Mike Harkey remembers the car lights shining on his bedroom wall early that February morning. He wondered who would be coming to their house around 5:00 am. He called to his mother that someone was outside. Olin and Ona Craig Harkey joined their son on the front porch, anxious to see who had come to their house so early that morning. When they saw the soldier get out of this car, dressed in his uniform with lots of medals, they knew why he was there. He started up the sidewalk, abruptly turned around, and went back to his car. They started crying in the midst of wondering why he went back to his car. A few seconds passed and the soldier got out of his car again and this time he walked all the way to where they were standing. He told them that their son had been killed in Vietnam and Ona remembers screaming so loud that their neighbors came running over to see what had happened.
Mike believes that the soldier went back to his car because he didn't like the job he had to do and he was trying to get up the strength to tell them that their son was dead. He thinks that the soldier came to their home that early to catch the family before they left for work and school.
Sergeant Ronald Lynn Harkey was the oldest son of Olin and Ona Harkey, born on March 15, 1948. He attended Wesley Chapel Elementary School, Sun Valley Middle School, and graduated from Sun Valley High School.
Ona said that Sergeant Harkey was drafted while he was attending Central Piedmont Community College and working at R.H. Boulingy Company in Charlotte. Since he was working on government contracts, he could have let the military know and he would not have been inducted, however he chose to serve in Vietnam.
Sergeant Harkey went through basic training at Ft Bragg and went to non-commissioned officer's school at Ft. Benning and Ft McClelland. He was promoted to sergeant before he went to Vietnam. Ona said that he could have been an officer however his friends told him not to become a 2nd Lieutenant because they had a high death rate in Vietnam.
Ona said that her son liked the Army and told her that he had decided to make it a career just before he was sent to Vietnam. He also said that he planned to finish college while in the Army.
Mike said that he was not surprised that his brother liked the Army because he loved the song "Ballad of the Green Berets", playing it over and over.
The Army told the family that Sergeant Harkey's platoon, Company B of the 1st Battalion, 28th Infantry of the 1st Infantry Division, had been sent to the Binh Duong province to rescue soldiers whose helicopter had been shot down. The platoon had to cross a river in the gun sights of the Viet Cong automatic rifles. The helicopter had crashed in territory held by the Viet Cong. Sergeant Harkey was the only member of the platoon to reach the other side, where he was killed by the Viet Cong on February 24, 1969. Everyone from the platoon died trying to get to the crash site and if anyone was alive from the helicopter crash, they were not rescued.
Mike remembers reading letters his brother sent to their Grandmother Pearlie Craig while he was in Vietnam, telling her that there was no need to worry about him and Vietnam was not really the way the news media was describing it. Mike believes that his brother did not want to upset their Grandmother by telling her how Vietnam really was. He said that his brother was like that, "mature beyond his years and the most level headed one in any group."
Mike said that his brother told him in one of his letters that he got a really bad feeling when his platoon opened up on a platoon of Viet Cong, killing all of them. Killing another human being did not really sit well with Sergeant Harkey, even in war time.
Sergeant Harkey was awarded the Purple Heart, the Bronze Star, an Army commendation medal, expert badge with the machine gun, the National Defense Service Medal, the Vietnam campaign ribbon, a combat infantryman badge, and sharpshooter badge on the automatic rifle.
The family established the Ronald L. Harkey Leadership Award for members of the Future Farmers of America at Sun Valley High School in honor of their son. Mike goes there each year to present the award. Sergeant Harkey had been the Vice President of the Future Farmers in his junior year and the President in his senior year.
When the Moving Wall comes to Indian Trail VFW Post 2423 from October 25, 2007 to October 29, 2007, the families of Union County soldiers killed in Vietnam will receive special recognition during the dedication ceremony.