First Name: Ronald
Last Name: Mangelsdorff
Middle Initial: R
Date of Birth: 10/08/46
Sex: Male
Martial Status: Divorced
Number of Children: 2
Home Town: Unknown
Education Completed: High School
Other Occupations:
Branch of Service: Marines
Highest Rank: N/A
Serial Number: N/A
Platoon: N/A
Age at Start of Service: Not Sure
Years of Service: Not Sure
Combat Veteran: Yes
Time in Combat: Not Sure
Place of Combat: N/A
Awards:
Date of Suicide: 09/1993
Suicide Method: Carbon Monoxide Poisoning
Veteran’s Story: My brother, Ronny, was 17 years older than I was so he was not only a big brother but a parent figure as well. He tried, I know he did, but whatever he endured over there ruined him forever.He took his own life in 1993 but I truly believe, in his heart, his life ended after Vietnam. He was never the same & the demons got to be too much. It took a long time for me to come to terms with what he did, a lot of guilt to overcome that I couldn’t help. Last July I did a 20 mile walk for suicide prevention in his honor & can only hope that someday we’ll be together again so I can give him the love & support that he couldn’t accept or ask for while he was here. I think of him often, see him in my sons & fear for all our men fighting for our country the way he did. We weren’t in constant contact, his choice, not mine. He couldn’t seem to connect with people after he came back but whenever I called, he was there. He listened, he advised & I always knew I had him to fall back on. My biggest regret is that he didn’t know or understand that I would have done the same for him had he asked. He was not a perfect person but who is? He was my big brother & I miss him!!
Submitted By: Susan Fisher
Relationship to Veteran: Sibling
