I was born and raised in Meadow Grove, Nebraska. After graduating in 1967 I worked construction for a year. In 1968 I was informed that my draft number would be taken. The US Navy Seabees had a special enlistment program for people who knew construction.

I joined the Seabees in May 1968 and went to Gulfport, Mississippi for boot camp. I was then sent to Port Hueneme, California to join MCB 11. The battalion was already in Vietnam. We flew over and started working on various jobs. In 1968 I drove cement truck, dump truck, road grader and various other pieces of heavy equipment. I had over one hundred military licenses. We returned home to Port Hueneme for more training.

We again deployed to Vietnam in the spring of 1969. We mainly worked on Highway One but, I was involved in a number of other projects. We built wood structures for a medical hospital. We fixed a bridge on the Song Bo River for a small train. One of my biggest was to be assigned to the 101st Airborne to build forward firebases. One of them I built was for fire support on Hamburger Hill. Another was on a mountain top over the Ho Chi Min trail.

Soon after coming back we left to go back to” backyard America“. The battalion was going to be decommissioned so we were given a choice to be assigned to another battalion or get out of the service. A lot of us decided to get out and I got my discharge papers around December 18, 1969.

After going back home for a visit I returned to California. I worked for an oil field service company that wanted me to go to Texas to do the same job. In 1970 the oil companies had a problem so my wife and I moved to Nebraska.

Since moving back here I’ve worked construction, ran a fertilizer company and retired from the Madison County Roads Department. I was also the fire chief and an EMT on the Meadow Grove Volunteer Fire Department and was on the Meadow Grove Credit Union Board of Directors. Retired from everything in 2011. GONE FISHING!!!

EO2 Steven L. Sparr, Navy Mobile Construction Battalion 11