Born on September 7, 1945, Vincent Bernard of Mi'kmaw heritage was one of ten children of Mr. Frank L. Bernard, who predeceased his son, and Mary Bernard of Nyanza, Victoria County, Nova Scotia, Canada. Vincent left his five brothers and four sisters to live with his uncle, John Bernard, who had been chief of the Mi'kmaw Reserve and had moved to Boston, Massachusetts.

On July 5, 1967, he enlisted in the US Marine Corps in Boston, MA. He arrived in Vietnam on December 13, 1967, where he was assigned to Company G, 2d Battalion, 3d Marines, 3d MAR DIV (Rein) FMF until he was reassigned and joined CAP (Combined Action Platoon) 1-3-6, CACO 1-3, 1st CAG, III MAF on July 20, 1968.

CAPs (Combined Action Platoon) were units where Marines would live, train, and patrol with local Vietnamese PFs (Popular Forces) in their villages and who were little more than armed civilians. A squad of Marines would be assigned to villages that had a high enemy presence to instill the fighting spirit in the local PFs so they can protect their families and fellow citizens against their enemy, the Viet Cong and NVA.

On September 21, 1968, while on patrol, the men of CAP 1-3-6 encountered an unknown number of enemy VCs on the outskirts of Phu Le village, in the Binh Son District of Quang Ngai Province, after a furious exchange of gunfire, LCpl Bernard was killed as a result of a head wound inflicted by hostile small arms fire.

Source of information: www.findagrave.com