STARK, LAWRENCE J.
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Name: Lawrence J. Stark
Rank/Branch: Civilian
Unit:
Date of Birth: 02 May 1935
Home City of Record: Chicago IL
Date of Loss: 01 February 1968
Country of Loss: South Vietnam
Loss Coordinates: 162734N 1073551E
Status (in 1973): Returnee
Category:
Aircraft/Vehicle/Ground: Ground
Other Personnel in Incident: Gostas, Theodore USA (released); Henderson,
Alexander CIV (released); Meyer, Lewis CIV (released); Olsen, Robert CIV
(Released); Page, Russell CIV (Released); Rander, Donald USA (Released);
Rushton, Thomas CIV (Released); Spalding, Richard CIV (Released); Daves,
Gary CIV (Released); Willis, Charles CIV (Released).
Source: Compiled by P.O.W. NETWORK 14 February 1997 from one or more of the
following: raw data from U.S. Government agency sources and information
provided by Ret. Major Gostas and Lawrence Stark.
REMARKS: 730305 Released by PRG
SYNOPSIS:
Stark was working in the northern part of South Vietnam during TET '68 when
Hue came under seige. Ret. Major Ted Gostas (135th MIBN PROV) recalls being
trapped without his radio in the city, and being unable to warn hundreds of
5th Marines as they walked into an ambush and their death. Government
records indicate Stark and 11 others were captured soon afterward. Ten of
those were civilians working with the Vietnamese.
Stark was held captive for 5 1/2 years prior to his release on March
05, 1973.



SOURCE: WE CAME HOME  copyright 1977
Captain and Mrs. Frederic A Wyatt (USNR Ret), Barbara Powers Wyatt, Editor
P.O.W. Publications, 10250 Moorpark St., Toluca Lake, CA 91602
Text is reproduced as found in the original publication (including date and
spelling errors).
UPDATE - 09/95 by the P.O.W. NETWORK, Skidmore, MO



LAWRENCE J. STARK
Civilian working for the Department of the Navy
Captured: January 31, 1968
Released: March 5, 1973
                      



I was born in Chicago on May 2, 1935. I attended St. Christiana's Grammar
School and St. Rita's High School. From 1953-57 I attended St. Joseph College,
Rensselaer, Indiana receiving a degree in Business Adminstration. I was
drafted into the Army in February 1958 and after spending two years in Germany
was honorably discharged.



In April 1966, I went to Vietnam with a construction firm as a labor
coordinator. This work terminated in 13 months. My next tour in Vietnam was as
a Navy civilian in Da Nang. After three  months, I went to Hue which is in the
northern part of South Vietnam, heading an industrial relations office which
had the responsibility of hiring Vietnamese to work for various military
organizations. It was while working in this capacity that Hue came under seige
and I was captured.



After spending two months in the hills outside of Hue and another month
enroute to the North, we arrived at a camp in North Vietnam. I was to be
imprisoned there and at other prisons in the North for the next five years. To
add to one's loneliness and feeling of helplessness, I was forced to spend
five months in solitary. Also, at no time during these five years was I able
to receive or send any communication.



A typical day would run something like this:



We would rise at 6:30 a.m. and after washing would have breakfast which
usually consisted of bread and a teaspoon of sugar with hot water. From about
7 a.m. until 10:30 a.m. we would do various things such as read (if material
was available which was not very often) or work on little projects such as
learning a foreign language. Lunch generally consisted of a bowl of soup with
a spinach-like vegetable and bread or rice. There was a little pork fat in the
soup. After lunch we would take a siesta from noon to 2:30 p.m. and then we
would work on our mental stimulation projects. Dinner would be the same as the
lunch and during the rest of the day we would just pass the time in
conversation with our roommates. Our conversations would be centered around
our families, friends, interesting experiences as well as hobbies, interests
and discussions of the fairer sex. At 9 p.m. we would retire for the night. I
was seldom asked to work and had very little recreation.



We did receive some news while we were in prison, but most of it was full of
propaganda, and there was very little said about the good things that were
happening in the United States, such as the moon flights. There was, however,
a great deal said about the bad things that were occurring in the States.



Upon returning to the United States I could not help but be aware of the
changes that had occurred in the area of dress, hair styling, the liturgy of
the Mass, and car styling to mention a few of the most obvious. But I have
been most pleasantly surprised by the public concern in political issues. In
thinking back I cannot recall such awareness before my capture. It is my
fervent hope that this concern is not temporary, but will be long lasting. I
firmly believe that good government requires an alert and demanding public It
is quite natural that our interest is on the POW-MIA issue, but let us not in
our generosity forget to pray for the veterans and especially the disabled
veterans of the Viet Nam conflict.



=======================
Larry lives in Maryland and is a activist with the LIVE POW issue. He has
testified before Congress, and has spoken across the county on the Prisoner
of War issue.


=====================



  

    

      
        

          


          
          
          http://www.dcmilitary.com/stories/010710/waterline_28126.shtml
          
Thursday, January 7, 2010

          

          ‘American hero’ awarded Purple Heart, POW medals
          

          
          

            

            

            

              

                

                By Darren Harrison NDW Public Affairs
              

            

          

          
          
          

            
            
More than 40 years after he was captured by
            Vietnamese forces and became a prisoner of war (POW), Lawrence J.
            Stark returned to the Washington Navy Yard Monday to accept his POW
            and Purple Heart medals.
            
Stark was one of only two Department of Defense
            civilian employees who were captured and he spent five years as a
            prisoner.
            
‘‘This gentleman lost half a decade of his life in 
			captivity and served as part of the Department of Defense when he 
			was captured,” said Assistant Secretary of the Navy Juan Garcia. 
			‘‘That kind of sacrifice is rare. We haven’t had anyone held for 
			that long in [recent] conflicts; it doesn’t happen like that 
			anymore. So it’s an honor to be here to meet and be part of a 
			ceremony for a real American hero.”
            
After fighting off attacks for two days, Stark was 
			finally captured on Feb. 1, 1968 during the Tet Offensive. He was 
			released five years later in March 1973. Members of Stark’s family, 
			in attendance for the ceremony, said that the family did not know 
			Stark’s fate until just before his release and his father died 
			without knowing that his son was a POW.
            
‘‘He was taken captive and really the family did not 
			know for sure if he was alive, if he had survived the capture until 
			shortly before his release in 1973,” said brother-in-law Richard 
			Flammini. ‘‘Unfortunately his father died during his captivity but 
			the family never gave up hope that he would come back and 
			fortunately he did and we are here today and really excited for the 
			opportunity to reward him for his service and his perseverance.”
            
Stark was working for the Department of Labor in 
			Washington, D.C. when he was invited to go to Vietnam and work for a 
			consortium of contractors (RMK-BRJ) under contract to DoD.
            
Stark accepted the invitation and went to Vietnam in 
			April 1966 and spent a year with RMK-BRJ before returning to the 
			United States. After a couple of months, Stark returned to Vietnam 
			and was hired as a U.S. Navy civil service employee.
            
Stark was assigned to work in the city of Hu? in 
			December 1967 and was taken prisoner two months later. At the time 
			of the capture, the five military personnel next door and the four 
			men in his house, combined forces and resisted capture. At the end 
			of two days of fighting, with practically no ammunition left with 
			which to defend themselves, two men had been killed and everyone 
			else was wounded.
            
‘‘How does a civilian become eligible for a Purple 
			Heart? People ask me that all of the time,” Stark said. ‘‘I tell 
			them that President Kennedy authorized the Purple Heart for 
			civilians in 1962 if certain conditions are met, one of which is you 
			had to be in combat. And we were in Hu?, and we were in combat. We 
			defended the Navy building and in the process lost a couple of guys 
			and most of the guys were wounded. They put a mortar right on the 
			roof and four or five of us happened to be right there. One guy who 
			was wounded died and the others all received wounds.”
            
Presenting the medals to Stark at the ceremony 
			inside the U.S. Navy Museum was Naval District Washington Commandant 
			Rear Adm. Patrick J. Lorge who paid tribute to Stark’s heroism.
            
‘‘As service men and women we are trained to react 
			during a time of conflict or crisis,” Lorge said. ‘‘However to 
			accomplish what Lawrence J. Stark did as a civilian is nothing short 
			of remarkable and deserves the highest possible recognition. I’m 
			proud to be in his presence and humbled to share this stage with him 
			and honored to present him with both the Purple Heart and Prisoner 
			of War medals.”
            
After his release Stark worked in the human 
			resources office on the Washington Navy Yard for former director of 
			Human Resources Dr. Vincent Vaccaro.
            
‘‘I am indeed honored and humbled that Larry has 
			asked me to speak this afternoon. First let me offer congratulations 
			for a long overdue recognition. I am extremely pleased today,’ 
			Vaccaro said. ‘‘One of our colleagues is finally being recognized 
			for his courage and achievements. I remember several years ago I was 
			a witness in a federal trial tied to a discrimination complaint and 
			while I was on the stand the opposing counsel asked me why I treated 
			Larry Stark differently than I treated some of the other employees. 
			Without hesitation I answered that Larry Stark is a national hero 
			and he had already suffered enough. There were no further 
			questions.”
            
‘‘Larry is a national hero and now he is receiving 
			the recognition he so justly deserves.”
            
In addition to receiving the two medals, two members 
			of the Rolling Thunder, Vietnam veterans Artie Muller and Michael 
			Cobb, presented Stark with a Rolling Thunder leather jacket and 
			declared him an honorary member.
            
‘‘It’s about time Larry was honored for his 
			commitment to the freedom of our country while he was in Vietnam. He 
			was never recognized with the POW medal and he deserved it and has 
			waited many, many years for that and also for the Purple Heart,” 
			Muller said.

          

        

      		
    

  




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