War stories, with a twist, in Bangor> Persian Gulf troops’ homecomings recalled

“An American Homecoming,” by Brian Swartz, Bangor Publishing Co., Bangor, 271 pages, $10.95, paperback.

In the opening chapter of “An American Homecoming,” author Brian Swartz writes, “For a space of 10 months, from March 1991 to January 1992, thousands of people turned out at Bangor International Airport to welcome about 60,000 troops returning from the Persian Gulf. With little official organization, civilians threw together the longest homecoming celebration in American history.”

Ultimately there were 220 flights that stopped in Bangor at all hours of the day and night. Some would be greeted by hundreds of civilians, while others were met by only a handful. For many of the regular greeters, who tried to meet every flight, it became a way of life. Garnering national attention from the likes of People magazine, “The McNeill-Lehrer Hour” and ABC-TV, Bangor was renamed “Hometown USA.” One of the greeters, 90-year-old Phyllis MacKinnon of Brewer, while waiting for one of the flights to land, said, “I haven’t seen any excitement like this since World War II.”

What erupted and spread like wildfire was a circus of patriotic fervor. The author, who works as the advertising staff editor of the Bangor Daily News, became involved almost immediately. As he notes in his introduction, “The son of World War II vets, I had never served in Vietnam, but I recalled the terrible homecomings that returning veterans received then.

“On March 8, 1991, I watched mesmerized as Maine residents, mostly civilians, raucously welcomed home combat-hardened soldiers they did not know. Then Sgt. Kevin Tillman plucked that saxophone from a [John Bapst] high school musician and played a solo `Star-Spangled Banner.’ His proud, haunting rendition shivered my spine and goosebumped my arms; tears moistened my eyes. An amateur military historian by interest, I immediately sensed the moment’s significance.”

Because of that particular instance, Kevin Tillman has become an honorary resident of Bangor, has been invited back to play in a concert at John Bapst, and has been asked to serve as the Fourth of July parade marshal. He most recently was requested to play his version of the national anthem again at the Civic Center dinner last December honoring then-Sen. William Cohen.

On his first trip to the airport, Swartz took his children. He writes about his growing fascination with the phenomenon: “I went back — and back — and back. The sweeping emotional outbursts, the intense emotional displays by civilians and soldiers, the sheer excitement initially snagged my attention. I volunteered to help staff the greeting table. I brought relatives and friends to share the moment. I was there every moment possible.”

It also occurred to him to bring along a pen and a camera. The 55 photographs in the book were all taken by the author.

“An American Homecoming” is divided into 80 chapters whose headings range from “The Convoy from Hell” and “The Doctor, the Gunnery Sergeant and American Women” to “Apache Warrior” and “Carnations and a Warm Embrace on a Wild Friday Night.” The last chapter is titled “Stealth Flight, Final Flight.”

Besides being a compendium of all manner of human interest stories and foibles, “An American Homecoming” provides us with a lot of information on types of aircraft, military acronyms and an informal history of the Gulf War.

Some of the pictures show soldiers clutching teddy bears, a donation, it turns out, from Russ Berrie and Co. of Oakland, N.J. The company sent 25,000 “snuggle bears” to the Bangor Region Chamber of Commerce to give to the troops.

Swartz singles out the Chamber and the Red Cross as the organizations that really kept things humming, providing volunteers and keeping the gift and greeting tables staffed and packed with homemade food and other gifts.

Besides the John Bapst band, other high school bands were represented such as Sumner Memorial High School, Lawrence High and Dexter High, and professional country and western bands such as Desperado. When there was no live music, there were tape recordings, especially of Bruce Springsteen’s “Born in the U.S.A.,” used to greet the troops as they walked into the terminal and the flag-waving began.

The theme was: “Anyone wearing an American uniform deserved a homecoming, no matter the destinations or branch of service.” Swartz does a good job interviewing representatives, male and female, of all races, from all branches of the military.

But it’s the personal stories of the greeters and the troops that are most interesting.

In a chapter titled “Yellow Ribbon,” Swartz tells the tale of Carl and Kathleen Lindh of Mariaville, who not only greeted most of the flights, but who also made many of the yellow ribbons that were pinned onto the soldiers.

Then there was Tom Dean, who videotaped every flight landing and sent copies to each flight group.

Among the 200 Maine people returning, there was Lance Gilman of Bangor, who was greeted by his dog, Reggie.

There was Sylvia Thompson of Brewer, an Air Force widow, who pinned ribbons onto returnees until the very end.

And there were the soldiers who wanted to be taken to Stephen King’s house, and were.

There also were the people who came to the circus dressed up as Indians in headdresses, or one man impersonating President Bush, and the young beauty queen who used the opportunity for her own publicity. During April vacation from school, parents dropped off their children at the airport where many of them asked the soldiers for gifts.

Swartz interviewed two military chaplains, one white and one black. What they had to say about their jobs on the front and among the Moslems, and especially about the brutality the Iraqi soldiers inflicted on their own helpless people, is both inspiring and disturbing.

Of course, there were the anti-war protesters and other cause-oriented people making demonstrations of one kind or another.

In a chapter titled “Keeping the Faith,” Swartz writes, “By mid-October, some Maine residents criticized the troop greetings as a waste of time. A low-key gripe here, a feigned bellyache there, simmering jealousy from a Vietnam vet.”

After reading “An American Homecoming,” I did feel a bit guilty for not being among the greeters. I remember one night I was at the Airport Mall when I saw all the traffic headed to the airport, and I almost joined them. Teaching at Orono High School at the time, I had several students who wrote essays about their airport experiences, about making brownies and having a great time.

One boy from Orono used to sneak out of his house at 2 in the morning and ride his bicycle several miles to the airport. He was given a helmet by one of the soldiers and he proudly wore it around school for weeks afterward.

Could such a 10-month homecoming happen any place other than Bangor, Maine?