Photo By Master Sgt. Brock Jones | Richard Johnson, a World War II veteran who served in the European Theater of...... read more read more
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WEST JORDAN, Utah – A Utah World War II veteran finally received the Bronze Star medal he earned over 65 years ago in a ceremony hosted by 2nd Battalion, 211th Aviation, of the Utah Army National Guard, at the E. J. Garn Aviation Complex in West Jordan, Nov. 19.
Richard Johnson, of Herriman, saved the life of a fellow U.S. soldier near Rechrival, Belgium, in January 1945, qualifying him for the honor, but he never was presented the medal officially until the Nov. 19 ceremony.
Johnson, now 83 years old, was an infantry machine gunner in Europe during World War II with the 194th Glider Infantry Regiment, 17th Airborne Division.
During the ceremony Lt. Col. Pete Adams, commander of 2nd Battalion, described what Johnson did to earn the medal.
“On Jan. 10, 1945, Pfc. Richard Johnson distinguished himself by selflessly exposing himself to grave danger by leaving the protection of his defilade position to rescue a severely wounded soldier. Johnson charged forward through enemy fire with total disregard for his own safety and dragged his fallen comrade to safety. His selfless actions were reported unbeknownst to him to his superiors. Six years went by until one day in July 1951 a package containing his award was delivered through the mail.”
Capt. Jeremy Tannahill, commander of Company D, 2nd Battalion, 211th Aviation, is a neighbor of the Johnsons and said his young son, Braden, often goes to visit and help the Johnsons. It was during one of these visits that Braden noticed some war memorabilia Johnson had in his home. After hearing about Johnson’s mementos from his son, Tannahill said he went over to visit Johnson and ask if he would be willing to share some of his WWII experiences with his unit. Tannahill eventually discovered that Johnson had never been formally awarded the Bronze Star in a proper military ceremony, and a plan to do just that began to take shape in his mind. He approached Adams about holding a ceremony for Johnson.
“He’s a hero and he hadn’t been recognized,” said Tannahill. “A man who does what he did needs to be recognized for his service. He deserves it.”
Brig. Gen. Michael Leichty, land component commander, Utah Army National Guard, pinned the award on Johnson’s lapel. Johnson rendered a salute and the crowd of soldiers and civilians gave him a round of applause.
After receiving the medal, Johnson was invited to speak, and he gave a brief overview of the gliders used in World War II. He also provided additional details to Adams’ narrative about how he’d come to earn the Bronze Star.
“I was a machine gunner at the time and machine gunners would fall in with rifle squads, and fortunately we had some cover—some defilade. An 88 shell hit about 20 feet ahead of us, severely wounding a rifleman just ahead of us. He was screaming and bleeding, one leg just hanging there.”
Johnson said the others began concentrating fire on where they could see the enemy tracers coming from, and he ran out and grabbed the wounded soldier and pulled him back to the creekbed.
“It was nothing special. Any one of you would have done the same thing in the same circumstances,” he said.
| Date Taken: | 11.19.2010 |
| Date Posted: | 11.30.2010 15:49 |
| Story ID: | 61120 |
| Location: | WEST JORDAN, UTAH, US |
| Web Views: | 149 |
| Downloads: | 2 |
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