Vietnam veteran Robert Aurand of Norcross didn't talk much about his war experiences, but he sure was proud to have served his country.
He was active in local veterans groups, especially those involving Vietnam vets, and he rarely missed marching in the annual Georgia Veterans Day Parade.
But his closest friends, his grown sons and even his wife, Jody Herpin, couldn’t tell you the details of his war heroism, though he had the medals and discharge papers as proof.
There was the Silver Star, the third highest medal awarded for valor when facing an enemy in combat; three Bronze Medals, including one with a Valor device given for combat heroism; and a Purple Heart with two clusters for the three times he was wounded.
There were others as well, said his wife, reading from her husband’s official military discharge papers.
“He was very proud of his service. He proudly wore his hat that said he was a Vietnam vet. He just didn’t talk about it very much,” said Mrs. Herpin, also of Norcross.
“He used to say the guys who go around talking about [Vietnam] were the ones who weren’t in it,” said his son, Mike Aurand of Tucker.
Robert E. Aurand, 64, died of a heart attack April 16 at the Atlanta Veterans Affairs Medical Center in Decatur. He had been in the hospital for the past six weeks. His wife said his health began declining after he suffered a stroke a year ago.
Memorial services are Sunday at 4 p.m. at Fischer Funeral Care in Atlanta. Internment and full military honors will be held at a later date at Arlington National Cemetery in Washington D.C., his wife said.
Mr. Aurand grew up in New Jersey and enlisted in the U.S. Army in 1966. He served as a captain with the 25th Infantry Division in Vietnam from 1968 through 1969. After being wounded in combat, he served the remainder of his military commitment in the Army Reserves.
Dick Anke of Roswell met Mr. Aurand in a local pub about 20 years ago. The two Vietnam vets had a lot in common and became fast friends, but even Mr. Anke didn’t know the details of his friend’s military record.
“He never really talked about his experiences, but mentioned them in very casual terms,” Mr. Anke said. “I know he had a plate in his head, and he was just punctured all over.”
At times, his battle scars were a matter of levity.
Once, a doctor misread the metal plate as being a brain tumor. Mr. Aurand went around sharing the diagnosis and received plenty of sympathy and free drinks before the truth came out and everyone had a good laugh, Mr. Anke recalled.
“This guy was so full of life. You weren’t going to put him down,” Mr. Anke said.
Another longtime friend and fellow veteran Bryan Tate of Dunwoody said Mr. Aurand was active in the Atlanta Vietnam Veterans Business Association, a nonprofit group organizing memorials for fallen Vietnam War heroes.
He was also involved with the Roswell VFW Post, even serving for a time as its commander.
Mr. Aurand moved to Atlanta in 1978 with a job transfer, his son said. He was retired from Walden Security, and before that owned several businesses in the technology software industry, his wife said.
He is preceded in death by his former wife, Amanda, who died in 2007. He met Mrs. Herpin two years ago and they married in April 2010.
Other survivors include another son, Matt Aurand of Dallas; a sister, Gale Kenyon of Punta Gorda, Fla.; a brother, Chuck Aurand of Birmingham; and one grandson.
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