Description

Join us!
FRIDAY 09 OCT 26 | 7:30AM – 9:30AM

featuring combat wounded Vietnam Veteran

Dr John Todd
“Our Enduring U.S. Constitution”

. . . who taught Legal and Political Science classes for 42 years at
Rochester University and worked for two Presidents

Dr. John Todd has worked for two U.S. Presidents in significant roles including authoring and championing significant veteran legislation.

He taught legal and political science classes for 42 years at Rochester University retiring as “Professor Emeritus”.

He completed his graduate work in Constitutional History at U of M as well as Political Science at Columbia University and attended Law School at Georgetown.

He is a member of the National Assn of Scholars and the Federalist Society.

His military awards include the Distinguished Flying Cross for Valor, Air Medal with V device for Valor, Vietnamese Gallantry Cross with Bronze Star, the Purple Heart.

His presentation to us will be entitled “Our Enduring U.S. Constitution”

/ / / / His Vietnam story as written in a veteran magazine / / / /

When you hear your co-pilot say, “I think he’s bought the farm,” and you know that he’s talking about you, and not in the context of a real estate transaction, chances are, it’s going to be a lousy day.

Yet John Todd, college professor, lawyer and Vietnam vet, has never had a bitter moment over that particular afternoon in January, 1969, when he was shot through the left side of his face while piloting a UH-1 gunship in II Corps.

“We were scrambled what I thought would be a short engagement, about ten minutes away,” Todd explains from his office at Rochester College, where he’s taught Political Science and Business Law for thirty years. “Around 150 Vietcong had attacked friendly forces along Highway One near Saigon. I saw the tracer rounds, but that was pretty common. I saw the one that hit me—that wasn’t quite so common…”

His co-pilot managed to get the craft back to base, but had given him up for lost. Fortunately, flight surgeons met them on the runway, and after a stay in the field hospital, he was transferred to Japan, where ‘one major surgery per week was all that kept me alive.’ After a number of months, he was transferred to the Walter Reed Medical Center in Washington, and then to a rehab center near Chicago where he recuperated slowly, but steadily, over the next year.

Todd’s recovery was remarkable, but it has not been full: The injury left him blind and with difficulties hearing. But his voice has remained strong throughout. Having earned a law degree from Georgetown and discovered his true passion—teaching—Todd has remained a vocal supporter of American policies in Vietnam. “It started in the early Seventies, when I first heard Vietnam Vets Against the War. I heard veterans portrayed as drug abuser, homicidal maniacs, and that was simply inconsistent with the men I knew. So I was compelled to speak out as part of a group called ‘Vietnam Vets for a Just Peace’. Richard Nixon, then President, got wind of it …”

The favorable response from the Nixon administration led to numerous CBS editorials and debates against anti-war groups, and in 1972, Todd testified before a platform committee in Washington.

At no point, he states emphatically, did he feel angry or resentful over the injuries he sustained in service to his country, even when physically attacked by anti-war protestors here in the States. “I knew the risks going in, and so did my parents. I count myself extremely blessed that I survived that afternoon in January, 1969, extremely fortunate that I had a chance to go to Vietnam and fight for a cause I believed in.”

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Why Attend?

• Connect with Leaders: Network with local AFA members, defense industry professionals, educators, and military advocates.

• Expert Insights: Gain firsthand perspective from an award-winning educator on the front lines of STEM engagement.

• Great Food: Enjoy a hearty breakfast hosted by Mission BBQ, a venue dedicated to honoring those who serve.

 

REGISTER NOW!

 

Location: Mission BBQ | 13905 Lakeside Cir, Sterling Heights, MI 48313 [MAP]

 

A special thanks to our Corporate Sponsors & Enduring Wingmen: