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thedrifter
01-15-08, 06:54 AM
Overdue honor A Silver Star for an exemplary Vietnam-era soldier

Published January 15, 2008

“I was just doing my job.”

How many times do we hear that from a member of the U.S. military, whether that person is in the Army, Navy, Air Force, Marines, any of the Reserve branches, or the National Guard?

We hear it regularly.

We heard it again recently in the story of a Fairbanks man who four decades ago — more than a generation — exhibited the best traits of a U.S. soldier on an October day in the vicinity of the border between North Vietnam and South Vietnam. 1968 was a ferocious year, with the United States nearing its highest troop levels.

Andrew Wescott was just 22 that day in 1968 when he, serving as a platoon sergeant, made a decision. His platoon leader had been mortally wounded in a firefight with a North Vietnamese unit, and he was not going to leave him on the battlefield.

It seems a simple, dutiful decision on its own.

But it came with its own price.

Enemy fire ripped into Staff Sgt. Wescott’s back twice as he made his way back with his leader. Even so, he directed his men’s fire on the enemy, sustaining three more gunshot wounds from the enemy. He continued directing his forces while receiving medical treatment.

This week, the Silver Star that Staff Sgt. Wescott earned long ago but didn’t know about until last year will be awarded in a ceremony at Fort Wainwright. The citation that accompanies the Silver Star, the third-highest that the military awards for valor in battle, notes that Staff Sgt. Wescott “braved a hail of machine gun and rocket-propelled grenade fire” to reach his platoon leader.

“I was just doing my job.”

To Andrew Wescott we give the only thing we can: Gratitude for his service so long ago and a crisp salute today.


Ellie