Dick Makela was in the 2nd platoon in 1968-1969

Richard Lee "Dick" Makela died of a heart attack on 19 August 2002 in Seward, Alaska, with his wife Sheri by his side. He served with the second platoon of the 4/12th Cavalry in Viet Nam during 1968 -69.

Dick is survived by his wife, Sheri, and children Suzanne Costic, Sharon Makela, Lisa Walters, David Myatt, Pam Myatt, and Julie Makela.

Sheri Makela wrote:
"Thank you all so much for your loving support, your kind offers of assistance, and your memories shared. Today your words have truly carried our family through another unbearable day, and for this we thank you and encourage you to continue sending us your random thoughts, your prayers, and encouragement."

In lieu of flowers, contributions are being accepted at:
The American Heart Association
Memorial Donations
7272 Greenville Ave.
Dallas, TX 75231

and / or

The American Diabetes Foundation
801 West Firewood Lane-Office #103
Anchorage, AK 99503
"Please include a note that your donation is in memory of Richard L. Makela. And perhaps through your generosity another beautiful soul will be able to live to the fullest.

Again, thank you so much. I know you all meant so much to Dick with your closeness and friendship that he so dearly cherished."

Remembrances

Date: Thu, 22 Aug 2002 09:00:19 +0000
It is very saddening to hear about Dick I was looking forward to seeing him again in Vegas Dick was the TC of A28 when I got to the Cav he was Short and I replaced him on A28.
See ya'll soon
Merle
Date: Wed, 21 Aug 2002 21:11:43 -0700 (PDT) Hey guys,
My deepest regrets to Dick's family, I never met him, but I was looking forward to meeting him. Here is to you Dick. May the Lord hold you in His arms when you get there.
Wally

Date: Thu, 22 Aug 2002 19:26:54 +0000
I didn't know Dick Makela but to his family I say to you Sorrow fills my heart, to hear of his passing. But he served in the army of his country and God has called him to serve in his Army.May God bless you and put peace in your heart to know he is with our Lord.
May God Bless you
Jerry Beverage

I met Dick through E-mail soon after Wally and LTee Canda contacted me in 2001, just before this whole "lets-get-back-in-touch" thing got rolling. He left Vietnam just before I arrived. As with other troopers in the cav, we had an instant bond. Dick and his wife were American nomads. He drove an RV all over this country, staying where he pleased ~ working the summers and winters in different states. He was retired military and would generally stay at military bases where he could park his RV for free, I think. If I recall correctly, he even towed a car around so he could scoot around town. I believe he called AZ his home base and could be found at least once a year in that state. His children lived in far-flung locations, one lived in Alaska, another in Michigan, I think, and he liked to visit them. He'd write to me often and inform me where he was, much like JT does with his E-mails on the net. His internet connection was tenuous at best because he moved so much, but he did have something called "pocketmail" that allowed him to check his e-mail from anywhere on the road. I don't know how that worked, but it kept us communicating. We were last in touch when he was journeying then staying in Alaska to hook up with one of his sons. He had to drive for hundreds of miles. Another one of his sons was travelling with him in his own RV. It was pretty interesting to me because it seemed to be a quite arduous journey. I followed his route on a map. One morning on the road as he awoke, he wrote, he heard a booming noise. It reminded him of outgoing artillery. When he checked outside, it was an avalanche on a mountain some miles away. He thought it was great. Pocketmail, for some reason, could not hook onto Topica so I kept him apprised of the happenings on the commo net. One of the things he always wanted to know was if we had found Shadow (Lt. DeSomer) yet. He paid his money and was very excited about attending the 2003 reunion. I was wanting to finally meet him face-to-face. Plus, he said he would be happy to let me travel with them anytime. He was a very nice guy and it showed in his communication. I still have a copies of everything he ever wrote to me. [Pineapple]

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