Colonel Robert L. Howard, USA/Ret Dies

Thursday, December 24, 2009

Retired Army Col. Robert L. Howard, a Medal of Honor winner and one of America’s most decorated soldiers, died Wednesday in Waco after a battle with pancreatic cancer.

Howard, 70, formerly of San Antonio and father of Waco resident Melissa Gentsch, served five tours of duty in Vietnam and is the only soldier in our nation’s history to be nominated for the Medal of Honor three times for three sep-arate episodes.

Although the Medal of Honor can be awarded only once to an individual, men who served with Howard said he deserved all three, according to a Web site posted to honor Howard and other soldiers.

Howard will be buried with full military honors at Arlington National Cemetery in Washington, D.C.

Gov. Rick Perry and his wife, Anita, expressed condolences to Howard’s family in a statement Wednesday.

“As one of America’s most decorated veterans, Colonel Howard inspired everyone he met to consider their own commitment to our nation’s essential values, and was the bravest soldier I ever met. His unshakable commitment to freedom, displayed in countless episodes of battlefield gallantry, lives on in the actions of our military men and women who continue to serve in hostile conditions overseas,” Perry said.

Howard grew up in Opelika, Ala., and enlisted in the Army in 1956 at the age of 17. He retired as a full colonel in 1992 after 36 years of service. During Vietnam, he served in the Army Special Forces (Green Berets) and spent most of his five tours in the top-secret special operations forces, which ran classified cross-border operations into Laos, Cambodia and North Vietnam.

“He was a national treasure and a great warrior during a time that our country turned its back on our soldiers,” said Howard’s son-in-law, Waco Assistant Police Chief Frank Gentsch. “He always continued working for the soldiers throughout his career and even in retirement. He made trips all over the country and all over the world visiting soldiers.”

3 times nominated

The first of his three Medal of Honor nominations was downgraded to the Distinguished Service Cross, our country’s second-highest honor. His second and third nominations were simultaneous for two separate actions, and the Medal of Honor was awarded for the first of them and was presented to him by President Richard M. Nixon at the White House in 1971.

The other nomination was downgraded to the Silver Star. Howard was wounded 14 times in 54 months of combat duty in Vietnam. He was awarded eight Purple Hearts.

His story is told in John Plaster’s book, SOG: The Secret Wars of America’s Commandos in Vietnam.

twitherspoon@wacotrib.com

Give 'em Hell Harry!

Harry Truman was a different kind of President. He probably made as many, or more important decisions regarding our nation's history as any of the other 42 Presidents preceding him. However, a measure of his greatness may rest on what he did after he left the White House.

The only asset he had when he died was the house he lived in, which was in Independence Missouri. His wife had inherited the house from her mother and father and other than their years in the White House, they lived their entire lives there.

When he retired from office in 1952, his income was a U.S.Army pension reported to have been $13,507.72 a year. Congress, noting that he was paying for his stamps and personally licking them, granted him an 'allowance' and, later, a retroactive pension of $25,000 per year.

After President Eisenhower was inaugurated,Harry and Bess drove home to Missouri by themselves. There was no Secret Service following them.

When offered corporate positions at large salaries, he declined, stating,"You don't want me You want the office of the President, and that doesn't belong to me. It belongs to the American people and it's not for sale."

Even later, on May 6, 1971, when Congress was preparing to award him the Medal of Honor on his 87th birthday, he refused to accept it, writing, "I don't consider that I have done anything which should be the reason for any award, Congressional or otherwise."

As president he paid for all of his own travel expenses and food.

Good old Harry Truman was correct when he observed, "My choices in life were either to be a piano player in a whore house or a politician. And to tell the truth, there's hardly any difference!