White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre waved off criticisms of President Joe Biden&#8217;s behavior at a Tuesday afternoon <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/tennessean-who-conducted-daring-rescue-during-vietnam-war-to-be-awarded-medal-of-honor" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Medal of Honor ceremony</a> recognizing Vietnam veteran Captain Larry Taylor, insisting that his abrupt exit from the event was &#8220;as planned.&#8221;
Biden, who has been wearing a mask and observing &#8220;social distancing&#8221; protocols since it was revealed that first lady Jill Biden has once again tested positive for COVID, first raised eyebrows when he had his face covering removed in close proximity to Taylor, 81.
WATCH:
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That time Covidian propagandists were all praising Biden for going back to wearing his mask again but then two minutes later he took it off and walked through a crowd of people without it anyway. <a href="https://t.co/C7xQl9ShK6">pic.twitter.com/C7xQl9ShK6</a>
&mdash; Five Times August (@FiveTimesAugust) <a href="https://twitter.com/FiveTimesAugust/status/1699399130685067559?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 6, 2023</a></blockquote>
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Biden inspired further confusion when — with no announcement, explanation, or fanfare — he walked through the crowd (still sans mask) and out the door, baffling guests and photographers along the way. The ceremony concluded with the benediction prayer several moments after Biden left.
WATCH:
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Joe Biden just BOLTED out of the room immediately after awarding the Medal of Honor to Army Captain Larry Taylor.
The ceremony continued on for several minutes afterwards.
Biden completely missed a concluding prayer. <a href="https://t.co/BjSdeHcLPD">pic.twitter.com/BjSdeHcLPD</a>
&mdash; Townhall.com (@townhallcom) <a href="https://twitter.com/townhallcom/status/1699148013577318593?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 5, 2023</a></blockquote>
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Critics wondered what was happening, calling out the president&#8217;s odd departure via X.
&#8220;He wasn’t supposed to leave yet. In East Room ceremonies they always ask people to remain in their seats while the president exits when the ceremony is finished. More mental confusion,&#8221; the American Enterprise Institute’s Marc Thiessen <a href="https://twitter.com/marcthiessen/status/1699149979321815534" target="_blank" rel="noopener">posted</a>.
&#8220;He also starts to leave before saluting, only stops when he sees the salute, then jets. Man &#8230;&#8221; conservative pundit Stephen Miller <a href="https://twitter.com/redsteeze/status/1699154070932783133" target="_blank" rel="noopener">added</a>.
But Jean-Pierre insisted that Biden&#8217;s exit, though unannounced, was part of a plan to ensure he did not risk exposing other attendees to COVID.
WATCH:
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Karine Jean-Pierre says that Joe Biden&#39;s mysterious and abrupt exit from the Medal of Honor ceremony yesterday was &quot;as planned.&quot; <a href="https://t.co/cNmdgAFhb1">pic.twitter.com/cNmdgAFhb1</a>
&mdash; Townhall.com (@townhallcom) <a href="https://twitter.com/townhallcom/status/1699475553697271904?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 6, 2023</a></blockquote>
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&#8220;The president took off his mask, as I said he would, to deliver some incredibly powerful remarks about this captain, Captain Taylor and what he did in service to our nation,&#8221; Jean-Pierre said at Wednesday&#8217;s press briefing. &#8220;For a brief time afterwards, he also did not have his mask on.&#8221;
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Jean-Pierre went on to address Biden&#8217;s exit, saying it was &#8220;as planned&#8221; and had been intended to minimize any possible COVID exposure to the others in attendance.
She doubled down on the issue a short time later.
WATCH:
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Karine Jean-Pierre doubles down on Biden&#39;s strange exit from the Medal of Honor ceremony yesterday:
&quot;That was done on purpose. That was done very purposefully.&quot; <a href="https://t.co/HBBtW2BkZS">pic.twitter.com/HBBtW2BkZS</a>
&mdash; Townhall.com (@townhallcom) <a href="https://twitter.com/townhallcom/status/1699482239854092780?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 6, 2023</a></blockquote>
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&#8220;That was done on purpose, that was done very purposefully so that, again, he wasn&#8217;t there for too long,&#8221; Jean-Pierre said, adding that Biden had spent some time with Captain Taylor and his family — with everyone wearing masks — in addition to his brief appearance at the ceremony.

President Biden Awards Medal Of Honor To Vietnam Veteran For Conspicuous Gallantry

‘He Left As Planned’: Press Sec Waves Off Biden’s Abrupt Exit From Medal Of Honor Ceremony

'He Left As Planned': Press Sec Waves Off Biden's Abrupt Exit From Medal of Honor Ceremony

Executive

Joe Biden

Karine Jean-Pierre

Medal of Honor

Military

Politics

Vietnam

A Tennessean who conducted a daring helicopter rescue during the Vietnam War will be awarded the <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/medal-of-honor" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Medal of Honor</a> on Tuesday, more than 50 years after his heroic actions. 
Retired Captain Larry Taylor of Signal Mountain, <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/tennessee" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Tennessee</a>, will be given the award by President Joe Biden for rescuing four soldiers under heavy fire from communist forces during a firefight in 1968. Taylor was deployed to Vietnam from 1967-1968, where he ran 2,000 combat missions and was fired at 340 times, <a href="https://www.army.mil/medalofhonor/taylor/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">according</a> to the Army.
The act that earned Taylor the Medal of Honor occurred on June 18, 1968, during a battle in the hamlet of Ap Go Cong, then part of the Republic of Vietnam. Taylor was the leader of a helicopter light-fire support team that was tasked with helping four soldiers who had been surrounded by communist forces during a reconnaissance mission. 
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/BREAKING?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#BREAKING</a>: <a href="https://twitter.com/WhiteHouse?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@WhiteHouse</a> just announced that <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/USArmy?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#USArmy</a> Capt. Larry Taylor will be awarded on Tuesday the <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/MedalOfHonor?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#MedalOfHonor</a> for his heroic actions on June 18, 1968, as a first lieutenant with 1st Infantry Division in Vietnam. 
📰 <a href="https://t.co/QOSCDBgMHh">https://t.co/QOSCDBgMHh</a> <a href="https://t.co/j7Xt8vCRfz">pic.twitter.com/j7Xt8vCRfz</a>
&mdash; U.S. Army (@USArmy) <a href="https://twitter.com/USArmy/status/1697623687820615905?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 1, 2023</a></blockquote>
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Taylor and another helicopter provided air support for the soldiers for about 45 minutes before the choppers ran low on ammo and left to scout out an escape route the reconnaissance team was supposed to take. 
He then returned and discovered that plans for a UH-1 “Huey” helicopter to rescue the soldiers had been scrapped “because it stood almost no chance of success,” <a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/presidential-actions/2023/09/01/president-joseph-r-biden-jr-to-award-the-medal-of-honor-3/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">according</a> to a White House press release.
“Running low on fuel, with the patrol team nearly out of ammunition, Taylor decided to extract the team using his two-man Cobra helicopter, a feat that had never been accomplished or even attempted,” the White House said. “When the team reached the site, Taylor landed his Cobra under heavy enemy fire and with complete disregard for his personal safety. The patrol team climbed aboard, grabbing on to rocket-pods and skids, and Taylor carried them to a safe location before landing them back on the ground.”
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Speaking last year on the anniversary of the rescue, a member of the patrol that Taylor rescued said he did not think he would survive the battle. 
“Who would have bet that any of us would have even the sun come up on the morning of June 19, 1968, let alone the dawns of another 54 years? Words are inadequate to describe your actions, nor my humble gratitude for the many years of friendship given you and me since then, so I will just say: thank you, sir,” Dave Hill said. 
Taylor, born in Chattanooga, also earned the Silver Star, a Bronze Star, 43 Air Medals, and two Distinguished Flying Crosses. After his service, Taylor went into the roofing and sheet metal business.

President Biden Awards Medal Of Honor To Retired US Army Colonel Paris Davis

Tennessean Who Conducted Daring Rescue During Vietnam War To Be Awarded Medal Of Honor

American History

Heroism

U.S.

U.S. Army

A U.S. Army corporal posthumously received the <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/medal-of-honor" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Medal of Honor</a> for his bravery during the Korean War. Now, 73 years after he was killed serving his country, Luther H. Story’s remains have been identified. 
Story, a member of the 9th Infantry, was declared missing after his company was attacked by the North Korean army near the Naktong River in South Korea in 1950. The corporal — who was from Buena Vista, Georgia — was declared unrecoverable after he took heroic action to repel enemy forces so his company could withdraw, <a href="https://apnews.com/article/korean-war-army-medal-of-honor-remains-7c7d48633856778f48c809afbb127e41" target="_blank" rel="noopener">according</a> to the Associated Press. 
In 1951, Gen. Omar Bradley presented Story’s father with the Medal of Honor. U.S. and South Korean officials <a href="https://www.dpaa.mil/News-Stories/News-Releases/PressReleaseArticleView/Article/3374478/medal-of-honor-soldier-accounted-for-from-korea-story-l/#:~:text=Luther%20H.%20Story%2C%2019%2C,Infantry%20Regiment%2C%202nd%20Infantry%20Division." target="_blank" rel="noopener">announced</a> Wednesday that Story’s remains had been identified and accounted for on April 6.
“The supreme sacrifice and heroism of Corporal Luther Story is illustrative of the freedom, security, and prosperity the South Korean people have today,” the White House said in a joint statement with South Korea. 
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In line with Memorial Day I want to introduce you to my uncle Luther H. Story. He&#39;s MIA from the Korean conflict. He&#39;s 17-18 in this picture. <a href="https://t.co/uBYGnyZW8Y">pic.twitter.com/uBYGnyZW8Y</a>
&mdash; JudyBelle1 (@Elwood_Man) <a href="https://twitter.com/Elwood_Man/status/1531010312194883585?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 29, 2022</a></blockquote>
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On September 1, 1950, Story saw the enemy army crossing the river and heading toward his company. He grabbed a machine gun from his wounded gunner and opened fire on the North Koreans, killing or wounding an estimated 100 enemy soldiers, <a href="https://www.cmohs.org/recipients/luther-h-story" target="_blank" rel="noopener">according</a> to the Congressional Medal of Honor Society.   
The American company was still surrounded by North Koreans, however, and the commander ordered a withdrawal. As the Americans moved positions, Story noticed an enemy truck approaching them. After telling his comrades to take cover, Story “fearlessly stood in the middle of the road, throwing grenades into the truck,” according to the Congressional Medal of Honor Society. 
<a class="c-link" href="https://onelink.to/dwapp" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-stringify-link="https://onelink.to/dwapp" data-sk="tooltip_parent" aria-describedby="sk-tooltip-9125">CLICK HERE TO GET THE DAILY WIRE APP</a>
The 19-year-old ran out of grenades but crawled to his squad to retrieve more before returning to the enemy truck to continue his assault. 
“Story was wounded in this action, but, disregarding his wounds, rallied the men about him and repelled the attack. Realizing that his wounds would hamper his comrades, he refused to retire to the next position but remained to cover the company&#8217;s withdrawal,” U.S. officials said. 
Story was last seen firing every weapon he could get his hands on to fend off the enemy attack so his fellow troops could withdraw.

Korean War Memorial

Medal Of Honor Hero’s Remains Identified Seven Decades After He Was Killed In Korea

Medal Of Honor Hero's Remains Identified Seven Decades After He Was Killed In Korea

General

North Korea

South Korea

<a href="https://woodywilliams.org/woody-williams-bio.html">Hershel W. &#8220;Woody&#8221; Williams</a>, who was the last living World War II Medal of Honor recipient, passed away on Wednesday — just a few months short of what would have been his 99th birthday.
Williams was born on October 2, 1923, on a West Virginia dairy farm. When World War II began, he served his community by delivering Western Union telegrams — often informing families that their loved ones had been reported missing or killed in action.
He continued that service by enlisting in the United States Marine Corps, and he served in the Battle of Iwo Jima with the 21st Marines, 3d Marine Division — where his &#8220;valiant devotion to duty&#8221; prompted then-President Harry S. Truman to award him the Congressional Medal of Honor on October 5, 1945.
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An honor of a lifetime to meet WWII hero and Medal of Honor recipient Hershel “Woody” Williams at the groundbreaking of the ⁦<a href="https://twitter.com/MohMuseum?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@MohMuseum</a>⁩ in March. His foundation confirms he passed away this morning at the age of 98. Rest In Peace, sir. 🇺🇸 <a href="https://t.co/f10YXBEwPX">pic.twitter.com/f10YXBEwPX</a>
&mdash; Jake Tapper (@jaketapper) <a href="https://twitter.com/jaketapper/status/1542127501652148226?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 29, 2022</a></blockquote>
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The United States Department of Defense shared some of the details of Williams&#8217; exploits on Iwo Jima in an <a href="https://www.defense.gov/News/Feature-Stories/story/Article/2337804/iwo-jima-medal-of-honor-recipient-recounts-battle-experiences/">article</a> published in November of 2021.
According to that report, Williams&#8217; unit landed on the island two days after the battle had begun — but the steep volcanic-sand beaches had made it difficult for the American troops to gain any ground. The Japanese pillboxes — bunkers — that dotted the island also complicated progress because even bazooka fire couldn&#8217;t penetrate their thick walls. Flamethrowers were the only remaining option — but those required proximity to the enemy, and a number of the demolitions sergeants were picked off by the Japanese soldiers in the pillboxes before they could get close enough. By February 23, 1945, Williams was the only one left.
He volunteered to continue the mission himself, with four riflemen providing as much cover fire as they could. And in just four hours, Williams was able to take out seven pillboxes.
&#8220;That made a hole big enough that [the company] could go through and get behind any other pillboxes that were in that area,&#8221; Williams explained. &#8220;Once you got behind the pillboxes, then we had the advantage.&#8221;
Williams&#8217; actions that day earned him the Medal of Honor — alongside ten other Marines and two sailors who were also honored for their service — but even then he said that the honor truly belonged to the men who had died protecting him while he completed the mission.
&#8220;This medal doesn&#8217;t belong to me. It belongs to them because they gave their lives for me. I was just doing a job that I was trained to do,&#8221; he said.
Asked on multiple occasions where he&#8217;d found the courage to get through that day, Williams said he&#8217;d never really been able to pin down the answer.
&#8220;Everybody has some instinct of bravery. And, as long as they can control the fear, you can be brave. But if fear overtakes you and becomes the dominant instinct, you cannot operate. You cannot operate under fear. Your brain won&#8217;t let you,&#8221; he said. &#8220;I feel that our upbringing had some influence on our bravery because we were taught in the depression years, if you didn&#8217;t have it, you had to make it. And the only way you could make it was to work at it. Our upbringing gave us the confidence that developed into bravery.&#8221;
In the years after the war, Williams returned to serving Gold Star families — creating the Woody Williams Foundation in an effort to make sure those families are recognized.
&#8220;To date, Woody and his foundation are responsible for establishing 103 Gold Star Families Memorial Monuments across the United States with more than 72 additional monuments underway in 50 states and 1 U.S. Territory. The Foundation continues to grow its reach by being involved in multiple initiatives across the country,&#8221; the <a href="https://woodywilliams.org/woody-williams-bio.html">website states</a>.
&#8220;If we lose our freedom we lose America,&#8221; Williams said, adding that freedom and America were always worth fighting for.

Military Bowl-San Jose State v. Bowling Green

‘Rest In Peace, Sir’: Hershel ‘Woody’ Williams, The Last WWII Medal of Honor Recipient, Dies At 98

Hershel 'Woody' Williams, The Last WWII Medal of Honor Recipient, Dies At 98

Marines

World War II

When Tech. Sgt. Charles H. Coolidge died April 6, 2021, at 99, he was the oldest living Medal of Honor recipient from World War II and the last from the European theater.
Born Aug. 4, 1921, in Signal Mountain, Tennessee, outside Chattanooga, Charles Henry Coolidge faced adversity from an early age. Apart from the formative lessons of growing up during the Great Depression, Coolidge also suffered from a speech impediment caused by a congenital deformation of his tongue. After years of being mocked by his peers and not understood even by his family, Coolidge underwent surgery in the fourth grade that corrected it, but he still had to go through years of diction lessons.
Coolidge&#8217;s father, Walter P. Coolidge, Sr., founded the Chattanooga Printing &amp; Engraving Company in 1910, where Charles worked both before and after the war. Even throughout the Depression, Coolidge remembered, his father would care for his employees as best he could. Coolidge learned very young the importance of industry. In addition to working the labor-intensive job at the printing company, where he learned to be an expert bookbinder, Coolidge also sold magazines door-to-door and worked for the Tennessee Valley Authority.
When he was drafted into the U.S. Army on June 16, 1942, at age 20, he was working double shifts at two jobs.
Coolidge was careful to note in interviews how his family&#8217;s Christian faith formed him and equipped him for his wartime experience. &#8220;My mother and daddy were praying people,&#8221; he remembered. &#8220;Religion, that was the thing, you were supposed to read the Bible and pray every day, sometimes more than once a day. When they’re shooting at you, you better be praying a whole lot.&#8221;
“I’m Sorry, Mac, You’ve Gotta Come And Get Me”
After receiving basic training at Fort McClellan, Alabama, where he almost lost his leg because of an accidental, self-inflicted bayonet wound, he was sent to Camp Butner, North Carolina. Then he went to Camp Edwards in Massachusetts, where he was assigned to M Company, 3rd Battalion, 141st Infantry Regiment, 36th Infantry Division.
In April 1943, Coolidge’s unit shipped overseas to North Africa to prepare for the invasion of Europe. When they landed near Paestum, Italy, in September of that year, the soldiers of the 36th Infantry Division were the first U.S. troops to see combat on the continent. As his division pressed their way through the Italian peninsula toward France, Coolidge would go on to receive a Silver Star for his actions as a machine gun section leader at Velletri in May 1944, just days before they entered Rome.
The actions for which a 23-year-old Coolidge received his Medal of Honor began Oct. 22, 1944, when he and his 27 men were ordered to cover the right flank of the 3rd Battalion by securing several hills east of Belmont-sur-Buttant, France, along the German border.
On Oct. 24, while Coolidge and his men were performing reconnaissance on Hill 623, they were met by a group of Germans emerging from a dense forest. Taking with him George Ferguson, one of his soldiers who knew some German, Coolidge went out to meet them and instructed Ferguson to ask them if they wished to surrender. While they were speaking, Coolidge spotted a German behind a nearby tree readying his rifle to shoot them, but he managed to cut him down with his carbine first.
A ferocious firefight then erupted that would span four days, during which Coolidge and his outnumbered platoon repeatedly repelled German forces. Ferguson was wounded almost immediately, and Coolidge dragged him from the crest of the hill to safety. With no officers present, Coolidge calmly assumed leadership of the platoon, many of whom were green replacement soldiers who had never seen combat.
On Oct. 27, the fourth day of fighting, two German tanks rumbled up the hill followed by more infantry. One of the tanks approached Coolidge and stopped within about 30 meters of him before the hatch opened and a German soldier popped out. Coolidge stood up and looked him in the eye.
“Do you guys want to give up?” the tank commander asked in perfect English, echoing what Coolidge had asked the Germans days before.
“I’m sorry, Mac, you’ve gotta come and get me,” Coolidge answered.
He darted between trees as the tank&#8217;s turret swung back and forth, firing five times at him in close range but narrowly missing. Shrapnel skimmed the tip of his boot and took off some leather, but he escaped the ordeal unscathed. When a bazooka he found nearby failed to fire, Coolidge resorted to lobbing a volley of grenades at the enemy, all while keeping his head as he issued orders to the other men.
&#8220;Finally it became apparent that the enemy, in greatly superior force, supported by tanks, would overrun the position,&#8221; Coolidge&#8217;s Medal of Honor citation <a href="https://mohmuseum.org/technical-sergeant-charles-coolidge-a-medal-of-honor-hero-of-the-greatest-generation/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">reads</a> in part. &#8220;TSgt. Coolidge, displaying great coolness and courage, directed and conducted an orderly withdrawal, being himself the last to leave the position. As a result of TSgt. Coolidge’s heroic and superior leadership, the mission of his combat group was accomplished throughout four days of continuous fighting against numerically superior enemy troops in rain and cold and amid dense woods.&#8221;
They later learned that despite the overwhelming odds against them, they had killed 26 Germans and wounded more than 60. After breaking through into Germany over the Vosges Mountains with his division, Coolidge was awarded the Medal of Honor by Gen. Wade H. Haislip in a field near Dortmund on June 18, 1945.
“I didn’t care about me,” Coolidge said of his heroic actions. “I cared about my men. I’d do anything for them.”
WATCH:
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“My Mother Was Praying For Me”
Coolidge&#8217;s son, Lt. Gen. (Ret.) Charles H. Coolidge Jr., recalled to The Daily Wire when he once asked his father how he was able to face down two German tanks without fear.
Clarifying that he was only aware of one tank at the time, his father replied, “Well, my mother was praying for me, so I knew that I was in His hands.”
Coolidge Jr. said faith was an indispensable support to his father and that his life showed it. When he spoke of his wartime ordeals, Coolidge always credited God for his ability to repeatedly emerge from harrowing circumstances unharmed.
&#8220;Anything I did do during the war, I give God the credit,&#8221; Coolidge said in <a title="vimeo.com" href="https://vimeo.com/397274275">an interview</a> with the Congressional Medal of Honor Society. &#8220;I mean, Jesus walked with me every step of the way. You cannot believe what my men — they thought I &#8230; [had] lost my mind. Because I would go anywhere, do anything, never worried that they were shooting at me.&#8221;
&#8220;I still say the Lord must’ve curved many a bullet that I knew absolutely they were shooting at me,&#8221; he added. &#8220;I mean, I’m positive they were shooting at me.&#8221;
Coolidge, who claimed the life expectancy of infantrymen was roughly 12 days, was never even wounded.
During his <a href="https://vimeo.com/536391016" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">funeral</a> at First Presbyterian Church in Chattanooga, Coolidge&#8217;s pastor discerned the role his faith played in his life. &#8220;Long before he was a hero in the European theater, both at Anzio and the Battle of the Bulge, he was a man of faith who knew where he was going for eternity,&#8221; he said.
&#8220;He couldn&#8217;t predict what was going to happen in those European battlefields, in which many men — many right next to him and around him — lost their lives in an instant, but he knew in life and in death, he was the Lord&#8217;s and he would be with Him in glory someday soon.&#8221;
WATCH:
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“Love Thy Neighbor”
After the war, Coolidge returned to Signal Mountain and remained in the area for the rest of his life. &#8220;He came back from the war and of course he was a hero, so he was offered many jobs,&#8221; Coolidge Jr. said. For a time he worked for the Veterans Administration but was willing to take a salary cut to return to the family printing company when his father asked for help.
&#8220;He was very loyal, very family-oriented,&#8221; Coolidge Jr. said.
The importance of family was one of the hallmarks of Coolidge&#8217;s life. Coolidge Jr. said his father was &#8220;very concerned&#8221; about where the nation was headed and believed most of its problems were attributable to the breakdown of the family, which he saw as the bedrock of a healthy culture.
One of the battles Coolidge had to fight in later life began in his 40s when he started to show symptoms of multiple sclerosis in 1966. The disease <a href="https://mohmuseum.org/technical-sergeant-charles-coolidge-a-medal-of-honor-hero-of-the-greatest-generation/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">afflicted</a> him for 55 years, but &#8220;in combating the illness, he showed the same dedication, calmness, deep faith, and good humor that had motivated him during the war.&#8221;
Regarding his father&#8217;s legacy, Coolidge Jr. described the <a href="https://www.mohhc.org" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Charles H. Coolidge National Medal of Honor Heritage Center</a> in Chattanooga as the capstone of a life that was dedicated to the six values the Medal of Honor represents: courage, sacrifice, patriotism, citizenship, integrity, and commitment. To these Coolidge Jr. adds love, quoting the Scripture that greets visitors at the center: &#8220;Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.&#8221;
Listing the many profound problems the country is facing, Coolidge Jr. said his father believed all of them could be “solved with one sentence.”
“Love thy neighbor as thyself,” Coolidge said, referencing the passage in the Gospels when Jesus was asked to describe the greatest commandment. “That&#8217;s my dad&#8217;s answer. He said you don&#8217;t need new policies, you don’t need any new law. You just need to live by that.”
Related:
<ul>
<li><a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/wwii-medal-of-honor-recipient-hershel-woody-williams-talks-war-faith-and-the-nation" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">EXCLUSIVE: WWII Medal Of Honor Recipient Hershel ‘Woody’ Williams Talks War, Faith, And The Nation</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/in-memoriam-fiske-hanley-world-war-ii-veteran-and-special-prisoner-1920-2020" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">In Memoriam: Fiske Hanley, World War II Veteran And ‘Special Prisoner,’ 1920-2020</a></li>
<li><a href="https://dailycaller.com/2019/06/05/d-day-normandy-veteran-andy-andrews-story/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">7 Minutes To Live: The Extraordinary Story Of D-Day Veteran Andy Andrews</a></li>
</ul>

Charles Coolidge

In Memoriam: Charles H. Coolidge, Last WWII Medal Of Honor Recipient From European Theater, 1921-2021

Memorial Day

Religion

Veterans

Shortly before traveling with President Donald Trump on Air Force One to dedicate Wilmington, North Carolina, as the nation&#8217;s first World War II Heritage City in September, Marine Corps veteran Hershel Woodrow &#8220;Woody&#8221; Williams met with the president in the Oval Office.
Williams recounted that the president sat down at his desk, pulled out two handsome boxes made of walnut, and offered him a choice. &#8220;You can take either one,&#8221; he recalled Trump telling him. In one there was a skillfully crafted medallion embossed with the presidential seal. In the other was a key to the White House. &#8220;Which would you like?&#8221;
Williams told Trump, “Well, I&#8217;ll take the medallion because I have keys at home to several cities in West Virginia that have been presented to me over the years, and none of them will open anything. I don&#8217;t imagine the White House key will open the White House, either. So I’ll take the medallion.” The key, Williams points out, he convinced Trump to give to his oldest grandson who was with him.
Echoes Of The Past
Almost exactly 75 years earlier, Williams, who turned 97 on Oct. 2, was at the White House to receive something else from a different president. On Oct. 5, 1945, he was one of 13 soldiers who assembled on the White House lawn to receive the Medal of Honor from President Harry S. Truman.
Williams remains not only the last survivor of those 13, but also the last living Marine Corps recipient from World War II, as well as the last from the Pacific theater.
Williams had returned from the Pacific just a month before and has claimed he had no idea at the time why he had been summoned to Washington, D.C. According to his <a href="https://www.army.mil/medalofhonor/keeble/medal/citations23.htm#W" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Medal of Honor citation</a>, Williams distinguished himself &#8220;above and beyond the call of duty&#8221; for his actions during the Battle of Iwo Jima on Feb. 23, 1945.
Two days after landing on the volcanic island over which American and Japanese forces battled fiercely for weeks, the 21-year-old Williams was assigned the daunting task of using a flamethrower to neutralize the Japanese machine gun fire that spewed from the reinforced concrete pillboxes and kept American tanks from advancing.
&#8220;Covered only by four riflemen, he fought desperately for four hours under terrific enemy small-arms fire and repeatedly returned to his own lines to prepare demolition charges and obtain serviced flame throwers, struggling back, frequently to the rear of hostile emplacements, to wipe out one position after another,&#8221; his citation reads.
Two of the riflemen who covered him were killed.
&#8220;Much of what went on that day, I have absolutely no memory,&#8221; Williams <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O9TqQWLtBJk" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">told Memoirs of World War II</a>. The men who gave their lives to enable his mission, he still believes, are the true recipients of his Medal of Honor, and that he is merely its caretaker. &#8220;I wear it in their honor because they certainly gave more than I did. And I would have never perhaps received it had they not been in that position.&#8221;
&#8220;It Had To Be Divine Intervention&#8221;
During a recent interview with The Daily Wire about his life, his faith, and his thoughts on the country&#8217;s present troubles, Williams described how his act of gallantry and the Marines who made it possible changed him in ways he never could have foreseen.
&#8220;It had to be divine intervention, I think,&#8221; Williams said, regarding why he survived. A devout Christian now, he maintains that he &#8220;didn&#8217;t know God&#8221; during his time in the Marine Corps, but nevertheless found himself talking to him. &#8220;I just knew there was a power that I talked to and I didn&#8217;t know what that power was. I just wanted to live. I wanted to survive. Even though I didn&#8217;t know God, I&#8217;m still talking to some force that I think can keep me alive.&#8221;
After the war, Williams married his high school sweetheart, Ruby Meredith, and had two daughters, Travie Jane and Tracie Jean. His wife, he explained, had been raised a Christian and was raising Travie and Tracie as Christians, but Williams resisted coaxing from his girls that he attend church with them.
Despite recurring, horrific nightmares that had him <a href="https://www.uso.org/stories/13-a-tale-of-two-brothers" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">fighting walls of fire in his sleep</a>, he described his attitude as a &#8220;self-sufficient&#8221; one, which convinced him that &#8220;I didn&#8217;t need God in my life.&#8221;
Williams remembers in vivid detail the Easter of 1962, when he reluctantly agreed to go to church with his family. &#8220;It was just because they were putting pressure on me,&#8221; he said. He was irritated, first of all, that his wife bought new white outfits for the girls every Easter, as was customary at the time. &#8220;I can remember resenting that, to do it just for one day.&#8221;
His plan to hide somewhere in the back pew fizzled when the packed church forced them to sit &#8220;in the fourth pew on the right,&#8221; he still recalls. Then, during the sermon, Williams found himself transfixed by the message from the large, powerful preacher, who spoke &#8220;of the sacrifice of the Lord.&#8221;
&#8220;I thought he was looking straight at me all the time that he was talking,&#8221; Williams said. &#8220;I&#8217;m sure he wasn&#8217;t, but in my conscience, he was.&#8221; His thoughts returned to that day on Iwo Jima and the two young men who sacrificed their lives for him, which made his Medal of Honor possible.
&#8220;That all started running through my mind that day. And then he mentioned that the Lord had also sacrificed his life for me.&#8221;
By the end, Williams said, &#8220;I just got up out of my pew and walked up front. The Lord just grabbed me and took me up there.&#8221; Asking the pastor to pray with him, the 38-year-old Williams became a Christian. &#8220;That day, my life changed. I walked out of that church a different person than I walked in.&#8221; He gave up smoking, drinking, and swearing. His nightmares stopped.
&#8220;I Could Not Forgive Myself&#8221;
Williams became very active in his church in the decades afterward. Though he found his life transformed, his spiritual wounds did not heal overnight. He maintained that as he delved into a deeper understanding of his faith, he found it harder to forgive himself than those who were his enemies.
&#8220;I didn&#8217;t hold the enemy responsible,&#8221; he said. &#8220;They were doing what they were trained to do, and I was doing what I was trained to do. We were trained differently, but those were our beliefs. That&#8217;s what we had been taught.&#8221;
Williams believes he developed a guilt complex after what he had to do during the war, which he credits his faith for helping him overcome. &#8220;I could not forgive myself,&#8221; he explained. &#8220;I did after the Lord came into my life, but I felt that he would forgive me because I wasn&#8217;t doing this because I wanted to do it. I was doing it because I was trained to do it. And that&#8217;s what we were supposed to do in war. So I finally forgave myself.&#8221;
&#8220;And what a relief that was,&#8221; he added. &#8220;My guilt went away and it gave me a peace that I never had before.&#8221;
Williams has dedicated most of his life to helping other veterans, serving as a Veterans Affairs counselor for 33 years and the chaplain for the Congressional Medal of Honor Society for 35 years. To this day, he remains active in honoring Gold Star families through his nonprofit, the <a href="http://hwwmohf.org" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Hershel Woody Williams Medal of Honor Foundation</a>, which seeks to erect monuments in every state honoring those who have lost a loved one fighting for the United States.
So far, 69 memorial monuments have been raised in 49 U.S. states or territories, and 73 remain in progress. &#8220;Everything else is taking the place of news and newspapers, but almost every day, we have somebody in the armed forces lose their life. We don&#8217;t talk about it. We don&#8217;t advertise it, we don&#8217;t let people know, but it&#8217;s happening.&#8221;
&#8220;We Can Return To The Foundations Of This Country&#8221;
As Williams surveys the state of the country he loves so much, he is grieved by the turmoil that has roiled it in recent months. He believes the riots that have left major cities torched and businesses destroyed are &#8220;absolutely atrocious,&#8221; and symptomatic of a generation that is bereft of values.
Williams goes beyond the hand-wringing that older generations have always done about young people, instead going so far as to lament a society whose foundations are seemingly being destroyed.
People know only what they have been taught, Williams said, for which reason blame falls in part on those individuals and institutions that have failed to pass on the country&#8217;s legacy to posterity.
&#8220;They do not have values of being an American,&#8221; he said of the rising generation. &#8220;The love of country that we were taught as we grew up in school; the respect that we would have for our country, for our flag, for our laws, for our being. We&#8217;re not teaching any of that today.&#8221;
&#8220;We&#8217;re not teaching civics in any form, so they don&#8217;t have any values that I had,&#8221; he continued. &#8220;I would never disrespect the flag ever, because I was taught not to.&#8221;
Nevertheless, Williams remains hopeful. The youth today, he said, lack &#8220;those very bedrock, basic values of country, appreciation of each other, of preservation of life. I think that&#8217;s slipped away and I don&#8217;t know how—I&#8217;m not smart enough to bring it back. But somebody will, somebody can.&#8221;
&#8220;It is my hope and my prayer that somehow we can return to the foundations of this country,&#8221; he concluded. &#8220;We&#8217;ve existed for over 200 years and we have existed because others made it possible for us to continue to exist.&#8221; As he has done throughout his long life, he keeps an eye to the many who have sacrificed their lives to that end. They died, he said, &#8220;just so we can be the country we are, the America that we love.&#8221;
&#8220;It&#8217;s my prayer, my hope, that we can come back to those foundations, reestablish those values to really realize that we do live in the greatest country on the globe,&#8221; he added. &#8220;And there&#8217;s no other country like us.&#8221;
Related: <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/in-memoriam-fiske-hanley-world-war-ii-veteran-and-special-prisoner-1920-2020" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">In Memoriam: Fiske Hanley, World War II Veteran And ‘Special Prisoner,’ 1920-2020</a>

Hershel Woody Williams

EXCLUSIVE: WWII Medal Of Honor Recipient Hershel ‘Woody’ Williams Talks War, Faith, And The Nation

Christianity

President Donald Trump awarded the Medal of Honor to a soldier in the U.S. Army on Friday afternoon for his role in helping to save roughly 70 captives held by the Islamic State for execution back in 2015. The president referred to the mission, which involved freeing Kurdish prisoners, as “one of the largest and most daring rescue missions in American history.”
Sergeant Major Thomas P. Payne, 36, received the award in a ceremony at the White House on September 11, 2020, during which the president praised his actions and called him a “warrior who has devoted the last two decades to fighting the forces of terror.”
“As soon as the ramp to his helicopter went down, Pat rushed into a blistering hail of gunfire,” said Trump, explaining the mission to ceremony attendees. “Pat and his team swiftly overpowered the enemy, secured the building, and freed 38 of the hostages.”
“Then Pat received word that the rest of the assault team was facing harsh resistance in another complex,” continued Trump. “Pat turned to one of his fellow soldiers, and said, ‘Let’s get into the fight right now. Let’s get into the fight.’ He saw that the other building was on fire, and he knew more of the hostages were still trapped inside.”
Payne and his team sprung into action, said the president, explaining that they climbed to the roof of the building and opened fire on the enemy as “multiple ISIS fighters detonated suicide vests, ripping a portion of the building into pieces.”
After finding the padlock-secured metal door where the captives were being held, Payne “grabbed a pair of bolt cutters and ran through smoldering flame and smoke as bullets impacted all around him,” and cut off one of the two padlocks. He then left the area for a few seconds to grab some air, explained Trump, before running “right back into that raging blaze,” cutting the final lock and freeing the remaining hostages.
After receiving evacuation orders, he returned to the building two more times to save two other hostages, said Trump.
The day before the ceremony, Payne told reporters at the Pentagon that he doesn’t “consider” himself “a recipient,” but rather “a guardian,” according to <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/2020/09/11/medal-of-honor-payne-trump/">The Washington Post</a>. At the ceremony, the president spoke highly of Payne&#8217;s character and heroism during the rescue mission.
“Pat, you embody the righteous glory of American valor,” said the president during the ceremony. “We stand in awe of your heroic, daring, and gallant deeds. You truly went above and beyond the call of duty to earn our nation’s highest military honor.”
The White House ceremony was attended by several previous recipients of the Medal of Honor, high-ranking military officials, members of Payne’s family, including his wife and son. Ashley Wheeler, the widow of Master Sergeant Joshua Wheeler, who was killed in the 2015 mission, was also in attendance and received a standing ovation.

U.S. Army Sergeant Major Thomas Payne Awarded Medal Of Honor

Soldier Receives Medal Of Honor For Role In ‘Daring Rescue’; Helped Save Around 70 Hostages From ISIS

Islamic State (ISIS)

Earlier this week, a clip of Medal of Honor recipient retired Staff Sgt. David G. Bellavia <a href="https://www.dvidshub.net/video/693124/medal-honor-recipient-joins-pentagons-hall-heroes?fbclid=IwAR0LgjVXgkUNekPvmpXtlLFOdCLQY2GINC2JQFiU1HtDTHmkwi9fdLJMSyw">speaking</a> in June about our nation&#8217;s enemies and American strength went viral in light of the current heightened tensions with Iran.
As he was inducted into the Pentagon’s Hall of Heroes in June, Bellavia warned that &#8220;threats against the U.S. such as North Korea, Iran, and al Qaeda aren’t going anywhere, and cautioned against starting a war again the U.S. if they don’t want someone else to raise their children,&#8221; <a href="https://www.militarytimes.com/news/your-military/2019/06/27/watch-medal-of-honor-recipient-david-bellavia-talk-about-the-threats-america-still-faces/">Military Times</a> reported at the time.
&#8220;The threats to our nation, they don&#8217;t sleep,&#8221; said Bellavia. &#8220;They&#8217;re watching our every move: Iran, Russia, China, North Korea, ISIS, al Qaeda — they may be watching this right now.&#8221;
&#8220;Our military should not be mistaken for a cable news gabfest show,&#8221; he continued. &#8220;We don&#8217;t care what you look, we don&#8217;t care who you voted for, who you worship, what you worship, who you love. It doesn&#8217;t matter if your dad left you millions when he died or if you knew who your father was. We have been honed into a machine of lethal moving parts you would be wise to avoid if you knew what&#8217;s good for you.&#8221;
“We will not be intimidated,&#8221; Bellavia warned. &#8220;We will not back down. We’ve seen war.&#8221;
&#8220;We don’t want war, but if you want a war with the United States of America, there is one thing I can promise you, so help me God: Someone else will raise your sons and daughters,&#8221; the Medal of Honor receipted concluded.
The clip, only a portion of Mr. Bellavia&#8217;s remarks, was posted online Monday and has since racked up well over 4.5 million views.
Bellavia is one of seven Operation Iraqi Freedom Medals of Honor recipient — the first of whom is still alive.
&#8220;It was his actions during Operation Phantom Fury in Fallujah that earned him the nomination,&#8221; <a href="https://time.com/5614183/david-bellavia-medal-of-honor-iraq-war/">TIME</a> magazine said of Bellavia. &#8220;He and his squad were dispatched to search a block of 12 houses where multiple insurgents were reportedly hiding. The squad found nothing in the first nine houses but once they got to the 10th, they were ambushed. Two insurgents armed with machine guns were waiting for them.&#8221;
&#8220;As some of his men suffered injuries, Bellavia provided suppressing fire, forcing the enemies to take cover. This allowed the soldiers to make their way out of the building,&#8221; the magazine continued, adding: &#8220;After calling in a Bradley Fighting Vehicle to provide suppressing fire, Bellavia decided to go back in the building, where throughout the house, killed four insurgents and wounded a fifth. One of them was in hand-to-hand combat.&#8221;
Trump praised Bellavia for his &#8220;extraordinary courage&#8221; during the ceremony.
“David today we honor your extraordinary courage, we salute your selfless service and we thank you for carrying on the legacy of American valor that has always made our blessed nation the strongest and mightiest anywhere in the world,” Trump said.
“David often tells young people that Americans don’t want to fight but if someone picks a fight with us we will always win because we don’t fight for awards and recognition,” the president added. “We fight for love of our country, our homeland, our family and our unit and that’s stronger than anything the enemy has.”
On Tuesday, Bellavia discussed the ongoing situation with Iran on radio station WBEN.
&#8220;The Iraq War Veteran pointed to the lack of immediate response from Iran as a sign that they understand the power of the US Military, and how it compares to their own situation,&#8221; <a href="https://wben.radio.com/articles/bellavia-military-strike-on-iran-wont-hurt-recruitment">WBEN</a> outlined.
&#8220;People realize that at any moment men and women can be called to do their job in the military, and I think we take that for granted,&#8221; Bellavia said on the radio show. &#8220;They&#8217;re so good at it, that no one really wants to mess with us. There&#8217;s a lot of people that might talk a big game and other countries can make threats, but when the rubber hits the road the United States warrior is going to be okay and their training and the way that they present themselves is a deterrent to attacking our interests and our citizens.&#8221;
WATCH:
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
&quot;We will not be intimidated. We will not back down. We’ve seen war. We don’t want war, but if you want a war with the United States of America, there is one thing I can promise you, so help me God: someone else will raise your sons and daughters.&quot; &#8211; Staff Sgt. David G. Bellavia <a href="https://t.co/2liRsjxrGd">pic.twitter.com/2liRsjxrGd</a>
&mdash; Wojciech Pawelczyk 🇵🇱🇺🇸 (@PolishPatriotTM) <a href="https://twitter.com/PolishPatriotTM/status/1214336126535831555?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 7, 2020</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
View Mr. Bellavia&#8217;s full remarks, below:
<iframe loading="lazy" title="Pentagon Hall of Heroes: Staff Sgt. David G. Bellavia&#039;s Speech" width="500" height="281" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/LRXrEiBeOXo?feature=oembed" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen></iframe>

David Bellavia

WATCH: Medal Of Honor Recipient Speech Goes Viral As Tensions With Iran Escalate

Al Qaeda

Foreign Policy

Middle East

Radical Islamic Terror

On August 8, 2012, Army Captain Florent Groberg found himself at a crossroads between life and death.
Groberg was commanding a personal security detachment that was escorting more than two dozen coalition forces from Forward Operating Base Fiaz in Asadabad to another location in Kunar province for a security meeting with Governor Sayed Fazlullah Wahidi.
During the journey, the patrol came upon a bridge, at which point they spotted two motorcycles approaching them from the other side. At approximately the same time, Groberg noticed a nearby man behaving strangely.
Suddenly, the motorcyclists abandoned their vehicles, and the man, who was walking backwards to the left of the unit, turned around. At this point, Groberg suspected that the man posed a threat. After shouting at the man, Groberg approached him, and hit him across the chest with his rifle. Following the initial hit, Groberg realized the man was wearing something underneath his clothes. He then grabbed the man by his chest, and felt a suicide vest underneath.
Without missing a beat, Groberg began pushing the suicide bomber back and away from the patrol. Sgt. Andrew Mahoney came to help, and “finished him down.” The suicide bomber fell to the ground, and his vest detonated, severely injuring Groberg, and killing four personnel. Another nearby bomber wearing a suicide vest also detonated.
Groberg woke up to see his leg “melting,” bone visible through flesh, and blood everywhere. He spent the next several years recovering at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center, after which he was medically discharged from the Army.
On November 12, 2015, Groberg received the Medal of Honor, presented by then-President Barack Obama.
On Wednesday, I had the extraordinary opportunity to speak with Capt. Groberg about his experience, including what happened on August 8, 2012, coping with survivors guilt, the love of brotherhood, and much more.
<blockquote>DW: You’ve spoken about the death of your uncle as a moment that defined your path. Could you elaborate on that a little bit?
GROBERG: Yeah. The thing about my uncle – it was just that he was my favorite person growing up, in the world. Like, I loved that guy so much. He was Muslim, and his whole life he wanted to serve his religion and family. I wasn&#8217;t raised Muslim. I had my choice, and I went with my father&#8217;s religion. I was raised Christian, but I admired and loved my uncle so much for everything that he was as a person. So, when a GIA came to Algeria in the late 1980s, early 1990s, to go bring this Islamic radical mindset, he decided that was against everything that he believed in. So he joined the Army, and became Special Forces. I believe he had the opportunity to be trained here in United States, one of those exchange programs, and he went and fought them.
In February of 1996, his unit was ambushed during a ceasefire. He was shot, beheaded, dismembered, put into a box, and sent back to my family – and that whole story completely changed who I was because that was my first stint with terrorists. It’s very personal.
He made me realize that the world I lived in and was sheltered in – that was shattered. I got to understand that there&#8217;s a lot of evil out there, and I&#8217;ve personally felt it. It kind of rewired me and gave me, at a young age, a different perspective. It also challenged my mindset. “Okay, I’ve got to grow up here a little bit, and do I want to be a part of the solution or not?” I didn&#8217;t think that way exactly. I was very angry as a kid – but it really shaped me. Fast forward to 9/11. Here I am, a newly naturalized citizen of this country, and the same type of evil attacks my adopted country, killing almost 3,000 people.
Between those two specific events, I knew exactly what I needed to do with my life, and that was to be a part of the solution, and to go out there and eradicate that type of evil around the world, and that was by serving my nation.
I always felt in everything I do – whether I&#8217;m part of an organization, part of a team, part of a relationship – you always want to play your part. You always want to make sure that you earn your right to sit at the table. So when I became an American citizen, I remember thinking, &#8220;Wow man, I&#8217;m incredibly grateful and proud, but I have to earn it,” and what better way to earn the right to call yourself American than to serve your country when your country is at war.
DW: Do you have full recollection of your emotions during the incident? What was running through your head, not just logistically, but emotionally, while you were rushing the suicide bomber?
GROBERG: When I was rushing him, at first I was trying to figure out, &#8220;Okay, is this guy a threat?&#8221; He came out of nowhere. I couldn’t see a weapon. “Is he lost, is he stupid, or is he actually a bad guy?” Because I couldn&#8217;t see a weapon, I couldn&#8217;t engage with my weapon.
So, my thought process is, &#8220;Man, I’ve got to close on this guy as quickly as possible” because I&#8217;m not going to allow this guy to get closer to the diamond, to get closer to individuals who we were protecting. As I got closer, I started noticing the fact that he was never looking at me, which was really creepy because I was staring at him and yelling at him.
When I hit him with my rifle, again, he never looked at me, so that was a very eerie feeling. All I could think was, &#8220;Well, this guy is definitely a bad guy, and I need to get him away from everyone as quickly as possible. Get him as far away as possible.&#8221; So, I grabbed him by the chest – and that&#8217;s when I grabbed him by the suicide vest – and all I could think was, &#8220;Well, here we go.&#8221; I didn&#8217;t think about dying. I just thought about this guy having a bomb and me needing to protect my guys.
All I could think about was, “I’ve got to throw him as far away as possible.” And I did, he didn&#8217;t go too far, to be honest. He landed at my feet. But that&#8217;s all I kept thinking about. Then it went black. It&#8217;s not like I remember every single piece because when he detonated at my feet, everything went black, and I woke up 20 to 30 feet away with my foot facing me, my fibula completely out, blood everywhere, leg melting, but in shock. So, that was a cool thing that I still remember everything from that moment on. I was definitely in shock. I couldn&#8217;t feel any pain, which I&#8217;m so grateful for. I&#8217;m the type of guy, if I get a paper cut, I&#8217;m complaining about it. So here, when your bone is out, and you&#8217;re looking at it. It ain&#8217;t cool.
It was just one of those moments where you trust without – it’s subconscious, right? The military does a heck of a job training us to react to these types of situations. I mean, it&#8217;s difficult to train for a suicide bomber, but we trained for every possible situation you can think.
And it&#8217;s a mindset that we have. That&#8217;s why a lot of the training that we do is so repetitive. It&#8217;s so tedious and annoying at times. You&#8217;re like, &#8220;Gosh, why do I have to go through doors again?” It&#8217;s because we want to make sure that when the situation occurs, you don&#8217;t have to worry about thinking about if it’s the right thing. You just react because you&#8217;re trained. Your body knows how to do it, you follow your instincts – and that&#8217;s what I did that day.
DW: Why did you do what you did? Beyond training, can you go a little bit deeper into your motivation? You’ve mentioned the love of your teammates before.
GROBERG: Yeah. Love, brotherhood, and sisterhood, man. It’s bigger than blood, in my opinion. The fact that you&#8217;re willing to put your life on the line day in, day out, night in, night out for each other, over and over and over again. That’s bigger than blood. It’s a bond that is unbreakable, and a bond that will last multiple lifetimes. It’s true love. It’s just the most powerful feeling you&#8217;ll ever get to experience when you&#8217;re out there together, side by side, fighting for each other. So, when you have to react to a situation where yes, your life will be put in jeopardy, you don&#8217;t even think about it. You react because that is the right thing to do, and that is the only thing to do.
DW: How do you deal with survivor’s guilt?
GROBERG: You know, it was really tough for me early on, especially when I was on all sorts of medication. My demons really took a hold of me, and I really needed some strong external support from my family and my friends. But today, they&#8217;re at bay because I get to do the one thing that I believe saves lives, which is talk about it, have a conversation about it, be open about it, allow yourself to be vulnerable, and let people know that, &#8220;Hey, you&#8217;re not perfect.&#8221; It doesn&#8217;t matter if you&#8217;re an Army Ranger or if you’re Seal Team Six. We&#8217;re all human beings, and we&#8217;re all going to have some difficult times – and when you see death, and you&#8217;re part of killing, and you’re seeing friends get killed, you&#8217;re a human being, man. It&#8217;s okay. It&#8217;s okay to have feelings, and guess what? Have a conversation. For me, it&#8217;s been so therapeutic. It&#8217;s been unbelievable.
DW: A lot of people, especially in the armed services, feel as though they “are their job.” Was the military something that defined you? And if it did, when your role changed following the incident, what was the process of dealing with that altered identity?
GROBERG: Here&#8217;s the thing – the military changed me, but it didn&#8217;t define me. I believe that every experience that we go through in our lives is a little piece of defining who we are as individuals. So, me growing up in France and in Spain, moving to Illinois, going to the University of Maryland, friends that I made, friends that I lost, jobs that I had – every experience that you have in your life helps define who you are as a person.
So of course, the military played a massive part. It allowed me to refine my character. It gave me better morals and understanding of the integrity, responsibility, and accountability behind being a successful, independent human being. It grounded me in regard to the teamwork aspect. I experienced it in college being a Division 1 athlete, making team captain, but my gosh, when you lead men and women in combat, you really, truly have to understand the idea of self sacrifice and teamwork. All these things allowed me to grow as an individual.
Now, the military does change your mindset a little bit. It really does take a big piece of you. It’s different than the civilian sector, and when you transition, it is uncomfortable, it is unsettling at times. There are definitely odd and weird moments. It can be very difficult for some folks because the language is different, the expectations are different. It&#8217;s a way of life that is very different than what our civilian counterparts experience.
But defining me? No. I don&#8217;t believe in that. I believe that everything that I go through every day, every experience that I get an opportunity to go through, is an opportunity for me to continue growing as an individual, which, in the end, defines who I am as a person.
DW: What does the Medal of Honor mean to you, and has the meaning changed since you first got it?
GROBERG: That&#8217;s a great question. Probably one of the better questions that I&#8217;ve encountered in the four years of having this medal, actually. So, the medal to me represents [my military brothers and sisters], their families, and civilians who have supported our military. The fact that men and women raise their right hand, take an oath, and put their lives on the line for the greater good of our nation, for the greater good of each other, for the love of our flag, for the love of our character and ethos as a nation – it’s the greatest commitment to me of all time.
So, the Medal represents all those individuals. The Medal is not mine. I will be a courier. I&#8217;m a recipient of the Medal, but it doesn&#8217;t belong to me. I&#8217;m a firm believer, from day one, that this Medal belongs to the military. It belongs to our nation. We’ve been selected by whoever selected us, and then, at the end, granted by the President of the United States to be couriers of the message of the Medal, which is honor and sacrifice, which is courage and commitment, integrity, and selfless service.
From the first time I received the Medal – I mean, I was ashamed, right? I felt like I failed on August 8, 2012, and here I am being paraded around as a hero while four of my brothers, Command Sergeant Major Griffin, Major Gray, Major Kennedy, and Ragaei Abdelfattah, are no longer on this earth. And their families have to live with that reality. I felt shame, but I knew it was a platform to do some good, and that’s what the Medal really represents. It’s an opportunity for us to go out there and continue being a positive voice for our military, and for our military community, to support our veterans and their families, to make sure that we are never forgotten, the sacrifices that many have made, the ultimate sacrifice that thousands and millions in our history have made, is never forgotten.
Now, over the course of the last few years, the Medal has been very interesting to me. I returned my original Medal to my unit just like Clint Romesha and Sal Giunta did. I actually represented Clint Romesha when he returned his because he couldn&#8217;t make it due to a family emergency. I was there at Fort Carson, with the opportunity to present our medals back to the unit. So, it&#8217;s out there at the headquarters.
For the last year, I decided that when I&#8217;m at events, I&#8217;m not wearing the Medal. Unless I’m with other Medal of Honor recipients and I need to be in uniform, I&#8217;m not wearing a Medal of Honor. Instead, I&#8217;m going to pass it around to people so they can touch it, feel it, take pictures with it because it belongs to them just as much as it belongs to me.
And it&#8217;s given me so much more peace, with the fact that we have this platform to do some good – but it&#8217;s not something that I&#8217;ll ever take for granted. It&#8217;s humbling, but it&#8217;s also taxing, to be honest. There are a lot of commitments, a lot of requests. It&#8217;s hard to say no because you want to support everything, but that&#8217;s the burden of it, and that&#8217;s something that I&#8217;m deeply honored to be a part of, and I hope that I get to earn it.
DW: What is your purpose and drive in life today?
GROBERG: To be a good husband. To be a good friend. To be a good employee. To be a good person. To serve my community to the best of my abilities. To be a positive voice and a positive person in my environment. To not allow negativity to take over, and to just kind of try to do my part to move the needle in the right direction for my country, my friends, my environment, and for my community. That&#8217;s it. Simple. I&#8217;m not out there to cure world hunger. That&#8217;s not who I am. I&#8217;m out there to do my part. Just to be a good person and earn the right to still be on this earth.
I think that if I can continue doing that, at the end, I hope that when I pass away, people remember as me as a good husband, a good father, a good friend, a great employee, grateful for his community, and also someone who honorably served his nation.
DW: What&#8217;s something that you would tell young people about military service that they may not hear from someone else?
GROBERG: I would say military service is hard, but it&#8217;s also one of the greatest honors one can ever be bestowed on. To me, the fact that someone gave me the opportunity to wear a uniform with so much history, and to go out there and lead and be led by the some of the greatest men and women in our nation, it’s humbling and it&#8217;s the biggest honor you can think of – to truly become a man in our military, to learn about overcoming adversity, to learn about leadership, to learn about selfless service, and truly to learn about sacrifice.
That has guided me and given me so many tools and experiences that I can take all through the rest of my life in whatever endeavors I go out there and tackle. It has given me a wealth of knowledge, but also a bigger hunger to continue trying to figure out ways to get better and continue serving.
There are many aspects to serving your nation. It&#8217;s not for everyone. I&#8217;ve never told anyone you should serve your country. I just hope that people consider it, understand what a great privilege it is, and what an unbelievable opportunity it is, individually and collectively for our nation.
DW: Is there anything that you would like readers to know that we haven&#8217;t touched on, or that perhaps no one has ever asked you in an interview before?
GROBERG: I&#8217;ll be honest, we live in a very divisive world right now where people are at each other&#8217;s throats, and people no longer want to listen to each other, and where negative news sells. You can&#8217;t keep blaming the media about the all the negativity that&#8217;s out there. It&#8217;s because people click on it. Let&#8217;s be real. People aren’t interested in the good news stories, right? It&#8217;s boring. I guess they want to hear about the negative, bad news out there, and unfortunately, it&#8217;s creating a divide in our population. I say, let&#8217;s go out there and fix ourselves. It starts with us. This makes sure that we ourselves are a positive influence in our environment.
Are we listening to each other? I ask myself all the time, &#8220;Am I willing to listen to someone else before I make a  judgment. “Am I willing to be challenged by someone else&#8217;s opinion, and will I listen back to their comments to me?” “Do I have tough skin to be able to take it?” And then, do I have even tougher skin to say to them, &#8220;I think you&#8217;re right. I was wrong.&#8221;
I believe that we get through this as a nation if we&#8217;re willing to truly listen to each other and respect each other&#8217;s opinions, and for all of us to make a commitment that we&#8217;re going to go out there and have a positive conversation and stop attacking each other or looking for opportunities to attack each other.
That’s my personal take on a way to start healing ourselves because right now it&#8217;s just battle after battle. It&#8217;s not who we are. That doesn&#8217;t represent our character. But that&#8217;s the reality that we&#8217;re in now. We can have the opportunity to fix it – and it&#8217;s really, truly not that difficult.</blockquote>
I’d like to thank Capt. Florent Groberg for taking the time to speak with me about his life. For more information, you can follow Groberg on <a href="https://twitter.com/florentgroberg?lang=en">Twitter</a> and <a href="https://www.instagram.com/florent.groberg/?hl=en">Instagram</a>, visit his page on the Army’s Medal of Honor <a href="https://www.army.mil/medalofhonor/groberg/">website</a>, and check out his <a href="https://www.amazon.com/dp/B06ZYQWTKP/ref=dp-kindle-redirect?_encoding=UTF8&amp;btkr=1">book</a>, “8 Seconds of Courage: A Soldier&#8217;s Story from Immigrant to the Medal of Honor.”

Florent Groberg.

A Powerful Interview With Medal Of Honor Recipient Capt. Florent Groberg

Veterans Day

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