Dan Cirucci: A Heartfelt Christmas Memory From 1969

Saturday, December 24, 2011

A Heartfelt Christmas Memory From 1969

A high school classmate writes of a Christmas he spent in a danger zone on the other side of the world in 1969:

The year is 1969, still at Fire Support Base Hunter, Viet Nam. It is hard to get into the Christmas spirit when it is 90 degrees every day. With Christmas coming we were receiving tons of cards, letter, packages with home made cookies, which we all ate, and many 3foot pre decorated Christmas trees. On Christmas eve we sat around, talking about what our families were probably doing, what they were having to eat....what their traditions were.....a group of guys decided to go around singing Christmas songs, they started near us and it sounded pretty good. You have to understand, there is no noise....it is quiet at night, no lights, only the moon if it was out....so as the group moved around the fire base and got on the other side, we could hear their voices gently singing in the night......It was one of the most moving and emotional times for all of us. A little later, the radio relay station on top of the only mountain in the area decided to start shooting off red and green flares, what a show....so not to be outdone all the fire support bases in the area did the same thing....it was a great display. Christmas is a difficult time to be away from home, but when you are with people who are family, and remain so til today, I am glad I had the chance to share it with them. I wish all my brothers and their families a Very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.

Thanks so much for sharing this with us, Joe!

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About Dan Cirucci

He's been cited by the late Rush Limbaugh, quoted in the New York Times, featured at Real Clear Politics and Lucianne.com and interviewed across all media.

He's Dan Cirucci, the founder and editor-in chief of the Dan Cirucci Blog, a Save Jersey blog columnist, frequent guest on the Matt Rooney radio show and one of the most widely honored public relations professionals in his field. He's also been a public relations consultant to numerous organizations and individuals and hosted The Advocates on RVN-TV.

Inducted into the Philadelphia Public Relations Hall of Fame, for many years he served as a Lecturer in Corporate Communication at Penn State University. A former President of the Philadelphia Public Relations Association (PPRA) he has lectured at Rowan University, Temple University, The College of New Jersey and Arcadia University. He has conducted workshops on public relations for thousands of participants throughout the nation and has taught countless others the art of public speaking. He has also advised numerous lawyers, judges, public officials and political candidates.

Cirucci is a prolific writer and his op-ed pieces have appeared in the Philadelphia Daily News, Philadelphia Inquirer, Courier-Post, Broad and Liberty and other print and online platforms.

A native of Camden NJ, Cirucci is a former President of the Philadelphia chapter of the International Association of Business Communicators. Cirucci served as Associate Executive Director of the Philadelphia Bar Association for nearly 30 years. He served as Chair of Penn State University's Professional Advisory Board for the Corporate Communication major at Penn State Abington and on the Pennsylvania Bar Association's Judicial Selection Commission.

He received his MA degree from Rowan University and his BA from Villanova University. He has been named a Distinguished Alumnus of Rowan's public relations program and received the E. A. "Wally" Richter Leadership Award, the highest honor from the National Association of Bar Executives' Communications Section. He has also been honored by numerous other local, state and national groups.

In his hometown of Camden, Cirucci taught fifth grade at the Ulysses Wiggins Elementary School named for the founder of the Camden NAACP. There he was one of the first teachers in the country to teach African-American history to inner city students. He later served as editor of a local weekly newspaper, as Assistant to the Township Manager of Cherry Hill Township and as Associate Director of Communications at the New Jersey State Bar Association.

Cirucci's passions include all things Italian, politics, the popular culture, books and authors, art, communication, music, theatre, movies, dining and travel.

He and his wife Carole have two grown children and seven grandchildren.

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