Modern War Heroes » medal

Surrounded By Taliban, But He Took Them On

admin — Wed, 27 Jan 2010 20:15:12 +0000

This is the face of a truly brave man. I’m sure many, when faced with the challenges he faced, would not have been able to act with the level of bravery and skill that Staff Sgt. Lincoln Dockery did.

It all started on an ordinary day in eastern Afghanistan. Dockery’s platoon had been ordered to investigate a report on a possible IED planted in the area around the villages of Kandegal and Omar. Unfortunately, the road-clearing platoon discovered the explosive device the hard way – by landing on it. The vehicle-mounted mine detector leading the convoy set the device off, causing an explosion that knocked down the dismounted troops, Dockery included. At the same moment, more than 30 insurgents opened fire on the soldiers.

Dazed from the blast, and despite heavy fire, Dockery risked his life to awaken the driver, Pfc. Amador Magana, who had been knocked unconscious from the explosion. Once Magana was awake and firing at the enemy, Dockery decided he wasn’t satisfied with merely saving the life of his comrade.

Seeing his convoy in danger from the heavy fire, he, along with Spc. Corey Taylor, stormed the enemy position, which was a staggering 75 feet up the mountainside. Not to be daunted, the two rushed upward, then crawled along – the whole way throwing grenades at the insurgents. Shrapnel hit Dockery, but he didn’t let slow him down.

Eventually he and Taylor found themselves taking shelter under a rock incline, so close to the enemy that they could hear them talking. They remained holed up there while Dockery attempted to get 1st Lt. William Cromie, his platoon leader, on the radio.

Finally they reached Cromie on the radio, but no one below could spot their position. No one knew how to reach them.

And they were running out of ammunition.

Cromie made the risky decision to take on the mountain by himself. He grabbed extra ammo and reached the two men above. Between the three of them, they were able to force the insurgents into a retreat.

Dockery received a Silver Star and a Purple Heart for his brave tactics against the enemy. Cromie also received a Silver Star for his actions.

I don’t know about you, but reading a story like this just gives me the shivers. Such bravery in the face of death and injury really humbles me.

She Was Known As “The Woman With The Limp”

admin — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 21:29:38 +0000

I found this account over at the website DamnInteresting.com. And the website does live up to its name. But first, I’d like you to check out the story of Virginia Hall, a woman born in Maryland in 1906.

Long story short, when Virginia was only 26, she went on a hunting trip in Turkey and accidentally shot herself in the leg. Sadly, the injury was so extensive that the doctors couldn’t save the limb and had to amputate.

But that didn’t stop her from making history. She ended up as a clerk in France and was trapped when Nazi Germany invaded in 1940. She snuck out of the country and joined the Special Operations Executive (SOE) in Britain. SEO was created by Winston Churchill and was an effort to wage war in ways that didn’t involve direct military engagement. Known as the “Baker Street Irregulars,” they engaged in spreading propaganda and spying.

Virginia was sent to German occupied France to spy. The Nazis were aware of her presence, but not who she was. She was known to them only as “the woman with the limp”. Virginia spent 15 months on her first tour – most spies only spent three. She spent most of that time in France assisting the Resistance, helping them receive supply drops from the Allies.

In 1942 she was forced to flee over the Pyrenees Mountains into Spain when German troops were moving forcefully through France.

When she returned to London, Virginia signed on with the American intelligence office, the Office of Strategic Service. They sent her back to France in 1944 disguised as an elderly woman. This time she operated in a much more guerrilla fashion – destroying bridges, sabotaging trains, and causing overall havoc for the German forces.

Keep in mind that she only had one leg – and she managed all this.

Virginia Hall was the only woman during World War II to receive the US Distinguished Service Cross. I believe that she more than deserved that honor.

Medal Of Honor

admin — Tue, 20 Oct 2009 19:49:28 +0000

The Medal of Honor is the United States’ highest military decoration. It has been bestowed on
3,447 men and one woman since President Abraham Lincoln signed it into law on Dec. 21, 1861.
It is reserved for those who are distinguished “by gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty while engaged in an action against an enemy of the United States.” Five servicemembers have received the Medal of Honor – all posthumously – since the global war on terror began following the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks on the United States.

This quote was taken from the U.S. Department of Defense website. Click here to visit. I didn’t know that the Dept. of Defense had a website dedicated to their Medal recipients, and I’m glad to see that they do. These people deserve to be remembered for their heroic and selfless acts on the battlefield.

Recently Reinstated Medal Posthumously Awarded

admin — Fri, 02 Oct 2009 22:55:44 +0000

OSLO — Norway on Friday awarded its highest military decoration for the first time in 60 years, posthumously honoring a soldier who was killed while helping the wartime government flee the country as German troops invaded in 1940.

Capt. Eiliv Austlid was awarded the War Cross with Sword, a medal that was recently reinstated after having been suspended since 1949.

Austlid fell to Nazi bullets as he led a small Norwegian unit in an attack on a German detachment in Dovre, central Norway, on April 15, 1940, the Defense Ministry said. The assault held up the Germans long enough to allow key members of the Norwegian government to escape.

The government officials eventually made it to England where they governed in exile throughout the war.

“Today’s award honors a man who showed personal valor and made a significant contribution on the battlefield with strategic import,” Defense Minister Anne-Grete Stroem-Erichsen said.

The decoration comes after Austlid’s role in the attack was revised.

Postwar reports suggested that he had acted recklessly, getting himself killed while doing little to protect his charges. But historians, relying partly on interviews with Austlid’s fellow soldiers, later found he had acted valiantly.

Recent media interest in Austlid’s story helped bring him to the attention of the Defense Ministry.

“The stories say he was a fool,” Defense Ministry adviser Asgeir Spange Brekke told The Associated Press. “But history shows that he in fact was a hero.”

The decoration, established in 1941 by King Haakon VII, was suspended in 1949 because it was seen as exclusive to World War II.

The government reinstated the award in June, after much deliberation about how best to honor the extraordinary achievements of Norwegian soldiers fighting in Afghanistan and other war zones.

Spange Brekke noted that the reinstatement also allows for retroactive conference.

“We are opening for old cases from World War II and the Korean War and every other conflict that Norwegian troops have been included in up to today,” he said.

The Defense Ministry has yet to decide on a date for the award ceremony. It’s also not clear which of Austlid’s family members will be presented with the medal.

There are two other cases currently under consideration for the War Cross, Spange Brekke said. He said both cases involve Norwegian troops in Afghanistan, but declined to give details because they involve sensitive special forces operations. (source)
If the persons of importance were able to get away without harm, then why wouldn’t any man involved in the operation not be touted as a hero? Especially one who lost his life defending them? Well, at least Austlid is finally getting the respect that he deserves. I suppose sometimes valor can be mistaken for recklessness. But if an action looks like it will benefit the group, these brave people often have to take that opportunity without having the time to discuss it with their peers. It’s a shame that this man’s name wasn’t associated with heroism for all these years. His descendants can be proud of him. He gave his life to save others.

Hero Is Selling His Medals

admin — Tue, 01 Sep 2009 21:58:12 +0000

An Iraq war hero is putting his bravery medal up for sale – so his family can have financial security.

Ex-Royal Marine Justin Thomas, 30, won the Conspicuous Gallantry Cross in 2003 for single-handedly fighting off more than 100 insurgents.

But the lance corporal turned civil servant says his wife Heather and child mean more to him and has put a £60,000 reserve on the medal at auction later this month.

Justin, of Llantwit Fadre, near Pontypridd, said: “I’ll be sad to part with it. But we’ve got a little one now and want more children. So we’ll need to move for more space.”

He added: “Rather than just sit in a drawer, the medal will make our lives better.”

Justin is also selling his Northern Ireland, Afghanistan and Iraq service awards.

Source

All I can say is wow, 100 insurgents? I’m sure this brave man will have no trouble with fatherhood if he can pull that off.

But this is really sweet. I would think that it would be hard to part with those hard-earned medals, but this man is a real hero to his family. I hope those medals can bring financial security to him and his wife.

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A Real Ace

admin — Thu, 09 Jul 2009 18:49:30 +0000

William “Bill” A. Shomo was truly an amazing pilot who flew for the United States Air Force during World War I. While flying an armed photo reconnaissance in his P-51 Mustang, he and his wing mate spotted 13 enemy planes. Despite being incredibly outnumbered, they immediately executed an Immelman turn and engaged the planes in combat. Within only 6 minutes of fighting, Shomo had shot down 7 of the 13 planes – making him an “ace in one day”. Most fighter pilots never reached Ace status in their entire careers. This remarkable feat was resulted in Shomo being awarded the Medal of Honor.

Talk about being an incredibly skilled pilot. Overall, Shomo flew over 200 missions in the war. Click here to read more details regarding his epic flight.

WWI Tennessee Hero

admin — Wed, 08 Jul 2009 20:27:36 +0000

Sgt. Alvin C. York is truly an amazing man. He received these awards for his actions: the Distinguished Service Cross, the French Croix de Guerre, the badge of nobility, and The Congressional Medal of Honor. And he continued to humble about his deeds. I highly recommend reading this account of his accomplishment. This quote from the article pretty much sums it up:

In a sentence: On Oct. 8, 1918, less than year after he joined the army, Alvin C. York, as Corporal York, Company G, 328th
Infantry, 82d Division, A. E. F., during options in the Argonne sector, killed twenty-five Germans, captured 132 prisoners, including a major and several lieutenants, and put out of commission thirty-five machine guns — did it by his “lonesome,” subduing the machine gun battalion with his rifle and automatic pistol.

Army Man Finally Awarded Bronze Star Earned in WWII

admin — Tue, 07 Jul 2009 20:56:22 +0000

It was a miserable existence all winter long some six decades ago as Morris N. Bishop was among the Allied forces fighting the Germans, hunkering in a freezing foxhole in the mountains of Italy.

Then, when the Army sergeant returned home from World War II in full uniform, he couldn’t even buy a hot dog in Washington.

It was 1946, the U.S. was still widely segregated, and Bishop is black.

A member of the only all-black infantry division in Europe, the 92nd, or “Buffalo” division, Bishop at 21 was deployed to the front lines, where he sprayed machine gun fire toward entrenched enemy lines in August 1944. There he stayed until the following May, when the war ended in Europe.

On Monday, his 86th birthday, Bishop finally got the recognition that was coming to him for his service when city and state officials and the Army honored him as he was presented the Army’s Bronze Star medal, reserved for those who show bravery in combat. Read on…

Morris Bishop didn’t originally think that receiving this medal was necessary, but later changed his mind and accepted it in honor of his fellow soldiers.

“It gets me sentimental, when I think about the buddies that I lost,” he said after the ceremony, noting that most of his comrades were either wounded or killed in the war. “Some of them were very good friends.”

Bishop certainly earned his Bronze Star. Personally I think that he not only was amazingly brave facing the German forces in Italy, but coming home and having to face the racism directed towards him. All of our returning soldiers deserved respect and freedom to enjoy what they could of their lives after having lived in such hellish conditions in war torn Europe.

Better Late Than Never

admin — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 19:57:40 +0000

In a ceremony yesterday, Dee Eberhart (84) was awarded numerous medals that he earned in WWII for his brave actions while in service. During his time in Germany, he also witnessed the Dachau Death Train incident.

A 1943 graduate of Toppenish High School, he (Eberhart) served as a first scout in I Company of the 242nd Infantry Regiment of the famed 42nd Rainbow Division, landing in Marseilles in December 1944 and fighting his way through France and Germany along the Maginot and Siegfried lines.

“I always went first,” he says. “It was the loneliest job in the world.”

Some of the units he served with suffered casualties of 80 percent or more. And while there were many close calls, he was never wounded.

“Everybody else was picked off around me,” he says. “You wonder about survival. I just chalk it up to luck. That’s all it is: bad luck or good luck.”

Toting a 9-pound M1 Garand rifle, Eberhart conducted patrols behind enemy lines, dug foxholes, and dodged shrapnel, explosions and artillery fire.

Dee Eberhart certainly was a hero and his actions in WWII commendable. The medals awarded to him are:

* Bronze Star

* Combat Infantryman Badge First Award

* European-African-Middle Eastern Campaign Medal

* Good Conduct Medal

* American Campaign Medal

* World War II Victory Medal

* Honorable Service Lapel Button

* Expert Badge with carbine and rifle bars