Operation Team Spirit
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  1. #1

    Operation Team Spirit

    In the 70's we went to Korea to train some ROK Marines in amphib ops. I was under the impression that there was to be a sitation for those involved. Does any one remeber this operation better than I?


  2. #2
    You may have gotten an individual unit citation, but the Korean Gov't didn't give out much. It will also depend on when, exactly, you were in Korea. Lastly, all military folks who served in Korea for a certain period of time rate the Korean Defense Service medal now. LMK your dates of service there and unit and I'll try and see if they were awarded anything.

    v/r


  3. #3
    Marine Free Member SgtHopperUSMC's Avatar
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    In reference to Team Spirit I believe they stopped it for awhile in the 90's. I was there for Team Spirit 88. My company was to set up the tent city for the operation at Puhan Harbor. We also had a construction shop set up. I ended up with some hazardous waste in my eye. The doc's used a needle to get it out. Ouch!

    C Company 3rd CEB


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    If I remeber correctly Team Spirit was part of West Pac 88 and 90 but in 90 wasn't it Bear Hunt?


  5. #5
    Quote Originally Posted by Sgt Leprechaun View Post
    You may have gotten an individual unit citation, but the Korean Gov't didn't give out much. It will also depend on when, exactly, you were in Korea. Lastly, all military folks who served in Korea for a certain period of time rate the Korean Defense Service medal now. LMK your dates of service there and unit and I'll try and see if they were awarded anything.

    v/r
    I was there in 1979 with the 25th Inf Div and have never received a medal !!
    I would like to have my DD 214 up graded and have my Pay Voucher to prove that I was there at Operation Team Spirit with my unit.

    Johnny


  6. #6
    The only thing you'll rate is the Korean Defense Service Medal. Pretty sure that's retroactive. DD-214 won't show units or excercises.


  7. #7
    Quote Originally Posted by aang View Post
    If I remeber correctly Team Spirit was part of West Pac 88 and 90 but in 90 wasn't it Bear Hunt?
    I was there in 85 and 90 with MAG-36. Team Spirit and Bear Hunt were 2 different exercises.


  8. #8
    The Korea Defense Service Medal is a United States military award that was first created in 2002 when it was signed into law by President George W. Bush. The bill to create the proposal was introduced and championed by Rep. Elton Gallegly and Sen. Ben "Night Horse" Campbell. In 2004, the Institute of Heraldry approved the final design and the medal became authorized for distribution.[1]
    The Korea Defense Service Medal (KDSM)[2] is authorized for those members of the U.S. military who have served duty in the Republic of Korea after the signing of the Korean Armistice Agreement in support of the defense of the Republic of Korea. To qualify for the KDSM, a service member must have served at least thirty consecutive days in the Korean theater. The medal is also granted for 60 non-consecutive days of service which includes reservists on annual training in Korea.
    Exceptions are made for the 30/60 days time requirement if a service member participated in a combat armed engagement, was wounded or injured in the line of duty requiring medical evacuation, or participated as a regularly assigned aircrew member in flying sorties which totaled more than 30 days of duty in Korean airspace. In such cases, the KDSM is authorized regardless of time served in theater.
    The Korea Defense Service Medal is retroactive to the end of the Korean War and is granted to any service performed after July 28, 1954. The National Personnel Records Center is responsible for verifying entitlement of the KDSM to discharged members of the military who served in Korea prior to the creation of the KDSM.
    As an official Department of Defense exception to policy, service members may be entitled to both the Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal, and the KDSM for participation in operations in Korea during the same timeframe between October 1, 1966 - June 30, 1974.
    Only one award of the Korea Defense Service Medal is authorized, regardless of the amount of time served in the Korean theater.


  9. #9
    Quote Originally Posted by Sgt Leprechaun View Post
    The only thing you'll rate is the Korean Defense Service Medal. Pretty sure that's retroactive. DD-214 won't show units or excercises.
    OK but my questions is, how do I obtain my medal ? I have tried to go through all the channels using the pay voucher and I was told that there is no paper work with Operation Team Spirit as of 1979.
    Payroll admitted that I was a 30 training soldier in the country but would not print and send it to me.
    My pay voucher tells it like it is as all of doc's were destroyed in a fire that would support my claim.
    Can you point me in the correct direction ?


  10. #10

    was there two

    Quote Originally Posted by JohnnyRoe View Post
    I was there in 1979 with the 25th Inf Div and have never received a medal !!
    I would like to have my DD 214 up graded and have my Pay Voucher to prove that I was there at Operation Team Spirit with my unit.

    Johnny
    1979


  11. #11
    That Confidence Course was live fire and it was cold as a withes tit but we had some outstanding training with ROK Rangers, as a member with a Grunt unit " BOBCATS " I got to know many Marines and we had to fend off a tribe of Samoans a number of times in Wakiki bars, it was good to be young and crazy and will always support all branches of service in uniforn.


  12. #12
    Alas, unless you have copies of your orders sending you there, or some other documentation proving you were there, (wife went through this to get hers) it's going to be difficult if not impossible to do.

    Pictures work as well, as do statements of others there with you. Unit diary reports, things like that. It's going to be a long(er) road than you might realize.

    Are you trying to do this for VA benefits or just personal?


  13. #13
    Quote Originally Posted by joe mccormick 3 View Post
    1979
    1978


  14. #14
    Quote Originally Posted by Sgt Leprechaun View Post
    Alas, unless you have copies of your orders sending you there, or some other documentation proving you were there, (wife went through this to get hers) it's going to be difficult if not impossible to do.

    Pictures work as well, as do statements of others there with you. Unit diary reports, things like that. It's going to be a long(er) road than you might realize.

    Are you trying to do this for VA benefits or just personal?
    I have the pay voucher with it listed as Team Spirit 1979 and with the overseas pay on it as well, I called Nat Rec who gave me another number of payroll and the guy confirmed that I was there for the 30 days, but would not print it out for me, reg's I guess, I just want it because I was there and if they create a badge for the people that served in the operation, well we should all be able to obtain it, it has not been easy I been at this for over a year now, I know what you mean when you say it will be difficult, that is why I am holding on the my pay voucher and trying to find the correct way to get it done but it has been a headache for me so far.
    I am already service connected so if the rating was the reason this would not matter plus I make good with the state of california.
    I earned it over there and I will not give up, can the voucher be my tool and am I sending the forms to the wrong place and not writing it correctly is my concern ?


  15. #15
    I had a reply done but the retarded system at work dumped it. Starting over...

    There is no badge in the works, or in the system, for participation in Team Spirit of any year. What you rate is the Korean Defense Service Medal:

    *****
    From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

    Korea Defense Service Medal
    No. 088-04
    February 09, 2004
    DoD Announces Korean Defense Service Medal

    The Defense Department announced today the creation of theKorean Defense Service Medal (KDSM). The KDSM is a service medal to give special recognition for the sacrifices and contributions made by members of the U.S. armed forces who have served or are serving in the Republic of Korea.

    Public Law 107-314 legislated the creation of a new medal to recognize military service in the Republic of Korea and the surrounding waters.

    Members of the armed forces authorized the KDSM must have served in support of the defense of the Republic of Korea. The area of eligibility encompasses all land area of the Republic of Korea, and the contiguous water out to 12 nautical miles, and all air spaces above the land and water areas.
    The KDSM period of eligibility is July 28, 1954, to a future date to be determined by the secretary of defense.
    Servicemembers must have been assigned, attached, or mobilized to units operating in the area of eligibility and have been physically deployed in the area of eligibility for 30 consecutive or 60 non-consecutive days or meet one of the following criteria:

    Be engaged in actual combat during an armed engagement, regardless of the time in the area of eligibility.
    Is wounded or injured in the line of duty and requires medical evacuation from the area of eligibility.
    While participating as a regularly assigned air crewmember flying sorties into, out of, within, or over the area of eligibility in support of military operations. Each day that one or more sorties are flown in accordance with these criteria shall count as one day toward the 30 or 60-day requirement.

    Personnel who serve in operations and exercises conducted in the area of eligibility are considered eligible for the award as long as the basic time criteria is met. Due to the extensive time period for KDSM eligibility, the nonconsecutive service period for eligibility remains cumulative throughout the entire period.

    The KDSM may be awarded posthumously, and only one award of the KDSM is authorized for any individual.
    Each military department will prescribe appropriate regulations for administrative processing, awarding and wearing of the KDSM and ribbon for their servicemembers, to include application procedures for veterans, retirees, and next-of-kin.
    More than 40,000 members of the U.S. armed forces have served in the Republic of Korea or the waters adjacent thereto each year since the signing of the cease-fire agreement in July 1953, which established the Demilitarized Zone. For more than 50 years, U.S. Armed Forces efforts to deter and defend the Korean Peninsula have helped maintain democracy and preserve the indomitable spirit of freedom.


    </SPAN>
    ****

    What you'll need to do is submit a request to correct your DD-214, to show that you rate the award of the above medal. This is where your documentation will come into play.

    I would contact these folks directly, they can probably walk you through which directorate/department at HQMC (or NPRC) you need to go to:

    Any former Marines who are released prior to 1999 wanting copies of their service records or DD Form 214 or any other service record documents must write to the following address:

    Director
    Navy Personnel Command Pers-312D2
    Room 5409
    9700 Page Avenue
    St. Louis, MO 63132
    Tele: 314-592-1150, 4009, 4085, or 4086
    ***

    You may just have to submit a simple form to get it corrected. But the above is where I"d start. By all means, keep us updated on the process.

    Last edited by Sgt Leprechaun; 12-01-11 at 07:01 PM.

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