| |
| |
Korean War Congressional Medal of Honor Recipient
USMC Staff Sgt. William E. Shuck Jr.
Thursday, October 02, 2003
Korean War hero due honors
Gravesite ceremony set for Marine, Ridgeley native
Maria D. Martirano
Times-News Staffwriter
CUMBERLAND Wounded twice, Staff Sgt. William E. Shuck Jr., a U.S. Marine and Ridgeley native, wasnt about to leave his fellow soldiers until all dead and wounded were evacuated.
While assisting in the removal of the last casualty, Shucks bulletproof vest slipped up his back and he caught a 50-caliber round in his back in the spine.
Shuck died instantly in Korea on July 3, 1952, just a few weeks shy of his 26th birthday and only about six months after arriving in Korea.
Second Lt. George Shields, who sent a letter to Shucks family about the days events, along with Shucks section, wrote Shuck up for the Congressional Medal of Honor, which he was awarded.
More than 50 years later, Shucks valor will be recognized.
The ceremony will be held at Shucks gravesite at SS. Peter and Pauls Cemetery on Fayette Street on Oct. 11 at noon. The headstone is not there but a red, white and blue wreath along with an American flag mark the location that is to the immediate left of the entrance. Hes buried with his parents, William Sr. and Regina, both deceased in 1975, and sister, Virginia, who died in 1995.
A piece of black granite with his Medal of Honor citation etched in gold letters will be unveiled as part of the public ceremony.
Shucks Korean service medal, which was sent to Mount Savage resident Don Rice, chaplain of the Korean War Veterans Association, will be presented to his sister Dolores Bumgarner, his lone surviving sibling, of South Carolina.
Hershel Woody Williams, West Virginias only living Congressional Medal of Honor recipient, will be the speaker. Vic Ryan, commandant of the Mountainside Marine Detachment 1071, will serve as master of ceremonies. Several veterans organizations as well as active servicemen and women are expected to attend.
The event is a collaboration between the Gold Star Post 6452 Veterans of Foreign Wars, and the American Legion William E. Shuck Memorial Post 136, both of Ridgeley. Funding for the memorial, which was completed by Tri-State Monument in Piedmont, comes from the VFWs treasury. A four-man committee, consisting of VFW members Gene Sewell and William Harness and American Legion members Roger Cowgill and Mitchell Reeves, organized the event.
I sort of hate it that it took 50 years, but its better late than never, Sewell, a World War II Navy veteran, said. It might even wake people up and have them show their patriotism.
Sewell grew up with Shuck and it still makes his eyes well up with tears when he thinks of the young life taken.
He was very shy, he said. He was an unlikely Marine to begin with, but a lot of heroes dont come on that way. Nobody knows what theyll do when called on to do it. Im sure he was scared out of his wits.
Harness, who served in the Army, said such bravery often puts things in perspective.
Im a veteran and Im proud of what Ive done, Harness said. But in many ways, I dont feel Im in the same class as those who were fighting in Korea, Vietnam or World War II. Its one thing to be ready and another to storm the beaches.
One thing I want to do as a veteran is to make sure people like us dont forget the price paid by these people, he said. I can only begin to imagine their feelings as these guys stormed the beach. They were just kids but they stood firm.
Born Aug. 26, 1926, Shuck was the second of four children. In addition to his sisters, he had a brother, Don.
Upon his graduation from Ridgeley High School in 1944, he joined the Navy and became a submarine sailor serving in the last stages of World War II. He was discharged July 19, 1946, but enlisted in the U.S. Marine Corps on Nov. 14, 1947.
In between his military stints, he worked at the Kelly-Springfield Tire Co. He also was married although no information on his wife is available.
Shuck is memorialized in several ways, including a monument and plaque at the West Virginia end of the Blue Bridge in Ridgeley, the bridge over Patterson Creek on state Route 28 at Fort Ashby and the youth league baseball field in Ridgeley.
Thursday, October 02, 2003
Decorated WWII veteran will attend
Maria D. Martirano
Times-News Staffwriter
CUMBERLAND The U.S. Marine Corps once said Hershel Woody Williams wasnt tall enough to join their ranks, and he almost decided it wasnt much use to try to enlist again.
But in 1943, the height restriction was lifted, he tried to enlist and this time, the 5-foot 6-inch Williams was accepted.
On Feb. 23, 1945, he found himself on Iwo Jima the same day Marines raised the flag on Mount Suribachi during World War II. He said he doesnt have anything to do with that, though.
He was about 1,000 yards away where he went alone to try to reduce the devastating machine gun fire. He fought for four hours, covered only by four riflemen, as his division tried to open a lane for the infantry. For his action that day, he earned the Congressional Medal of Honor.
Williams, who retired as a commissioned warrant officer, will speak at an Oct. 11 ceremony that will be held to honor Staff Sgt. William E. Shuck Jr., a Ridgeley native and U.S. Marine who died during the Korean War.
Shuck, also a Medal of Honor recipient, is buried at SS. Peter and Pauls Cemetery on Fayette Street, which is where the public event will take place at noon. The event is a collaboration between the Gold Star Post 6452 Veterans of Foreign Wars and the American Legion William E. Shuck Memorial Post 136, both of Ridgeley.
We certainly must never forget the sacrifices that have been made to give us what we have, Williams of Ona, W.Va., said. On Oct. 2, 1923, I was born and given a gift I couldnt earn and one I couldnt buy. It was the gift of freedom.
West Virginias only living Medal of Honor winner was born in Quiet Dell, near Fairmont, and grew up on a dairy farm. He said he knew nothing else and never intended to join the military. When the Japanese bombed Pearl Harbor and the United States entered World War II, his thoughts changed.
When our freedom was threatened, so many people along with me felt the need to do something to keep that freedom, Williams, who serves as national chaplain of the Congressional Medal of Honor Society of the United States, said.
Wounded March 6, 1945, on Iwo Jima, he received the Purple Heart and was awarded the Medal of Honor on Oct. 5, 1945. He also received West Virginias Distinguished Service Medal in 1965 and the Veterans Administration Vietnam Service Medal in 1967 for service as a civilian counselor to the armed forces.
Williams and his wife, Ruby, operated a boarding and training barn for horses for several years. The business has since been turned over to a grandson.
He is a retired veterans services officer from the U.S. Veterans Administration where he served 33 years. He also served as the first commandant of the West Virginia Veterans Home at Barboursville from 1980 to 1985, when he retired.
Maria D. Martirano can be reached a .
Marine Staff Sergeant William E. Shuck, Jr., was posthumously awarded the Nation's highest decoration, the Medal of Honor, for heroic action against Communist forces in Korea on July 3, 1952.
As a machine gun squad leader in the 7th Marines, 1st Marine Division, Sergeant Shuck participated in a daylight attack against well entrenched enemy forces. When the leader of one of the infantry squads he was supporting became a casualty, Sergeant Shuck promptly assumed command of the riflemen.
Severely wounded, he refused medical aid and led his machine gunners and riflemen in an effective attack against the enemy position. Under a heavy barrage of small arms, grenade, artillery and mortar fire, Sergeant Shuck personally supervised the removal of the dead and wounded of his command. When wounded a second time, he remained at the scene of action until he was assured all his casualties had been evacuated. As the last wounded Marine was being carried away, Sergeant Shuck helped lift the stretcher and was killed instantly by an enemy sniper bullet.
Sergeant Shuck was born in Cumberland, Maryland, August 16, 1926, and grew up in Ridgely, West Virginia. He was a 1944 graduate of Ridgely High School, and was a member of the Naval Reserve from 1944 to 1946. On November 14, 1947, he enlisted in the U.S. Marine Corps.
The Medal of Honor was presented to Sergeant Shuck's widow, Mrs. Victoria L. Shuck, by Vice President Richard M. Nixon at a presentation ceremony held at the Marine Barracks, Washington, D. C., September 9, 1953.
Medal of Honor - 1952
3rd Battalion, 7th Marine Regiment, 1st Marine Division
Korea, 3 July 1952
Born: 16 August 1926, Cumberland, Md.
Entered service at: Cumberland, Md.
The President of the United States in the name of The Congress takes pride in presenting the
MEDAL OF HONOR
posthumously to
STAFF SERGEANT WILLIAM E. SHUCK, JR.
UNITED STATES MARINE CORPS
for service as set forth in the following
CITATION:
For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty while serving as a Squad Leader of Company G, Third Battalion, Seventh Marines, First Marine Division (Reinforced) in action against enemy aggressor forces in Korea on 3 July 1952. When his platoon was subjected to a devastating barrage of enemy small-arms, grenade, artillery and mortar fire during an assault against strongly fortified hill positions well forward to the main line of resistance, Staff Sergeant Shuck although painfully wounded, refused medical attention and continued to lead his machine-gun squad in the attack. Unhesitatingly assuming command of a rifle squad when the leader became a casualty, he skillfully organized the two squads into an attacking force and led two more daring assaults upon the hostile positions. Wounded a second time, he steadfastly refused evacuation and remained in the foremost position under heavy fire until assured that all dead and wounded were evacuated. Mortally wounded by and enemy sniper bullet while voluntarily assisting in the removal of the last casualty, Staff Sergeant Shuck, by his fortitude and great personal valor in the face of overwhelming odd, served to inspire all who observed him. His unyielding courage throughout reflects the highest credit upon himself and the United States Naval Service. He gallantly gave his life for his country.
/S/ DWIGHT D. EISENHOWER
|
|
|
|
|
Articles & Briefings
