Pritzker Military Library Pays Tribute to Chicago Vietnam Hero

Charles Milton Carter, who, like Olive, was raised by Jacob Augustus and Zelphia Wareagle Spencer in the same Englewood home, presented a portrait of the war hero, painted by the famed Casper Rojas, to the Pritzker Military Library located at 104 S. Michigan Avenue, Chicago, IL.

Born a breech baby on November 7, 1946, Olive’s mother, Clara, died shortly after giving birth. Mr. and Mrs. Spencer raised the infant. Mrs. Spencer was related to the Olive’s.

In accepting the portrait from Carter, who is a cousin to Olive, Edward C. Tracy, President/CEO, Pritzker Military Library, said, “I appreciate the support your family has given to the library. It’s a wonderful gift.”

Carter told of how Skipper, as he called him, never had a girl friend. He never had a credit card, but he was in love with his country. Young Olive was very religious. He never cursed or drank. Even in Vietnam amidst bombs and bullets, Skipper read his bible, according to the four survivors of whom two are still living.

Before the fatal incident in 1965, Olive had come home having earned a Purple Heart due to an injury sustained during a parachute jump. He told Mrs. Spencer, he called “Big Mama” and who did not want him to return to duty, that he had a job to finish and was both committed to defending his country and to “finishing his job.”

Before Olive left to return to the Army, a distraught Mrs. Spencer promised to bake him some cookies. She made good her promise and mailed them to him; however, when the box of cookies returned, it came with the bad news of Skipper’s death.  So traumatized, Mrs. Spencer didn’t leave her house for days, according to Dr. Barbara Penelton, her granddaughter.

Penelton said Olive was not challenged in school and as a result, he dropped out of high school and went to Lexington, Mississippi where he briefly lived with his paternal grandparents.

There, he joined the Mississippi Freedom movement where he was excited about registering blacks to vote.

Skipper wasn’t there long before his father, Milton B. Olive, II, a professional photographer and Chicago Human Services supervisor, confirmed his whereabouts. He was concerned about his registering African Americans to vote because he feared the KKK would kill his son and only child.

So, he gave Skipper three choices: go back to school, get a job, or join the military.

On October 22, 1965 while on a search and destroy mission in  Phu Cuong, South Vietnam, Private First Class Olive spotted a grenade and without hesitation placed it on his stomach allowing it to explode. The 18-year-old war hero died 16-days before his 19^th birthday but his heroic act saved the lives of four of his comrades.

But through Olive’s death, he gave life to not just the four surviving men, John “Hop” Foster and Lionel Hubbard, both deceased, Sgt. Vince Yrineo and Capt. James Stanford, but death made it possible for his comrades to become grandparents.

And, Olive made his unit, Company B, 2d Battalion (Airborne), 503d Infantry Regiment, 173d Airborne Brigade, proud when he voluntarily paid the ultimate price, his life, for a country he loved so much.

Carter believed the Pritzker Military Library would be a good home for the portrait painted by the late Casper Rojas because of its natural military venue.

The Pritzker Military Library also honored General James Livingston, also a Congressional Medal of Honor recipient, who conducted an interview with Tracy about his book, “Noble Warrior,” which talks about his memories of his service in Vietnam.

“Every Medal of Honor is unique and a combat experience is one that is hard to understand unless you’ve been here,” said Tracy. “I think what you learn from Medal of Honor recipients is that they carry and wear the medal of all who served and some who have not come home, like Milton Lee Olive III,” he said.

Founded in October of 2003, the Pritzker Military Library moved to 104 S. Michigan, Suite 400, and last January. Their website is: http://www.pritzkermilitarylibrary.org/

And, the link to Milton Lee Olive, III story on ABC7 Chicago is: http://abclocal.go.com/wls/story?section=news/local&id=8060144

Chinta Strausberg is a Journalist of more than 33-years, a former political reporter and a current PCC Network talk show host.