Reginald Flack was born on August 15, 1946, in Norwalk, CT, to Herbert and Mary Flack. He grew up in Miami, FL, before moving to Fort Lee, NJ, in 1962. His home of record is Fort Lee, NJ. He had two brothers, Tom and Steven, and one sister. He graduated from Fort Lee High School in 1965. Reginald was to marry Carol Yudiskas upon his return from Vietnam.
Flack was drafted into the US Marine Corps in March 1966, and attained the rank of Private First Class (PFC). He was assigned to A Company, 1st Battalion, 12th Marines. Before going to Vietnam, Flack was sent to the Philippines to learn the techniques of amphibious assault.
Flack was killed in action on May 20, 1967, when trying to secure a beachhead in Quang Tri, near the Demilitarized Zone.
He is buried in Madonna Cemetery in Fort Lee.
The following is an except from a letter dated May 26, 1967, to Flack’s parents, from David J. Harrington, Captain, US Marine Corps Reserve:
Reginald, as you know, was a crewman on a 105 Howitzer Gun Crew. On 18 May 1967, the Battalion Landing Team was assigned to evacuate civilians and conduct search and destroy operations in the southern portion of the Demilitarized Zone. “A” Battery 1st Battalion 12th Marines was assigned the mission of furnishing artillery support for Battalion Landing Team, 1st Battalion 3rd Marines. On 20 May 1967, the Battery was subjected to heavy artillery fire from the enemy and Reginald was seriously wounded by fragments. Our Medical Corpsman administered first aid immediately, but he failed to respond and died of his multiple wounds at approximately 1030 AM. The last rites of the church were received by Reginald from Commander V.J. Ivers, a US Navy Chaplain, just before his death.
Reginald was one of the finest young Marines I had ever known. His exemplary conduct, and singular determination to do every job well were qualities that all of us respected. We will miss him and hope you will find some comfort in knowing this.
Sources: Herbert and Mary Flack (parents) and NJVVMF.
12/17/2024
