Step-son received a shadow box and we are trying to identify one of the ribbons. Has anyone seen this ribbon before?

Rudy Suyat — Mon, 14 Oct 2019 18:14:15 -0400

Response by Rudy Suyat made Oct 14 at 2019 6:15 PM

Rudy Suyat — Mon, 14 Oct 2019 18:15:34 -0400

The background is faded, but the stripes are green.

Response by MSG Private RallyPoint Member made Oct 14 at 2019 6:33 PM

MSG Private RallyPoint Member — Mon, 14 Oct 2019 18:33:40 -0400

Possible Nevada National Guard Recruiting Ribbon. It's the only one I found that comes close.

Response by CSM Charles Hayden made Oct 14 at 2019 6:35 PM

CSM Charles Hayden — Mon, 14 Oct 2019 18:35:43 -0400

What do the National Archives Records Center.com say about his service? You have sent for a copy of the service record?

Response by LTC Jason Mackay made Oct 14 at 2019 11:38 PM

LTC Jason Mackay — Mon, 14 Oct 2019 23:38:03 -0400

The chevrons indicate the type worn 1955-2007ish as they are gold on green background. Not a WWII item. The ribbon to the right in the photo appears to be an Army Good Conduct Medal. This ribbon is most likely a service/campaign, state, or foreign award.

WWII ERA ribbons fade in all kinds of funky colors. It is a long shot, but if it were red with thre green stripes symmetrically on each side, it could be a Belgian Croix de Guerrero. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Belgian_Croix_de_guerre

I can tell you it is not a WWII campaign Medal: asiatic-pacific, Africa, American campaign, etc as there are no center stripes or the three sets of stripes do not align with others.

There is a high likelihood the ribbon rack is upside down.

Croix de guerre (Belgium) - Wikipedia

The Croix de guerre (French) or Oorlogskruis (Dutch), both literally translating as "Cross of War", is a military decoration of the Kingdom of Belgium established by royal decree on 25 October 1915.[1] It was primarily awarded for bravery or other military virtue on the battlefield. The award was reestablished on 20 July 1940 by the Belgian government in exile for recognition of bravery and military virtue during World War II.[2] The post-1940...

Response by SFC Michael Hasbun made Oct 15 at 2019 10:45 AM

SFC Michael Hasbun — Tue, 15 Oct 2019 10:45:28 -0400

It appears to be a recruiting/retention award from some state. Every ribbon I've found online that looks like that is a state award for either recruiting or retention...

Where/ what unit did this person serve with? That will help narrow it down.

Response by LTC Michael Sternfeld made Oct 16 at 2019 8:16 PM

LTC Michael Sternfeld — Wed, 16 Oct 2019 20:16:23 -0400

Looking over a poster created by UNIFORM GUIDE with a copyright date of 2010 there is no such ribbon. That said it could be from someone who served in Korea and or WW2. Thus that ribbon would not be on it.The poster that I am referring to might still be available on the following web site:
http://www.uniformguide.com

Uniform Guide

Response by SSG Carl Bench made Oct 16 at 2019 9:06 PM

SSG Carl Bench — Wed, 16 Oct 2019 21:06:46 -0400

It is a Distinguished Uni Award.

Response by PO3 Paul Hernandez made Oct 16 at 2019 10:38 PM

PO3 Paul Hernandez — Wed, 16 Oct 2019 22:38:31 -0400

It has to do serving with "IN" Mam
1970s

Response by HN Steve Roberts made Oct 17 at 2019 2:50 AM

HN Steve Roberts — Thu, 17 Oct 2019 02:50:41 -0400

Looks like the Nevada National Guard Ribbon

Response by PO2 George Cicotte made Oct 17 at 2019 10:51 AM

PO2 George Cicotte — Thu, 17 Oct 2019 10:51:12 -0400

I have personal experience in having to figure out what ribbons are which, from my own father's service, and two awards I was awarded but were not presented to me because I was already out of the service before they were awarded. I don't recognize the award, but I have a few suggestions where to look. I recommend this to other readers to help "crowd-source" the information:
The stripes and uniform color indicate likely USMC. That is both under the Department of Defense, but (don't tell this to a Marine unless you want a lively discussion), they're technically part of the Navy. You can go to the following sites for more information:
Requesting record of what ribbons/medals should be there:
https://www.archives.gov/personnel-records-center/awards-and-decorations
https://www.public.navy.mil/bupers-npc/career/recordsmanagement/Pages/AwdDecorMedal.aspx
Since the ribbon is "chamfered" on the outer corners, this may very well be a "foreign" decoration, which is only worn with approval of the service branch, and SHOULD be recorded in the service record. Wikipedia provides (as do many commercial decoration companies) many of those, even those which are "obsolete," especially for U.S. decorations, along with illustrations. The corner of a medal appears on one side (perhaps USMC Good Conduct, too little visible to be sure), which tends to indicate that the ribbon may not have a corresponding medal, e.g., the Navy's Meritorious Unit Commendation. When the medal is displayed, the ribbon is not. If there is a medal, but it wasn't available for some reason, such as if the award was post-service or posthumous and the recipient never physically received it, searching for the records may be more effective.

awards-and-decorations

Response by LCDR Terri Goins made Oct 17 at 2019 11:46 AM

LCDR Terri Goins — Thu, 17 Oct 2019 11:46:28 -0400

Reserve Service Medal