President Johnson’s Draft Response to Mr. and Mrs. Keck Regarding their Son's Death
6/14/1967
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In long
letters to President Johnson, Russell Keck’s parents expressed their anger and grief at losing their son. His draft reply, with its layers of revised and rejected phrases, reveals his struggle to respond.
Corporal Keck died in Vietnam on May 18, 1967. He was 20 years old. “Rusty” served as a Machine Gun Squad Leader with Company A, Battalion Landing Team 1/3, Ninth Marine Amphibious Brigade. He was killed in action during Operation Beau Charger in Quang Tin Province on May 18, 1967. Russell was posthumously awarded the Navy Cross for his "courageous actions, bold initiative, intrepid fighting spirit and sincere concern for others."
This primary source comes from the Collection LBJ-WHCF: White House Central Files (Johnson Administration).
Full Citation: President Johnson’s Draft Response to Mr. and Mrs. Keck Regarding their Son's Death; 6/14/1967; Charles Keck Correspondence; White House Subject Files on National Security and Defense, 11/22/1963 - 1/20/1969; Collection LBJ-WHCF: White House Central Files (Johnson Administration); Lyndon Baines Johnson Library, Austin, TX. [Online Version, https://www.docsteach.org/documents/document/president-johnson-draft-response-keck, May 4, 2024]