"You Represent The Very Best Of Our Country"

The Experimental Aircraft Association tells ANN the organization was honored to welcome eight Medal of Honor recipients on Thursday as part of the Congressional Medal of Honor Society’s national convention being held in Green Bay, WI September 3-10.

EAA Chairman and Founder Paul Poberezny and EAA President Tom Poberezny welcomed the recipients, who took special tours of EAA’s AirVenture Museum.

“It’s a real honor to have all of you here today,” Paul Poberezny said. “What you represent are the millions who have served our country, and we thank you for coming here.”

In his remarks, Tom Poberezny added, “Every time I meet a Medal of Honor recipient, I get a sense of the duty, honor, and commitment they have for this country. I also sense that they received the honor for simply being committed to those qualities.

“You represent the very best of our country.”

Visiting recipients Thursday included Joe Jackson, John Finn (the oldest living recipient), Joe Marm, Jr., David McNerney, Barney Barnum, Bruce Crandall, and Bob Ingram.

Of the more than 50 million Americans who have served in the military since the Civil War, 3,441 men and one woman have been awarded the Medal of Honor. Of the 109 recipients still living, 34 are World War II veterans; 14 served in Korea, and 61 served in Vietnam.

Established by an act of Congress in 1862, the Medal of Honor is the highest award for valor in action bestowed upon a member of the US Armed Forces.

(Aero-News thanks Brady Lane for the graphic illustration.)

FMI: www.eaa.org, www.cmohs.org