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Allen Hoe, a Vietnam veteran, donated an American flag to be taken to Iraq by the 2-14 CAV, 2/25 SBCT. He is the father of 1LT Nainoa Hoe, who was killed in Iraq while serving with the 3-21 INF, 1/25 SBCT. The following articles describe the ceremony, and each is accompanied by photos and video.
By Gordon Y.K. Pang, Honolulu Advertiser
SCHOFIELD BARRACKS — A 40-year-old legacy in the form of a tattered yet proud American battle flag is being passed on.
During an emotional ceremony yesterday, Vietnam War veteran Allen Hoe entrusted the flag to leaders of the 2nd Squadron, 14th Cavalry, 2nd Stryker Brigade Combat Team of the 25th Infantry Division. The squadron, like other Stryker troops, is leaving Schofield next month for a 15-month deployment in Iraq.
The 400-member squadron is headed by Col. Thomas Mackey, who was once commanding officer to 1st Lt. Nainoa Hoe, Allen Hoe's son. The younger Hoe, 27, a 1995 Kamehameha Schools graduate, was killed by a sniper as he led a patrol in Mosul, Iraq, in January 2005. The flag was with him when he died.
Mackey asked Allen Hoe for permission to take the flag to Iraq as inspiration for his troops, "so they could be tied to that legacy of warriors that had come before us as well," Mackey said.
"That connection between my platoon leaders and sergeants carrying that flag on patrol is connected to his son and other warriors who have taken that flag to other war zones and it makes it a very unique and special flag."
A SOUVENIR FROM 1967
The flag was bought by a 21-year-old Allen Hoe in 1967 from a souvenir shop outside a U.S. military base in Chu Lai, Vietnam, and has "sort of taken on a life of its own," Allen Hoe told division leaders. Draped over the podium as Hoe told his story, it was clear the faded flag had seen better days.
Hoe said that as his company's medic, he had the biggest bag to carry and thus was entrusted with the flag.
On Mother's Day 1968, Hoe's unit sustained heavy casualties during a battle. Among those killed was Hoe's superior, Lt. Frederick Ransbottom.
Hoe's surviving Army mates asked him to hold onto the flag until Ransbottom's body was recovered.
"When Nainoa went to Iraq, he had shared the story of this flag with his young sergeants and they asked him to ask if I would send the flag to them in Mosul in honor of my lieutenant, who at that time was still missing in action and I thought that was an awesome tribute and so we sent the flag forward," Allan Hoe said. "And so Nainoa and his men carried the flag with them for a couple months. And then he was carrying the flag with him when he was killed in January 2005."
[...]
Related Article:
Storied Flag Will Fly Again - KHNL News