Spokane Valley man who just received combat medal after 56 years is a strong advocate for veterans

It took 56 years to undo a paperwork error, but Vietnam War veteran Pat Payne finally received his Combat Infantry Badge earlier this year.

Most proud of his family and veteran outreach, Payne said the badge is meaningful. The Spokane Valley resident now battles Stage 4 cancer from Agent Orange exposure, though a medication regimen has kept him going.

Payne, 77, speaks frequently at Veterans Day events, including one last year at the Spokane Arena, where he met U.S. Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers. He told her about the missing badge.

“I tried to get the Combat Infantry Badge several times over the years, and evidently I was asking the wrong part of the Army,” said Payne, chuckling.

“Cathy McMorris Rodgers and people on her staff helped send it to the right place. It was like eight days, and I got it back.”

He listed a range of medals given for wartime service, but this badge holds significance to any infantry soldier. “It’s the designation that you’ve been in actual combat,” he said.

Raised “mostly” in Spokane, Payne was drafted at age 19. Arriving April 1, 1967, in Vietnam, he went to the 1st Battallion 27th Infantry Regiment nicknamed “Wolfhounds.” Weeks later, Payne was injured along with others in a June 16 night ambush that killed 12.

Payne had a short hospital stay and spent three weeks at a base camp, then returned to finish a one-year tour. He received a Bronze Star and Purple Heart. Payne said shrapnel remains in one leg, his neck and spine.

However, Payne is quick to say he doesn’t like attention focused on him. Instead, he talks about the veteran groups he works with and credits anyone who entered the military.

“I’m not a hero; I’m not special,” he said. “Other people have done more. Anybody who raised their hand, they offered to do everything I did and everything that the people who never came home offered to do.”

Returning home April 1, 1968, he married a few months later. He worked in construction running heavy equipment and led in large projects, including Interstate 90 and the Airway Heights Correction Center.

With his wife Dorothy, the couple raised four sons and lived 18 years in Moses Lake, until moving to their Spokane Valley home in 1990. Payne also is co-founder of the Combat Veteran Riders, a Spokane motorcycle club that often does outreach for veterans or military families in need.

Early on, the club had mostly Vietnam War veterans, but members soon reached out to younger veterans from the Gulf War, Iraq and Afghanistan, asking them to join the group or welcoming them at the airport.

“We wanted to make sure they had a better welcome than us Vietnam vets did,” Payne said.

Over the years, the group through fundraisers has sponsored military families during Christmas or helped pay bills. The Paynes have sat across the table from younger military spouses to offer advice or just let them talk.

Members also lend support to many Spokane veteran groups, including Honor Flight and Newby-ginnings.

About 15 years ago, Combat Vet Riders organized help for a young man who had a traumatic brain injury from a roadside bomb in Iraq. He and his wife just had a baby.

“We went over and put cribs, bassinets, diapers, bottles, all the stuff they’d needed, a TV; we filled the cupboards with food and gave them cash,” Payne said.

“For me and I’m sure lots of veterans, the best way for me to deal with my PTSD, or my demons so to speak, is to help someone else – especially other veterans and their families.”

In 2008, the Combat Vet Riders organized events to bring the Vietnam Memorial Traveling Wall to Moses Lake, when Payne was the club’s president. He said one of his best memories was seeing miles of motorcycle riders escorting the truck into the city.

When the traveling wall came to Liberty Lake in 2022, Payne was the main speaker.

He talked about the memorial’s significance, then read aloud names and backgrounds of his platoon’s 12 members killed in action.

His wife Dorothy said it was the first time in 55 years that she heard him say those names.

Both he and his wife credit the motorcycle club’s younger members who have helped older Vietnam vets talk more about their military experiences. Payne also traveled a few years ago to see veteran memorials in Washington, D.C., through Honor Flight, which Payne said helped him heal.

Cancer is in his hips, spine and lungs. In recent years, Payne was diagnosed with an aggressive form of prostate cancer. He said his new mission is work he’s doing to advocate to doctors and veterans to be vigilant about screening.

He said Iraq and Afghanistan veterans should be just as observant about cancers and heart diseases, because many were exposed to burn pits or other chemical hazards.

His cancer doctor marvels at Payne’s positive attitude, Dorothy said. Payne said simply that he’s grateful.

“I’ve been this close to people who got killed – young 18-, 19-, 20-year-olds who never had that opportunity to come home, have a family, live their lives like I have. I hope and I pray that I have lived my life in such a way that would make them proud.

“I’m 77 years old and the cancer will win the fight, but I’m going to win as many rounds as I can. I have lots of support from my wife, family, friends in the CVR, our church family, the VA hospital has been great. If I lose that final round tomorrow, I’ve got no complaints.”

At their church, Payne leads a Veterans Day tribute and asks anyone with military service to stand.

He thanks them for raising a hand and agreeing – even if it costs their lives – to protect the country and Constitution.

“You have done what only 2% of the country has done,” he said. “You deserve recognition no matter what branch, what job. Thank you for your service.”