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This week I was in a waiting room and saw an older gentlemen. He had a 2 star CIB on his hat. He was in WWII, Korea, and Vietnam. He was telling me a story about the German tanks in the Battle of the Bulge and the look in his eyes..... I don't think words could do it justice. He was reliving it all over again. He ended saying the German tanks had bigger guns and we didn't have a chance. Then he went on his way. I told him it was an honor to meet him. To me it was better than meeting a celebrity. I was left in awe.
Have you met another veteran that you were in awe with?
Have you met another veteran that you were in awe with?
Edited 7 y ago
Posted 7 y ago
Responses: 7
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Meet an old Marine at a Navy Marine Corp Relief Society Booth. I'm an easy touch for these things and the old man asked me if was ex-military. I told him yes, Army and Army National Guard. At that he asked me if I knew who John Basilone was, to which I responded that I was aware of what he did. This guy was in First Marines and regaled me for about the next hour with stories of combat on the "Canal", Basilone, the 1st Marine, and surprisingly, how tough the Army 164th Infantry guys were during that battle. I would have stayed longer and would have loved to have recorded this stuff. BTW, apparently Vandergrift agreed with him, issued a unit citation to the 164th and the Commander received a Navy Cross. Don't see that on many Army guys.
I am still quite a bit in awe of my Father, who survived from March 1942 to November of 1945 flying the Hump and into Burma in the China Burma India theater. The more I read about the theater, the more impressed I am with those that survived it.
I am still quite a bit in awe of my Father, who survived from March 1942 to November of 1945 flying the Hump and into Burma in the China Burma India theater. The more I read about the theater, the more impressed I am with those that survived it.
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Yes. One of my childhood friends had a grandfather who landed on Utah and then fought through Normandy and France until they linked up with the Russians. Prior to that he had been in North Africa and Italy. The narrative he left for his family is amazing and when I came back from OIF, he invited me to his apartment in Manhattan for the afternoon. As a man he didn't seem much different from anyone else his age but at the same time I was in awe because I felt like I wasn't talking to a veteran, but rather a moment of American history. Sadly he passed away a few years ago.
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SSG Carlos Madden
CPT (Join to see) - I wonder but I bet not. WWII was an extraordinary moment in modern human history and invasions like Overlord and Iwo were some of the pinnacles of that moment. I'm not sure anyone will ever be remembered like those guys were.
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I've met a few awe-worthy people:
Col "Bud" Day, USAF, Vietnam POW and MOH recipient
Gen "Dutch" Huyser, USAF, Commander in Chief Military Airlift Command, Deputy Commander in Chief US European Command, bomber pilot in WWII and Korea, helped get the Shah out of Iran
Gen Walt Kross, Commander in Chief US Transportation Command and Commander Air Mobility Command, USTRANSCOM J3 during Desert Storm, Vietnam veteran F-4C pilot with 100 mission over North Vietnam
Col "Bud" Day, USAF, Vietnam POW and MOH recipient
Gen "Dutch" Huyser, USAF, Commander in Chief Military Airlift Command, Deputy Commander in Chief US European Command, bomber pilot in WWII and Korea, helped get the Shah out of Iran
Gen Walt Kross, Commander in Chief US Transportation Command and Commander Air Mobility Command, USTRANSCOM J3 during Desert Storm, Vietnam veteran F-4C pilot with 100 mission over North Vietnam
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