- Joined
- Jul 31, 2005
- Messages
- 36,705
- Reaction score
- 17,870
- Gender
- Male
- Political Leaning
- Slightly Conservative
Better late than never.
http://www.military.com/features/0,15240,112705,00.html?ESRC=army.nl
Veteran Receives Silver Star for Heroism in Vietnam
Ft. Bragg, N.C. - Richard L. Smith was serving with Company B, 229th Assault Helicopter Battalion, 1st Cavalry Division, when he first came under fire on Nov. 17, 1965.
The place was Albany Drop Zone in Vietnam’s Ia Drang Valley, site of the first major engagement in the war. A Specialist-Five helicopter crew chief, Smith rushed onto the battlefield to rescue several wounded Soldiers his team had come to evacuate from the firefigh
snip..
That recognition came full circle on Aug. 29, when Richard was awarded the nation’s third-highest wartime medal for valor.
Smith received the Silver Star in front of a formation of Soldiers from the 82nd Airborne Division’s Combat Aviation Brigade, and was named an honorary member of the 82nd Aviation Regimental Association for his exceptional role in Army Aviation.
During the presentation, Division Commander Maj. Gen David Rodriguez thanked Smith’s family and three of his crew members, who had also participated in the battle and were present at the ceremony.
Rodriguez then turned to Smith and said, “A few years ago, the Army Chief of Staff put out a warrior ethos for all of us to learn, in the same tradition and legacy of what you did that day. The words are: ‘I will always place the mission first, I will never accept defeat, I will never quit, and I will never leave a fallen comrade’.”
http://www.military.com/features/0,15240,112705,00.html?ESRC=army.nl
Veteran Receives Silver Star for Heroism in Vietnam
Ft. Bragg, N.C. - Richard L. Smith was serving with Company B, 229th Assault Helicopter Battalion, 1st Cavalry Division, when he first came under fire on Nov. 17, 1965.
The place was Albany Drop Zone in Vietnam’s Ia Drang Valley, site of the first major engagement in the war. A Specialist-Five helicopter crew chief, Smith rushed onto the battlefield to rescue several wounded Soldiers his team had come to evacuate from the firefigh
snip..
That recognition came full circle on Aug. 29, when Richard was awarded the nation’s third-highest wartime medal for valor.
Smith received the Silver Star in front of a formation of Soldiers from the 82nd Airborne Division’s Combat Aviation Brigade, and was named an honorary member of the 82nd Aviation Regimental Association for his exceptional role in Army Aviation.
During the presentation, Division Commander Maj. Gen David Rodriguez thanked Smith’s family and three of his crew members, who had also participated in the battle and were present at the ceremony.
Rodriguez then turned to Smith and said, “A few years ago, the Army Chief of Staff put out a warrior ethos for all of us to learn, in the same tradition and legacy of what you did that day. The words are: ‘I will always place the mission first, I will never accept defeat, I will never quit, and I will never leave a fallen comrade’.”
