Bart Pfankuch
South Dakota News Watch
When he left the U.S. Marine Corps in 1983, after spending six years at Camp Lejeune in North Carolina, Ronald Lawson was a strong, healthy man with a barrel chest, strong arms and a solid frame that carried his 220 pounds with ease.
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Ronald Lawson has throat cancer and the treatment he received has made it difficult to swallow, so he must take nutrition through Ensure protein drinks through a portal in his stomach.
Bart Pfankuch, South Dakota News Watch
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Gene Ridenour of Sioux Falls served in the Marines in Vietnam and later drank toxic water at Camp Lejeune. Ridenour, shown standing in front of military-themed acknowledgments of service for himself, his father and his son, blames his military experiences for causing diabetes and cancer.
Stu Whitney, South Dakota News Watch
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John Ercink, 76, of Lake City, S.D., served in the U.S. Marine Corps in Vietnam and spent six months at Camp Lejeune where he was exposed to toxic drinking water.
courtesy
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