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MAJ Mark E Cooper
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Lupyak, Joseph (Joe), CSM USA(Ret).
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Command Sergeant Major (Retired) Joseph Lupyak enlisted in the Army in February 1951, and after a distinguished career spanning over 30 years of active service, he retired in September 1980.
Mr. Lupyak's military career has included a wide variety of worldwide assignments from Fort Bragg to Germany, Panama, Korea, and Vietnam. He was assigned to the 11th Airborne Division in February 1951 and completed jump school in May 1951.In October 1951 he was assigned to the 15th Infantry Regiment, 3d Infantry Division, in Korea. He served for 13 months in Korea and participated in numerous operations during the Korean War.
In 1957 Mr. Lupyak was an instructor in the USARCARIBE School in Panama, and in 1959, he attended the Missile Electronic School at Fort Sill, Oklahoma, before being assigned to a British Missile Warhead Detachment in Dortmund, Germany in 1960.
Other assignments include the Sergeant Major for the Advisory Group, Ohio National Guard; Command Sergeant Major of the 27th Airborne Engineer Battalion; Command Sergeant Major, Hawk Missile Battalion, Korea; and Command Sergeant Major, 3d Battalion, 325th Infantry Brigade, 82d Airborne Division.
Mr. Lupyak's Special Forces experiences began early in the history of Special Forces. He joined the 77th Special Forces Group (Airborne) in February 1954. He served in Detachment A Berlin in the early 60's; served in both 7th and 3d Special Forces Groups; participated in the Son Tay Raid in 1970; and served with 5th Special Forces Group (Airborne) in the Republic of Vietnam. He was selected as the Command Sergeant Major for 5th Special Forces Group (Airborne) in 1976 and served in that position until his retirement in September 1980.
After retiring, Mr. Lupyak worked overseas for 2 years, and in 1983, became one of the first civilian instructors hired for the newly acquired positions in the Special Forces School. He moved to the position of Assistant Operations Officer/Training Officer for 1st Battalion, 1st Special Warfare Training Group (Airborne) in 1984. Mr. Lupyak currently holds the position of Branch Chief of the Special Forces Qualification Course for the Training Development Division in the United States Army John F. Kennedy Special Warfare Center and School.
Mr. Lupyak has an Associate Degree in Business and is a member of the Honor Society. He is a past President of Special Forces Chapter 62, Special Forces Museum Association, and Son Tay Raid Association. He is Distinguished NDIA Lifetime Member for Special Operations and Low Intensity Conflict, He is a Distinguished Member of the 1st Special Forces Regiment and a Member of the Special Forces Hall of Fame. He has also been awarded the Gold Order of St Philip Neri Award by the Special Forces Association. He was the distinguished citizen of the year in his hometown in Forest City, PA. His awards include the Silver Star, Bronze Star with Valor device with cluster, Legion of Merit, Air Medal w/cluster, Vietnamese Cross of Gallantry w/Palm, Combat Infantryman Badge with Star, and Master Parachutist Badge.
Mr. Lupyak is married to the former Goldy Hatgi of Panama. They have one son, Richard.
Vietnam War/Tet Counteroffensive Campaign (1968)
From Month/Year
January / 1968
To Month/Year
April / 1968
Description This campaign was from 30 January to 1 April 1968. On 29 January 1968 the Allies began the Tet-lunar new year expecting the usual 36-hour peaceful holiday truce. Because of the threat of a large-scale attack and communist buildup around Khe Sanh, the cease fire order was issued in all areas over which the Allies were responsible with the exception of the I CTZ, south of the Demilitarized Zone.
Determined enemy assaults began in the northern and Central provinces before daylight on 30 January and in Saigon and the Mekong Delta regions that night. Some 84,000 VC and North Vietnamese attacked or fired upon 36 of 44 provincial capitals, 5 of 6 autonomous cities, 64 of 242 district capitals and 50 hamlets. In addition, the enemy raided a number of military installations including almost every airfield. The actual fighting lasted three days; however Saigon and Hue were under more intense and sustained attack.
The attack in Saigon began with a sapper assault against the U.S. Embassy. Other assaults were directed against the Presidential Palace, the compound of the Vietnamese Joint General Staff, and nearby Ton San Nhut air base.
At Hue, eight enemy battalions infiltrated the city and fought the three U.S. Marine Corps, three U.S. Army and eleven South Vietnamese battalions defending it. The fight to expel the enemy lasted a month. American and South Vietnamese units lost over 500 killed, while VC and North Vietnamese battle deaths may have been somewhere between 4,000 and 5,000.
Heavy fighting also occurred in two remote regions: around the Special Forces camp at Dak To in the central highlands and around the U.S. Marines Corps base at Khe Sanh. In both areas, the allies defeated attempts to dislodge them. Finally, with the arrival of more U.S. Army troops under the new XXIV Corps headquarters to reinforce the marines in the northern province, Khe Sanh was abandoned.
Tet proved a major military defeat for the communists. It had failed to spawn either an uprising or appreciable support among the South Vietnamese. On the other hand, the U.S. public became discouraged and support for the war was seriously eroded. U.S. strength in South Vietnam totaled more than 500,000 by early 1968. In addition, there were 61,000 other allied troops and 600,000 South Vietnamese.
The Tet Offensive also dealt a visibly severe setback to the pacification program, as a result of the intense fighting needed to root out VC elements that clung to fortified positions inside the towns. For example, in the densely populated delta there had been approximately 14,000 refugees in January; after Tet some 170,000 were homeless. The requirement to assist these persons seriously inhibited national recovery efforts.