Medal of Honor Society – Celebration of Freedom Gala Remarks by Gen. David Petraeus Ronald Reagan Presidential Library 7 March 2009 Well good evening to you all. And thank you very much; this is all more than a bit overwhelming, I have to say. It’s incredibly humbling not just to be in the presence of some of our nation’s greatest heroes but to be honored by the Society that celebrates their accomplishments, and to have it all take place in this extraordinary setting. But let me note up front that the tribute I received tonight is one that I can accept only inasmuch as I do so on behalf of the more than 215,000 men and women in uniform serving our nation in tough places in the Central Command area of responsibility. Thanks, Bob [COL Bob Howard, CMOH recipient and President of the CMOH Society], not just for your kind words and this tremendous award, but also for your decades of service to our country—in retirement as well as on active duty—currently, of course, as the president of the Society. I’m among those who grew up in our Army in the mid-1970s with your example fresh in our mind. And your record of courage, sacrifice, and professional excellence was a source of enormous pride and inspiration to all who knew your story. Thanks yet again for all you have done! Thanks also to the producers of that very nice video. I just wish my parents could have been here to see it. My father would have loved it, and my mother would have believed every kind word in it. Speaking of family, I’m delighted that my wife Holly could be here to share this evening with me. You know the old saying that behind every successful man is a surprised mother-in-law! In my case, it’s a wonderful wife! As in many other military families, my wife and I have been apart during multiple deployments since 2001. Holly’s been father as well as mother to our children while I was deployed for 5 of the last 7-1/2 years. Beyond that, she’s played a significant role in all that I’ve been privileged to do in uniform for over 34 great years. And she certainly shares in this award. Thanks, Hol. I do want to also add my thanks to the co-hosts of this evening’s gathering—thanking Gary Sinise, David McIntyre, and Bruce Brereton, each of whom is a true patriot and is well known for his tremendous support of our men and women in uniform. This has been an exceptional evening, you made it happen, and we cannot thank you enough. Congratulations also to Alex Quade on receiving the Tex McCreary Award. As some of you may remember, the great Paul Harvey received this prestigious award 9 years ago, and it’s only fitting that it be presented to another terrific journalist in the same week that Paul Harvey passed away. Thank you for chronicling the feats of young men and women in uniform. I want to express my sincere congratulations as well to a true hero Charles Durning and to Mrs. Reagan. Each of them has served our great Nation in memorable and significant ways over the years, and your lives are inspirations to us all. It’s an honor to share this evening with them. Again, I accept this award, on behalf of the extraordinary men and women in uniform serving our Nation in Iraq, Afghanistan, and other locations throughout the Central Command area of responsibility. The men and women who serve downrange today carry on the traditions that were strengthened and furthered, above all, by those who earned our Nation’s highest honor—and it is a thrill to see some 43 of them here with us this evening—some of whom I’m privileged to call a friend. And, if it can be said that those in uniform today stand on the shoulders of those who wore the uniform in earlier days, then we stand very tall indeed because of their extraordinary service and that of those who served with them during their days in uniform. The heroic stories of those who earned the Medal of Honor remind us of the very best that America represents. In tough times, in particular, we can look to what those Americans did in the face of extraordinary challenges and draw inspiration from their actions and confidence that we can deal with difficulty too. We see, in fact, in the most recent Medal of Honor recipient, that the values of courage and selflessness live on in our troopers today. PFC Ross McGinnis volunteered to serve in the military in 2004 knowing full well that he would be called to serve in combat. He did, arriving in Iraq in 2006 during a period of horrific sectarian violence. And his infantry company quickly found itself in the heat of battle—engaging 50 insurgents in one fight alone in Baghdad in a tough area. For his actions as a machine gunner in that battle, PFC McGinnis was recommended for the Silver Star medal. One month later, on a convoy through Baghdad, his unit was ambushed again. In the midst of the ensuing fight, an insurgent managed to toss a grenade right into the HMMWV hatch where PFC McGinnis was manning his .50-cal machine gun. The grenade landed at PFC McGinnis’ feet, and he could have jumped out and saved his life, an action for which no one would have faulted him. Instead, in an extraordinarily selfless and courageous act, he chose to sacrifice himself, dropping down into the HMMWV without hesitation and smothering the force of the grenade with his body, thereby saving the lives of his fellow crew members. PFC McGinnis’ story and the stories of each of those who earned our Nation’s highest award inspire us to be better and to do better – not just for ourselves, but even more so for the troopers on our left and right, for our country, and for our fellow human beings. Such actions stir us enormously, and I’d like to remind those this society honors about the impact of what they have done. For some of those in the audience may have arrived at an age at which one begins to wonder what he has accomplished in life and what footsteps he has left in the sands of time. I want to reassure them in that regard, for they have left huge footsteps and a clearly marked path of accomplishment, courage, sacrifice, and selfless service. Indeed, President Reagan, in addressing this group some 25 years ago, noted that those who have earned our Nation’s highest award will be honored and remembered not just because they heeded the call of duty, but because they performed above and beyond that call. President Reagan spoke at a time when our Nation’s generational struggle against Communism was entering its final chapter. He observed that freedom “is never more than one generation away from extinction,” and he urged each generation to do whatever is necessary to preserve freedom and to pass it on to the next. Tonight, our Nation is again in a generational struggle—now facing the indiscriminate violence, oppressive practices, and extremist ideology of terrorist networks like al Qaeda. PFC McGinnis’ story shows that young Americans continue to step forward to defend our freedoms and to do so in a truly heroic manner. As I have noted, those of us in uniform today draw enormous inspiration from the examples of those this Society honors. We are humbled to follow in their footsteps as the new greatest generation adds new chapters to the distinguished history written by the actions of earlier generations in uniform. By serving, our present-day troopers join the long column of American veterans, a column to which many in the audience added so much during their service to our Nation. So tonight, on behalf of every Soldier, Sailor, Airman, Marine, and Coast Guardsman serving in Iraq, Afghanistan, and throughout the Central Command area of responsibility, I want to thank you for your service, to thank you for your example, and, most importantly, to thank you for your tireless support of those serving our Nation in harm’s way today. Please know that as we strive to accomplish our missions, we will cherish, uphold, and protect the values of courage, sacrifice, and patriotism that those this Society honors lived so admirably. May God bless each and every one of you, and may God bless our young men and women serving around the world. Thank you very much. |
