A tale of two Koreas: Ahead of Honor Flight, vets share war stories on, off the front lines

Harold Barcus flipped through pages of yellowing black and white photos for the first time in years.

"I remember when that picture was taken," Barcus said pointing to a photo of his younger self standing outside the tent that he called home for a year while fighting in Korea. "I was just thinking, 'How many more days am I going to have to spend over here?'"

To history, the Korean War may be considered the "forgotten war," but to this veteran and another spending their peaceful retirement in the Big Bend, the memories from their years of service are hard to forget.

Barcus and Sal Martocci entered the military over 70 years ago without a second thought. To them, there was no greater honor than to serve their country, even if it meant dying for their country.

One spent a year on the front lines in Korea protecting his fellow soldiers, and the other was spared from touching down on enemy territory — a luck of the draw that he said could've saved his life.

And on April 27, these Korean War veterans will get to spend the day resurfacing these memories as they swap personal war stories with fellow veterans and visit the monuments that honor the history they helped shape.

Barcus, 93, and Martocci, 88, will be joining 74 other veterans on Honor Flight Tallahassee's 10th annual trip to the nation's capital. The organization — the local branch of a nationwide network — brings veterans to Washington, D.C., to see the war monuments built as a tribute to them and the soldiers who lost their lives in the line of duty.

"I'm looking forward to going back to Washington," Martocci said. "Haven't been there as a tourist in probably close to 70 years."

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He said he is anxious to see the Vietnam War memorial in hopes of being able to find a few of his friends' names etched in the wall. The emotions will be overwhelming as they visit the war memorials on the trip, Barcus said.

"I think it's an honor to even be picked to go," he said.

'I was glad I was drafted'

With the Korean War gaining traction, and friends around him receiving their draft papers, 20-year-old Barcus wondered when it would be his turn.

Eager to serve, Barcus loaded up with one of his friends, who had just gotten his papers, and drove the 50 miles from his hometown, Panora, Iowa, to Des Moines to check on his draft status.

He found out he was going to be drafted into the Army the very next week.

"I was glad I was drafted," he said.

All three of Barcus' brothers were in World War II — two served in the Navy, and one served in the army like him. He wanted to keep the military legacy alive.

And in February 1952, he landed in Korea. "It was in the wintertime — terribly cold," Barcus said. "And I lived in a tent."

Barcus was based in the middle of a rice paddy just outside an airstrip in Korea, living with three other men in a 10-foot by 10-foot tent. They were tasked with protecting the runway from enemy attack so that American planes could safely land.

They had no way to communicate with the outside world — only a radio and a phone that worked half the time to be able to receive orders. "The only company we had was each other," he said.

A squad like Barcus' was posted roughly every quarter mile in a circle surrounding the airstrip, with a halftrack — a vehicle with regular wheels in the front and tank-like treads in the back — and a tank that were both equipped with 40mm guns.

The four men were on guard 24 hours a day, rotating four to five hour shifts, he said. "One thing about Korea, when it was dark, it was dark," he said. "Boy, you couldn't see your hand in front of your face."

But one night the whole sky lit up, he said, as every squad fired and brought down an enemy plane, which they dubbed as "Bed Check Charlie" because it routinely made nighttime flyovers to drop things like nails and possibly even hand grenades on the airstrip.

Barcus almost made it through his entire year of service unharmed, but three weeks before his time was up, a raid left him severely injured and hardly able to walk.

The airstrip was taking enemy fire and Barcus' squad drove its halftrack on top of a 16-foot bunker they built with dirt to have the advantage of higher ground. Shots were fired their way and the group of men jumped from the bunker, but as Barcus landed, both his knees snapped backwards.

He is now considered a 100% disabled Korean War veteran after having multiple knee surgeries leading to a double knee replacement.

"I never even thought about being hurt or anything like that," he said. "I just wanted to go ... and I was rather glad I got drafted because I got to be like my brothers."

'It could've saved my life'

Martocci rode the subway in New York to get to high school every day, and as graduation neared, the subway seemed to inch him closer and closer to his future.

"The subway runs under the ground, so the windows are like mirrors," Martocci said. "And I can remember looking at my reflection saying, 'What's going to happen?'"

Graduation is usually a time of possibility, but in 1953 if you weren't going to college and seeking a deferment from the draft, there were really only two choices for a young man's imminent future: enlist or get drafted.

"I enlisted in the Navy," Martocci said. "And I went off to boot camp when I had just turned 18 and spent Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year's in boot camp in 1953."

When boot camp came to a close, the men stood with everything they owned in a duffle bag on a little black or white square waiting for their name to be called to hear their fate, he said.

With bullets relentlessly flying and troops dwindling abroad, almost everybody was sent to Korea. All but four of the 77 men to complete boot camp with Martocci went overseas — Martocci was one of the lucky four.

"It could've saved my life," he said.

Martocci served in the Navy for four years. During his first year, after finishing boot camp, he was sent to Annapolis, Maryland, where he went to technical school to learn how to maintain the electronics on the ships. By the end of his training, a ceasefire in Korea was declared so there wasn't much need for people to be sent there, he said.

Instead, he was sent to North Africa for two years, to a Naval base located in the barren deserts near Casablanca, Morocco.

On Christmas Day of 1957, he got new orders to go to Green Cove Springs, Florida, to finish his last eight months of duty. During his final stint, Martocci gained residency in Florida which enabled him to attend Florida State University and use his background in electronics to earn an engineering degree.

"The Navy was actually pretty good to me," he said. "I would do it again."

Martocci came from a line of men who fought in World War II. He always admired them, and to serve like them was an honor, he said.

"I just looked at it as my turn," he said.

Related: From battlefield to capital: Former FSU President reflects on his days in the Vietnam War

Breaking & trending news reporter Elena Barrera can be reached at ebarrera@tallahassee.com. Follow her on X: @elenabarreraaa.

This article originally appeared on Tallahassee Democrat: Two Korean War veterans going on Honor Flight reflect on time at war