"I was responsible for the secret confidential paperwork and he (the corporal that
worked for Howard Kucks) ran that room for me and he said
“Lieutenant the president's been killed,” I said what are you talking about?
Because he had a radio in there and he said “No sir,” he said “The President Kennedy
had been shot” and it was just amazing to me I just couldn't believe it."
~ Howard Kucks (8:42)

Howard Kucks' Story:

Howard Kucks is a Vietnam Veteran, born May 16th, 1938. Howard was born is Brookline, New York, but when he was 3 him and his parents moved to Long Island where Kucks graduated all 4 years at a high school "two to three times bigger" than Nauset Regional High school, the continued the rest of his school years at New York State College. After college, Kucks at age 22 proceeded to join the Marine Corps.

Howard entered the Marine Corps, and was an artillery officer. Howard Kucks was a peacetime war veteran, which meant he never served in Vietnam, but still is a Vietnam veteran for serving at his base in Lejeune North Carolina. Immediately as Kucks was assigned at his base in North Carolina, he was then assigned as a Battalion Infantry Marine then shipped out on a boat for 6 months in the Mediterranean sea. There, Kucks job was to be stationed in the Mediterranean incase something happened. When he finally arrived back to his base, 6 months later, Howard Kucks volunteered to be the agent of the Battalion, his job consisted of different logistics necessary to run an organization like that. He would run the office, do the paperwork, and also he ran an artillery range along with two other officers. Howard would spend his holidays in various places, one being Thanksgiving, where Kucks spent that holiday on a beach in Libya, another on Christmas where he spent that holiday in Athens.

When Howard Kucks was discharged December 10th, 1964, along with beginning to raise a family, he worked at two pharmaceutical companies while he moved to New Jersey. There his job consisted of being a training manager, employment manager, but mostly he was a maintenance manager. Howard had always loved the cape, but could never figure out how to make a living here. As a child, he vacationed up to Cape Cod a lot, along with having a grandfather who worked at the French Cable Station in Orleans, Massachusetts. When Howard Kucks retired, he moved and currently lives in Orleans Massachusetts.

Howard Kucks is now active in the Marine Corps League on Cape Cod, Massachusetts.