(Photo provided by Housecalls Hospice) Jerry Smith is shown beside a life preserver on a naval ship where he performed maintenance on helicopters in Vietnam in 1967.

PARKERSBURG — Jerry Smith was born and raised on a farm in Calhoun County in 1946. After graduating from the local high school in 1965, he enlisted in the Army in September of that same year.

Smith completed basic training at Fort Knox, Kentucky, and was stationed there for a total of three years. He spent all of 1967 in Vietnam.

While Smith was in service, he worked as a high-tech maintenance worker to repair the Chinook helicopters that were used during the war.

The helicopters required constant repairs and Smith stated that they often worked 24 hours a day 7 days a week to maintain the engine repairs. The helicopter repairs would sometimes take up to 90 days to fully complete.

He stated that even though he wasn’t in the navy, he did spend a lot of time repairing the helicopters that landed on the naval ships.

(Photo provided by Housecalls Hospice) One of the Chinook helicopters Smith did maintenance on while he was a member of the Army in Vietnam in 1967 is shown. The helicopters required repairs and it often took about 90 days to complete before it was ready to fly again.

“I did what Uncle Sam told me to do,” said Smith, who now lives in Parkersburg. “When I came back from Vietnam, I had to go back to Fort Knox and I still had about nine months to serve.”

During his time there, Smith said he was in charge of maintenance of the rifle and tank firing ranges.

Once he completed his service in the military, he moved to Cleveland for a job opportunity he said didn’t work out. After a month in Cleveland, he moved back to Parkersburg, got a job at DuPont and worked there for 34 years before retiring in 2002.

“It made a good living, and I met a lot of good people,” Smith said.

Since returning to Parkersburg, Smith has dedicated his time and effort to veteran programs in the area.

(Photo provided by Housecalls Hospice) A member of the Army, Jerry Smith worked on a naval ship during his time in Vietnam in 1967 to repair helicopters and keep them in the air.

“About 20 years ago, I started the veterans prayer rally and that turned into a Welcome Home Vietnam Veterans celebration,” said Smith. “And then four or five years ago, I joined forces with the JCF here at the armory” in south Parkersburg.

Joining Community Forces of the Mid Ohio Valley and Welcome Home Vietnam Veterans provided a resource for veterans in the area to meet others and discover organizations who could offer assistance.

Smith has been the event coordinator for Welcome Home Vietnam Veterans for 13 years and recently announced his retirement from that position.

About 15 years ago, Smith started volunteering with Housecalls Hospice to visit veterans in hospice care and nursing homes. It was his way of giving back to those who served the country.

In 2020, Smith received the Legion of Honor Bronze Medallion from the Chapel of the Four Chaplains.

(Photo provided by Housecalls Hospice) Smith stated they often worked 24 hours for seven days a week to repair helicopters in Vietnam.

“I was nominated for that for the things I do for veterans,” said Smith. “I am proud of these things, and we just try to help the community in any way that we can.”

Smith is also an associate member of the Marine Corps League Detachment 1087 in Parkersburg, the American Legion and the Veterans of Foreign Wars.

For about 20 years, Smith has devoted much of his time to helping the community and veterans in the area through food drives, services, and events. He said that after his most recent surgery, he realized it’s time for him to start slowing down and resting.

Smith stated that he’s received a lot of positive feedback from the Welcome Home Vietnam Veterans event and he has a few people that are interested in taking over for him.

“I gotta slow down, and that’s hard to do when I know somebody needs help,” he said.

(Photo provided by Housecalls Hospice) A Chinook helicopter lands on an American naval ship to undergo repairs. Veteran Jerry Smith stated that helicopters were always landing on the ships for engine adjustments and repairs.

Smith stated he’s going to stay back in the shadows, but if someone needs him, he’ll be there.

“It makes you feel good to know that you can do something like that for the community,” said Smith. “And I did it with a lot of help from others.”

(File photo) Jerry Smith, right, is pictured at a 2023 Chapel of the Four Chaplains Legion of Honor awards ceremony in Parkersburg City Park with fellow recipients Roy Trembly, left, and Doug Bergen.

(File photo) Jerry Smith, right, is pictured at a 2023 Chapel of the Four Chaplains Legion of Honor awards ceremony in Parkersburg City Park with fellow recipients Roy Trembly, left, and Doug Bergen.

(File photo) More than 700 flags representing West Virginians, including 24 Wood County residents, that lost their lives in the Vietnam War are displayed on the lawn in front of the National Guard Armory on Blizzard Drive in Parkersburg at the 2023 Welcome Home Vietnam Veterans event. Jerry Smith served as coordinator of the event for 13 years.