Jerry West was born in Fresno, California

in 1946. He graduated from Kerman

Union High School in 1964 and

after a semester at Fresno State College

he joined the US Marine Corps in

February, 1965. He went through

Boot Camp in San Diego and Fleet Radio

School at Norfolk, Virginia before

volunteering for duty in Vietnam where

he arrived in December of 1965.

West served 19 months in RVN with the

Third Marine Division, mostly with the

12th Marine Regiment in Kilo and

Echo Batteries. From January to July,

1967, West served as an Artillery

Forward Observer with Echo Battery,

2nd Battalion, 12th Marines attached to

2nd Battalion, 9th Marines, an infantry

unit.

Upon leaving Vietnam West served for

three years in Iwakuni Japan before being

honorably discharged in September

of 1970 after two enlistment's. While

stationed in Japan Sergeant West became

an active organizer in the anti-Vietnam

War Movement and was an editor of

SEMPER FI, an underground GI

newspaper that published in Iwakuni for

over

five years.

After discharge from the Marine Corps

West returned to school at Fresno State

University and then transferred to UC

Berkeley where he earned a Bachelors

Degree in History with Honors in 1975,

and did two years of graduate work in

Japanese History.

West worked for many years in the

international tour industry and immigrated

to Canada in 1985. He moved to the

remote village of Gold River on the west

coast of Vancouver Island in 1988 where

he is currently the owner, editor

and publisher of THE RECORD

newspaper.

West is an occasional poet who has

written more than 35 poems since 1964.

The following were written while on patrol

as a Forward Observer in Vietnam in