harry Uhl from Randolph. I was drafted into the army in September 1965. After four months of basic and advanced infantry training, I was on my way to Vietnam. I was assigned to the 1st Infantry Division, stationed north of Saigon near the Iron Triangle.

“My life was about to change forever. Our division was sent into the jungles and swamps. We had to carry heavy web gear, including 81mm mortars and shells and other ammo. Sometimes for thirty days at a time, we would be out with very little sleep, no showers, no change of clothes, sometimes with only the food we carried. Our only source of drinking water was leech and insect-infested rivers and swamps. At night we would have to dig fox holes and gun pits, not knowing if we would be sitting ducks for the enemy. I would write letters to home using a red-lens flashlight in the bottom of the fox hole.

“War is horrible and no one, unless he has lived it, can even imagine what it’s really like. No days were good, but one day will be etched forever in my memory. It was Oct. 3, 1966. We had been unloading choppers from midnight to 3 am and carrying supplies along paths. Around 6 a.m., we were preparing to move out. Two soldiers walked the path I had walked all night. One of the men stepped on a mine.

“It blew off his leg and put a hole in the back and through the heart of the one in front of him. My buddy, Greg McKeague, fell dead. Every day I still see him fall, still feel the concussion in my chest, still see the dust fly and still smell the explosives. It should have been me.

“A few hours later, a mine blew beside the personnel carrier we were riding on, blowing us up into the air. I fell upside down into the hatch. We soon realized that some of us had broken eardrums. Minutes later, we encountered an extremely dangerous area. We knew the enemy was all around us. We saw a blue cord and knew if we passed over it we were done. I was ordered to follow the command-detonated cord and cut it. I said I would, knowing every second could very well be my last. With a pistol and wire cutters in hand, I crawled approximately 50 meters.

“While fearing a bullet, mine or grenade, I cut the cord. After crawling back to my squad, I was then ordered to blow the round in front of us. After starting to move again, a booby-trapped round got the personnel carrier ahead of us and three wounded soldiers had to be evacuated out. That night, not knowing it, we slept on or near enemy tunnels.

“It was truly only by God’s grace that I survived Vietnam. Months later, while stationed at Fort Bragg with the 82nd Airborne, I received the Bronze Star for service above and beyond the call of duty in Vietnam. I proudly served my country, but war is hell and freedom is so precious. I thank God every day for our country, for the flag that represents it, and for our freedom.

“Today, I thank my wife, four children and their families for putting my name on the Wall of Honor. They have heard these stories and many, many more during their lifetimes. They love and respect their country and know that freedom comes with a price. Thank you to those at the Buffalo and Erie County Naval and Military Park for allowing me this honor. God bless you.”

The ceremony was attended by several dignitaries including Lt. Governor Kathy Hochul, Assemblyman Mickey Kearns, Erie Country District Attorney John Flynn and Senator Timothy Kennedy.

The Randolph resident received a standing ovation after he gave his very moving speech and was greeted with the words ” Welcome Home” from many after the ceremony ended.

“I am usually in bed earlier, but I sat up at eleven o’clock thinking ‘What just happened to me,'” the 72 year old man said.

He was asked to read his speech at East Randolph United Methodist Church, the church his family has attended for the last 40 years, where the congregation gave him another standing ovation while wiping tears from their cheeks.

“I cry every time I hear the story,” said Tammy Johnson, another of the man’s children.

Harry Uhl is the husband of Cathy Uhl. They have for children, Christy Duprey, Tammy Johnson, Sheri Lienhart and Cody Uhl.