Collace Baird of Stroud was 19 years old when he enlisted in the army and made his first tour in Vietnam.
Collace Baird is not a hero. According to Baird, he did what he had to stay alive and keep his friends alive.
At least, that is his opinion on being chosen as the Grand Marshall for the Chandler Veteran’s Day parade and festivities.
Baird was one of two machine gunners for an army helicopter crew during his second tour to Vietnam. He received a bronze star with valor for outstanding leadership while under fire, Chandler’s American Legion commander Jimmy Keene said. Baird volunteered for that tour.
Baird said they took troops or supplies in and out of the field if need be. He would jump off the machine gun and help wounded troops get to the helicopter, which would then take them to a medical facility, Keene said.
It was a hard transition from touring in Vietnam to coming home, Baird said. Coming off the plane from his first tour, a civilian spit on him in the airport. Baird has post-traumatic stress disorder and trouble sleeping. But he also has a community who understands him and what he went through. Former commander of the American Legion in Chandler George Wooden nominated Baird to be the grand marshall.
“[Baird] has had a lot of injuries in action and received a bronze medal for valor,” Wooden said. “He’s one of the more decorated Vietnam veterans in Lincoln County.”
The 71-year-old army veteran served for four years and nine months before retiring, Baird said. Now disabled, Baird received various wounds during his time in the army, from a bayonet through his arm to getting shrapnel in his brain from booby traps.
He has been married to his wife Audrey for five years. He and his wife own land in North Carolina and Oklahoma. He alternates staying in each state for three months, fishing in North Carolina and deer hunting in Oklahoma.