Colt Terry, Green Beret

Preface

Preface T      “” , one of the original Green Berets.1 The information for this story came primarily from Colt’s personal recollections documented in taped interviews. Many facts were confirmed with fellow paratroopers, military historians, and Special Forces NCOs and officers who served with him. (See the endnotes for full details of our research methods.)2 Colt gave the interviews to leave a record of his experiences. After hearing Colt’s story, the author felt that other people should know this man. This story is a nonfiction account based on certain sources, not a full biography but rather a detailed look at Colt’s military service career. Colt reconstructed most of the quoted passages from his recollections, depicting, in essence, what others said but not necessarily always exactly what they had said. Some dates are approximate and some names have been changed to protect the innocent and the guilty. The use of personal names has been avoided in certain situations where the individuals or their families might feel embarrassed . When a name was changed, pseudonyms were used and enclosed in quotation marks at first mention. The author has made an extensive effort to verify all names, but some were difficult to determine. We apologize for any errors made, especially to anyone’s name. These incidents took place over thirty-five years ago, and even though memories can fade over time, Colt’s recollections are extraordinarily lucid and have been verified in many instances by other people who were present at the time. Even though not all incidents could be crosschecked, the author believes that this story can be reasonably relied upon for a realistic description of one of the men who set the standards for the U.S. Army’s Special Forces, also known as the Green Berets. People of all origins fought and died in America’s wars. It seems fitting to describe those who served with and knew Colt simply by their deeds and viii  by their names, when known, rather than by superficial descriptions such as ethnicity or color. The author thanks Colt for his friendship; Pat Terry, his wife, for introducing me to Colt and for sharing her husband with the world; Jim Sadkovich , Kevin Brock, Yvonne Lorence, and Mark Gatlin for their encouragement , support, and guidance; and Terry Belanger, God rest her soul, for her guidance and professionalism in the daunting task of editing his writing. The author also thanks, above all, his wife, Estella, for her love and patience during all the time required completing this work.  ,   ...