A weekend fundraiser raised hundreds of dollars to support veterans, high school students, and to help bring home the remains of a U.S. Army Special Forces soldier originally from Rochester, Minnesota, who was killed in the Vietnam War in 1971.
The Military Order of the Purple Heart Lloyd Swenson Chapter 7110 and the POW/MIA Riders Association of Rochester hosted the ‘Heroes Among Us” fundraiser on April 10 at the Rochester VFW club. A silent auction, a LIVE auction and a 50/50 raffle were held along with hors d’oeuvres and refreshments to raise money for veterans in need, fund scholarships for graduating high school seniors, and to support the fund to bring Sgt. Allen Lloyd’s remains home.
“We do it every other year for funding, all of the funding stays in the greater Rochester area for veterans and their families,” said Harry Kerr, a retired Army command sergeant major and chaplain of the POW/MIA Riders Association of Rochester, in an interview with Military.com. “As a community, we honor our veterans and never forget our POWs, especially Sgt. Lloyd.”
Born on February 21, 1949, Sgt. Allen Lloyd was drafted into the Army in 1969 and sent to Vietnam in 1970, according to a biography posted to the website “FallenHeroPortraits.com.” The site reads, “Just three days before his 22nd birthday, Allen Richard Lloyd lost his life in the Vietnam War. Allen was one of the missing men of RT Intruder, a team that performed highly classified, strategic reconnaissance and interdiction missions along the Ho Chi Min Trail.”
More than 50 years later, Sgt. Lloyd’s family and the VFW community are still trying to orchestrate the return of his remains.
“He was Green Beret. We’ve been working on it for two years with Senator Amy Klobuchar’s office and the Department of War,” said Kerr. “We have the coordinates of where he went down and we have witnesses. We’re working hard to bring his remains home.”
The Vietnam mission involving Sgt. Lloyd and his command team were described as extremely dangerous, with heavy enemy fire, rough terrain and weather conditions. Ultimately, Sgt. Lloyd’s helicopter with five other soldiers onboard crashed.
To this day, Sgt. Lloyd’s remains and those of his comrades have not been recovered.
“The powers that be at that time decided that because their helicopters were getting hit with so much firepower, they were ordered not to go back and risk more lives,” said Kerr. “But with fundraisers and help from our elected officials in Minnesota and in Washington, our hope is to bring Sgt. Lloyd home along with the others.”
The veterans community in Rochester has not forgotten Sgt. Lloyd. In April of 2016, the Rochester Military Order of the Purple Heart (MOPH) was named the Lloyd-Swenson Chapter 7110 MOPH, honoring Sgt. Lloyd and another local fallen hero, Corporal Curtis Swenson, who lost his life in Afghanistan. In addition, a portrait of Sgt, LLoyd was commissioned and given to his sister, Mary Lloyd.
“Our motto is never forget and we’ve added on never give up. To bring one family member home at a time,” said Kerr. “If we’re able to bring him home, we’ll have one heck of a welcome home party!”
Military.com reached Kerr by phone at the VFW hall just as the fundraiser was getting underway on Saturday. In the background, the crowd could be heard gathering and celebrating their common cause – to help those in need, to raise scholarship money for deserving students from the area, and to fund the recovery effort for Sgt. Lloyd.
“What a wonderful turnout for our Heroes Among Us fundraiser, in conjunction with the Military Order Of The Purple Heart – Lloyd Swenson #7110,” reads the organization’s Facebook page. “A huge thank you to everyone who attended, donors and sponsors, volunteers and committee members!”
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