Recognition earned by Costa Mesa veteran is finally received 60 years later

Charles Wolfe was just 18 when he joined the United States Army; by the time he turned 21, he had endured two deployments in South Korea and Vietnam. But it wasn’t until more than 60 years that Wolfe’s contributions to his country would be formally recognized.

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That was thanks in large part to his wife, Sandy, a retired nurse, who requested her husband’s military records through the Freedom of Information Act, which showed seven medals Wolfe, now 79, had earned but never received.

Refusing to take no for an answer, she pushed for nearly a year to get him those medals, working past a discouraging response that placed him 45,000th on a list of 54,000 pending recipients — all those requests being handled by four staffers, including one assigned to all Army medals worldwide.

With the help of Assemblymember Cottie Petrie-Norris, who recognized Wolfe as Veteran of the Year in 2025, the case was referred to U.S. Rep. Dave Min’s staff, who helped accelerate the process.

On Friday, Sept. 4, Min held a ceremony in his Costa Mesa office, where he presented Wolfe with his medals ahead of his 80th birthday this fall.

“Charles did not seek out the medals that he had earned for the service. But I think at some point recently, he made the decision that he had earned these honors, and that he should have them,” Min said during the ceremony. “We were honored and humbled to try to make an inquiry on his behalf, and thanks to my excellent district staff here, we were able to get these medals.”

Min, who is Korean-American, noted that his own family’s history is tied to the sacrifices of veterans like Wolfe.

The seven medals include the Army Commendation Medal, the National Defense Medal, the Vietnam Service Medal and Bronze Star Attachment, the Republic of Vietnam Campaign Ribbon, the Expert Badge and Auto Rifle Bar and Rifle Bar, the Sharpshooter Badge and Pistol Bar, the Soldier for Life Lapel Pin, and the Korea Defense Service Medal.

After enlisting at 18, Wolfe said he began basic training in February and was in Korea by September, where he spent 18 months working along the Demilitarized Zone, serving with the 5th Battalion, 38th Artillery on a 105mm howitzer crew during a period of intense Cold War tensions. He said his military experience in Korea was more “civilized” than Vietnam, where most of his meals came from a can.

“We always had warm meals when we were back at the camp, fire base, and beds, and laundry service,” Wolfe recalled.

Upon returning from Korea, Wolfe deployed with the 101st Airborne Division to Vietnam, serving as a forward support element for infantry fighting on the front lines.

“We were riggers… half of the unit would be back at the supply depot filling those nets up, and the other half would go out to the field with the infantry… we rigged everything from howitzer cannons to eggs. I mean, you name it. They had special containers for the eggs, so that was a real treat to get fresh food out there,” said Wolfe, a Costa Mesa resident.

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In Vietnam, the conditions were much harsher than Wolfe’s time in Korea. He said his unit would sometimes spend five to seven days without a shower.

“There were some days we never took our boots off. The big luxury was untying your boots,” he said. It was also where Wolfe said he first came under enemy fire, an experience that hit him “like a ton of bricks,” realizing “that person’s trying to kill me.”

Focused on survival, Wolfe said he didn’t even realize his 20th birthday had passed until he received a card from his mother 10 days later. “You turned something off in your head if you want to survive,” he said, adding, “I didn’t want to die in that country. I knew that.”

While in Vietnam, Wolfe was also exposed to Agent Orange, a defoliant and chemical herbicide used by the U.S. military during the Vietnam War to clear dense foliage. The chemical’s use was later banned, but its harmful effects have been linked to various health issues affecting Vietnam veterans. Wolfe is being treated for non-Hodgkin lymphoma by the VA.

Returning to Costa Mesa in 1969, Wolfe said he was met with “no warm reception at all, or any, for that matter.” The memories, he said, “stick with you one way or another, even though you don’t want it to” — including those of his former unit, which he said invoke a deep sense of grief and leave him with doubts about the outcome of the war.

“It’s a tragic feeling inside me when I think of it, because I’m not quite sure we did the right thing over there, especially the way it ended up,” he said. “I don’t want to say that it was a waste of their lives, and it wasn’t. Some of these guys were pretty courageous and bold and brave. But God, just to give up.

“I think of the families too, most of all,” he added. “What they must be going through. I can only imagine. I know what it did to my mother.”

After returning home, Wolfe worked at the Naval Weapons Station Seal Beach and for the U.S. Postal Service in Huntington Beach.

For 50 years, he’s remained active in his Costa Mesa community through the Police and Fire Citizens’ Academies and American Legion Newport Harbor Post 291.

At Friday’s ceremony, Wolfe thanked Min personally, standing alongside his wife, Sandy, who refused to let the recognition slip away.

“It took over 60 years to get that door closed,” Wolfe said. “But it was worth the wait.”

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