Two Additional State Department Awards E, J, Fischer

TWO ADDITIONAL STATE DEPARTMENT AWARDS E, J, FISCHER

Several years ago a short article appeared in The Medal Collector which described medals awarded to State Department employees. At that time, the Department used a three medal system to reward meri- torious service, a Vietnam Service Medal, and two bravery decorations. The award system expanded when two other wearable medals joined the system several years ago. The John Jacob Rogers Award and the Wilbur J. Carr Award were named for distinguished former Foreign Service Officers; these awards honor retiring employees. Illustrations of both medals accompany this article. The first decoration, the John Jacob Rogers Award, may be presented by Assistant Secretaries of State to career employees of any rank below that of Assistant Secretary or Ambassador. Nominations must demonstrate that the proposed recipient performed with unusual dedication or distinction over a 25-year Cor more) period of employ- ment. The uniface silver gilt medal measures an inch and one- quarter in diameter and bears the Great Seal of the United States superimposed on a globe in the center. An oak wreath surrounds this design and the inscription "JOHN JACOB ROGERS AWARD U.S. DEPARTMENT OF STATE" lies between the wreath and the medal’s rim. The 1 7/16 inch wide ribbon contains a 1/8 inch white stripe, a 5/16 inch blue stripe, a 1/8 inch white stripe, a 5/16 inch purple stripe, a 1/8 inch white stripe, a 5/16 inch blue stripe, and a 1/8 inch white stripe. The reverse of the medal bears a silver hallmark and the Cengraved) recipient’s name and date of award. An award certificate and lapel emblem accompany the award. The Wilbur J. Carr Award may be presented by the Secretary of State to retiring career officers of Assistant Secretary ~Ambass- adorial) rank or above who have performed with unusual dedication and distinction for at least 25 years. The uniface medal has the same size and design as the Rogers Award, but it is struck in silver. The inscription placed on this medal reads "WILBUR J. CARR AWARD U.S. DEPARTMENT OF STATE." The ribbon, 1 7/16 inch wide, contains a 7/16 inch blue stripe, a 1/8 inch wide white stripe, a 1/4 inch wide red stripe, a 1/8 inch wide white stripe, and a 7/16 inch wide blue stripe. The reverse is flat with a silver hallmark at the bottom. The recipient’s name and the date of award are engraved on the reverse of the medal. An award certificate and lapel emblem accompany this award.

AUTHOR’S NOTE: I thank Ms. Kay Smith of the Department of State for the information which made this article possible.

25 JOHN JACOB ROGERS AWARD WILBUR J. CARR AWARD

FOR YOUR INFORMATION

Just a note to let readers of The Medal Collector know of a television broadcast (21 August) wh-i~-~h~v~unately, not been able to confirm by a printed article. This concerns the theft of three Medals of Honor (at least one, perhaps two, Civil War period, and one from World War I) and "other artifacts" from the Medal of Honor Museum of the Freedoms Foundation in Valley Forge, Pennsyl- vania. I noticed from the television pictures that the medals displayed seemed to be in frames without glass, and that the thieves left other medals behind, e.g. a World War I Navy Cross. - Carl S. Dolente, OMSA #4370.

26 IN THE NEWS

SAILORS BURNED IN STARK ATTACK RECEIVE PURPLE HEARTS IN HOSPITAL San Antonio (AP) - Two sailors injured when Iraqi missiles struck the DSS Stark received Purple Hearts in ceremonies Wednesday at the hospital where they are recovering from extensive burns. Ray Dery, a spokesman for Brooke Army Medical Center, said the families of the two Navy petty officers were present when they received the medals from Rear Adm. David R. Morris. Lawrence Mark Bareford, 23, or Fredericksburg, Va., and James R. Wheeler, 28, of E1 Paso, were among the injured aboard the Stark when it was hit in the May 17 Persian Gulf attack. They arrived at Brooke, which has the U.S. military’s only burn center, May 20 and are now in satisfactory condition and doing well, Dery said. Dery said Bareford’s mother and father, Beale and Nancy Bareford, attended the ceremonies, along with Wheeler’s mother, Nan, and two brothers, Army Specialist 4th Class Walter Wheeler and Jonathan Wheeler. - The Houston Post, June Ii, 1987 (contributed by Cpt. Alfred R. Kr--6~l~--J-~.- ii TO GET NATIONAL ARTS AWARD Ella Fitzgerald and Robert Penn Warren are among recipients of National Medal of Arts awards announced by President Reagan. Ftizgerald, the pioneer in scat singing, was born 69 years ago in Newport News, Va., but grew up in Yonkers, N.Y. Warren, born in Guthrie, Ky., in 1905, is the only person to have received two Pulitzer Prizes in poetry and one in fiction. He was named America’s first poet laureate, in 1986, and lives in Fair- field, Conn. Other artists receiving the awards announced were: painter Romare Bearden, poet Howard Nemerov, choreographer Alwin Nikolais, sculp- tor Isamu Noguchi and composer-songwriter William Schuman. Also honored, as patrons, were: opera supporter J. W. Fisher, businessman Armand Hammer, and visual arts supporters Frances and Sydney Lewis. - Courier-Post, June 12, 1987 (contributed by W. A. Wooding, OMSA #3754).

LOUIS VAN IERSEL, 93, I~IGRANT HERO OF WWI By Burt A. Folkart, Times Staff Writer - Louis Van lersel, believed to have been the most highly decorated surviving veteran of World War I who then risked his life for his adopted homeland a second time when he volunteered for the Marine Corps in World War If, is dead at age 93.

Van Iersel, believed to be the first non-citizen ever awarded the nation’s highest military honor, the Medal of Honor, also was the recipient of 14 other American and French decorations for heroism during the first world war. Twenty-four years later he served with the 3rd Marine Division on Bougainville during World War II, adding