This ain't Hell, but you can see it from here

Category: Blue Skies

  • CPL Richmond Litman’s Purple Heart

    CPL Richmond Litman’s Purple Heart

    CPL Littman

    CPL Richmond Litman’s Purple Heart became a national story when our friends at Purple Heart Reunited returned a Purple Heart Medal that Smuckers the dog found in his owner’s backyard a decade ago to CPL Litman’s step daughter.

    Richmond L. Litman was born 04 March 1926, grew up in San Angelo, Tom Green County, TX, and enlisted in the U.S. Army on 26 April 1948. Litman came from a long tradition of military service, with both of his brothers serving in WWII and Korea, and one serving in Vietnam as well. CPL Litman (RA 18252977), who served in the Korean War with the 2nd Infantry Division, earned his Purple Heart when he was wounded in action on 18 September 1950 in South Korea. He was discharged from the Army on 01 May 1952. In addition to the Purple Heart, Litman was also awarded a Good Conduct Medal, National Defense Medal, United Nations Korean War Service Medal, and the Korean Service Medal. CPL Litman, who died on 06 October 1990, is buried at Fort Logan National Cemetery with his wife Ida, who died in 1995. A graveside ceremony there on 22 March 2015, led by Zachariah Fike of PHR, helped generate a national news story that quickly led to the discovery of CPL Litman’s step-daughter.

    From Denver CBS affiliate channel 4;

    Somehow his Purple Heart ended up buried in the backyard of a Denver couple.

    “About 10 years ago their dog, Smuckers, dug a Purple Heart medal, of all things, out of the ground,” explained [Zachary] Fike.

    Fike, along with the Military Order of the Purple Heart, searched for Litman’s family and was able to get in contact with his daughter.

    Smuckers

  • A Leader’s Last Gift

    Earlier this year, Dean Smith – former basketball coach at North Carolina – died. He was just short of his 84th birthday.

    Smith had suffered from dementia prior to his death. Regardless, in his will Smith still remembered his former players.

    Smith’s will directed the executor of his estate to send a check – in the amount of $200 – to each player who’d lettered for him during his career. Approximately 180 players had done that during Smith’s coaching career.

    The ostensible purpose of the gift? So that his former players could “enjoy a dinner out compliments of Coach Dean Smith.”

    Nice indeed. But maybe you’re wondering, “Why is this here at TAH?”

    Yeah, you guessed it: Smith was a veteran – and a former officer. At the University of Kansas he was a member of Air Force ROTC. After receiving his degree he was commissioned. He served in Germany during the 1950s as a Lieutenant, and also coached at the Air Force Academy.

    Good leaders know that their success depends on their people; they take care of their subordinates. I’m guessing Dean Smith learned that while in the military. It also looks like he never forgot it, in spite of his dementia.

    Very classy, Mr. Smith. Rest in peace.

  • Navy SEAL dies in parachute accident

    Navy SEAL dies in parachute accident

    seal

    The Associated Press reports that a Navy SEAL died in a parachute accident yesterday;

    The two officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to provide details beyond a brief statement issued by Naval Special Warfare Group One, which is the Coronado, California-based SEALs group to which the sailor was assigned.

    An American flag was draped over the body after the accident as emergency responders stood nearby.

    The skydiver was reported down shortly after 9 a.m. near state Route 74 in an unincorporated area near Perris, where much of Southern California’s skydiving — and many of its accidents — take place.

    His name hasn’t been released to the public yet. It’s a reminder that training is sometimes as dangerous as the actual war.

  • Rest in Peace, “Flip”

    Another bit of America’s past is gone.

    Al Rosen – MLB star of the 1950s, and later team executive with the Yankees, Astros, and Giants – passed away last Friday. He was 91.

    Rosen was no slouch as a player. He played for 10 years, all with the Cleveland Indians organization. He had a career batting average of .285, drove in 100 runs 5 times, and was an AL All-Star 4 times. Rosen was his league’s unanimous MVP in 1953, leading the AL in RBI and home runs.  He missed the triple crown that year when he finished second in batting average – by slightly more than .001 – in spite of finishing with a batting average of .336.

    During his rookie season, Rosen hit 37 home runs; this stood as the rookie-season record until Mark McGwire hit 49 as a rookie in 1987. He was also regarded as an exceptional defensive third baseman. Unfortunately, back and leg injuries forced him from the game after the 1956 season at age 32.

    After his playing career, for 22 years Rosen was a stockbroker. Then in 1978 he returned to baseball, becoming a successful baseball executive. He had front-office roles with the Yankees (President/CEO, 1978-1979), Astros (President/CEO, 1980-1985), and Giants (President and General Manager, 1985-1992). During his time with the Giants Rosen’s efforts were credited with helping improve them from a last-place team in 1985 to a World Series team in 1989.

    In 1989 Rosen was selected as the NL Executive of the Year. He is the only individual in MLB history to be selected both his league MVP as a player and Executive of the Year.

    Rosen retired from baseball a second time in 1992. However, he still afterwards on occasion acted as a consultant for various baseball teams; this included a role as a Special Assistant to the General Manager for the Yankees in 2001-2002.

    In case you’re wondering why this article is here . . . as you might expect for someone of his age, Rosen was also a vet. He enlisted in the US Navy in 1942 and served until 1946, mostly in the Pacific. He participated in the invasion of Okinawa, serving as navigator for an assault boat during the initial landings. He left the Navy as a Lieutenant.

    Rosen was Jewish, and was proud (and very protective) of his religious heritage. Though more famous for doing so, Koufax was not the first prominent Jewish MLB player to refuse to play during Judaism’s high holy days; Rosen did the same a decade earlier. His nicknames during his playing days were “the Hebrew Hammer” and “Flip”. The latter is the source of this article’s title.

    RIP, my elder brother-in-arms. There are far too few of your generation left today.

    Still . . . you certainly had a wonderful, All-American life. I can’t help but be a bit envious.

  • Colonel Bill Badger passes

    Colonel Bill Badger passes

    Bill Badger

    Retired colonel Bill Badger, the fellow who tackled and the wrestled the gun out of Jared Loughner’s hand after he shot several people, including Congresswoman Gabriel Giffords in Tucson Arizona four years ago, has passed according to Reuters;

    Bill Badger, a retired Army colonel who was wounded in the shooting spree in the supermarket parking lot on Jan. 8, 2011, died on Wednesday at age 78 in Tucson, Arizona.

    Badger succumbed to pneumonia at the Tucson Medical Center after being in failing health for several weeks, his wife, Sallie Badger, told the Arizona Daily Star.

    Colonel Badger was also wounded during Loughner’s rampage that January day, but he had the presence of mind to spring to his feet and disarm the nut while Loughner attempted to reload. Of course, in the opening hours of the incident, the media was quick to report that Loughner was a veteran (he wasn’t) but little was said about the veteran who stopped him, or of the doctor who was also a veteran who saved Giffords.

  • Eleven Apparently Lost at Eglin

    Eleven members of the military – four Soldiers and seven Marines – are missing and feared dead. They were the crew and passengers, respectively, of a UH-60 from the Louisiana ARNG. The Marines involved were from MARSOC at Camp Lejune, NC.

    The aircraft apparently crashed while participating in nightime insertion and extraction training at Eglin AFB, FL. The cause of the incident has not yet been determined.

    Aircraft wreckage and some remains have been recovered to date. While rescue operations continued last night, at this point . . . frankly it doesn’t look good.

    Fox News has an article with more details.

    Sometime people ask why the military is different from other jobs. This is an example why.

    Rest in peace, brothers-in-arms. May God comfort your surviving family and friends.

  • Colonel Dean Hess passes

    Colonel Dean Hess passes

    Dean Hess

    Air Force Colonel Dean Hess, credited with rescuing Korean War orphans and protrayed in the movie “Battle Hymn” by Rock Hudson, passed at 97 years of age recently, according to the Air Force Times;

    Hess, an ordained minister, was a U.S. Air Force lieutenant colonel when he helped arrange evacuation of Korean orphans from their country’s mainland to safety on a coastal island, according to the National Museum of the U.S. Air Force. He was a significant figure in Air Force history, and his efforts to help Korean children are a “shining example” of the Air Force’s humanitarian airlift capabilities, museum historian Jeff Underwood said.

    “What is less well-known is the instrumental role he played in training the fledgling South Korean Air Force,” Underwood said in a statement.

    […]

    The museum said Hess and Lt. Col. Russell Blaisdell, a chaplain, devised a plan to transport hundreds of orphans to refuge on the coastal island as part of Operation Kiddy Car. U.S. planes airlifted the children, and the men arranged food, money and clothing contributions for them, the museum said.

    Lawrence Hess said he accompanied his father to South Korea in 1999 and saw Koreans’ respect for him.

    “It was like traveling with a rock star,” he said.

    Wiki says that airlift was called “The Kiddy Car Airlift” and that he’s credited with rescuing 950 orphans and 80 staff members ahead of the advancing Chinese in December 1950 by arranging transportation in 15 C-54 aircraft to the island Jeju and that by the time the airlift ended more than a thousand orphans were on that island.

    Blue skies, Colonel, you earned them.

  • Rest in Peace, S’chn T’gai

    Rest in Peace, S’chn T’gai

    leonardnimoyuniformveteransdaytweet2014

    Another bit of Americana has passed into history.

    Leonard Nimoy has died.  He was 83.

    Nimoy is best known as Spock of Star Trek fame (as if I really needed to tell anyone reading TAH that).  However, he was a talented actor who worked extensively in his chosen profession both before and after that series which made him a household name.

    Nimoy was also a veteran.  He served in the US Army from 1953 to 1955, attaining the rank of Sergeant.

    Rest in peace, Leonard Simon Nimoy.  While it’s associated with you perhaps more than any other phrase, somehow “Live long and prosper” just doesn’t seem particularly apropos at present.

     

    (In case you’re wondering:  although not canonically accepted, “S’chn T’gai” is given by multiple sources – including this one – as Spock’s “unpronounceable” first name.)