MLBU Full Monty in Korea
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This is a story of the Korean War in 1951/52 – with an unusual twist - the subject is not combat. It is about one of the very few amenities that Canadian troops had in that barren land, a Mobile Laundry and Bath Unit. Strangely enough, in the Canadian Brigade, it was this small unit which captured the first prisoners of war.
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ISBN#1-894263-85-5
ISBN#9781894263856
War is usually portrayed in the popular media as the firing of weapons and the movement of troops, ships and aircraft. Occasionally a movie such as M*A*S*H will show another side of war such as the medical. But we don't often hear about the logistical operations: the furnishing of food, water, supplies, and laundry and bath facilities.
Bob Ringma, as a Canadian officer in the army during the Korean conflict, was assigned to the Mobile Laundry and Bath Unit - the MLBU. It was his responsibility to move huge vans and personnel to locations near the Front where there was some form of running water, so he could provide weary troops with the luxury of a shower and clean clothing. The process of locating these sites was in itself an adventure.
"Bob Ringma gives us a view of the Korean War through the prism of those who provided the essential support to the soldiers on the front lines. It gives the reader a peek at a perspective infrequently found in books on the war and by his own admission was the primary movitator for his putting pen to paper some fifty years after this galvanizing event in his life."
(Taken from foreword by Lewis MacKenzie, OStJ, OOnt, MSC, CD, Major General (ret'd))
About the Author
Bob Ringma transferred from the Canadian Army Special Force to the regular Canadian Army while serving in Korea. He served in instructional, technical, staff and command positions in various positions with tours of duty in Fort Lee, Virginia, Vietnam, Supreme Headquarters Allied Powers in Europe and throughout Canada. He retired in the rank of Major General in 1983.
He was the member of Parliament for Nanaimo-Cowichan (BC) from 1993 to 1997. Married to Paula MacDowell of Brockville, Ontario, in 1954, they have three children. Bob and Paula live in retirement in Kingston, ON.
