Rename the Hamlet VA Clinic

Thank you to all who support this petition.

As a Vietnam vet myself and a friend of CMS O'Neal I wholly support naming the VA clinic in his honor.

District 1 Committeeman, Adjutant, and Past Commander, of D.A.V. Roanoke Valley Ch.15,

I served 30+ yrs in the US Navy.. and knew Ed O'Neal and support the naming of the Hamlet VA Clinic in his honor.. I was present the day the clinic was dedicated...

Cmdr AMVETS Post 320

CSM Ed O’Neal and I served together on a Special Forces A Team in South Vietnam. Ed was my senior medic. Ed was totally committed to the health of our team the Vietnamese team, all of our soldiers/families, and all the men, women, and children of the local village…including a few surrounding villages that he would go for sick call. He created a nurse training program and care for women for pre-natal care, baby delivery, and post-natal care…. Birth is always a miracle, but it always seemed moreso in the middle of a war, in a shanty of a health clinic inside a Special Forces Camp. His energy, as he pursed these duties was boundless. He held sick call every morning even Sunday at which maybe 100 soldiers/civilians would show up. At the same time he was training nurses in how to talk to patients, make a diagnosis and develop a treatment plan for each patient. He visited the local village a couple of times each week to hold sick call and visit with those patients under his care. Many were women and many were elderly. Most had never seen a doctor in their lives and they called Ed doctor…in Vietnamese “Bác sĩ”. As the rotation within the team for conducting offensive patrols against the enemy arose, Ed was up for it and participated aggressively as a fighter in all those instances. I observed him under fire and he comported himself w/honor and aggressiveness and the skill of an infantryman. Ed was fearless in the face of the enemy. On one operation his team captured many weapons on a trail system that began in Cambodia and ended in major cities near Saigon. His radio was shot up and he was out of communication for two days. In another instance Ed was on a combat operation with Cambodian troops. They had run into quite a nest of NVA and more were sighted by a pilot and on the way. The Cambodian troops lined up to go forward toward the enemy but had stopped, put their budda’s in their mouths and told the interpreter they had a headache. Ed knew

CAM O'Neal deserves this if anyone does. He was active in many counties besides Richmond County.

I have been involved with AMVETS for 20 yrs and am currently the National Finance Officer. I have worked with Ed over his years with AMVETS and can attest to his dedication and tireless efforts for many issues with AMVETS including the clinic.

Please rename he really worked hard for all veteran

A wonderful man with a wonderful wife.

Both Ed and his wife Mary tirelessly worked for the veterans. They did a fantastic job.

He was a wonderful uncle and helped anyone in need.

He was my baby girl's grandfather. And now my oldest daughter works there as a RN. I think it would be a fitting tribute to all his hard work at getting the clinic here.

Honor not only SM O'Neal's service in the military, but his continued service after the military.