Carl Vinson VA peer support specialist Johnny Payne served with the Army in B company 1st battalion 7th Cavalry from 1969 to 1971 and spent a year in Vietnam.
He was awarded the Bronze Star, Air Medal for valor, Combat Infantry Badge, and the campaign medals of that combat theater.
Johnny and Sue Ann Payne
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Then, after doing everything his country asked him to accomplish while putting his life on the line on a regular basis, he returned home to a rude awakening, a “home” that opposed the Vietnam War and villainized U.S. troops and recent Veterans.
Payne vividly recalls being labeled a “baby killer” and other heinous names. Veterans, for the most part, are a proud bunch of people. But Payne found himself dodging questions about where he had been from members of his community who wondered where he went for a couple years.
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