Yesterday I shared with you the Fort Knox Welcome for our local Viet Nam veterans. 

Today in Part Two I want you to meet and see up close a few of these veterans who came out to be honored.  So with one more "welcome home" banner to set the stage via my photo below, take a look at some of those men and women we honored last week. 

This first photo is of an older Veteran (the yellow ribbon pinned on their shirts/jackets indicates a Veteran of the Viet Nam War) who was standing at the street corner and watching all his peers ride by on bikes or wave to us all from the buses.  He is wearing the plain Army dress green uniform jacket and the rank of an E-4/Specialist. 

He wears no awards, no medals, no military decorations or unit assignment insignia.  He was wearaing instead, the expression of a man who was a little bewildered by all the applause and celebration and uncomfortable to be congratulated for his military service, for perhaps the first time in his life. 

The second photo is this same Veteran with two JROTC cadets on each side of him saluting him and  all the Veterans passing by on motorcycle and on the buses..  This too made him visibly uncomfortable and a little amazed.  He is wearing black jeans and a light blue shirt and a hat that tells us  of a past unit he fought with or the Viet Nam War he fought in.  He is not in uniform...just wearing that Army dress jacket and we were glad to have him there.

These next two Veterans show their past Viet Nam service wtih their headgear (hats), their jackets and their tatoos. 

The veteran on the right (red beret) came on motorcycle, but did not bring a helmet which is required by Fort Knox regulation.  The Military Police did not let him ride in with all those who thought to bring a helmet so he had to park his bike at the Patton Museum and ride the bus.  I told him that I was guessing that if Lt. Gen. Freakley had heard that he and any other Viet Nam Veteran wanted to ride their bikes in with the parade and had no helmet, he would have personally blown off that restriction along with many other restrictions that was lifted that day to allow these honored guests to come home.

He was glad to hear a lieutenant colonel tell him he was welcome and wanted and that I would have rather he rode in on his bike, not in some plain yellow bus.

More jackets and vests below that spoke to their past service with "Vietnam" way at the bottom of the second photo:

This next photo is of an old First Sergeant from Kentucky, who is wearing his Combat Infantryman Badge, a Silver Star (for gallantry in action against an enemy) and a Bronze Star with a V-device for "valor" or an oak leaf cluster (meaning a second awarding of that same medal).

Then just a fun array of the many faces of our Viet Nam Veterans who came to spend the day with us at Knox.  See if somewhere in here is a face you know or one that looks very similar.  They are male and female, all the shades of skin pigmentation and of every ethnic origin....and all 100% American Soldiers. 

My son, Hyrum, is standing off to the left hand side of the photo immediately below, wearing his JROTC uniform, and was part of the honor detail that day for our Veterans.  He loved it.

And then my  wife, Dianne, just couldn't resist hugging some of these amazing heroes, as she first cheered for them then noticed how many were in tears or near tears.  So she reached out and began to hug.  It was a beautiful moment for me to watch as these aging Veterans absorbed all this love from their military and community family. 

By the way, Dianne is a good hugger, so these guys were getting double blessings if they walked by our side of the honor path.

I was stunned to see the details of this last photograph when I was screening my 200 photos in preparation for this blog.  This photo below is of a Soldier who had been 5 times honored for valor on the field of battle! 

This man was a walking stud-muffin and American Hero of the highest order! 

If only I wasn't so busy taking photos I might have noticed that day, all his extraordinary medals and citations and shaken his hand more slowly and with deeper honor.

His uniform tells me that his name is Staff Sergeant Martin and he was a Special Forces Soldier (see the SF/Airborne tabs on his left shoulder). 

He wears the hash marks on his left sleeve of a Soldier who served for at least 18 years.  He wears the Combat Infantryman Badge for being in direct contact with the enemy while assigned as an Infantryman (I am also an Infantryman so I have to laude this superstar).  He also wears the Air Medal with V-device for valorous actions while assigned as a part of a helicopter crew.  He wears the V-device on his Army Commendation Medal, indicating that he performed an additional act of valor for undisclosed service in that theater of war.  He wears the V-device on his Bronze Star Medal indicating that he performed yet another act of bravery under enemy fire that was even more meritorious than his previous two citations.  And after these three amazing decorations for VALOR, he also wears the Army's Silver Star which is awarded for "gallantry in action". 

And as if that wasn't enough, he stunningly also is wearing the second highest ribbon a Soldier can wear and which is second only to the Medal of Honor. It is called the Army's Distinguished Service Cross.  The DSC is awarded for "extreme gallantry and risk of life in the face of an armed enemy" and "extraordinary heroism" and historically has seen many of its recepients upgraded to receive the Medal of Honor when a few more witnesses over the subsequent 3-5 years turn in statements validating that action of unusual courage and selfless service in the heat of a deadly engagement with the enemy. 

Only 1,058 DSC's were awarded in all the nearly 20 years of American fighting the War in Viet Nam and almost 400 of these were posthumous, meaning that the Soldier was killed in the action for which he was  recognized, and his wife or family was presented the award at his funeral  many months or years later.

That this SSG Martin is alive and five times decorated for acts of Valor, is testament to him being a living American Legend, and an honor to have him at Fort Knox for this celebration.

My hat is off to you Staff Sergeant Martin.  It was an honor to have you there with us last week!

So, what a great day of photo-taking and hand-shaking and now you were able to see some of their faces and  smiles up close, and you joined in Dianne's warm hugs. to welcome them home

Tomorrow I'll show you the final Part 3 with the formal fan-fare.  You won't want to miss the flags and the general and the fly-over and the Heroes on the field of honor!

Let your Viet Nam Veternans know what they missed, and show them this blog so they can join us via the social media world, and be a part of this military Welcome Home for all our American Heroes!