American veteran Pete Pepper, who fought in the Viet Nam war in the 1960s, recently arrived in Da Nang.  A local reporter came across him and had an informal talk with him at a coffee shop on Bach Dang Street to learn more about this special American.

Having left the Viet Nam battlefield, Mr Pepper graduated from the University of Hawaii in 1971 with a Bachelor's degree in creative communications.  Most notably, Mr Pepper is the producer, screenwriter and director of an internationally renowned documentary film entitled 'Killing Memories' which received high praise from film reviewers at the Hope and Freedom Film Festival 2011 in California.

Mr Pepper

In the 85-minute film, Mr Pepper shared a powerful story of personal tragedy, comradery and redemption.  The film explores a personal and shared journey to the Viet Nam battlefield by 5 American veterans who fought in the war.

Mr Pepper’s story begins with the death of his wife, Ann.  She was born in New York but her family moved to Clark Air Base in the Philippines shortly after her birth, where she lived until leaving to go to college in the US. 

Like other retired couples, Mr Pepper and his wife had sought out a beautiful place to live, and then moved from San Jose to a remote spot in Sonoma County where they thought they could re-invent themselves. 

In 2004, Ann committed suicide with a gun her husband bought in 1965 when he volunteered for duty in Viet Nam, which haunted him for a long time.  “At that time, I was in the darkest place I had ever experienced, living alone in the months after Ann's death, blaming myself for not being able to stop what happened, and wishing, hoping that I could find some way to evaporate.  Was I suicidal? In so far as I no longer wanted to live, yes.  Obviously, because I lived through that, I didn't die.  One of the biggest things which prevented my own death was the contact with my men”, he said.

In the midst of his darkest hours, Mr Pepper flew to Chicago to meet with three of the men, all of whom later appeared in the film.  He started going to reunions of their military unit, the First Brigade of the 101st Airborne Division, and he met other comrades.  Ultimately, because he had returned to Viet Nam in 2002 with his son and had a good experience, he proposed a trip for him and his men in the hope that it would be therapeutic for them too.

The film features touching scenes of the American veterans meeting with their former enemies in Viet Nam, and exchanging warm hugs and smiles.  The US visitors were deeply touched by the friendly and kind-hearted Vietnamese people.

Mr Pepper remarked that Viet Nam should have taught him and his men that the effects of war do not disappear when the soldiers come home.  The fact that Vietnamese veterans still suffer from what they were asked to do all these years later ought to inform the public that the current veterans will carry their burden for decades.  For him, the bottom line is that if they are to make war, the cost of that war ought to be shared by everyone, not just the few who fight it.

The American veteran intends to write a book on his previous visits to Da Nang, and Viet Nam as a whole.  He promised to ensure there would be many pages about this beautiful seaside city in his coming book.