Couple opens winery, supports military

By Celeste Edenloff

With more than 50 years of military service between the two of them, it seems only fitting that when Ron and Rebecca Joyce opened a winery, the word “veterans” would be a part of the name.

The couple opened the winery – 68 & Vine Veterans Winery – in August 2020. It is located near Miltona on County Road 68 (hence the name).

Several of their wines are in honor of the military, including the Coastie (Coast Guard), which has a picture of Rebecca’s dad, Paul Drew, and her grandpa, Harold Drew, on it. Her grandpa was a chief in the Coast Guard.

Swabbie is a wine representing the Navy. It has a picture of Rebecca on it with her other grandpa, Lloyd VanRiper, who was a chief in the Navy. In 1994, her grandpa put on her bars when she was commissioned in the Navy.

Jarhead is for the Marines and includes a picture of Rick Mohawk from Alexandria. He is pictured with his children when he was coming home from deployment.

G.I. Joe represents the Army and Ron served in the Army National Guard so the bottle has his picture on it.

Flyboys honors those who served in the Air Force. The photo is of Valerie and Roy Harmon, friends of Rebecca’s. Both were in the Air Force.

One more wine they have – Guardians – represents the Space Force. Because they do not know anyone in the Space Force, there is just a generic photo that represents the Space Force.

Besides wine made from the grapes grown at their winery, Ron and Rebecca also produce fruit wines, which are all named after family members.

Appella, an apple wine, is named after their granddaughter, Ella; Keeley Lime, a lime wine, is named after their granddaughter, Keeley; Norabell, a blueberry wine, is named after their granddaughter, Nora; and Munchkinberry, a raspberry, blackberry, blueberry wine is named after their daughter, Jessica.

Their winery includes eight acres of grapes that grow 16 different varieties. They also have an orchard and use the apples for winemaking.

Besides winemaking and tending to their vineyard and winery, Ron and Rebecca enjoy traveling and spending time with their family, which includes six children between them – Elijah, Jonah, Jeremiah, Arianah, Emmah and Jessica. They also have 15 grandchildren, whom they absolutely adore, they said.

Both Ron and Rebecca talked about their careers in the military, which included overseas deployments for both of them.

Ron and Rebecca Joyce, both veterans, own and operate 68 & Vine Veterans Winery near Miltona. Celeste Edenloff / Alexandria Echo Press

Ron, a 1977 Alexandria graduate, joined the Army National Guard in 1985 as enlisted, then accepted his commission and became an officer five years later in 1990. His father, his grandfather and grandfather’s brother were also in the military. They were all members of the U.S. Army.

As the Army was part-time for Ron, he worked full-time. He

helped manage a paper company in Fargo for several years and then he taught at NDSU. He worked for the Department of Defense and was an assistant professor for the Department of Military Science.

During his military career, Ron was deployed overseas a few times – in 2006 and 2007 to Afghanistan and in 2009 and 2010 in Iraq. He was an infantry officer during those times.

When recalling his time serving in the military, Ron said some of his favorite times were just being with the guys, the other soldiers.

“I miss a lot of those guys, the camaraderie,” he said. “I’ve appreciated and I’ve liked every job I had in the military.”

But not all his time was easy. There were plenty of challenging times. His most challenging was when he was deployed in two combat zones.

“Our lives were threatened more daily in Iraq,” he said. “There were rockets and other things.”

He said trying to prepare for being deployed overseas was key. Trying to be mentally and physically prepared is always good, but Ron also said part of being prepared is getting to know your enemy.

“Knowing their culture, knowing their language, reading up on everything,” he said. “And talking to those who were there before you. It’s all helpful.”

In total, Ron spent more than two years overseas. He shared that when he first got to Iraq, it was really bad.

“I thought I was in hell in Iraq,” he said. “It was so hot and so dry and so threatening,."

While in Iraq, Ron was a strategic long-range planner for his division. He planned all the moves and he planned for brigades in the enemy’s movement..

When he was in Afghanistan, he was part of a 16-man team that was embedded.

“I was an embedded tactical trainer, so I was teaching the U.S. Army doctrine to the Afghan army,” he said.

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“I thought I was in hell in Iraq. It was so hot and so dry and so threatening.”

Army National Guard

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By Thalen Zimmerman “Bad habit I picked up in the Army,” said Russ Oorlog, 75, of Alexandria, right before inhaling a drag from his cigarette. “A lot of Vietnam guys are smokers.”

Oorlog never imagined joining the military. The stories his father briefly touched on from his time in World War II convinced Oorlog that military life wasn’t for him. But, that did not stop his name from being called during the Vietnam draft.

A year out of high school and working a well-paying job for a steel company in Minneapolis – five hours from his small hometown of Olivet, South Dakota – Oorlog was just over 18 years old when he received his draft notice.

Although the military wasn’t what he imagined for himself, he was a patriot and knew he had a duty to fulfill.

“I was a young man. I was single. I was not married. I knew the call of duty was where I should go,” Oorlog said. “My dad encouraged me. He said, ‘Just go and work hard and you’ll be okay.’ Thankfully, I was.”

Toward the end of 1965, Oorlog answered the call and began his journey into the United States Army. A journey that sent him around the world, put him in situations he never imagined, helped him develop a bad smoking habit, and showed him what he was capable of.

After months of training and a series of vaccines, Oorlog boarded a plane to go fight for the United States.

In October 1966, he landed at Clark Air Force Base in the Philippines for additional training. He then went on to Tokyo, Japan for a night before being sent to Cameron Bay, Vietnam – a G.I. receiving spot filled with Navy, Marine and Army personnel alike. It was 115 degrees when Oorlog arrived at the bay.

Not long after, he was sent to Củ Chi – “deep in the bush” outside of Saigon, where he spent the next 13 months on ‘search and destroy’ missions with the 25th Infantry Division nicknamed “Tropic Lightning.”

“We were some bad people,” Oorlog said, referring to the platoon’s toughness.

Oorlog rose through the ranks to E-7 Sergeant First Class, which put him in the leadership of 186 soldiers.

“As U.S. Army soldiers out in the field, you learn a lot real quick. If you don’t listen, you’re in trouble,” Oorlog said. “I was one of those people, I guess, that would listen and do what I was told.

“We did stuff that I never thought we would do, but we did it,” he continued. “It’s scary. When you know that you can be fired upon and killed within seconds, minutes, days, you’re out in the bush and you’re fighting. It was a terrible, terrible war.”

Oorlog didn’t go into much detail about his time in Vietnam other than his platoon was often sent to defend the U.S.-operated hospitals and airports in Saigon. They dealt with guerilla fighters dressed in black who often attacked at night and village people they thought were friendly, but weren’t.

He said he spent most of his days repeating the same line, “I’m going home alive.”

“You can’t take the chance in a war zone,” he said. “Killing somebody is a major, major thing in your mind. And it can affect you down the road.”

Before Oorlog was drafted, he was an avid sportsman who enjoyed hunting. After coming home from Vietnam, it was a good 10 years until he was able to bring himself to go hunting again. And another five until he could actually pull the trigger.

Oorlog finally came home in the early part of 1968. His only break during that time was a two-week leave that sent him to Australia with a fellow Aussie soldier for some “rest and relaxation.”

His first steps back on U.S. soil were in Anchorage, Alaska, in early 1968. He remembers finding the nearest store and buying all the milk he could get his hands on. He really missed milk.

Russ Oorlog poses next to a plaque at Veterans Memorial Park that honors Terence Kjos who lost his life in 1970 while serving in Vietnam. Oorlog befriended Kjos during his time in Vietnam. Thalen Zimmerman / Alexandria Echo Press Russ Oorlog rests his hand on an ‘exact replica’ of the Liberty Bell found at Veterans Memorial Park in Alexandria. Thalen Zimmerman / Alexandria Echo Press

Oorlog said while Alaska, for the most part, was very welcoming, he did run into a fair share of anti-Vietnam war protesters.

“We were spit on. We were told we were killers and stuff like that, you know?” Oorlog said. “I think it bothered me, but I just let it go. What can I do about it?”

Oorlog said that even though it gave him a bad smoking habit and he doesn’t miss a thing about it, he is thankful for his time in the military. He said it changed his attitude on what civilians need to do to serve our country, that it taught him if he worked hard, he could go places and he learned how to be friendly, honest and helpful to others.

After a year of being home, Oorlog went back to work at the steel company where he worked for 52 years until his retirement. About 13 years ago, he moved to Alexandria and joined the VFW. His appreciation for his time in the military led him and some other VFW members to start a funeral detail for veterans. They participate in dozens of military funerals every year. Oorlog furthered his dedication to veterans by becoming an integral part of the creation of Veterans Memorial Park on Broadway, which features more than 7,000 names of veterans.

“I don’t want no veteran left behind. So if there is a veteran out there seeking help, I want to help them,” Oorlog said. “Whether it be psychological, financial, whatever. I want to help that vet.”

“As U.S. Army soldiers out in the field, you learn a lot real quick.

If you don’t listen, you’re in trouble.”

Vietnam Veteran Russ Oorlog spoke at the conclusion of a celebration of life service Wednesday, Sept. 16, 2020. The service was for James Freiberg, who died Aug. 9. He served in the Air Force. Echo Press file photo

Many people don’t realize there is a difference. Memorial Day is for remembering military members who died in service to their country, especially those who died as a result of battle. While on Veterans Day, all members of the service are honored for their contributions during wartime and peacetime, both living and dead, it is a special time to acknowledge all those living who have served this country, not only those who died.

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