The Allgoods: Vietnam Through the Eyes of Love

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It’s May 8, 1971, and Sarah is writing from the apartment she shared with Richard near Lackland Air Force Base in San Antonio. Earlier that day, she unpacked a box of surprises he sent from Las Vegas before deploying to Vietnam—dishes, small treasures, and bits of their life together. A few things arrived broken, but her heart is full just knowing he thought of her.

Sarah is her full, unfiltered self in this letter: playful, honest, and aching. She hosts a steak dinner with friends, jokes about missing her “sex books,” and confesses how deeply she misses him. She worries about missed phone calls, wonders if he’s wanted anyone else, and reassures him that her love hasn’t wavered.

This letter is a window into wartime intimacy, the ache of absence, and the humor that helps carry it all.

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The Allgoods: Vietnam Through the Eyes of Love is a personal podcast project based on real letters exchanged between Capt. Richard Allgood and Capt. Sarah Allgood during the Vietnam War. Photos of the original letters, family snapshots, and behind-the-scenes commentary are available for supporters.

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In this letter from May 8, 1971, my dad writes from the patio of the Officers’ Club at Clark Air Force Base. He’s packed, ready, and counting down the hours until he returns to Bien Hoa and finally gets the year underway.

Even in the quiet moments, you can feel how much he misses my mom. A tall, black-haired woman walks by, and something about her reminds him of her—but it’s not desire. It’s homesickness.

He’s surrounded by other servicemen, many joking about one last fling before Vietnam. But my dad doesn’t waver. He wears his wedding band, stays faithful, and makes it clear: there’s no one who holds a candle to the woman he loves.

They don’t know yet that she’s pregnant with me. But through every word, you feel their connection—and their determination to hold onto each other across the world.

Read more letters, see the originals, and support the project at www.theallgoodslove.com.

Support the show

The Allgoods: Vietnam Through the Eyes of Love is a personal podcast project based on real letters exchanged between Capt. Richard Allgood and Capt. Sarah Allgood during the Vietnam War. Photos of the original letters, family snapshots, and behind-the-scenes commentary are available for supporters.

Support the show:

https://buymeacoffee.com/theallgoodslove

Visit the official website: https://www.theallgoodslove.com

Send us Fan Mail

In this letter from May 7, 1971, my mom, Sarah, is doing her best to stay strong while missing my dad. She had just received some surprises he sent before leaving the States—they arrived safely, and she’s slowly unpacking them. She even tries going to the Officers’ Club with friends, but not even live music could lift her spirits. What she really wants is a letter from him. None came that day, and the loneliness weighs heavy.

My dad had just finished jungle survival school at Clark Air Force Base. At this point, neither of them knew she was pregnant with me. These letters were how they stayed connected—and now they help me stay connected to both of them.

Read the full transcripts, see the original letters, and support the project at www.theallgoodslove

Support the show

The Allgoods: Vietnam Through the Eyes of Love is a personal podcast project based on real letters exchanged between Capt. Richard Allgood and Capt. Sarah Allgood during the Vietnam War. Photos of the original letters, family snapshots, and behind-the-scenes commentary are available for supporters.

Support the show:

https://buymeacoffee.com/theallgoodslove

Visit the official website: https://www.theallgoodslove.com

Send us Fan Mail

In this May 7, 1971 letter, Capt. Richard Allgood has just completed jungle survival school in the Philippines and is preparing to return to Bien Hoa. Though relieved to be done with the bugs and challenges of jungle life, he’s still in the dark—he hasn’t received any of Sarah’s letters yet due to constant moves. Neither he nor Sarah knows she’s pregnant, making this stretch of letters even more poignant in hindsight. He writes with deep affection, describing the emotional toll of their recent phone call and reaffirming his love for his wife, unaware of the life-changing news that lies ahead

Support the show

The Allgoods: Vietnam Through the Eyes of Love is a personal podcast project based on real letters exchanged between Capt. Richard Allgood and Capt. Sarah Allgood during the Vietnam War. Photos of the original letters, family snapshots, and behind-the-scenes commentary are available for supporters.

Support the show:

https://buymeacoffee.com/theallgoodslove

Visit the official website: https://www.theallgoodslove.com

Send us Fan Mail

In this warm, humorous, and deeply tender letter from May 6, 1971, Sarah writes to Richard shortly after he completes jungle survival school in Vietnam. With no contact during his time away, the sound of his voice on a brief phone call fills her with overwhelming relief—“almost close to a climax,” she says.

The letter blends everyday military-spouse responsibilities with emotional longing—insurance updates, utility refunds, and a household goods shipment all wrapped in deep affection. Even her evening plans with the girls from the O.R. reflect her desire to stay busy while carrying the weight of waiting.

This letter is proof that love during wartime didn’t just survive on grand gestures—it lived in the smallest, most personal moments

Support the show

The Allgoods: Vietnam Through the Eyes of Love is a personal podcast project based on real letters exchanged between Capt. Richard Allgood and Capt. Sarah Allgood during the Vietnam War. Photos of the original letters, family snapshots, and behind-the-scenes commentary are available for supporters.

Support the show:

https://buymeacoffee.com/theallgoodslove

Visit the official website: https://www.theallgoodslove.com

Send us Fan Mail

In this vulnerable and heartfelt letter dated May 4, 1971, Sarah Allgood writes from the stillness of 4 a.m., aching with worry and longing for her husband, Richard, who is deep in jungle survival school in Vietnam. With no word from him and no confirmation that her own letters have arrived, Sarah clings to the only connection she has—his photo, her memories, and her words.

Her letter is tender, funny, raw, and deeply human. She speaks to him like he’s still beside her in bed, filling the page with a need for comfort, intimacy, and reassurance. While Richard’s earlier letters described comfort and calm, Sarah’s letter reminds us that back home, silence could be terrifying—and love had to stretch across great distances of time, fear, and uncertainty

Support the show

The Allgoods: Vietnam Through the Eyes of Love is a personal podcast project based on real letters exchanged between Capt. Richard Allgood and Capt. Sarah Allgood during the Vietnam War. Photos of the original letters, family snapshots, and behind-the-scenes commentary are available for supporters.

Support the show:

https://buymeacoffee.com/theallgoodslove

Visit the official website: https://www.theallgoodslove.com

Send us Fan Mail

In this May 2, 1971 letter, Richard writes from yet another plane — this time en route to a survival school in the Philippine jungle. Though he reassures Sarah that his living quarters at Bien Hoa are comfortable, there’s a gentle ache between the lines. It’s their first weekend apart since he left, and her first letter still hasn’t reached him. He admits he may not be able to write for a few days but promises it’s only temporary. He closes with love, levity, and a hopeful note: he’s trying to reach her by phone using AUTOVON.

It’s clear he’s trying to protect her from worry, even as he faces unknowns in the jungle.

Support the show

The Allgoods: Vietnam Through the Eyes of Love is a personal podcast project based on real letters exchanged between Capt. Richard Allgood and Capt. Sarah Allgood during the Vietnam War. Photos of the original letters, family snapshots, and behind-the-scenes commentary are available for supporters.

Support the show:

https://buymeacoffee.com/theallgoodslove

Visit the official website: https://www.theallgoodslove.com

Send us Fan Mail

On May 1st, 1971, just three nights into his deployment, my father writes from Vietnam with a heart full of longing and a mind already spinning with plans to get back home. He’s not yet in the thick of missions, but the distance is heavy—he’s already tried calling home for two hours, unsuccessfully.

This letter captures the quiet, intimate spaces between duty and emotion. He’s preparing to leave for Jungle Survival School in the Philippines, but what matters most to him is making sure my mother feels loved, comforted, and connected.

He tells her about his new P.O. Box, shares dreams of meeting in Hawaii for R&R, and even reminds her to go out, dance, and enjoy herself—through tears of love and selflessness.

There’s humor in the teasing he gets from fellow airmen, tenderness in the mention of his stuffed “wittle chick-a-dee,” and an aching hope that someday soon, they’ll be together again.

Support the show

The Allgoods: Vietnam Through the Eyes of Love is a personal podcast project based on real letters exchanged between Capt. Richard Allgood and Capt. Sarah Allgood during the Vietnam War. Photos of the original letters, family snapshots, and behind-the-scenes commentary are available for supporters.

Support the show:

https://buymeacoffee.com/theallgoodslove

Visit the official website: https://www.theallgoodslove.com

Send us Fan Mail

April 30, 1971 — First Day, Last Flight

In this letter from April 30, 1971, my father has just arrived at Bien Hoa after a long journey to Vietnam. It’s his first full day on base, and already he’s soaking in the surreal details: air-conditioned hooches, stereo systems, steak dinners, and a stuffed chickadee perched five inches from his pillow.

The comforts may seem striking—especially compared to what many endured during the war—but they don’t diminish the weight of his role. As a rescue pilot, he was part of the team responsible for pulling others out of danger. The days ahead would be long, the missions critical, and the risk constant.

What he doesn’t know—and neither does my mother—is that she’s already pregnant with me. That unspoken future adds a quiet urgency to his words. He writes with playful affection, calling her his “wittle chick-a-dee,” but beneath it is the unmistakable ache of separation. A fellow pilot makes his final flight that day, taxiing past the alert pad while “Earth Angel” plays. My father watches and quietly hopes his own last day will come soon.

This letter captures a deeply human moment—equal parts homesick, hopeful, and surreal. Written four years to the day before the fall of Saigon, it reminds us that war is rarely just battlefield trauma. Sometimes, it’s found in the space between steak dinners, stereo music, and a man aching to be home.

Support the show

The Allgoods: Vietnam Through the Eyes of Love is a personal podcast project based on real letters exchanged between Capt. Richard Allgood and Capt. Sarah Allgood during the Vietnam War. Photos of the original letters, family snapshots, and behind-the-scenes commentary are available for supporters.

Support the show:

https://buymeacoffee.com/theallgoodslove

Visit the official website: https://www.theallgoodslove.com

Send us Fan Mail

After a long, exhausting journey through Alaska, Japan, and the Philippines, Richard Allgood finally reaches Vietnam. In his first letter home, he shares the surprising comforts of his new base — but beneath every detail, his heart aches for Sarah. Every word carries the weight of distance, longing, and the fierce love that will sustain them through the months ahead.

Support the show

The Allgoods: Vietnam Through the Eyes of Love is a personal podcast project based on real letters exchanged between Capt. Richard Allgood and Capt. Sarah Allgood during the Vietnam War. Photos of the original letters, family snapshots, and behind-the-scenes commentary are available for supporters.

Support the show:

https://buymeacoffee.com/theallgoodslove

Visit the official website: https://www.theallgoodslove.com