They left Indianapolis for Vietnam in May 1968: the “Indiana Rangers,” Company D, 151st Infantry Regiment.
With more than 200 National Guardsmen in its ranks, the Rangers spent much of 1968 in individual and unit training, preparing for a year in theater. In December, they deployed as one of eight National Guard units sent to Southeast Asia.
Hoosier heroism didn’t go unnoticed. The Rangers were one of the most decorated units of the war, earning nearly 500 individual medals after fighting in 94 engagements and conducting 974 patrols. Those awards and decorations included 19 Silver Stars, 123 Bronze Stars — 88 of them with Valor — 101 Purple Hearts, 183 Army Commendation Medals and 19 Indiana Distinguished Service Medals. In one case, a Ranger spotted and reported 600 advancing enemy troops.
They returned to Indiana with some fanfare, receiving a key to the city of Indianapolis and a “Unity Day” declared by the governor, who also presented them with a group Sagamore of the Wabash award, a high Indiana honor. However, it took almost six decades for the Indiana Rangers to receive a Presidential Unit Citation, the ultimate decoration for a unit with extraordinary heroism in combat.
The unit award was presented in Indianapolis this past August, at a convention of the National Guard Association of the United States.
“The unit was successful in the almost daily violent contact with the main force enemy units, characterized by close-in ambush teams,” the citation reads. “The valorous soldiers of Company D, 151st Infantry (Rangers) responded to their dangerous missions with personal bravery, professional competence and relentless determination.”
Donnie Holland of Anderson, Indiana, was a sergeant and a patrol leader with Company D. One of the nearly 100 veterans who mustered in Indianapolis for the presidential citation streamer presentation, he’s now vice president of the Indiana Rangers Association.
He has a green folder with 50 certificates and as many gold-framed, presidential-blue ribbons that, gradually, he’s sending to veterans of the unit across the country. He says he’s working to ensure that members of the unit are accorded the Ranger tab they earned through training and combat experience.
The Ho Chi Minh Trail wound its way outside Vietnam to Cambodia and Laos, he said, and the Indiana Rangers had, among other things, a protective mission.
“Our primary objective was to stop them before they could do anything to the base at Saigon,” he said. “We had a kill ratio of 90-to-1.”
“Everything we did, we had to prove ourselves,” he said, explaining that National Guard units weren’t held in the same esteem at the time, adding, “We got high recognition from the Regular Army.”
In 2018, Holland said, his son started the campaign to recognize the Indiana Rangers as a whole.
“We knew we did a good job, but we didn’t know it was greater than others,” Holland said. “We were the highest decorated company to serve in the whole Vietnam War in a one-year term. I was surprised, and the other guys were surprised, too.” Holland’s son reached out to President Donald J. Trump, then-Vice President Mike Pence, “to anyone who would listen,” he said. Indiana U.S. Rep. Victoria Spartz took notice and spearheaded the effort to award the citation.
Holland lauded Secretary of War Pete Hegseth for “hand-carrying” the award nomination through the approval process.
“It took some time, but I’m thankful,” said Holland, who lamented his son didn’t live long enough to see the presentation. He’s a two-time Agent Orange cancer survivor, but his son succumbed to cancer.
Army Maj. Gen. Lawrence Muennich, adjutant general of the Indiana National Guard, said the Rangers are woven into the state’s proud military history.
“Their actions represent the very best of the Indiana National Guard,” Muennich said. “The Presidential Unit Citation was a long-overdue recognition of their extraordinary service and sacrifice. I am humbled and grateful to have played a small role in helping bring this recognition to fruition. To be part of ensuring their story is properly honored and preserved is, without question, a highlight of my military career.”
Company D’s Vietnam deployment was a landmark moment in U.S. military history, proving that National Guard units could seamlessly integrate with active-duty units on the front lines. As the only National Guard ground maneuver unit to serve in Southeast Asia, its service paved the way for the modern total force integration between active-duty and reserve components.
“It was my profound honor to work with President Trump’s administration to secure the long-overdue Presidential Unit Citation for Indiana’s Rangers, nearly 60 years after their extraordinary valor in Vietnam,” Spartz said. “As we commemorate Veterans Day, we honor their courage, sacrifice and enduring legacy of service to our nation.”