A captivating photo tells us about the front lines during the Vietnam War

The caption said, "Bravery Earns a Bronze Star," but it was this photo that caught my attention. I had just entered the University of Wisconsin School of Law. This photo, published in the Capital Times on September 29, 1967, helped me transcend the controversy surrounding the war. It shows the Bat Medal of Valor being presented to the family of 18-year-old Thomas Broome, who was killed in action in Vietnam. Photographer David Sandel froze the moment at the American Legion post near Sun Prairie. is the best and brightest

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Lieutenant Ron Wendell handed the medal to Tom's father, Stanley, who repaired boilers for Wisconsin China-a job he loved so much that he was later buried in bib overalls and Engineer hat. In her grief, Tom's mother Alice resembles a figure in a Renaissance painting. The man in the military cap is Victor Ward, a World War II veterinarian who has known Tom since birth. The girl is Tom's sister, 13-year-old Fanny. Behind her is Mayor Clarence Severson; Tom was the town's first Vietnam War death.

This young man is Tom's brother, John, who is 17 years old and is going to join the army in ten days. He had promised not to go to Vietnam, but went anyway, hoping it would connect him with the brother he missed. In Vietnam, he operated a construction crane and earned his Bronze Star.

"We're not the only family going through this," said John, now a retired power plant worker. But for me, this extraordinary photo, full of complex emotions, will always represent those who died and everyone they left behind.

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