HAPPY BIRTHDAY UNCLE GEORGE!!!!!!!

Know Your Medal of Honor Recipients:

Chief Warrant Officer Michael J. Novosel (US Army) received his Medal of Honor for his actions on October 2, 1969, at Kien Tuong Province, Republic of Vietnam. His citation reads:

For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity in action at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty. CWO Novosel, 82d Medical Detachment, distinguished himself while serving as commander of a medical evacuation helicopter. He unhesitatingly maneuvered his helicopter into a heavily fortified and defended enemy training area where a group of wounded Vietnamese soldiers were pinned down by a large enemy force. Flying without gunship or other cover and exposed to intense machinegun fire, CWO Novosel was able to locate and rescue a wounded soldier. Since all communications with the beleaguered troops had been lost, he repeatedly circled the battle area, flying at low level under continuous heavy fire, to attract the attention of the scattered friendly troops. This display of courage visibly raised their morale, as they recognized this as a signal to assemble for evacuation. On 6 occasions he and his crew were forced out of the battle area by the intense enemy fire, only to circle and return from another direction to land and extract additional troops. Near the end of the mission, a wounded soldier was spotted close to an enemy bunker. Fully realizing that he would attract a hail of enemy fire, CWO Novosel nevertheless attempted the extraction by hovering the helicopter backward. As the man was pulled on aboard, enemy automatic weapons opened fire at close range, damaged the aircraft and wounded CWO Novosel. He momentarily lost control of the aircraft, but quickly recovered and departed under the withering enemy fire. In all, 15 extremely hazardous extractions were performed in order to remove wounded personnel. As a direct result of his selfless conduct, the lives of 29 soldiers were saved. The extraordinary heroism displayed by CWO Novosel was an inspiration to his comrades in arms and reflect great credit on him, his unit, and the U.S. Army.

Private William W. Noyes (US Army) received his Medal of Honor for his actions on May 12, 1864, at Spotsylvania, Virginia. His citation reads:

Standing upon the top of the breastworks, deliberately took aim and fired no less than 15 shots into the enemy's lines, but a few yards away.

Orderly Sergeant Christopher Nugent (US Marine Corps) received his Medal of Honor for his actions on June 15, 1863, on board the U.S.S. Fort Henry. His citation reads:

Serving on board the U.S.S. Fort Henry, Crystal River, Fla., 15 June 1863. Reconnoitering on the Crystal River on this date and in charge of a boat from the Fort Henry, Orderly Sgt. Nugent ordered an assault upon a rebel breastwork fortification. In this assault, the orderly sergeant and his comrades drove a guard of 11 rebels into the swamp, capturing their arms and destroying their camp equipage while gallantly withholding fire to prevent harm to a woman among the fugitives. On 30 July 1863, he further proved his courage by capturing a boat off Depot Key, Fla., containing 2 men and a woman with their baggage.


We’d like to take a minute today to wish my Uncle George a VERY Happy Birthday!!!!! I’m not sure how old Uncle George is, but he doesn’t look a day over 80! I was able to get Maverick and The Kids together for a little song…

I would also like to take a minute to remember my grandfather (Da) who passed away on this date back in 1995. A lot has changed since then, but boy I’d sure love to have one more chance to talk to him. I was a sophomore at James Island (less than a week shy of my 16th birthday) getting ready to take some end of the 2nd Quarter tests which would (hopefully) be graded high enough to keep me eligible for the soon to start baseball season. This was a hard time, because baseball and Da kinda went hand in hand when I was growing up. Speaking of hands… Da was almost always at our baseball games. He would shake my hand as I left the field after the game and pass a dollar along to me. He did the same for Sonny after his games. Part of me believes that had me or Sonny made it to The Show and played for the Braves, Da would have been at all of our home games and would have still given us a dollar handshake after each game. Since his death, I’ve started driving, won a second State Championship (suck it, Sonny), graduated from high school, joined the workforce, graduated from college, got married, got 3 dogs and 3 children, and gained about 100 pounds (I said a lot had changed… I didn’t say it was all good). I don’t think one ever really gets over the death of a loved one. Life goes on and at some point their death isn’t the focus of your attention… but deep down (perhaps subconsciously) there is always an empty spot caused by their passing.

I would also like to take a minute to remember our sweet Lucy (who passed away on this date back in 2011). Though some thought we were crazy (and irresponsible) for have a “fearsome” pit-bull in our house after Mary Ruth was born, I can honestly say Lucy was probably a better parent than me (at the very least, she was no worse than me). Our favorite game when Mary Ruth would cry as a baby was for me to hold her on my knees and yell “Lucy! Kisses, stat!” at which point Lucy would run over and start licking MR’s face. The tears would turn to laughter faster than you could say “Good girl”. For all the love Lucy had for me and MR, she wasn’t much in the way of protection. She once jumped up on the rail (about the size of a 2x4) of our deck because there was a rat in our backyard. A dog in our apartment complex was barking and charging at me one night when I was taking Lucy for a walk. He jumped at me… too bad for him, he ended up jumping into my raised foot. As he ran away I looked and found Lucy sitting behind me looking around my legs to see if he was gone. She also woke me up one night because my snoring was so bad. After growing up with a dog like Dach, I don’t know if I could say Lucy is the greatest dog ever… But she’d definitely be on my Mt. Rushmore of dogs. I, obviously, can’t say without a doubt that dogs go to Heaven… but I can tell you without a doubt that I have trouble picturing a paradise that doesn’t have Lucy (and Dach, of course).