TogetherWeServed Blog - The Most Incredible Military Stories

Three American Battles Fought on Christmas

In the days before industrialized warfare, armies would hole up in winter months, as colder temperatures and harsher weather limited the mobility and food quantities of forces on campaigns. Even after the rise of industry, mechanized warfare, and powered flight, the operational tempo of fighting seems to have slowed down slightly. Christmas is a national holiday for the United States (even celebrated by most non-Christian Americans), and so having a combat operation is rare. Even more...

Cpl Clint Eastwood, U.S. Army (1951-1953)

Celebrities Who Served, Korean War

Clint Eastwood, the renowned actor and director, did not always grace the red carpets of Hollywood. Prior to becoming the legendary "Man with No Name," Eastwood's path unfolded in the U.S. Army during the Korean War. Clint Eastwood's military tenure, spanning from his initial odd jobs to a pivotal encounter, marked the commencement of a 70-year career in the entertainment industry. TogetherWeServed salutes Clint Eastwood for his honorable military service and the indelible mark he has left on...

Col. Robert Lewis Howard, U.S. Army (1956-1992)

Profiles in Courage, Vietnam War

The last time someone received a second Medal of Honor was in World War I, and it's unlikely we'll ever see another two-time recipient in our lifetime. But if anyone were going to come close to receiving multiple Medals of Honor, it would have been U.S. Army Col. Robert Lewis Howard. During his 54 months of active combat service in Vietnam, he was wounded an astonishing 14 times and received eight Purple Hearts and four Bronze Stars. He was also nominated for the Medal of Honor three times in...

Marine Corps Mascot Chesty XVI Gets Promoted to Private First Class

Global War on Terror, Military Myths and Legends

Like any other Marine, Chesty XVI, the Marine Corps' Devil Dog mascot, has been promoted after six months of honorable, satisfactory service. Unlike every other Marine, Navy Secretary Carlos Del Toro dressed him for the event. Chesty XVI and Marine Corps Tradition Chesty XVI is an English bulldog, the mascot of the United States Marine Corps. He took over for his predecessor in a relief and appointment ceremony in May 2022. Lance Cpl. Chesty XV was a little too rambunctious, so the Corps...

Col Gregory “Pappy” Boyington, U.S. Marine Corps (1934-1947)

Profiles in Courage, World War II

Stories of Gregory "Pappy" Boyington are legion, many founded in fact, including how he led the legendary Black Sheep squadron, and how he served in China as a member of the American Volunteer Group, the famed Flying Tigers. He spent a year and a half as a Japanese POW, was awarded the Medal of Honor and Navy Cross, and was recognized as a Marine Corps top ace. Always hard-drinking and hard-living, Pappy's post-war life was as turbulent as his wartime experiences. Biography of Gregory "Pappy"...

Civil War – The Battle of Fort Donelson

Battlefield Chronicles, Civil War

After the successful siege of Fort Henry by Federal troops on February 6th, 1862, the Confederate forces hurried back to the neighboring Fort Donelson, which was located a few miles away. The Federals sought control over the waterways of Cumberland and Tennessee, knowing full well the advantage that it would afford them in the Western Theater of the Civil War. scan from 4x5 color copy transparency The chief agitator of the move to conquer the forts was Brig. Gen. Ulysses S. Grant, who had sent...

George Walters, The Civilian Who Fought at Pearl Harbor

Military Myths and Legends, World War II

World War II was a total war, meaning that once the United States entered the war, everyone fought it somehow. The troops, of course, did the fighting, but civilians on the home front made sacrifices, collected scrap and grew gardens to keep food fresh for the soldiers and sailors on the real front. There was also the American workforce, who built the machines and materials needed to do the job. From the very moment the U.S. was thrust into World War II, civilians were ready to do their...

SFC Leigh Ann Hester, U.S. Army (2001-Present)

Global War on Terror, Profiles in Courage

On the morning of March 20, 2005, then-Sgt. Leigh Ann Hester was tasked with assisting a supply convoy moving east of Baghdad, a job that meant scanning and clearing the route of any improvised explosive devices. She'd done this job countless times before, getting shot at on almost a daily basis and seeing vehicles blown up more times than anyone would like to remember. Leigh Ann Hester Was Cited for Valor in Close Quarter Combat Executing daily patrols as a member of the National Guard's...

Rockets, Sand and Amalgam by Robert Engelmeier

Military Book Reviews, Vietnam War

Webster's Dictionary defines amalgam as "a mixture or blend", making it the perfect word to describe Vietnam veteran Robert Engelmeier's experience in country, as well as his 2023 memoir of it. The author has written countless academic articles about his chosen career in dentistry and prosthetics as a retired professor who directed the graduate program at the University of Texas Houston Dental Branch for 14 years and served as Prosthodontic Department chair at the University of Pittsburgh and...

Why Americans Use Yellow Ribbons To Support the Troops?

Cold War, Military Myths and Legends

You just can't keep a good tradition down. The good stuff will always come back up to the top in the ebb and flow of history. Using yellow ribbons to remember the troops is based on that kind of tradition. The Use of a Yellow Ribbons in American Popular Culture There are a lot of myths and legends surrounding when ribbons were first tied on, why the color yellow is used, and where exactly one is supposed to tie the ribbon. Those legends are only a part of the full story. For centuries, people...

Unforgotten in the Gulf of Tonkin by Eileen A. Bjorkman

Military Book Reviews, Vietnam War

When Air Force Maj. Alan Saunders arrived in Vietnam in June 1963; true combat search and rescue (CSAR) as we know it today was just beginning to form. Saunders was bringing his experience fighting World War II in the jungles of Burma to Det. 3, Pacific Air Rescue Center in Tan Son Nhut. Maj. Alan Saunders and His Experience Fighting World War II Saunders knew that the jungle didn't burn and create smoke around the wreckage of a downed aircraft. Nor did it easily cough up a surviving pilot,...

WW1 – The Christmas Truce of 1914

Battlefield Chronicles, World War I

During World War I, in the bitter winter of 1914, on the battlefields of Flanders, one of the most unusual events in all of human history took place. The Germans had been in a fierce battle with the British and French. Both sides were dug in, safe in muddy, man-made trenches six to eight feet deep that seemed to stretch forever. The Sudden Christmas Truce During World War I All of a sudden, German troops began to put small Christmas trees, lit with candles, outside of their trenches. Then,...

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Three American Battles Fought on Christmas

Cpl Clint Eastwood, U.S. Army (1951-1953)

Col. Robert Lewis Howard, U.S. Army (1956-1992)

Marine Corps Mascot Chesty XVI Gets Promoted to Private First Class

Col Gregory “Pappy” Boyington, U.S. Marine Corps (1934-1947)

Civil War – The Battle of Fort Donelson

George Walters, The Civilian Who Fought at Pearl Harbor

SFC Leigh Ann Hester, U.S. Army (2001-Present)

Rockets, Sand and Amalgam by Robert Engelmeier

Why Americans Use Yellow Ribbons To Support the Troops?

Unforgotten in the Gulf of Tonkin by Eileen A. Bjorkman

WW1 – The Christmas Truce of 1914

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