Art Shell

Know Your Medal of Honor Recipients:

Captain of the Top James Horton (US Navy) received his Medal of Honor for his actions on February 13, 1879, on board the USS Constitution. His citation reads:

Serving on board the U.S.S. Constitution, at sea, 13 February 1879, Horton showed courageous conduct in going over the stern during a heavy gale and cutting the fastenings of the ship's rudder chains.

Seaman Lewis A. Horton (US Navy) received his Medal of Honor for his actions on December 30, 1862, on board the USS Rhode Island. His citation reads:

Served on board the U.S.S. Rhode Island, which was engaged in saving the lives of the officers and crew of the Monitor, 30 December 1862. Participating in the hazardous task of rescuing the officers and crew of the sinking Monitor, Horton, after rescuing several of the men, became separated in a heavy gale with other members of the cutter that had set out from the Rhode Island and spent many hours in the small boat at the mercy of the weather and high seas until finally picked up by a schooner 50 miles east of Cape Hatteras.

Private William Charlie Horton (US Marine Corps) received his Medal of Honor for his actions on July 21 – August 17, 1900, at Peking, China. His citation reads:

In action against the enemy at Peking, China, 21 July to 17 August 1900. Although under heavy fire from the enemy, Horton assisted in the erection of barricades.


The I’m just sayin… Know Your South Carolina Athlete

The South Carolina athlete we are going to look at today is the great Art Shell. Arthur "Art" Shell (born November 26, 1946) is a former collegiate and professional football player in the American Football League and later in the NFL. He is a Hall of Fame offensive tackle and a two-time former head coach of the Oakland Raiders. He holds the distinction of becoming the third-ever African American head coach (after Fritz Pollard and Wayne Fontes) in the history of professional football, and the second in the sport's modern era.

Shell is from the Charleston area. He attended Bonds-Wilson High School in North Charleston, SC. After high school, Art headed up to Maryland State College (now known as The University of Maryland Eastern Shore, located in Princess Anne, MD).

Shell was drafted by the American Football League's Oakland Raiders. Playing offensive tackle, Shell participated in 24 playoff contests, including Super Bowls XI and XV, and was named to eight Pro Bowls. Shell was elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1989. In 1999, he was ranked number 55 on The Sporting News' list of the 100 Greatest Football Players. He was also named to the NFL’s 1970s All-Decade Team. Art has also been inducted into the South Carolina Sports Hall of Fame.

Congrats to Art Shell for being our SC Athlete You Should Know.

Thanks Wikipedia

HAPPY BIRTHDAY SUSIE!!!!!!!!!

Know Your Medal of Honor Recipients:

Staff Sergeant Freeman V. Horner (US Army) received his Medal of Honor for his actions on November 16, 1944, at Wurselen, Germany. His citation reads:

S/Sgt. Horner and other members of his company were attacking Wurselen, Germany, against stubborn resistance on 16 November 1944, when machinegun fire from houses on the edge of the town pinned the attackers in flat, open terrain 100 yards from their objective. As they lay in the field, enemy artillery observers directed fire upon them, causing serious casualties. Realizing that the machineguns must be eliminated in order to permit the company to advance from its precarious position, S/Sgt. Horner voluntarily stood up with his submachine gun and rushed into the teeth of concentrated fire, burdened by a heavy load of ammunition and hand grenades. Just as he reached a position of seeming safety, he was fired on by a machinegun which had remained silent up until that time. He coolly wheeled in his fully exposed position while bullets barely missed him and killed 2 hostile gunners with a single, devastating burst. He turned to face the fire of the other 2 machineguns, and dodging fire as he ran, charged the 2 positions 50 yards away. Demoralized by their inability to hit the intrepid infantryman, the enemy abandoned their guns and took cover in the cellar of the house they occupied. S/Sgt. Horner burst into the building, hurled 2 grenades down the cellar stairs, and called for the Germans to surrender. Four men gave up to him. By his extraordinary courage, S/Sgt. Horner destroyed 3 enemy machinegun positions, killed or captured 7 enemy, and cleared the path for his company's successful assault on Wurselen.

Drummer William H. Horsfall (US Army) received his Medal of Honor for his actions on May 21, 1862, at Corinth, Mississippi. His citation reads:

Saved the life of a wounded officer lying between the lines.

Gunner’s Mate James Horton (US Navy) received his Medal of Honor for his actions on September 21, 1864, on board the USS Montauk. His citation reads:

Served as gunner's mate on board the U.S.S. Montauk, 21 September 1864. During the night of 21 September, when fire was discovered in the magazine lightroom of the vessel, causing a panic and demoralizing the crew, Horton rushed into the cabin, obtained the magazine keys, sprang into the lightroom and began passing out combustibles, Including the box of signals in which the fire originated.


Today we’d like to wish my sweet little Susie a VERY HAPPY 3rd BIRTHDAY!!! It seems like it was just yesterday that I was standing in that “hospital” (their word, not mine) holding The Wife’s right leg thanking God for the fact that it was Sunday and the room had a TV with a NFL game on. Even better, the Vikings were playing… so I didn’t have to worry about my Mother-in-Law giving me any dirty looks (she’s a Vikings fan… don’t ask why). Anyway, when all was said and done our sweet little girl joined us at 4:25pm weighing in at 8lbs, 9oz. while stretching out to 19 inches long. Happy Birthday Susie Grace!!! I love you!!!!


Thankful Thursday

I believe I’ve said this before but it is worth saying again, I’m pretty lucky in that I got to know 3 of my 4 grandparents before they passed away. I was lucky to have two of the best grandmothers anyone could hope to have. They were different, but both were great. So when The Wife got pregnant the first time and we found out we were having a girl, I tried long and hard to figure out a way to work Ruth and Susie into her name (and I also wanted a double first name like Mom has, if possible). I couldn’t really get the names to fit like I wanted and The Wife kind of wanted to use the name Mary because of her mom and grandmother, so we decided on Mary Ruth. Fast forward to 2009 and we are again finding out that we’re having a girl. This may have been the fastest we picked a name. I don’t think we even had a second choice. Susie Grace. It just seemed like the perfect name. It’s fun to sit and watch siblings grow and to see them have different personalities. I’m sure it’s like that for every parent. Heck, just look at me and my siblings… When we were growing up Teresa Lynn was sweet and loved everyone, Sonny was quiet enough that our parents probably thought he was dumb and I talked enough that our parents didn’t have to guess if I was dumb or not. My kids are also different… Mary Ruth is sweet and wants everyone to be happy. Right now, Daniel is just along for the ride… trying to keep his sisters from killing him (with kindness, of course). Susie just wants to be happy… if you’re happy to, that’s fine, but she’s going to make sure she’s happy. Sometimes she wants to play with others, but she’s also fine just playing by herself. Sometimes she’s sweet… but she’s also willing to crack the whip around our house if she feels like she needs to. We call her Sergeant Susie because she’s not afraid to bark out any orders to her brother and sister that we have given. It’s not uncommon for her to open the bathroom door and yell at Mary Ruth to get out of the shower NOW. She also tells Daniel when it is time to eat or clean up. She is able to make me laugh without really trying to… it’s a gift she has. And even though she loves her cousin Ansley waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay more than she loves me, I still love her very much and I can’t imagine how boring my life would be without her in it. She is a great daughter and for that, I am thankful.