Members of the Hastings Area Rotary Club welcomed local Vietnam veteran Herb Reckinger for a presentation that blended history, remembrance, and hometown connections, as he shared the stories of two Hastings soldiers who never returned from the Vietnam War.
Speaking to the club during a recent meeting, Reckinger focused his remarks on the lives of Duane Foss and Lawrence Swanson, two young Marines from Hastings who were killed in action just months apart in the late 1960s. His message centered on memory, community responsibility, and the continuing effort to ensure the names on the Vietnam Veterans Memorial are remembered as people, not just letters carved in stone.
Reckinger opened by explaining the purpose of his talk, setting a reflective tone for the room as he described why the stories of Foss and Swanson still matter today.
“Today we are here to commemorate the service, valor, and sacrifice of the fallen soldiers of Vietnam. More exactly we are here to remember or get to know about the two soldiers of Hastings who were killed in action, Duane Foss and Lawrence Swanson.”
The presentation tied local history to a broader national effort now underway to collect photographs of every service member listed on the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington, D.C. Reckinger told Rotarians that the campaign is part of a long-term project led by the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund, the same organization responsible for building the memorial itself in 1982.
There are still thousands of faces missing from the historical record, he said, and volunteers across the country continue searching for images and stories to complete the collection.
“There is a national effort going on to locate pictures for each of the 58,307 soldiers who have their names on the Vietnam Memorial Wall in Washington DC,” he said.
Reckinger explained that the project is intended to make the memorial more personal and accessible for future generations. While the Wall itself remains a powerful place of reflection, he said the effort to attach photographs and biographies helps visitors better understand who these service members were before they became names etched in black granite.
He noted that an education center planned near the memorial site will eventually allow visitors to view photographs, read personal stories, and see items left behind by families and fellow veterans.
“Here the pictures can be seen, the stories can be read and the mementos left at the Wall, will all be on display,” he said.
Turning to the two Hastings Marines, Reckinger described how close their lives were in both time and place. Born only four months apart in 1948, Foss and Swanson grew up in the same community and graduated together from Hastings High School in 1966.
Foss grew up on a farm southwest of Hastings, while Swanson lived on Spring Street in town. In school, Swanson was active in football, basketball, and track, while Foss spent all four years involved in FFA, following family tradition and developing skills rooted in agriculture and rural life.
Both young men later enlisted in the Marine Corps.
Because Foss was slightly older, he entered service first and was killed on Oct. 14, 1967. Swanson died less than four months later, on Feb. 7, 1968. Both were 19 years old.
Reckinger told Rotarians that their stories reflect the experiences of many small-town communities during the Vietnam era, when classmates, neighbors, and relatives often served in the same units or left for war at nearly the same time.
He also noted that photographs of both men have now been located and submitted as part of the national memorial project. Their graduation portraits appear on the memorial fund’s website, and an official Marine Corps photograph of Swanson was recently provided by family members.
For Reckinger, sharing these details was about more than recounting dates and locations. He emphasized that remembering individuals helps communities maintain a connection to their own history.
He explained that both young men are buried in Hastings cemeteries, allowing residents today to visit their graves and reflect on their sacrifice close to home. Foss is buried at Saint Elizabeth Ann Seton Cemetery, alongside his parents Henry and Anna. Swanson is buried at Lakeside Cemetery on Wilson Street, next to his parents Ruth and Harry, a veteran of both World War II and the Korean War.
By highlighting those connections, Reckinger encouraged Rotarians to think about the ways remembrance continues across generations.
He concluded his presentation with a reminder that honoring service members is not limited to formal ceremonies or national holidays. Instead, he said, it happens whenever communities take time to learn their stories and share them with others.
“Let us honor these two soldiers who paid the ultimate sacrifice by remembering them beyond this moment of today. Lawrence Swanson and Duane Foss. May they never be forgotten.”
Rotary members listened quietly as Reckinger spoke, many nodding in recognition as he described familiar streets, schools, and cemeteries. The presentation served as both a history lesson and a personal reflection on how national events shaped the lives of local families.
By the end of the program, the message was clear. The work of remembering continues, not only in Washington, D.C., but also in places like Hastings, where stories are still being told and shared.
For Reckinger, that effort remains deeply personal. Through talks like this one, he continues helping ensure that two young Marines from Hastings are remembered not simply as casualties of a distant war, but as neighbors, classmates, and members of a community that still honors their sacrifice today