If you have any questions, additional biographical information, personal remembrances, or photographs you would like to contribute, please contact the History Project Manager via this Email Link

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

They Say, our deaths are not ours, they are yours, they will mean what you make of them. They say, we leave you our deaths, give them some meaning. Archibald MacLeish poet and WWI veteran.

Click on individual ribbons for criteria

        On 28 May 1968 SGT Apimenio Lara was the Noncommissioned Officer In Charge (NCOIC) of a patrol of two gun jeeps that were ambushed at 2320 hours by the Viet Cong in An Hoa Hung Village shortly after departing Outpost-2. The enemy opened fire with small arms and a Rocket Propelled Grenade round. SGT Lara was seriously wounded in the leg during the ambush and died on 30 May at an evacuation hospital.

On 2 June 1968, at 0800 hours memorial services were held at the 89th MP Group Chapel for SGT Lara, C Company. The eulogy was given by the Battalion Commander, LTC Zane V. Kortum. < Click on the Memorial Services Program Icon to view the program pamphlet pages.

        In 1967 SP/4 Lara was one of the first volunteers to join the newly formed 720th MP Battalion Combine ambush-recon platoon assigned to duties in the Battalion Tactical Area Of Responsibility under Operation STABILIZE.

In April 1968 SP/4 Lara was awarded the Army Commendation Medal for Valor.

He left the Combined Ambush Platoon when he received his promotion from SP/4 to SGT and returned to regular duty assignments at C Company.

On 25 June 1968 SGT Laura was posthumously awarded the Purple Heart Medal and Bronze Star Medall for Meritorious Achievement.

     If you can provide any additional information on the circumstances resulting in the awarding of the ARCOM, or SGT Lara's background, please contact the History Project Manager via the Email Link at the top of this page.

Remembrances

11 January 2003 Thank you for your great sacrifice & patriotism. I want to pay my deepest sympathy to those in the Lara family. I knew Api in high school. We all remember his constant smile & friendliness. He was a good guy. He would have accomplished a whole lot had he lived. Ray Gonzales, high school friend & Vietnam vet, 14610 Idaho St. Fontana, CA 92336 USA.

13 April 2005 I was grateful to see a picture of Lara. He was just promoted to sergeant shortly before his death, but he was instrumental in persuading me to go before the E5 promotion board. I couldn't wait to tell him that I did well in front of the board, but my joy was turned to sorrow when I went looking for him that day. That was the day of his death. SP/5 Ronald C. Henselman, C Company, 720th MP Battalion, October 1967 to October 1968.

--- General / Personal ---
Last name: LARA
First name: APIMENIO
Home of Record (official): UPLAND
State (official): CA
Date of Birth: Thursday, September 21, 1944
Sex: Male
Race: Caucasian
Marital Status: Single

--- Military ---
Branch: Army
Rank: SGT
Serial Number: 19877182
Component: Regular Army
Pay grade: E5
MOS (Military Occupational Specialty code): 95B40 Military Police

--- Action ---
Start of Tour: Tuesday, July 11, 1967
Date of Casualty: Thursday, May 30, 1968
Age at time of loss: 23
Casualty type: (A2) Hostile, died of wounds
Reason: Gun, small arms fire (Ground casualty)
Country: South Vietnam
Province: * Long Khanh
The Wall: Panel 63W - Row 018

     * At the time of the ambush the Tactical Area Of Responsibility was located in Bien Hoa Province. SGT Lara died in a military hospital in Long Khan Provence two days later.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~