First Living Marine to Receive the Nation’s Highest Award

admin — Mon, 25 Jul 2011 14:06:52 +0000

Mother says son is “humbled” to receive Medal of Honor

By Claudia Grisales | Thursday, July 21, 2011, 11:24 AM

Felicia Gilliam didn’t know her son was selected as a Medal of Honor recipient — the first living Marine to receive the nation’s highest award for valor in 41 years —- until reporters called her Kentucky home Wednesday morning.

President Obama had called Dakota Meyer on Monday to tell him the news, she said.

That’s Meyer: an adventure-seeking but humble 23-year-old who doesn’t brag about his accomplishments, she said.

“He’s very humble about it,” said Gilliam, 42, whose son moved to Austin when he left the military last year to work for a private employer here. “He doesn’t see himself as a hero. This isn’t for him. It’s for the men that died that day, his friends.”

Obama will present the Medal of Honor to Meyer for braving enemy fire in a bid to find and retrieve the bodies of three missing Marines and a Navy corpsman on Sept. 8, 2009, in Ganjgal, Afghanistan, a remote village near the Pakistan border in violent Kunar province.

He charged into a kill zone on foot and alone and carried the four men out of the area, which had been under fire for hours, The Military Times reported.

“He was very close to them,” Gilliam said of Meyer’s Marine comrades. “These men live, eat and sleep together and they become very close.”

Killed in the September battle were Gunnery Sgts. Edwin Johnson, 31, and Aaron Kenefick, 30; 1st Lt. Michael Johnson, 25; Hospitalman 3rd Class James Layton, 22; an Afghan interpreter and at least eight Afghan security forces members, according to the Military Times.

Meyer, originally from Greensburg, Ky., signed up in 2006 for the Marines out of Green County High School, where he played football and was selected to play in the Pigskin Classic all-star high school football game. He was drawn to the Marines thanks to his appetite for adventure, Gilliam said.

“Dakota has been the adventure-seeker and the military offered him everything he wanted and it would give him goals and skill and an opportunity to serve his country,” she said. “I think he chose the Marines because they were the biggest and the baddest.”

Growing up, he enjoyed four-wheeling, skydiving and rock-climbing, she said.

He was later based in Hawaii for the Marines and stayed until he left in June 2010 to work for a weapons developer in Austin, Gilliam said.

Only two living recipients — Army Staff Sgt. Salvatore Giunta and Army Sgt. 1st Class Leroy Petry — have received the award for actions in Iraq and Afghanistan, according to The Associated Press.

“We are all very proud of Dakota,” Gilliam said. “He went above and beyond the call of duty and to say that his actions were selfless is an understatement. But he did what he did because he loved the men he worked with.”

How To Get A Veteran's Replacement Medals

admin — Mon, 15 Feb 2010 16:00:20 +0000

By Kyle Martin

A veteran’s medals testify to his service and courage in battle. Veterans give up a lot for their country and those medals serve as a “thank you” of sorts from the United States. The medals also are an important way for family members to remember a veteran. Medals can be lost over time, though, through neglect, theft or fire. The U.S. military keeps a record of the medals, and you can get replacements shipped to the veteran and her family.

Step 1 - Make a records request through the National Personnel Records Center‘s website for proof of a veteran’s service. You’ll need a copy of the DD214 separation document and proof of any medals to which the veteran is entitled. Non-veterans or persons who are not next of kin can only obtain information that’s available under the Freedom of Information Act.

Step 2 - Phone your member of Congress to get help replacing lost medals. This can expedite the process and decrease the red tape, but you still must provide the documents you received from the national records center. Medals will be issued to family members of a living veteran if the veteran submits signed authorization. Authorized family members of deceased veterans are: son or daughter, father or mother, widower or a widow who has not remarried, or a brother or sister. They will need to provide a copy of a death certificate in addition to the DD214.

Step 3 - Request the medals through the military branch in which the veteran served. The exception is the U.S. Army and U.S. Air Force. Send your request to the records center. Clerks there will verify the awards a veteran is entitled to and forward the request.

Step 4 – Talk with a member of the local Veterans Affairs office if you cannot reach anyone else in the government or need help filling out the appropriate forms.

Flag Still Stands For Freedom » Medals

First Living Marine to Receive the Nation’s Highest Award

Mother says son is “humbled” to receive Medal of Honor

How To Get A Veteran's Replacement Medals