Veterans Day 2024 was a fitting milestone for Robin Bartlett ’67 to check off a bucket-list item: returning to CMC’s Athenaeum to share his experiences as a Combat Infantry Platoon Leader during the height of the Vietnam War.
Bartlett’s captivating account of serving as a 22-year-old 1st Lieutenant with the 1st Calvary Division (Airmobile), 1968-69—leading men even younger than he was into brutal combat—received not only a standing ovation, but also an invitation from the College to tell the stories of other CMC veterans in a new CMC Veteran Experiences series.
“I have made it my personal mission to tell these stories and inform the CMC community about their contributions and accomplishments,” said Bartlett, who enrolled in ROTC when entering CMC in 1963, graduated as a Distinguished Military Graduate, and was commissioned as a Second Lieutenant in the Infantry in 1967.
At the core of his mission is keeping the “stories and the vets real and human,” adding that the College’s founding is strongly connected to returning World War II veterans as its earliest students. For Bartlett, integrating humor is key to achieving the right human balance. “In every interview I conduct, I ask the veteran to share humorous or inspirational stories from their military and civilian experiences. I have heard some amazing and often very funny stories.”
Bartlett knows firsthand that tragedy and comedy can—and sometimes for sanity’s sake—must coexist. In his book, Vietnam Combat: Firefights and Writing History (2023), he weaves together deeply emotional accounts of leading men on more than 50 helicopter assaults, engaging in deadly firefights, being wounded, and carrying the dead wrapped in ponchos through the jungle with life-affirming moments of laughter and humor. It is with a commitment to the presence of both levity and gravity inherent in the human experience that Bartlett writes about CMC veterans’ triumphs and trials (along with sobering life lessons) in the new series.
During many hours of conversation with CMC veterans, Bartlett has observed commonalities that are well-rooted in the core values and mission of CMC: leadership and responsibility.
“Leadership is the first and most common thread, but there is one significant difference: veterans who served in combat arms in Vietnam and Afghanistan, for instance, have a different perspective on leadership than those who served in peacetime units. Combat seems to bring out the best and the worst of what these veterans have experienced, myself included.
“A second major theme is responsibility,” he added. “Almost all the vets I interviewed have stated how they were thrown into the deep end of a pool of totally unfamiliar work, made responsible for millions of dollars of equipment, and required to lead men and women who knew so much more than they. But in every case, their CMC education was referenced in helping them do what they knew to do best: dig in, analyze, be creative, listen and contribute where they could.”
Bartlett knows what it means to be a proud veteran eager to share his story with a CMC audience. He also knows writing.
Bartlett holds a degree in Comparative Literature from CMC, as well as a master’s degree in Media from Pace University in NYC. He also spent a lengthy career in book and journal publishing. To this day, Bartlett fondly and gratefully recalls the instruction and mentorship of Dr. Ladell Payne, CMC Professor of Literature from 1960 to 1979, who helped him get it right: “He made me write his papers twice before submitting them!”
Now, with the launch of the CMC Veteran Experiences series, Bartlett says he can “stretch that writing muscle and strive to say things honestly, simply, and sometimes powerfully.”
To read Bartlett’s stories on fellow CMC veterans, visit the CMC Veteran Experiences archive here. You can also volunteer to tell your story or share a recommendation with him for a new profile at [email protected].
A special Veterans Day talk, “A Vietnam Experience and Commitment to Normandy,” delivered by Keith Nightingale ’65, will take place at the Athenaeum on Nov. 11. Colonel Nightingale, who served two tours in Vietnam, will share reflections on his service and his enduring commitment to preserving the memory of the D-Day assault on the beaches of Normandy. Visit cmc.edu/athenaeum for more details.