George T. Farawell was born on January 27, 1949, to George and Mary Farawell. George was an ardent sportsman. He excelled in many sports. He played third base and pitched two years on the starting varsity team at Linden High School. In 1965, he pitched with the Betsytown Post 1862 VFW team that won the intra-county baseball championship. George also played PAL baseball, basketball and on CYO teams. He graduated from Linden High School in 1966.

George left Linden and entered the US Army in August 1968. He attained the rank of Private First Class (PFC). He received his basic training at Ft. Dix, NJ. He was sent to Vietnam on January 19, 1969. He served with the 199th Light Infantry Brigade, Delta Company 4/12. He was stationed in Long Binh. He had served only 8 weeks of his tour of duty as a rifleman and radio-telephone operator when he was mortally wounded by a land mine on March 18, 1969, in Gia Dinh, South Vietnam.

Farawell was awarded the Purple Heart, the Army Commendation Medal, the Good Conduct Medal, the National Defense Service Medal, the Combat Infantryman Badge and the Republic of Vietnam Campaign Ribbon.

Farawell was survived by his parents, sister, Patricia and brother, Stephen.

George Thomas Farawell was just an average nineteen-year-old boy from a middle class New Jersey family when he was drafted into the Army and shipped to Vietnam in 1969. He had only served eight weeks of his tour of duty when he fell victim to a land mine. He was with the 199th Light Infantry Brigade, Delta Company 4/12.

My brother wrote twenty-five wonderful letters to mom, dad, my husband and myself in those eight short weeks. In this book, I will share his letters. These precious letters faded with time, some written in pencil and on all different types of paper, he was always trying to reassure us that he was ok. If your loved one did not write, these could be your letters.

My hope is to find Glenn, George’s bunker buddy who was wounded on 16 March 69. I still have not found him. I hope someone will read this book and say I know “him”.

George and I were only fifteen months apart and we were very close, we even shared a best friend, Richard, with who I have kept in touch over the years. I was reading George’s letters recently and thought no one else has ever read these wonderful pieces of his heart written during the last days of his life. I wanted to share them with family and friends.

Taken in part from A Redcatcher’s Letters from Nam
Written by Patricia Farawell Enyedy, Sister

Sources: Patricia Farawell Enyedy (sister) and NJVVMF.
12/17/2024