What an absolutely amazing eulogy you gave Michael. Every word spoken is the absolute t***h of the wonderful man I came to know. The most gracious individual I had the pleasure of conversing with and truly a gentlemen in every sense of the word.

As I read the eulogy I couldn’t help but remember The beautiful music he would on occasion gift me with. It allowed me to see a bit more of his spirit and soul and was always honored by his posts.

Freedom has now come for our salty and for that I am thankful...

May we all honor him in trying to be a bit more like him in his honesty, respectfulness and most certainly dignity. Yes, slat, I can honestly say I loved that man and what he stood for. God bless he and his family always...

In loving memory he remains...

Edit~~ From Michael, he posted this in reply to a musical piece I had posted.. You may recall it~~

https://youtu.be/7j_f48m4RPw

It is with a heavy heart that I announce the passing of an OPP icon from the recent past...PoppaGringo. I was notified by his daughter when she returned my call over concerns for him.

'Salty,' as I always addressed him, was as fine a gentleman as I have ever encountered. Though we differed in much (yet, not all) of our political leanings, we respected each other in countless ways. There is no doubt that much of that respect was due to our similar backgrounds in service to this great nation of ours. Salty, just as it is with BadBobby, will always be a hero of mine. Nothing could change that.

Salty served in Korea and I in Viet Nam...both as Marines. Having met on several occasions, we often shared our common experiences of having served in combat. However, he endured at least one hardship that I and others had the good fortune of avoiding: He was a survivor of being a POW for almost two years during the Korean conflict. That time served as a POW had a profound and lasting effect upon him to no small degree, and was accompanied by the pain of losing two sons to unsolved murders, plus a granddaughter to illness.

I honored and loved the man as one would a familial elder. Just as I called him 'Salty' as a term of endearment, in the same manner, he referred to me as 'Boot.' When I attended a Khe Sanh reunion in San Diego a few years ago, I took him with me to meet some fellow combatants from that infamous battle and war. He regaled them...although initially reluctantly...with 'sea stories' as only a Marine Vet of his experience and status could have. They all were so impressed with him, we decided to include him as an honorary member of our 'Nam unit.

Though I had feared this for a while, due to his obvious failing health, I type with silent tears rolling down my face. I had called him regularly and become somewhat alarmed when he did not answer the phone. I soon found it had been disconnected. That was attributed, in my mind, to the fact that he had recently moved from San Diego to Orlando, Florida to be with his eldest daughter, Rin, and her family.

I would ask that all who knew Salty from his past contributions on this forum...and those who may not, to honor him and his surviving Family & friends with thoughts, wishes and prayers for both theirs & our loss.

Micheal Yawn, aka 'OldGringo,' 'PoppaGringo,' and 'Salty' would have been 86 years old on January 1st. Again, goodbye ol' friend, may you Rest In Peace. As you epitomized a true proud & patriotic American, you will be sorely missed by all...

Forever, ol' friend, your Junior NCO...

'Boot'

He sounds like a no-nonsense straight shooter who said what he was thinking and believed, all matter-of-fact uncensored. I would very much have liked to have met him.

A nice tribute because it often hurts more to lose a good friend than a family member. God Bless him, his family and all those he leaves behind. My heart is heavy for you Slatten. But you are a better person because of his presence in your life.

Everyone, please say a prayer for him and all the veterans who went before us for serving and keeping America free.