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Profiles in Courage

Sgt Henry Johnson, U.S. Army (1918-1919) – America’s First World War Hero

Sgt Henry Johnson, U.S. Army (1918-1919) – America’s First World War Hero

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Henry Johnson was a World War I soldier who singlehandedly beat back a German assault while critically wounded. He was a great American hero and received the highest military honor of two different countries. One of those countries, however, his very own, didn't bestow that medal until nearly 100 years after his service in WWI. The honor this man deserved was not awarded by the U.S. government upon his return home, because he was black. But that racism was eventually overcome, if only by the undeniable memory of his heroism. Henry Johnson Defied Segregation to Serve In 1917, a young Henry Johnson was working as a Red Cap porter at an Albany, New York train station joined the 15th New York National Guard Regiment. Due to U.S. segregation policies, it was an all-black regiment. Due to be shipped out to France as the U.S. declared war on Germany and its allies, the 15th New York was renamed the 369th Infantry Regiment and placed within the American Expeditionary Force under General John...

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VADM John D. Bulkeley, U.S. Navy (1933-1975)

VADM John D. Bulkeley, U.S. Navy (1933-1975)

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John D. Bulkeley was a Vice Admiral in the United States Navy and one of its most decorated naval officers. Bulkeley received the Medal of Honor for actions in the Pacific Theater during World War II. He was also the PT boat skipper who evacuated General Douglas MacArthur from Corregidor in the Philippines.  VADM John D. Bulkeley Led Daring WWII Missions John D. Bulkeley was born in New York City and grew up on a farm in Hackettstown, New Jersey, where he graduated from Hackettstown High School. He was a 1933 graduate of the United States Naval Academy. At the dawn of World War II, Bulkeley was a Lieutenant in command of Motor Torpedo Boat Squadron Three, a Philippine-based detachment of six motor torpedo boats. He hit his stride as a daring, resourceful and courageous leader. He picked up General Douglas MacArthur, his family, and his immediate staff, who had been ordered to flee the Philippines, and took them aboard PT 41 and other 77-foot (23 m) motor torpedo boats through...

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Chiune Sugihara – Japanese Schindler Helped 5,580 Jews Escape The Holocaust

Chiune Sugihara – Japanese Schindler Helped 5,580 Jews Escape The Holocaust

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Although Japan was one of the Axis Powers during WWII, one Japanese diplomat did his best to mitigate the horrors of his country's ally, Nazi Germany. Before the war ended, he saved thousands of Jews from concentration camps but ended up selling lightbulbs in order to survive. Chiune Sugihara Helped Jews Escape Lithuania Chiune Sugihara was first assigned to Harbin, China in the early 1930s as Japan's Deputy Foreign Minister where he learned German and Russian. Despite a promising career, he resigned his post in protest over how his country treated the Chinese. Due to his experience and linguistic abilities, however, he was reassigned in 1939 to Kaunas, Lithuania as vice-consul; though his real job was to report on German and Soviet movements. Japan never trusted either country, which is why Sugihara also maintained ties with Polish Intelligence. After the Soviet invasion of Lithuania on June 15, 1940, the Japanese consulate began dismantling itself since they already had an embassy...

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MSG Jerry M. Shriver, U.S. Army (1962–1969)

MSG Jerry M. Shriver, U.S. Army (1962–1969)

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When Jerry Shriver left the United States for Vietnam, the only reason he ever came home was because the Army forced him to get some R&R. Even then, Shriver spent his time stateside talking tactics with fellow soldiers and looking for weapons to use in his unconventional, often personal war against the communists of Southeast Asia. He earned the nickname "Mad Dog" from Radio Hanoi for his fierce raids into enemy territory, his ability to fight his way out, and his refusal to use long-barreled weapons, instead preferring a short-range fight. Jerry Shriver Became a Legend Before Disappearing It was when the Army believed it had located the communists' Central Office for South Vietnam – the long-hunted holy grail of enemy targets – inside Cambodia that Shriver met an uncertain fate. His name lives on as a fabled, legendary member of the Army's Special Forces, but sadly, his remains have never been recovered.  Shriver joined the Army in his late teenage years, first becoming a...

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Cpl William Thomas Perkins Jr., U.S.M.C. (1966-1967) – Vietnam War Combat Photographer

Cpl William Thomas Perkins Jr., U.S.M.C. (1966-1967) – Vietnam War Combat Photographer

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The only Medal of Honor to be awarded to a combat photographer is now on display in the Medal of Honor Gallery in the "Price of Freedom" exhibition at the Smithsonian's National Museum of American History. William Perkins Jr’s Medal of Honor at the Smithsonian Marine Cpl. William Thomas Perkins Jr. died at the age of 20 on Oct. 12, 1967, when he flung himself on a grenade to preserve the lives of three other Marines during Operation Medina, a Marine search and destroy operation in Quang Tri Province, Vietnam. The Marine Corps posthumously awarded him the Medal of Honor for "his gallant actions." Perkins' mother, Marilane Perkins Jacobson of Lexington, Ky., donated the medal, her son's letters and other personal effects to the museum's permanent Armed Forces Collections in 2015. "I didn't want his possessions to end up in somebody's brown box in a basement," Jacobson said. "I figured they should go to the Smithsonian." Perkins' award, his Purple Heart, and photography are exhibited...

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MSG Gary Gordon (1978–1993) and SFC Randy Shughart (1976–1993), U.S. Army

MSG Gary Gordon (1978–1993) and SFC Randy Shughart (1976–1993), U.S. Army

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The story of Gary Gordon and Randy Shughart is one of the most extraordinary acts of bravery and self-sacrifice in modern military history. Both were soldiers; U.S. Army Delta Force members who gave their lives trying to protect their fallen comrades in the face of overwhelming odds. It came in 1993, during the Battle of Mogadishu, famously depicted on the screen in the 2001 film, "Black Hawk Down."  Gary Gordon and Randy Shughart Faced Chaos American forces in Somalia were looking to capture the Somali warlord Mohamed Farah Aidid. On Oct. 3, 1993, the U.S. launched an operation aimed at capturing two of his top lieutenants during a meeting in the middle of Mogadishu. It was supposed to be a quick, relatively simple mission. Delta Force soldiers would assault the building from MH-6 Little Bird helicopters while U.S. Army Rangers fast-rope into the area from MH-60L Black Hawks and secure four points around the target building. A convoy of 12 vehicles would then swoop up the...

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Sgt Michael Wynn, U.S. Marine Corps (1966-1970)

Sgt Michael Wynn, U.S. Marine Corps (1966-1970)

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Michael Wynn is a Marine Sargeant, a four-year USMC volunteer, of First Battalion, Third Marines, hailing from Marion, Ohio who took part in Operation Ballistic Charge near Dai Loc, in Quang Nam Province, South Vietnam. Michael Wynn shared a history of his motivation to join the Marine Corps which was a mixture of patriotism and seeking excitement and adventure. Michael Wynn's Childhood "My name is Mike Wynn and I was born on January 17, 1947. I grew up in Marion, Ohio, and attended Olney Ave. Elementary, Edison Jr. High, and graduated from Harding High School in 1965. I played baseball and football for Harding for 3 years. I enlisted in the United States Marine Corps in 1966. After high school, I attended Otterbein University on a football scholarship. During the season I concentrated on my studies to keep my eligibility to play football. After the season I found other interests and let’s just say I came to a mutual agreement with the school that I would not be returning the next...

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LT Michael P. Murphy, U.S. Navy (2000–2005)

LT Michael P. Murphy, U.S. Navy (2000–2005)

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Whether you're a fitness enthusiast or not, you might have heard about "The Murph Challenge." Every Memorial Day, veterans, military members, and fitness nuts around the country pledge to take the challenge. It not only helps remember the courage and sacrifice of Navy SEAL Lt. Michael P. Murphy, but also helps send military-connected individuals to college through the Lt. Michael P. Murphy Memorial Scholarship Foundation. Lt. Michael P. Murphy Leads SEAL Mission in Afghanistan To call the Murph a "grueling" workout would be an understatement, but it was something he did regularly, and it helped him fight on in the mountains of Afghanistan against incredible odds. Without his valiant physical and mental efforts that day, his entire team might have vanished without a trace.  In 2005, the U.S. launched Operation Red Wings in Afghanistan's Kunar Province. The goal was to disrupt the activity of the Taliban and other anti-Coalition militias operating in the areas west of Asadabad....

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Heroines Under Fire

Heroines Under Fire

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On July 29, 1918, field nurse Linnie Leckrone jumped on a truck headed for the front as part of Gas and Shock Team 134 in the battle of Chateau-Thierry northeast of Paris during the Great War. As German artillery rained down, she tended the wounded. For her “conspicuous gallantry in action,” Leckrone was awarded what was then called the Citation Star in a certificate signed by Gen. John (Black Jack) Pershing, commander of the American Expeditionary Force.

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SFC Paul Ray Smith, U.S. Army (1989–2003)

SFC Paul Ray Smith, U.S. Army (1989–2003)

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Despite the years of civil war and insurgency that followed, the 2003 U.S.-led invasion of Iraq was a well-planned and well-timed operation, so successful in its initial phases that American and Coalition forces had captured Baghdad within just three weeks. Major combat operations famously ended on May 1, 2003, in less than two months. But despite the speed and skill of the Americans, it was not without considerable effort – or losses.  SFC Paul Ray Smith: A Soldier's Journey One of those losses was SFC Paul Ray Smith, a veteran of both the first Gulf War and the Kosovo War. In April 2003, Smith was leading the men of B Company, 11th Engineer Battalion, 3rd Infantry Division, to capture the international airport in Baghdad. While blocking the highway between the city and the airport, he found himself in a crossfire between counterattacking Iraqi forces. Unable to withdraw, he fought against overwhelming odds, giving his life to prevent an aid station from being...

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PFC Harold Agerholm, U.S. Marine Corps (1942-1944)

PFC Harold Agerholm, U.S. Marine Corps (1942-1944)

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PFC Harold Agerholm had a quiet start to his life. After qualifying from school in Racine, Wisconsin, he worked as a multigraph operator for the Ranch Manufacturing Company. Then in July 1942, he joined the Marine Corps Reserve. Upon completing his recruit training in San Diego, California, Harold Agerholm was sent to the Headquarters and Service Battery, 4th Battalion, 10th Marines, and 2nd Marine Division. He received further training for eleven months with his battalion in Wellington, New Zealand. In January 1943, Agerholm was promoted to Private First Class. In November 1943, a year and a half after first signing up, the young marine took part in the war, engaging with Japanese forces on Betio Island, Tarawa Atoll. It was the first time American forces faced serious opposition to a landing. The 4,500 Japanese soldiers on the island were well prepared and fought to the last man. They extracted a high price for their deaths. Throughout the incredibly intense battle, which lasted...

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SgtMaj Daniel J. Daly, U.S. Marine Corps (1899–1929)

SgtMaj Daniel J. Daly, U.S. Marine Corps (1899–1929)

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Only two Marines have received the Medal of Honor for two separate actions: Maj. Gen Smedley Butler and SgtMaj. Daniel J. Daly. And you know it has to mean something when Butler called Daly "the fightingest Marine I ever knew." SgtMaj Daniel J. Daly and the Boxer Rebellion Daly served in the Marine Corps for 30 years, seeing every major Marine Corps campaign between 1899 and 1929. Growing up in New York City as a slender youth, he had to be tough; he even became a semi-pro boxer before joining the Marines at age 25. His first assignment took him halfway around the world aboard the USS Newark, then a cruiser assigned to the U.S. Asiatic Fleet – and it was about to take him to his first Medal of Honor action. Not long after Daly joined up, China was in upheaval. Anti-foreigner and anti-Christian sentiment boiled over into open rebellion against outsiders interfering with life in China. Hundreds of thousands of Chinese peasants, known as Boxers, rose up and began murdering missionaries,...

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