Medal of Honor Society

[CheapboatKev]

Just want many to be aware, we as a Nation are losing a National Treasure daily, every time a veteran passes away, his story, his experiences die along with him.
Many actors/film makers are involved in recording their stories for historical research (and yes, I assume $$$ reasons down the road in epic movies or series like HBO's very well done THE PACIFIC)
These men (boys) were plucked from their rural roots, and exposed to the vast world and the evils within it, altering their lives for the worst, and ours for the better.

Something to think about..

http://www.cmohs.org/

 

[JB]

Re: Medal of Honor Society

Altering their lives for the worse??

Except that many gave us the best years of their lives and many more gave us their lives I think it made better men of them than they would otherwise have been.

Perhaps one in ten who enlisted actually saw combat, the other nine providing support and logistics, but all were part of a great crusade that rescued the world from a terrible fate.

One of my uncles saw much combat in the Pacific on a carrier and the other was in OSS and spent the war in Brazil spying on Nazis, then in the Phillipines tracking down Japanese holdouts.

They agreed that their service time educated them in a way no college or university could duplicate.

 

[Bob_VT]

Re: Medal of Honor Society

I am proud to say I have met 2 Medal of Honor recipients, saluted them and got to shake their hand.

Reading the stories of the brave hero's always brings a tear to my eyes.

I served my time in the Army with hero's...... the most common trait is they are normal people like us but never hesitate to get the mission accomplished.

 

[BLU LUNCH]

Re: Medal of Honor Society

Here in my town about 10 years ago the high school with the library and the cable company recorded over 150 veterans of WW2 and Korea about there war experience on to DVD and they may be viewed at the library. The same thing when I did my Civil War site for this town, a lot of local history was just being lost and the men forgotten, out of 471 men from town I found only 3 families that were descendants of the men. I wrote my book as a permanent record for these men so they will not be forgotten. I am also working with the VFW here to help make sure every CW and Spanish-American vets grave is properly marked.
This is interesting this was a family I located and his official records are wrong they had all the documents to prove it He is listed as a deserter
http://enfieldwargraves.smugmug.com/History/James-Simpson/10300910_2SREn#711754900_KFrtx

 

[CheapboatKev]

Re: Medal of Honor Society

JB,
What I meant by "Altering their lives for the worse" was the horrors and nightmares of things seen and done during those campaigns..Almost every interview I have seen, these men still have difficulties to this day when speaking of their friends lost, or the brutality of war..

Bob
Very cool!

Blu..
That is a very much needed service, and you have done a great service in keeping these men's stories straight..

 

[trendsetter240]

Re: Medal of Honor Society

Up here in Canada, our last surviving WW1 vet passed away this year. John Babcock was 109.

http://www.cbc.ca/canada/prince-edw...i-charlottetown-remembrace-veterans-1238.html

 

[tallcanadian]

Re: Medal of Honor Society

The Pacific is awesome. And my all time favourite is Band of Brothers. I like that fact that they are true stories. I cannot, for the life of me, imagine being in their shoes. I guess that's why they carry a life bond for one another. One that can't be broken. I'm glad that their experiences are documented because without that, no one would know what happened. And that goes for any campaign.

 

[JB]

Re: Medal of Honor Society

JB,
What I meant by "Altering their lives for the worse" was the horrors and nightmares of things seen and done during those campaigns..Almost every interview I have seen, these men still have difficulties to this day when speaking of their friends lost, or the brutality of war...

I agree that the men I have known who have been in combat are very quiet about it.

I believe that this is out of shame for the terrible fear they felt and for surviving when men they invariably believe were better men than they were killed. A few may have been haunted by the men they killed as well.

Though I never experienced combat in the technical sense I had to kill a boy who attacked me in Saigon in the 50s. By talking about it I have overcome the shame of wetting my pants but I still encounter him in my dreams from time to time. It is not fun.