By Barbara Palmgren
Once in a lifetime, one has a privilege of viewing a piece of history that comes to life so it is not just a memory. I was honored to sit in the presence of four gentlemen who shared personal experiences of defending freedom 50 years ago.
On Saturday, July 25, 2025 at the Heritage Museum of Northwest Florida, William Clifton, Air Force Special Operations Command History Office, introduced the panel of veterans who served in the Vietnam War. These outstanding patriots were from three branches of the military: General Charles (Chuck) Horner, U.S. Air Force; Col. Bill Keeler, U.S. Air Force; Major Charles (Chuck Merkel), U.S. Army; and SFC Jimmie Baugh U.S. Marines.
The four-person panel conveyed stories that brought both tears and laughter to members of the audience. Each was dedicated to this mission of freedom. Several have close ties even today with those they view as Vietnamese brothers and sisters.
After the presentation, everyone was invited to a free lunch graciously catered by Tom Rice and Magnolia Grill. Museum volunteers served food and drink. The museum was open at no charge so guests could roam through various exhibits and view the beautiful pollinator garden behind the Discovery Room exhibit.
In the audience was Kim Develett who had traveled from California to spend another few precious minutes with Col. Bill Keeler and his wife, Virginia. Col. Keeler talked about his part of being in charge of the Vietnam Refugee Camp immediately established after the fall of Saigon in April, 1975. Kim was only a small child but remembers the camp and the water tower behind the tents. Kim organized a reunion on May 3 of this year for over 40 former refugees who were at the camp. They came to the Vietnam Refugee Camp exhibit at the museum on a Saturday and visited the camp site on Eglin Air Force Base on Sunday.
Eglin was one of three refugee camps that housed over 11,000 refugees for a period of five months. Imagine not knowing the language of a new country, of suddenly fleeing for your life, of arriving in the darkness on a plane and not knowing what would happen when you stepped out onto an entirely new landscape. But there was Col. Keeler with a red hat and a translator leading everyone to a bus to take them to safety and a new life.
The exhibit at the Heritage Museum will be available for viewing through mid-December of 2025. Please come and see this remarkable story organized in three phases from the beginning of their journey to the end when everyone had obtained a sponsor somewhere in the United States. View personal oral histories videotaped and available for viewing by Barbara Palmgren and Mike Weaver. View Col. Keeler’s personal documents and photos with every copy of the daily Dot Moi newspaper written in both English and in Vietnamese. This daily paper was important to communicate military events and personal items like recipes, births and marriages.
The Heritage Museum of Northwest Florida is located at 115 Westview Ave in Valparaiso Florida and open Tuesday through Saturday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
