Courage under fire

Courage under fire

You're a 19 year old kid. You're critically wounded and dying in the jungle somewhere in the Central Highlands of Viet Nam.

It's November 11, 1967, LZ (landing zone) X-ray.

Your unit is outnumbered 8-1 and the enemy fire is so intense, from 100 yards away, that your CO (commanding officer) has ordered the MedEvac helicopters to stop coming in.

You're lying there, listening to the enemy machine guns and you know you're not getting out.

Your family is half way around the world, 12,000 miles away, and you'll never see them again.

As the world starts to fade in and out, you know this is the day.

Then....................... over the machine gun noise................. you faintly hear that sound of a helicopter.

You look up to see a Huey coming in. But .................. It doesn't seem real because no MedEvac markings are on it.

Captain Ed Freeman is coming in for you. He's not MedEvac so it's not his job, but he heard the radio call and decided he's flying his Huey down into the machine gun fire anyway.

Even after the MedEvacs were ordered not to come. He's coming anyway, for you and your buddies.

And he drops his Huey in and sits there in the machine gun fire, as they load 3 of you at a time on board.

Then he flies you up and out through the gunfire to the doctors and nurses and safety.

And, he kept coming back!! 13 more times!! Until all the wounded were out. No one knew until the mission was over that the Captain had been hit 4 times in the legs and left arm.

He took 29 of you and your buddies out that day. Some would not have made it without the Captain and his Huey.

Medal of Honor Recipient, Captain Ed Freeman, United States Air Force, died August 20, 2008 at the age of 70, in Boise, Idaho.

May God Bless, and may God Rest His Soul in His Grace.

I bet you didn't hear about this hero's passing, but we've sure seen a whole bunch about Michael Jackson and Tiger Woods.

Medal of Honor Winner
Captain Ed Freeman

Shame on some of the American media!! I have to say, to ALL service men/women who are serving in our military, both past, and present. Thank You and Semper Fidelis!!

Here is a short list of those who reported his death; NBC Nightly News, Sunday Gazette-Mail, Idaho Press-Tribune, Fox News, Mountain Home News, KBCI-TV News, CNN, U.S. Army website, Anniston Star, Sunday Gazette-Mail, MSNBC, and Associated Press.

Normally, I wouldn't post about a death but, I feel that the service men/women DO need recognition for their deeds of valor.

Bob