Vietnam veterans reunited after 50-year separation

Blackstone man delighted to see fellow medic again

ACTON, Mass. (AP) — The last time Nick Tassone had seen Ronald Saizon was April 20, 1967, when a medical helicopter whisked his friend away from their encampment in South Vietnam.

Before the flight, Tassone had given a glass of ice water to Saizon, who was suffering from a bad case of malaria.

The two combat medics, who became close friends during basic training in Texas, had been split up since being deployed.

When soldiers would come in from combat, Tassone would always check for Saizon to no avail.

"When we got separated, we never knew what was going on," Tassone, a former Milford resident who was drafted as a teenager, recalled Friday, April 28.

That was the last day the two saw each other, that is, until Thursday, April 27.

After five decades, Tassone, now 74, and Saizon, 75, of Louisiana, reunited in Acton, picking up right where they left off.

And there wasn't a dry eye between either of them, Tassone said.

"The biggest thing for us was that we got out of Vietnam ... we didn't know who was going to survive, who wasn't," he said, recalling the encounter by phone from his Blackstone home.

Tassone, a member of Milford High School's Class of 1962, was drafted when he was 19 years old.

He was sent to Texas for basic training, where he met Saizon and the two quickly became friends, even like brothers, as Tassone said.

"We spent a lot of time together ... When you go through training like that, you pick out a guy and get to know him," he said.

Serving in different companies, the two combat medics were attached to groups of 10 soldiers each, according to Tassone. They had their hands full, he said. "Vietnam medics, we went through hell and high water," Tassone said. "Just to survive is a gift." Stateside, the two were never able to reconnect, Tassone said. That was not unusual, especially after the sometimes poor treatment of returning soldiers at that time.

About two weeks ago, Tassone got a call out of the blue from Saizon, who lives in New Roads, La. He was going to be in Acton visiting his brother, Anthony — who managed to find Tassone through the Internet.

"I teared up a lot," Tassone said. "I'm tearing up now talking about it. We were really close."

The two spent their time Thursday, April 27, talking about nearly everything, from where they were shipped out during the war to the things they saw in combat, according to Tassone.

"It's really nice to get together with like a guy like that," Tassone said. "It's like something God put together for you."