Vietnam War Veteran
John Bellnier
Interviewed by:
Sophie Christopher and Ella Mae Dixon
1962
2017
"The nature of basic training is that they kind of break you down and treat you like a dog.
... and then they sorta slowly give you back your confidence.
... then they start to praise you a little bit.
... then you feel like you're a man and you're smart and you're valuable."
~ John Bellnier (8:01)
Name:
John Gary Bellnier
Date of Birth:
August 15, 1944
Branch of Service:
US Air Force
Dates of Service:
Sept. 9, 1962 - Oct. 31,1966
Location of Military Service:
Chicopee, MA and Amherst, MA
Residence at Time of Interview:
Plymouth, MA
John Bellnier's Story:
From a young age, John Bellnier did not like the notion of college. He was raised in upstate New York and went to a Catholic school in Albany and at the age of 18, he decided to postpone college and go directly into the Air Force, unlike other members of his family.
Mr. Bellnier graduated 2nd in his class from basic Electronic Training at Lackland Airforce Base. During the Vietnam war Mr. Bellnier was able to choose to be stationed at Westover Air Reserve Base in Chicopee, Massachusetts. Although, Mr. Bellnier was not fighting on the front line, he played a major role in keeping the US safe from enemy missles. While troops were battling in one the most horrific wars to date, John Bellnier was working on technical repairs of Crypto equipment and supervising Teletype lines that communicated with the US Soldiers stationed abroad. He also worked in an underground vault in Amherst, Massachusetts, one of the four major command centers for the Air Force in the United States.
After 4 years of serving, John Bellnier decided to go UMass Amherst and graduated with a major in Physics. With his background in Technology, Mr. Bellnier pursued a career in Software Developement at Mass Media Company. He now resides in Plymouth, Massachusetts with his wife Nancy Bellnier. Mr. Bellnier, being the only one in his family to serve, dared to defy the norm. His story is inspiring to anyone who wants to follow their own path.
John Bellnier's Photo Album:
Westover Air Reserve Base
Lackland Air Force Base
University of Massachusetts Amherst
John Bellnier's jacket from the Air Force
John Bellnier's cap from the Air Force
Mr. Bellnier and his colleagues were all issued duffle bags (pictured above) in basic training. This is Mr. Bellnier's bag, in which he had to be able to store all of his belongings.
John Bellnier's honorable discharge certificate.
Mr. Bellnier in the barracks
During basic training, Mr. Bellnier was in a baseball league. Above, he is pictured with his teammates, who are all also basic training students.
During training, John Bellnier took an assessment which tested him on math, science, and English. To the left is a letter and above the accompanying certificate given to Mr. Bellnier in February of 1962 informing him that he had earned a full scholarship to any school in New York State because of his advanced score on the test. Mr. Bellnier did not use this scholarship and attended UMass Amherst instead.
