ROBERT
(
GARY
) KREK
Gary
Krek, Vice President and Web Administrator of the 22nd Infantry Regiment
Society, died on March 29, 2008 after a long fight with cancer.
Gary
Krek was assigned to the 2nd Battalion, 22nd Infantry, 4th Inf Division, in
Sept. of 1965 and was instrumental in the training of the new
draftees during the Basic Training at
Fort Lewis
,
WA
. On September 22, 1966 he was one of the original "Boat
People" who deployed by Navy ship to
Vietnam
, where the unit was stationed in
Dau Tieng
,
Vietnam
. He was an Infantry scout assigned to the Recon Platoon.
During his time in
Vietnam
, he fought in one of the largest battles of the war, the Battle of Soui Tre
on March 21, 1967 where his unit saved an American firebase from being overrun
and caused extremely heavy casualties to the attacking NVA and Viet Cong
forces.
In
addition to being a key member of the 22nd Infantry Regiment Society, Gary
was an active member of the 4th Infantry (Ivy) Division Association and an
officer of the Arizona Ivymen Chapter of the 4IDA. He served several
years as the Secretary/Treasurer for the Chapter.
After
the 22nd Infantry Regiment Society was reorganized in 1995, he volunteered to
be the Webmaster for the Society's Web Page. He made this web page,
http://www.22ndinfantry.org,
into one of the most outstanding sites on the World Wide Web. His
tireless efforts have produced an exceptional web site with information on all
facets of the unit from inception to current active duty troops. His
activities have been instrumental in locating many veterans of the 22nd
Infantry Regiment - from WWII, Cold War, Vietnam, and today.
Without his total dedication, the 22nd Infantry Regiment Society would not have
been as successful as we have been.
In
2001,
Gary
was named a Distinguished Member of the 22nd Infantry Regiment by
order of the Secretary of the Army. His
other awards include the Combat Infantryman’s Badge and several other
Vietnam service ribbons.
Gary
will be sorely missed by the members of the 22nd Infantry Regiment Society. He
truly lived our motto - Deeds not Words!
If you have a positive memory or comment about Gary Krek, his family would
love to hear it. You can send it to Gary's old email address at
hhc222@cox.net and
his family will get it.
