Vernon Arthur Wright

Vernon Arthur Wright was raised in Indianola in Warren County. He graduated from Southeast Warren High School in the class of 1969. Wright joined the Army in the summer after graduation. He trained as a paratrooper and as an infantryman before being sent to South Vietnam in January 1970. SP4 Wright served in Alpha Company, 4th Battalion, 503rd Infantry Regiment in the 173rd Airborne Brigade. Eight months into his deployment the young Iowa was killed in action. He died on September 5, 1970 by an enemy booby trap while on a combat operation in the Binh Dinh Province, South Vietnam. The 21-year-old Wright was buried at the Odd Fellows Cemetery in Indianola. He left behind a wife, a four-month old daughter, five brothers, six sisters, and his parents.