I'll Be Back: A Vietnam War Family Memory

By Warren Jerome Mack

At four years old, Warren Mack stood beside a flag-draped coffin and waited for a father who had promised to return.

Before leaving for Vietnam, Corporal Lawrence Allen Hayes knelt beside his young son and said, "Take care of your mom until I get back. Don't worry. I'll be back."

Lawrence never returned in the way his family expected. He died on August 3, 1969, and was buried on Warren's fourth birthday. Warren's final childhood memories of his father were of Marine dress blues, a coffin sealed beneath glass, a folded American flag, and the military rifle salute that awakened him at the burial.

Years later, Warren discovered the extraordinary circumstances of his father's death. Lawrence had voluntarily advanced under enemy fire to help trapped and wounded Marines, giving approximately eleven men a chance to survive.

I'll Be Back is a true story of childhood loss, a young mother's strength, a Marine's sacrifice, and a son's lifelong journey to understand the father he barely had time to know. It is a moving reflection on grief, heroism, family legacy, and the many ways a promise can endure.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: B0HFDWHGRB
• ISBN13: 9798192836989
• Release Date: August 2026
• Publisher: Independently Published
• Length: 26 Pages
• Weight: 0.14 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.1" x 6.0" x 9.0"