Vietnam Veteran Doug Miller Reflects on Thanksgiving Day at Fire Base Kien, 56 Years Later
Fifty-six years ago, on Thanksgiving Day in 1969, Vietnam veteran Doug Miller and his fellow soldiers of Delta Company gathered around a makeshift table at Fire Support Base Kien — a brief moment of warmth and tradition amid the constant tension of war.
Miller recalls that Thanksgiving with vivid clarity. During the day, Delta Company focused on resupply and preparing gear for their next mission. When night fell, they returned to duty, manning perimeter security around the fire base. They were also on standby as the Ready Reaction Force, prepared to respond immediately if any nearby units made contact with enemy forces.
Despite the ever-present danger, the men considered themselves fortunate that year. They were safe inside the wire, and they received something almost unheard of during their Vietnam tours: a hot Thanksgiving meal in a secure location. It would be the only holiday they didn’t spend deep in the jungle — “the bush,” as soldiers called it.
A photo from that day captures the moment around the dinner table. Identified in the picture, left to right, are Bud Lefevere, Miller himself standing in the back, Manny Pais, Pete Joyce, Charlie Scott (his chin visible in the photo), Doc Weeks, Don Deese, and Tim Pierson standing in the back. For a few hours, they shared food, laughter, and the fleeting comfort of normalcy.
But even on Thanksgiving, the war’s reality lingered. Miller still had 257 days left in “The Nam,” and time, he says, “seemed to be moving slowly.”
About Fire Support Base Kien
Fire Support Base (FSB) Kien, sometimes known as Firebase Mahone, was a U.S. Army installation in South Vietnam located south of the Dầu Tiếng Base Camp in Binh Duong Province. The name of the base was changed to Kien in the fall of 1969.
Like many fire bases in the region, Kien saw intense enemy action. In August 1968, the base was hit by a heavy mortar and RPG attack. Another significant ground assault occurred on May 31, 1970, highlighting the dangerous and volatile environment troops like Miller faced daily.
