London Bridge caught truck in convoy

Convoy halted when vehicle gets stuck under an overpass

Military Times
by: J.D. Simkins
June 4, 2019

Virginia State Police and personnel from the Virginia Department of Transportation were soon on scene, attempting to decipher the age-old square-peg-in-a-round-hole conundrum while unsuccessfully trying to locate where common sense had disappeared to.

It was a less than proud day for all involved when a convoy driving through Virginia Beach, Virginia, was halted after one of its vehicles got stuck under an overpass. (Photo courtesy of Kris Flamont)

A military convoy cruising through Virginia Beach confronted an unexpected delay at a busy intersection Monday when one of its vehicles decided to (unsuccessfully) challenge the clearly-displayed height restriction of an overpass.

Despite attempting to adhere to applicable advice by esteemed convoy expert and wordsmith, Ludacris, multiple attempts by the vehicle to roll out were unsuccessful.

Be the one to lodge a vehicle under an overpass and supply safety brief orators everywhere with more ammunition.

“If driving a 13-foot-tall vehicle, don’t try to drive under an overpass with a maximum height restriction of 12 feet, good to go?”

The incident, which reportedly occurred just before noon on London Bridge Road, created a multi-lane blockade that had the morale of those stuck in traffic falling down, falling down, falling down. (Sincere apologies.)
read more here

Years ago I worked for a company that sold and repaired trailers. We had a lot of truckers coming in with smashed containers saying "damnedest thing I'd ever seen! That bridge just lowered itself on my trailer!"

Fort Hood "Hug Lady" greeted troops at terminal they want named after her

Tens of Thousands Sign Petition to Rename Terminal for Fort Hood's 'Hug Lady'

Military.com
By Richard Sisk
June 2, 2019

For 12 years, she was there for Fort Hood, Texas, troops going to and coming from deployments to combat zones with her engaging smile, words of comfort and, always, that great big hug -- maybe a half million of them.

FILE -- A soldier from the 1-112th Cavalry Regiment, 72nd Infantry Brigade Combat Team, receives a hug from Elizabeth Laird before boarding a plane at Robert Gray Army Airfield on Sep. 13, 2015 in this file photo. Laird was commonly known as “The Hug Lady” at Fort Hood. (Randy Stillinger/U.S. Army)
Now, an online petition has been started requesting the Defense Department to rename the place that served as her second home -- the Fort Hood Arrival/Departure Airfield Control Group terminal (A/DACG) -- for Elizabeth Corrine Laird, aka the "Hug Lady."

The petition, launched last Saturday on the Change.org for-profit petition platform, had gathered more than 63,000 signatures through mid-morning Thursday.

Laird, an Air Force veteran who enlisted in 1950, was a volunteer with the Salvation Army and began coming to the A/DACG in 2003 during the big deployments to Iraq. She continued until her death in 2015 at age 83, after a long battle with breast cancer.

At first, she offered handshakes, but that quickly progressed to hugs from “Miss Elizabeth,” of Copperas Cove, Texas. She would also hand out cards printed with Psalm 91, which says in part: "Thou shalt not be afraid for the terror by night, nor for the arrow that flieth by day."
read more here

101st veteran's body found in Mississippi River

Body found in flood waters in Alexander County, IL identified as 31-year-old veteran

WPSD NBC 6 News
Krystle Callais, Rebecca Gangemella
June 1, 2019

UPDATE: The uncle of Robbin Christopher Franklin says his nephew was an army veteran who served the country in both Iraq and Afghanistan. His uncle Mark Franklin says his nephew went by Chris.

Mark tells WPSD that Chris served in the 101st Airborne out of Fort Campbell, KY. Chris lived by the river in Illinois.

As the Mississippi River rises, Mark says his family has to boat to their homes. On May 29th, Mark says Chris’s dad was boating to his home when he found his son’s body in the water.

Mark was told the death will be ruled an “accidental drowning”. The coroner says the report is not finished until the toxicology report is done. At this time, no official cause of death has been released.

His family is working on finalizing funeral arrangements with Crain Funeral Home out of Cairo, IL.
read more here

Fred Franks, a retired U.S. Army general, reflects on his more than 35 years in service

Naples veteran committed to service after decades in the military

WINK
Reporter: Teri Evans
Writer: Jack Lowenstein
May 28, 2019

A four-star army general with a storied military career from Vietnam and beyond lives right here in Southwest Florida. Twenty-five years into retirement, he remains committed to fulfilling the trust that’s owed to all who serve.

Fred Franks, a retired U.S. Army general, reflects on his more than 35 years in service.

In 1970, Franks was wounded in Cambodia. His leg was amputated from below the knee, but it was not long before he went back to active duty in the combat unit.

“I really wanted to stay in the Army,” Franks said. “I didn’t want to do anything other than be a soldier.”

But when soldiers returned from Vietnam, there were no parades, only protests against an unpopular war like at the 1967 national rally in Washington D.C. Soldiers got caught in the crossfire of blame, and their trust in military officials and the American people were broken.

“Duty, honor, country, didn’t it mean anything?” Franks said. “These young people went, did what our country asked. So that lit a hot blue flame in me. That for the rest of my service, for the rest of my life, I would devote myself to seeing to it that trust was never fractured again.”

Gen. Franks is best known for serving in Operation Desert Storm during the Gulf War and leading the VII Corps of the U.S. in a famous maneuver that forced the retreat of the Iraqi Army.

“What we call the left-hook attack,” Franks said. “There wasn’t a day on Desert Storm that I didn’t remember my fellow veterans.”

Through he retired in 1994, Franks never stopped thinking about the troops, especially those returning from war with both visible and invisible wounds.
read more here

REMINDER
Vietnam is still the longest war to anyone paying attention! 

Vietnam War, (1954–75), a protracted conflict that pitted the communist government of North Vietnam and its allies in South Vietnam, known as the Viet Cong, against the government of South Vietnam and its principal ally, the United States. Called the “American War” in Vietnam (or, in full, the “War Against the Americans to Save the Nation”), the war was also part of a larger regional conflict (see Indochina wars) and a manifestation of the Cold War between the United States and the Soviet Union and their respective allies.

The last deaths came in 1975 and here is the first name added.

Vietnam Memorial Wall Page
THE FIRST KNOWN CASUALTY

Richard B. Fitzgibbon, of North Weymouth, Mass. is listed by the U.S. Department of Defense as having a casualty date of June 8, 1956.
His name is listed on the Wall with that of his son, Marine Corps Lance Cpl. Richard B. Fitzgibbon III, who has a casualty date of Sept. 7, 1965.

More lame reporting on military suicides

Military suicides are up but reporters do not seem to take it seriously enough to ask questions?

Ever think that you are about to read a very worthy article because of the title...and then find out you just wasted your time? Damn, I could have been playing candy crush instead.

Yes, dear reader, I am about to take off on one of those rants that I cannot avoid.

This is the headline that I though would really mean some great reporting.

"Gut wrenching replies to a US Army tweet portray the gravity of veteran suicide rates"

So much for a great headline. It was all a bunch of the same old reporting done with what the VA says and how they are taking all of this seriously...even though the report was supposed to be about the Army. 

Even more BS trying to make it seem as if no one had ever done anything on this, going all the way back to Bush 41 when he signed the Joshua Omving Suicide Prevention Act.

OK, so what we have here is a failure to communicate facts! If you read this site, you'll be able to spot what they should have been asking instead of this!

Business Insider
Sarah Gray
May 25, 2019

"How has serving impacted you?" — that was a question put forth by the US Army's Twitter account.

Scott Nelson/Getty Images

The tweet was threaded below another with a video of Pfc. Nathan Spencer, a scout with the Army's First Infantry Division explaining how the Army has "influenced his life" in a positive way.

The replies below the question, however, are were varied: some acknowledge life-long friendships, while others share gutting stories of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), difficulties with the Veterans Administration, or loved ones they lost to suicide.

"Given me memories of twelve Soldiers who chose suicide, three killed in preventable rollovers, another dozen sexually assaulted, and lots of people and families broken by immoral acts in a war that won't end," Bill Cork, whose Twitter bio describes him as "chaplain (former Army)," said in a tweeted response to the Army. And he was not alone in documenting veteran suicides. read more here

Third Saturday in May, Armed Forces Day

Armed Forces Day

Military.com
Among the many military holidays celebrated each year is Armed Forces Day. Celebrated the third Saturday in May, Armed Forces Day falls during Military Appreciation Month and joins Memorial Day, Military Spouse Appreciation Day, and Victory in Europe Day (V-E Day) as another May military-themed holiday.

The History of Armed Forces Day
On Aug. 31, 1949, Defense Secretary Louis Johnson announced the creation of an Armed Forces Day to replace separate Army, Navy and Air Force Days. The single-day celebration stemmed from the unification of the armed forces under one agency -- the Department of Defense.

In a speech announcing the creation of the day, President Truman "praised the work of the military services at home and across the seas." He said, "It is vital to the security of the nation and to the establishment of a desirable peace."

In an excerpt from the Presidential Proclamation of Feb. 27, 1950, Truman stated:

"Armed Forces Day, Saturday, May 20, 1950, marks the first combined demonstration by America's defense team of its progress, under the National Security Act, toward the goal of readiness for any eventuality. It is the first parade of preparedness by the unified forces of our land, sea, and air defense."
read more here

Georgia Police grieve loss of Sgt. Kelvin Ansar, Officer, veteran and family man

Police Officer Killed in Line of Duty Was Father of 4 and Army Veteran

The Island Packet Online
By Teresa Moss
13 May 2019

A Savannah, Georgia, police officer who was shot and killed Saturday night while responding to a robbery on Bull Street was a husband, father and military veteran, Savannah Police Department Chief Roy Minter said during a press conference Sunday night.

Sgt. Kelvin Ansari a Savannah, Georgia, police officer who served 21 years in the Army, was killed May 12, 2019, while responding to a robbery. He left behind a wife and four children ranging in ages from 5 to 25. Savannah Police Department

Sgt. Kelvin Ansari left behind a wife and four children ranging in ages from 5 to 25 years old, Minter said. He also was a 10-year veteran of the department and served 21 years in the Army.

"Last night, we lost a great man," Minter said. "We lost a man who spent a substantial portion of his life protecting our country and protecting our community. We lost a husband. We lost a father. We lost a leader."

Ansari and another officer were shot when approaching a vehicle matching a description connected to the robbery at about 8:10 p.m. Saturday, the police news release states. The other officer, Douglas Thomas, was shot in the leg. He was released from Memorial Hospital on Saturday night and is recovering at home.
read more here

At 35, Army Reservist... finally a soldier

He couldn't enlist after 9/11 because he was undocumented. At 35, he just finished boot camp

CBS News
BY CAMILO MONTOYA-GALVEZ
MAY 10, 2019

Vargas' enlistment in the Army Reserve marked the culmination of a remarkable, nearly two-decades-long journey from undocumented immigrant to trail-blazing attorney and activist. It also served as a stark reminder that the country Vargas has fought so hard to serve in uniform is still leaving many — including his family — in the shadows.

Specialist Cesar Vargas, 35, a former undocumented immigrant, graduated from basic training in late April after unsuccessfully trying to enlist for nearly two decades. CAMILO MONTOYA-GALVEZ

Fort Leonard Wood, Mo. — One by one, the young soldiers stepped forward methodically, announcing their rank, last name and hometown.

By the time it was Cesar Vargas' turn, his brothers and sisters in arms in Charlie Company had mapped out locations across the U.S. and around the world — from Omaha, Nebraska and Brooklyn, to West Africa's Burkina Faso and Lima, Peru.

"Puebla, Mexico!" the 35-year-old Vargas shouted, stepping in front of his comrades, many of whom had recently graduated from high school.

The stark age difference between him and the other boot camp graduates was not lost on Vargas, now a specialist in the Army Reserve. Since he was a teenager, he's been trying to join the armed forces. "After 9/11 — as a New Yorker — I took it very personally," he told CBS News. "And while many of my friends were trying to enlist, I couldn't because of my immigration status."
read more here

Love story of Veteran and Bride, who had to plan funeral 5 hours after wedding

Veteran dies of cancer 5 hours after getting married

Army Times
By: J.D. Simkins
May 9, 2019

Tianna Laue, married for just five hours before losing her husband, told KWWL the lessons she’s learned from the experience, however brief, will last a lifetime.

Army veteran Tristan Laue married his wife just five hours before succumbing to a rare form of liver cancer. (Tristan Laue GoFundMe)

When Tristan Laue joined the Army in July 2016, he never envisioned an enlistment that would be cut drastically short, but an indiscriminate universe had other ideas.

Laue was medically discharged from the service in April 2018 after it was discovered that the young soldier had developed a rare form of liver cancer.

Determined to battle the disease, Laue carried on with his life, attending the University of Northern Iowa while seeing his relationship with his girlfriend, Tianna, blossom in ways her family never expected.

“Talking to my mom ... she said, ‘Some people don’t get what you two had in the amount of time, like they’ll be together for years and still not have the same connection that you guys did,’” Tianna told KWWL.

But Tristan’s illness continued to advance relentlessly, diminishing with it the couple’s hopes for a long life together.

With the writing on the wall becoming more clear with each passing day, Laue made the decision to pursue one final wish and proposed to Tianna on Easter Sunday.
read more here

Army family heading to Fort Hood lost everything to thieves in Tulsa

Army soldier, family say thieves stole nearly everything they own during move to Fort Hood

KTUL ABC 8 Tulsa
by Amy Jenson
April 27th 2019

They are celebrating Sturm’s sister’s wedding, but the celebration is a little muted by what happened overnight.

“I am still kind of in shock,” Sturm said. “Why would somebody do this?”

TULSA, Okla. (KTUL) -- An Army soldier and his family are starting back at zero.

They stopped in Tulsa for a wedding on their way to Fort Hood, and in less than 24 hours, thieves stole nearly everything they own.

Shattered glass, that’s all that is left from the U-Haul and SUV that was parked here Friday night.

“My first thought was oh maybe she parked on the other side of the building,” Jesse Sturm said.

Army Sergeant Jesse Sturm and his wife Wendy and their two kids are on a 1,700 mile trek to Fort Hood in Texas.

They stopped in Tulsa on Friday night to stay at Homewood Suites near 71st and Garnett.
read more here

Army Reservist went from homeless to homeowner in Las Vegas

Once homeless, Las Vegas veteran gets 1st taste of homeownership

Las Vegas Review Journal
Briana Erickson
April 26, 2019

Martinez, who starts studying social work at UNLV in the fall, said her next step will be to help other veterans who might be in the same situation she was in.

She had the key, and now it was time for one more thing. The brand-new American flag, still bright and shiny and creased from packaging.

Carrying it to the outside of her new home near downtown Las Vegas, Ana Martinez attempted to erect the flag on the tan house with white finish. But she didn’t have the necessary tools.

Laughing, the 52-year-old veteran used packing tape to secure the metal plate to the wall. As the flag came up, so did the tears. And when the tape didn’t stick, Martinez held onto the flag tightly.

“A lot of people don’t make it back. … They just don’t have an opportunity to live their life and continue giving,” the Army veteran said through her tears. “It’s just a little emotional for me.”

It was the first thing she did Friday morning as a first-time homeowner.

She was determined to put the flag up and to start up the stereo in her living room.

Only two years earlier, she had been homeless, living in her red two-door Mitsubishi Eclipse and working as a chief warrant officer with the U.S. Army Reserve Center in Sloan.
read more here

Driver who plowed into strangers had history of mental illness

Suspect in Sunnyvale ramming of crowd moaned, ‘Thank you, Jesus,’ over and over

San Francisco Chronicle
Evan Sernoffsky , Matthias Gafni , Gwendolyn Wu and Lauren Hernández
April 24, 2019

Joshua Peoples, 38, said his brother served in the military overseas. The U.S. Army Reserve confirmed he served as a civil affairs specialist “from March 2004 to July 2009, attaining the rank of Sergeant. He deployed to Iraq from June 2005 to May 2006.”

Moments after Army veteran Isaiah Joel Peoples careened his car through a crowded Sunnyvale intersection, sending bodies flying through the air, the 34-year-old Sunnyvale resident with a history of mental illness praised Jesus, according to investigators and a witness.

“Thank you, Jesus. Thank you, Jesus. Thank you, Jesus,” a witness said Peoples moaned after emerging from his wrecked car Tuesday night, just feet from a crooked line of crumpled bicycles and mangled, bloody bodies.

Peoples was arrested at the scene, and police, who said they believe his actions were intentional but not connected to any terrorist group, booked him on suspicion of eight counts of attempted murder. They said he did not express remorse.
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Col. Gregory Townsend died helping stranger on the road

Army hero killed while helping stranded driver along Virginia highway

BY TRIBUNE MEDIA WIRE
APRIL 24, 2019

The 46-year-old served two tours in Iraq (February 2003 – February 2004 and August 2009 – August 2010) and one in Afghanistan (October 2009 – January 2010). He arrived at Fort Lee in July 2017 where he assumed command of the brigade.

FORT LEE, Va. - A decorated military veteran was killed after stopping on a Virginia highway to help a stranger change a flat tire on April 18, according to a Fort Lee spokesperson.

Col. Gregory Townsend, commander of the 23rd Quartermaster Brigade at the U.S. Army Quartermaster School, died Monday.

"As he finished changing the tire, the vehicle fell on him," Fort Lee spokesperson Dani Johnson said. "He was taken by a life flight helicopter to VCU Critical Care Hospital, Richmond, Virginia, where he received treatment until his death."

The incident on Route 460 happened April 18.

"The loss of Col. Greg Townsend is devastating for his family and the Army," Brig. Gen. Douglas M. McBride Jr., 55th Quartermaster General and commandant at the Quartermaster School.
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Afghanistan veteran and wife on motorcycle killed by vulture

Army Veteran, Wife Killed in Crash With Vulture: Kansas Patrol

By The Associated Press
April 22, 2019

MEDICINE LODGE, Kan.—Authorities say a vulture caused a crash that killed an Army veteran and his wife as they rode a motorcycle in southern Kansas.

The Kansas Highway Patrol says the bird came out of a ditch Saturday afternoon, April 20, and struck 42-year-old Brandon Husband, of Fowler, in the head on a rural road near Medicine Lodge, about 75 miles southwest of Wichita. 

The motorcycle then went off the road, struck a barbed wire fence and overturned. The patrol says neither Husband nor his wife, 43-year-old Jennifer Lynn Husband , was wearing a helmet.

Brandon Husband’s obituary says he served one tour in Kosovo, three in Afghanistan and was part of an Iraqi soldier training mission on the Iraq-Jordan border.

The Husbands leave behind four children.
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Who or what killed Michael Hermon

Gulf War veteran who was arrested in Berkeley died after fight at Santa Rita Jail

Berkeleyside
By Emilie Raguso
April 5, 2019

Hermon also struggled with PTSD from his time in the military, she said: “We all struggle with our demons, and I know that Michael had his.”

Michael Hermon. Photo: Kat Alexander

According to Hermon’s Facebook page, he was a combat engineer in the U.S. Army working in explosive ordnance disposal. These soldiers are described online as “the Army’s preeminent tactical and technical explosives experts.” He served during Operation Desert Storm, according to his family.

A 47-year-old Gulf War veteran with a PhD in philosophy, who was arrested in Berkeley in February, died one month later after a brief altercation in jail, according to the Alameda County sheriff’s office.

Sheriff’s spokesman Sgt. Ray Kelly told Berkeleyside that Michael Hermon was punched once in the nose during the fight March 13. When he didn’t stop bleeding, Hermon was taken to Stanford Health Care – ValleyCare in Livermore. At some point, Hermon stopped breathing and was placed on life support. He later died.

Hermon was due to be transferred out of jail to a diversion program for veterans, Kelly said. But the transfer had not happened yet due to lack of space. Kelly said Hermon’s cause of death has not been determined, but that authorities will look closely at his medical history, as well as any medical procedures that took place in the hospital, as part of the autopsy report: “It was a very unusual situation and a very unfortunate one for this family,” he told Berkeleyside. “It’s just a very bizarre series of events.”

Meanwhile, friends told Berkeleyside they are struggling to make sense of Hermon’s death.
read more here

Fort Carson Missing Soldier Found Safe

Missing Fort Carson soldier found alive

KKTV News
By Tony Keith/Lindsey Grewe
Apr 17, 2019

"The soldiers of our brigade are tremendously relieved that our Soldier has been recovered safely," said Col. Dave Zinn, commander of 2nd Infantry Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division.

FORT CARSON, Colo. (KKTV) - A Fort Carson soldier who went missing Monday night has been found alive, the Mountain Post confirms.

The soldier had been participating in the "Expert Field Medical Badge competition" and was last seen on foot at the Fort Carson Land Navigation course, which is on the southeastern corner of the post near Pueblo West. The last time someone reported seeing the soldier was about 9:45 p.m. on Monday.

More than 1,700 soldiers, along with Directorate of Emergency Services personnel, and search rescue teams from El Paso, Fremont and Douglas counties took part in a ground search. Additionally, 4th Combat Aviation Brigade, 4th Inf. Div., and Flight for Life helicopters searched from the air.
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Fort Bragg Soldier hits 100th marathon!

Soldier Is Running Her 100th Marathon in Boston

DVIDS
By Eve Meinhardt
15 April 2019

FORT BRAGG, N.C. -- It all started when she was stationed in Virginia 12 years ago. That's when Army Chief Warrant Officer 4 Beofra Butler saw everyone training for the Marine Corps Marathon and decided to give the 26.2-mile race a try.

Chief Warrant Officer 4 Beofra K. Butler, administrative executive officer to the commanding general, U.S. Army Forces Command, poses with her marathon medals on March 22, 2019. She has run 99 marathons since 2008. Around her neck are medals from her five previous Boston Marathons. She will run her 100th race April 15 in Boston. (U.S. Army photo by Eve Meinhardt)

As a soldier, running was already a part of her daily life and physical fitness routine. She had run several other shorter races, including the Army 10-Miler and a few half-marathons, so the challenge of a full marathon appealed to her. She wasn't even afraid of the dreaded "wall" that everyone told her she would hit around mile 20, when her body would start shutting down as energy stores ran low and fatigue set in.
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Hundreds attended funeral for "Lone Soldier" Alex Sasaki in Israel

Laguna Beach ‘lone soldier’ dies in Israel; hundreds attend his funeral in show of support

Los Angeles Times
Faith E Pinho
April 5, 2019

“With a lone soldier, you never know how many people will be there. And there were just so many people from so many walks of life,” Rodnitzki said. “It was unclear how many of the other soldiers who served with him could join. But so many did and so many had such beautiful remarks to share.”

Alex Sasaki of Laguna Beach served as a lone soldier in the Israeli Defense Forces. He was found dead in his home last week at age 27. Hundreds attended his funeral in Jerusalem after a call on social media from fellow soldiers to support his family. (Alex Sasaki's Facebook page)

A Laguna Beach man who followed his love of Israel overseas died last week, triggering an outpouring on social media that resulted in hundreds attending his funeral in Jerusalem.

Alex Sasaki, 27, served in the Israeli Defense Forces’ Golani infantry brigade as a “lone soldier,” without family in the country. He was found dead in his home while off duty, and military police are investigating the cause of death, the IDF said in an email.
read more here

This part should be read by anyone who believed the BS book Tribe by Sebastian Junger, who claimed that PTSD is a "disorder of transition" and that troops in Israel do not have the same problems.

"Sasaki’s death followed those of two lone soldiers who died by suicide in the past three months, according to Tzivka Graiver, chairman of Keep Olim, an immigrant advocacy nonprofit in Israel."

Considering the reports are all over Wounded Times, it shows that Junger did not do basic research and nations do not do basic outreach for their troops or veterans.

Wounded Georgia Police Officer served in Afghanistan and Iraq

Police identify victims, suspected shooter in Henry County standoff leaving 3 dead

By FOX 5 News
Posted Apr 04 2019

A man identifying himself as the father-in-law of one of the injured officers just after arriving by police escort to Grady Memorial Hospital described that officer to FOX 5's Will Nunley as being a 32-year-old Army veteran. He called the situation tragic.

"Army veteran, two tours in Iraq and Afghanistan, he's been on the force for a while. It's just a terrible tragedy," said Rick Corssey, a family member of the injured officer. 

HENRY COUNTY, Ga. (FOX 5 Atlanta) - Henry County Police will release more information late Friday morning on a nearly 16 hour- standoff inside a home that left a pregnant woman and her teenage son dead and 2 police officers wounded, apparently at the hands of the woman’s live-in boyfriend who took his own life.

Police identified the victims as 39-year-old Sandra Renee White of Stockbridge and her son, 16-year-old Arkeyvion White.
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Fort Bragg soldier received Soldier's Medal

Army soldier receives heroism medal for saving two lives after car accident

Army Times
By: Joshua Axelrod
April 2, 2019

Rep. Richard Hudson, R-N.C., presents Army Capt. Jacob Riffe with the Soldier's Medal at a ceremony March 22 at Fort Bragg, N.C. (Staff Sgt. Terrance Payton/Army) 

An Army captain was recently awarded the service’s highest non-combat heroism medal for helping two people after a nasty car accident.

Capt. Jacob Riffe — a 29-year-old current operations officer with the 264th Combat Sustainment Support Battalion, 3rd Expeditionary Sustainment Command — was given the Soldier’s Medal for heroism during a March 22 ceremony at Fort Bragg, North Carolina.

“I was pretty fortunate to be there in the right time and place to help all those people,” Riffe told Army Times.

In April 2018, Riffe and his then-5-year-old son were traveling from Fort Lee, Virginia, to Fort Bragg on I-95 when he noticed a car “kind of acting strange.”

His suspicion about that car was confirmed when it suddenly darted across the highway over an embankment on the side of the road and crashed into a farm fence. Riffe said he immediately pulled over and told his son to stay in the car while he went to assess the situation.
read more here