The years since the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, have seen a lot of changes in the cultural fabric of the United States and in the armed forces. With the 20-year anniversary of that tragic day, it’s important for us to look back and remember some of the heroes that emerged from the ashes of the World Trade Center, the Pentagon, and United Flight 93.
One of those heroes was a civilian named Todd Beamer. Beamer died when United 93 crashed in a field near Shanksville, Pennsylvania. But his memory carried on, giving the U.S. military, American police officers, and firefighters around the world a new battle cry: "Let’s Roll."
In many ways, 32-year-old Todd Beamer was the quintessential American. He was born in Michigan to middle-class parents who moved around the country wherever their work took the family. He was a Christian and an athlete who studied business in college. When he graduated, he got a good job with a major corporation and taught Sunday school in his spare time.
On Sept. 11, 2001, his work was taking him from his home in New Jersey to meet with clients in San Francisco. United flight 93 was only reaching cruising altitude when the first two planes hit the Twin Towers. His flight was just entering Pennsylvania. A few minutes later, the plane’s pilots received a message from the Cleveland tower: "beware of cockpit intrusion."
A few minutes after that, hijackers took control of United 93 and herded everyone into the back of the plane. With the plane’s passengers secured, the hijackers took the aircraft to a new heading: straight for Washington, D.C.
As people on board wai
ted to learn their fate, some of the passengers tried to sneak phone calls to loved ones using air phones, which were widely available at the time. Through these secret calls, they all learned that planes had struck New York and, by then, the Pentagon in Washington.
When they first started attempting to make the calls, however, they didn’t get right through to their loved ones at home. They were sent to United customer service representatives, and the FBI was listening in. Todd Beamer, cool in the face of danger, informed the FBI that terrorists were carrying knives and one was potentially strapped with a bomb.
When the plane suddenly veered into a turn, the passengers decided they had enough. Beamer, along with passengers Mark Bingham, Tom Burnett, and Jeremy Glick formed a plan to recapture the aircraft by overwhelming the hijackers and then flying into the ground if they had to, knowing this meant they would likely all die.
Beamer told United representative, Lisa Jefferson, of their plan, during the call. He then asked her to tell his family that he loved them. After a few minutes of muffled voices, Jefferson heard Beamer tell an unknown passenger, "Are you ready? Okay. Let's roll."
At around 10:02 in the morning, a little more than an hour after the first plane hit the World Trade Center in New York City, United flight 93 crashed into an empty field in Pennsylvania at more than 500 miles per hour. Everyone on board died in the crash.
In the days that followed, Beamer’s words and the heroics of the passengers aboard flight 93 were revealed to news outlets across the country. Beamer’s words, "Let’s Roll," became a rallying cry for the American people, not only in the face of terrorism but in the face of fear itself. The words would soon be found on fire trucks, morale patches, and murals from coast to coast. The U.S. Air Force put the words on at least one aircraft in every squadron.
President George W. Bush even referenced Beamer and his words in the 2002 State of the Union Address:
"Some of our greatest moments have been acts of courage for which no one could have been prepared. But we have our marching orders. My fellow Americans, let's roll." He would use them again in the 2002 State of the Union address: "For too long our culture has said, 'If it feels good, do it.' Now America is embracing a new ethic and a new creed: 'Let's roll.'"
As World War l raged on in 1917, a victory for the Entente Powers was far from guaranteed, even with the United States entering the war on the side of France, Britain, and Russia. In the Russian Empire, conditions both on and off the battlefield were steadily getting worse.
The year got off to a bad start on the war's Eastern Front, as a revolution in Russia forced Tsar Nicholas II to abdicate his throne in February. A republic was briefly established but didn't last long. Soon, Bolshevik forces led by Vladimir Lenin took over the provisional government, and by October 1917, they were in power.
By March 1918, the newly-established Soviet Union made a separate peace with Germany and the other Central Powers with the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk, taking Russia out of the war. But even the Soviet Union was far from guaranteed. The Bolshevik forces formed the Red Army to counter a coalition of Tsarists and Republicans, the White Armies.
As the White Armies fought to unseat the Soviet government, the Entente Allies decided to intervene in the Civil War. Foreign troops landed on Russian soil across the country. The United Kingdom, France, Japan, Greece, Italy, Estonia, and the United States all joined the effort to support the Whites.
On Sept. 4, 1918, the U.S. landed three infantry battalions and three engineer companies at Arkhangelsk in northern Russia to join British forces fighting there. A small number was also sent to Vladivostok to reinforce Czech and Slovak troops in the Russian far east. Their goal was to smash the Bolshevik armies and get Russia back into the war.
The U.S. troops who fought there would come to call it "The Polar Bear Expedition."
In Arkhangelsk, the American mission was simple: prevent war supplies and other material provided by Entente forces from aiding the Bolshevik war effort. But by the time the Polar Bears arrived, that material was already gone, shipped up the Dvina River with the retreating Red Army.
A force of Czechs and Slovaks are known as the “Czech Legion," were tied up fighting Bolsheviks along the Trans-Siberian Railway. This front defended by the legionnaires was hundreds of miles long and wouldn't stay defensible for very long, so the American Expeditionary Forces were sent to help relieve the Czech Legion.
A combined British and American force fought the Bolsheviks in a massive breakout from Arkhangelsk along the Dvina and the Vologda Railroad for six weeks. But their own front soon became hundreds of miles long. It was too long to maintain indefinitely, and the allied offensive soon came to a halt. To top it all off, the Russian winter was beginning to set in.
The British and Americans took a defensive posture and tried to raise an army of anti-Bolshevik volunteers from the civilian population. The effort came to nothing, and the allies had to abandon any hopes of linking up with the Czechoslovakians.
When winter started in full, the Red Army went on the offensive and pushed the combined forces back to Arkhangelsk. In November of 1918, the armistice ending World War I was signed in Versailles, but the fighting in Russia continued. Americans at home and in Russia began to question why they were still fighting. 
But getting home would be impossible as the port of Arkhangelsk had frozen up for the winter. Americans were no longer fighting for Russia; they were fighting for their own survival. They fought on for months before the U.S. Army could arrive in the port. The icebreaker Canada finally steamed into Arkhangelsk on April 17, 1919, to begin the withdrawal.
The first Americans to arrive home wouldn't get there until June 1919, almost eight months after the end of World War I. The Soviet Union eventually defeated the White Army and established itself as the new governing power in what used to be called Russia.
Remains of 125 American troops left behind in Russia would eventually be repatriated with the diplomatic and logistical support of a veterans organization that was just 20 years old: the Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW).
The M2 Browning .50-caliber machine gun has been a favorite heavy infantry weapon since the end of World War I. That the weapon has remained in the U.S. arsenal for so long is a testament to its power and flexibility. And no wonder - it was designed by the legendary John Browning himself.
Although the M2 has come in many variants over the years, it has still proven an effective weapon from the last days of World War l, into World War II, the Korean War, Vietnam, the Gulf War, and into the wars of today. And that's just the American conflicts it has seen. Britain, Australia, Israel, and Nigeria are just a few other countries that know the battlefield prowess of the "Ma Deuce."
Somewhere along the way, the rumor mill started in on the beloved favorite. The legend says that any weapons using a .50-caliber round cannot be pointed at people, according to the Geneva Convention. Gunners, it says, must aim for equipment instead. To kill an enemy on the battlefield, machine gunners have to aim for their packs.
This would mean that more than 100 years have passed since the United States began using the .50-cal and has allegedly committed war crimes in every war since. This is, of course, not true.
The rumor appears to have started during the Vietnam War, where search and destroy missions and other combat patrols took U.S. troops deep into the jungle, where the enemy wasn't as easy to see as they were on the open WWII battlefields of Western Europe. Logan Nye writes that soldiers and Marines began to light up the jungle with the .50-cal to kill any threat in the area.
Honestly, the .50-cal is good for that, so who could blame them?
But field commanders needed their troops to conserve ammunition, as resupply deep in the bush wasn't a sure thing and could be difficult at times. They wanted the M2 to destroy light North Vietnamese vehicles. Somewhere, the order to conserve ammunition for bigger targets morphed into preventing a war crime.
Weapons declared illegal under the laws of armed combat are illegal because they cause unnecessary suffering more than a military advantage. They are also not often specifically declared to be illegal but are put in more general categories. These include chemical weapons, certain incendiary weapons, and weather modification. The Ma Deuce is not on the list.
It's understandable that one might think of lumping the M2 in with those illegal weapons. Anyone who's ever seen a building, vehicle, or other object destroyed by .50-caliber rounds will tell you it's a very effective, violent, and awe-inspiring weapon. Be that as it may, it's definitely not illegal.
The M2 has been used for all kinds of purposes that directly attack combatants (and not their equipment). Most notably, the weapon is used by snipers to hit targets at ultra-long distances of a mile or more. Five of the six longest-range sniper kills were made using a modified M2. It's safe to say if the world's best snipers were aiming for backpacks with an M2, they would have hit backpacks.
Entry of the United States into World War II quickly revealed how woefully ill-prepared the armed forces were to contend with a major conflict. Apart from the peacetime draft instituted in 1940 and lend-lease support to Great Britain, few actions had been taken to address escalating global tensions. Now racing to enlist, train, arm, and deploy resources necessary across multiple theatres of war, the Army and other branches of service were forced to again face long-held racial discrimination and related practices. 
Responding to arguments raised by General McNair, Commander of Army Ground Forces, the US began to experiment with segregated combat units in 1941, and as one outcome, the 761st Tank Battalion was activated April 1, 1942. Rated Superior during training by Lt. General Lear, Commander Second Army, the unit fought with distinction across the European Theatre of Operations (ETO) as the first Black tank battalion to enter combat, eventually adopting the nickname Black Panthers, and is celebrated as one of the most effective armored battalions in WWII.
Constituted at Camp Claiborne, Louisiana, the 761st was overwhelmingly comprised of inductees from deep southern states. Having experienced a lifetime of racism and institutional segregation, these recruits carried with them attitudes and personal values familiar only to other racially segregated units, at times leading to physical and then lawless confrontation. Perhaps the most well-known action was the refusal by a young second lieutenant and morale officer, Jackie Robinson, to move to the back of a bus while on base, causing his immediate court-martial and eventual acquittal following WWII. In the face of extreme scrutiny both as soldiers and tankers, the Battalion's success is credited in large measure to the command of Lt. Colonel Paul Bates, who closely guided and challenged the men to strive for excellence, and in doing so, realize their potential.
Following twenty-four months of training involving light-duty Stuart tanks (Camp Claiborne) and the iconic medium-duty M4 Sherman (Fort Hood, Texas), the 761st was said to exhibit exceptional morale as they embarked for the ETO from New York on August 27, 1944.
The Battalion arrived in England and underwent final training before entering the ETO through Omaha Beach on October 10, 1944. Then totaling 712 (36 officers and 676 enlisted men) and organized into five companies, the Battalion was transported to bivouac at Les Pieux, France, and immediately assigned to General Patton's 3rd Army, at his request.
Characteristically, Patton addressed the men from the back of a half-track.
"Men, you're the first Negro tankers to ever fight in the American Army. I would never have asked for you if you weren't good. I have nothing but the best in my Army. I don't care what color you are as long as you go up there and kill those Kraut sonsofbitches. Everyone has their eyes on you and is expecting great things from you. Most of all your race is looking forward to your success. Don't let them down, and damn you, don't let me down! They say it is patriotic to die for your country. Well, let's see how many patriots we can make out of those German sonsofbitches."
Attached to the 26th Infantry Division, the 761st Tank Battalion would need to catch the 3rd Army in a race across Europe that began August 1944, following Operation Cobra. On November 7, 1944, the Battalion moved on the towns of Moyenvic and Vic-Sur-Seille that would prove to be their baptism in combat, and following two days of savage fighting, Moyenvic, Bezenge-la-Petite, and Hill 253 fell. To continue the advance, the 26th Division formed a Provisional Task Force with the 761st as spearhead, heading northward toward Morville, France, under heavy enemy artillery and mortar fire. Morville was taken on November 9th and Wuisse on the 11th, Kerpriche and Dreuze fell November 20th, with Bossing, Bidestroff, Inswiller, Torcheville, Nebing, and Neufvillage taken by tank-infantry teams by November 25th. Then entering Honskirch, France, on November 25th, the 761st was forced to withdraw and instead advance through Sarre Union that fell on December 2nd.
In less than one month, the 761st Tank Battalion entered combat and performed brilliantly in liberating over fifteen towns. Moreover, for his leadership and "extraordinary heroism in action" during this advance, Sargent Rubin Rivers posthumously received the Congressional Medal of Honor. However, the price paid for this success during November 1944 alone included 22 killed in action, 125 casualties, 14 tanks of the original 54 lost, and 20 severely damaged. As December unfolded, the 3rd Army was poised to cross the border from France into Germany. But no one could conceive of what was in store for the 761st.
On December 14, 1944, the 761st Battalion spearheaded 3rd Army's advance past the Maginot Line and crossed into Germany between Saarbrucken and Strasbourg, steeling themselves for an assault on the Siegfried Line. However, these plans would wait as the Germans launched the Ardennes counteroffensive between Belgium and Luxembourg on December 16th, later popularized as the Battle of the Bulge. In response, the 761st moved immediately to Offagne, Belgium, only thirty miles southwest of Bastogne. Supporting the 345th Infantry Regiment, the towns of Rondu and Nimbermont, Belgium fell, and following two days of intensive fighting; Tillet was taken from the 113th Panzer Brigade on December 31st. Critical to the Allie's success, Tillet was an epic assault conducted with eleven tanks, but only two surviving the battle. The Battalion then seized and held roads leading to and from Bastogne, captured six more towns in conjunction with the 17th Airborne Division, engaged and defeated an enemy column near Emmerscheid, and once again crossed into Germany on January 31, 1945.
The Battle of the Bulge was now over and battle lines reestablished, priority once again became infiltration into Germany. Now February 1945, the 761st Battalion was reassigned to US 9th Army, supporting the 314th Regiment in capturing two more cities, clearing pockets of resistance, and supporting the 79th Division in attacks conducted along the Roer River. In March, the Battalion was again reassigned to the 7th Army (103rd Infantry Division), replacing the 48th Tank Battalion and spearheading Task Force 
Cactus in assaulting and breaching the Siegfried Line, opening the way for the U.S. 4th Armored Division into Germany. Leveraging earlier rapid advancement of the 761st, the unit was assigned to Task Force Rhine organized on March 21st and composed of the 761st Tank Battalion, 409th Infantry Regiment, and an Engineer Detachment. Assembling in Reisdorf, two columns proceeded north, clearing pillboxes and capturing five towns before seizing the mission objective of Klingen-Munster on March 23rd. The way now open for the 14th Armored Division into Germany, the 761st was reassigned to 3rd Army and crossed the Rhine themselves at Oppenheim on March 30th.
During ensuing months, the 761st supported the US 71st Division in the capture of the entire 6th SS Mountain Division, smashed through dozens of German cities and towns, and in the final days of the war in Europe was one of the first American units to reach Steyr, Austria, at the Enns River. There they met with the 1st Ukrainian Front of the Soviet Red Army.
During combat operations in World War II, front-line troops rarely spent more than a few weeks on the front lines; however, much to the contrary, the 761st had been in combat since their arrival in the ETO- over 183 days straight. On May 4th, 1945, the 761st Tank Battalion and 71st Infantry Division unexpectedly encountered something that would haunt the men for the rest of their lives, the Gunskirchen Concentration Camp. A subcamp of the infamous Mauthausen network, the guards had fled several days earlier and leftover 15,000 souls behind.
The 761st was deactivated on June 1, 1946, in Germany.
The 761st Tank Battalion bore a weight that few can understand, performing brilliantly throughout the war in Europe and credited with inflicting over 130,000 enemy casualties. In tribute to the men of the 761st Tank Battalion, on January 24, 1978, President Jimmy Carter belatedly awarded the Presidential Unit Citation that had earlier eluded them. In further tribute, on November 7, 2015, the American Veterans Center in Washington DC conferred the Audie Murphy Award for "…men of valor on and off the battlefield". In truth, we owe these men a debt that can never be repaid.
Tang, the orange-flavored drink mix that intrepid American astronauts took into space, wasn't selling so well until it famously went into orbit. And there's at least one astronaut who wishes it never left the ground.
Edwin "Buzz" Aldrin, the second person to step foot on the moon, told the audience of the 2013 Spike TV Guys Choice awards that "Tang sucks."
For those unfamiliar with Tang, it's the orange-flavored breakfast drink that has somehow managed to stick around grocery store shelves for the past 60-plus years, as if there wasn't already an orange beverage closely associated with mornings. The only thing Tang has in common with oranges is its color.
The famous West Point graduate and Air Force astronaut was not only the second man on the moon. He was a combat pilot in the Korean War. After notching two MiG kills in 66 combat missions, he earned a doctorate from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and joined NASA. So if Buzz Aldrin says Tang sucks, he's probably right.
Much of the Twitterverse agreed with him. An informal poll conducted by NPR following his controversial statement found that more than 57% of respondents agreed. Another 29.43% disagreed, and 13.47% didn't know what Tang is -- and their lives are better off for it.
If you disagree with Buzz Aldrin, that's fine. Just keep in mind that old-school astronauts don't take guff from laymen. The one time someone tried getting into his face about how the moon landing was faked ended with Aldrin punching that person in the face.
Because NASA decided to take this orange-like beverage on space flights, sales of the drink took off too. It was so closely linked with the United States space program that people came to believe NASA developed the powdered beverage, especially for astronauts. That built-in marketing gave it the lift it needed to stay on shelves ever since.
For this American hero's sake, let's be clear about Tang. If orange-scented furniture polish tasted exactly how it smelled, it would taste like Tang. The closest Tang powder ever gets to an orange is the picture of an orange on the label. Although it does provide 100% of the recommended daily allowance of Vitamin C, that's about all the benefit you'll get from it.
Tang also contains two artificial yellow dyes, Yellow 5 and Yellow 6, which studies by the Center for Science in the Public Interest say can cause allergic reactions, contain possible carcinogens, and may cause hyperactivity in children. It also contains BHA, which the label says is used to "protect flavor," as if that was something we wanted. Meanwhile, the National Institutes of Health says BHA "reasonably anticipated to be a human carcinogen."
Two good reasons to ditch BHA altogether.
For real food, NASA created dehydrated edibles for the astronauts to consume while in space, including scrambled eggs, curried chicken, and raisin rice pudding, all packed in sealed plastic bags.
It's no wonder U.S. Navy astronaut John Young smuggled a corned beef sandwich aboard a Gemini mission.
It's time to tell the stories of the 2,355 Pearl Harbor fallen.
Can you help?
Our goal is to have all these stories done in time for the 80th anniversary of the attack on Pearl Harbor this December 7, 2021.
To join this project you need to do four things:
1/ Email sbts@togetherweserved.com to get your free Together We Served membership. You will need this to save your Pearl Harbor fallen stories and use the TWS Forums to communicate with the other volunteers.
2/ Sign up for the free STAR Corps Boot Camp 2.0 where you will learn how to save stories on Together We Served.
3/ Sign up for the free Pearl Harbor Research Aids course where you will find tips and aids to use specifically for the Pearl Harbor Fallen Project.
4/ Let me know when you are ready to start writing stories and I will get you in touch with our Pearl Harbor Fallen Project directors Allison Albert, Coby Crump, and Jackie Menasco. They will get you matched up with some names that need stories. Just email me at don@storiesbehindthestars.org.
For both our Utah pilot project and the D-Day fallen project we had more than a hundred volunteers participating. I hope to see that many volunteers or more for the Pearl Harbor Fallen Project. If we get 120 volunteers, we need to average one story a week per volunteer to get done. Of course, some of you will do many more than this, which is great. It is also okay to join this project and just write a few stories.
When the stories are done, they will be visible at gravesites or memorials using the upcoming smartphone app. This short video gives you a preview of what it will look like. Don't you think it will be great to start using this for the 80th anniversary of Pearl Harbor? We need your help to make it happen by having all the Pearl Harbor stories completed.
I very much appreciate your interest in assisting with this massive undertaking. Our goal is to have all 400,000+ stories done by September 2, 2025, the 80th anniversary of the end of World War II. To do that we are going to need 2,000 people averaging one story a week, so invite others to get on board! Please share this document here with others who may be interested in learning more.
Our Stories Behind the Stars podcast is still moving up the charts. This is where we interview our volunteers about the stories they have written and also share some great stories of the World War II fallen. Listening to this program can get you familiar with what to expect if you join this project. We may even interview you down the road! You can download it on all popular podcast platforms. Our latest episode covers the story of a fallen hero and the letter he left for his unborn son. It's powerful.
If you haven’t kept up with all the great news exposure this project is getting, you can find that here.
Don Milne, Founder, and Director
don@storiesbehindthestars.org
Stories Behind the Stars
Baltimore Ravens starting offensive tackle Alejandro Villanueva is ready to start his seventh season in the NFL. His journey from a military base in Mississippi to two-time Pro Bowler took a lot of effort and persistence, but Villanueva does the work.
Villanueva was born at Naval Air Station Meridian in Meridian, Mississippi, on Sept. 22, 1988. His father, Ignacio, was an officer in the Spanish navy and was stationed there while working for NATO. Ignacio Villanueva's service took his family to Rhode Island, Belgium, and back to Spain. Along the way, young Alejandro learned to play rugby with the children of other NATO officers.
He attended high school in Belgium at the Defense Department's SHAPE, a high school for DoD dependents. It was there he learned to play American football. When he graduated, he put in for an appointment to the United States Military Academy at West Point.
While playing for the Army Black Knights, Villanueva started or substituted for a number of positions on the field, including left tackle, defensive lineman, and wide receiver, but he was recruited as a tight end. If you know anything about football, that's a pretty wide range of talent and athletic ability.
Despite his size and athleticism, Army fell to Navy all four years of Villanueva's time on the Black Knights football team. After being commissioned as a second lieutenant, he entered the 2010 NFL Draft. At the time, the policy for academy athletes allowed them to pursue professional sports before their service commitment ended, as long as they obtained a waiver.
Under President Donald Trump in 2019, the DoD changed the rules for academy athletes. They now can delay their service with the approval of the secretary of defense or repay the U.S. government for their education.
But Villanueva didn't require a waiver. He went undrafted in 2010, then tried out for the Cincinnati Bengals for a slot at tight end but wasn't selected. Their loss. Villanueva began his military career that same year. Villanueva became "Lt. V." to his soldiers. The Afghans in his area of operations referred to him as "the Giant."
Many of Villanueva's Ranger missions remain classified.
He served three tours in Afghanistan, but after the end of his first tour, Villanueva tried again to join an NFL team. This time, he worked out with the Chicago Bears. He didn't make the team in Chicago, either, but that was OK. He was still under his West Point service commitment.
After two more tours in Afghanistan, Villanueva returned to the United States, ready to give the NFL everything he had. He didn't have a trainer, a coach, or an agent. But he had the determination to pursue what he wanted. He put in the work. He paid to attend a regional combine in Georgia to show the NFL what he could do. His investment in time and money (he paid more than $400 to attend the Georgia combine) paid off. He was one of 240 potential players invited to a super-regional combine in Detroit.
He was signed by the Philadelphia Eagles in 2014 to play defensive end. If he didn't make the team, he would have returned to Afghanistan. Although he was cut by the Eagles later that year, the Pittsburgh Steelers saw his potential during a preseason game with the Eagles. When Philadelphia cut him, Pittsburgh snatched him up.
As a member of the Steelers, Villanueva stayed on the practice squad for his first season. He bulked up and learned the position. He made his first NFL appearance in the Steelers' 2015 opening game against the New England Patriots.
By the end of the 2016 season, Villanueva was the starting left tackle, finished the season as the NFL's 23rd-best player at the position, and helped Pittsburgh reach the playoffs. Like his 6-foot-9, 320-pound frame, his reputation and skill at the game only grew. In 2017, the Steelers signed Villanueva to a four-year contract and became the first service academy graduate selected to the Pro Bowl since Roger Staubach in 1979.
After the Steelers did not re-sign Villanueva in 2021, he was picked up by the team's rivals, the Ravens, in a two-year, $14 million deal.
Just reaping the rewards of his years of hard work, training, and discipline.
My Boot-Ass mistake turned into an unexpected career & a new mission.
In the early days of my service as an enthusiastic and very confident E2, armed with a fresh haircut and a guaranteed paycheck, I rushed into a mall jewelry store to purchase something unique for my girlfriend. This decision seemed like a good idea at the time; however, it would immediately affect my near-term financial well-being and general mental health. In short order, I was buttered up, upsold, approved for an excessive loan, and ultimately ripped off. That decision became precisely what I didn't want it to be - an embarrassing and difficult problem to resolve personally and professionally.
This experience and the following consequences became a defining moment for my post-service career. Having survived the aftermath of the East African Embassy Bombings in 1998, a tour to Iraq, and eleven years of a USMC grunt lifestyle, I decided to create a business with a purpose and generate funds directed to the Veterans community and its causes. I found my niche by engaging in the jewelry business and serving veterans to Honor Your Journey©.
Finding Together We Served & Honor Your Journey©
I was one of the very early subscribers of TWS and have always found inspiration from legendary stories shared by many of you. We are creating TWS members a custom military signet ring because they are conversation starters; each one of them holds a story worth sharing within. Our rings typically become an energetic talking point at summer BBQs, poker nights, and unit reunions. They do a great job keeping our crazy stories & past battle buddies alive in the present.
After a busy 11 years, I left the USMC and ultimately took the entrepreneur route. I earned my credentials from the Gemological Institute of America and worked in the industry for over 10 years. Building upon my industry and USMC experience, I created the Jewelry Republic, which contains everything from a design studio to a full-service factory. Our goal at TJR is to create unique products for America’s best sons and daughters, you. I also made a vow that my passion would serve the military community with integrity and honor.
Like TWS, we collect memories. We express yours through customized and personalized military signet rings because we want to Honor Your Journey. We’ve seen that our fellow warriors feel prouder when they’re wearing their story with them. But, especially in moments of pride and anniversaries, those rings become the visual memory of the legends that men and women of TWS can understand and grasp.
The Jewelry Republic: Where Veterans Buy Jewelry®
As a fellow veteran, my team and I are dedicated to making your memories live forever with creativity and passion. We love working with TWS members because we’re one of you, and we're proud to be on the same team. Our duty is to be a part of your journey so we can be there for each other through stories told in the shape of a ring. Our commitment is to make sure we create art that makes you complete and that you can pass on to your sons and daughters.
We offer our range of services and products to this great community at an exclusive member offer with a "TWS2003" 20% discount code. Remember that we are not simply selling a product, but we are writing a story together. Our joint endeavors in sacrificing to get to where we are today making one thing for sure: you will love and embrace your legacy through your ring.
Giving back to the community!
The Jewelry Republic is a synonym of what being part of the military community is all about. Because of it, my team and I feel much more robust and more dedicated than your average jeweler. Thus, I've embraced the privilege of being part of the most hard-working community in America, its veterans and service members.
We have committed a serious amount of our time and earnings to giving back to the military and veteran community because this is much more than a business. The Jewelry Republic has focused its energy and share of annual revenue on the Racing for Heroes team. Through such initiatives, we want to be on the front lines of fighting the veteran suicide pandemic. Our blog explains this best. We want to fulfill our obligation of being there for those fellow veterans who are struggling. TJR is where the veterans are!
What can TJR do for you? Reach out today and be sure that he’s always got your six!
Exclusive Together We Serve Discount Code: TWS2003 www.thejewelryrepublic.com.
The first time my wife Cathy and I saw a Sikorsky SH-3 Sea King helicopter, we were on the flight deck of the USS Midway Museum. Among the helicopters on display, the SH-3 caught my eye.
I had spent the majority of my career in the spacecraft business, so the decals that called out the recovery of Apollo 8 and Apollo 10, 11, 12, and 13 were certainly interesting. Of those Apollo recoveries, the most historic was on July 24, 1969, when Apollo 11 with Neil Armstrong, Buzz Aldrin, and Michael Collins splashed down after their successful moon landing and were taken to the USS Hornet (CVS 12) as the primary recovery ship.
On the first manned mission to photograph potential landing sites for future Apollo missions, Apollo 8 rookie astronaut Bill Anders, on December 24, 1968, took a photo now known as 'Earthrise.' The moon is in the foreground, and the Earth is near the top of the picture. It is the most reproduced photograph in history. Nature photographer Galen Rowell, correctly, I believe, called it the most influential environmental photo ever taken.
If you are in San Diego and have an interest in military and aviation, and history, a visit to the most frequently visited military museum in the country is a great way to spend a few hours or more. Manufactured by Sikorsky Aircraft of Stratford, Connecticut, the company was established by aviator Igor Sikorsky in 1923.
The first SH-3 flight was on March 11, 1959. Carrier trials were on the USS Champlain and were successfully completed in March 1961. The introduction took place that year. The SH-3 has a varied and interesting history. It was utilized as the recovery helicopter on May 24, 1962, for the Aurora 7 spacecraft with astronaut Scott Carpenter on board when the Mercury-Atlas 7 was delivered to the USS John R. Pierce, serving as the primary recovery ship. On earlier missions to space, astronauts Alan Shepard and Gus Grissom had a HUS-1 as their 'get-me-back-home' helicopter; Sikorsky SH-3's followed.
The Sikorsky SH-3 was the first twin-engine Anti-Submarine Warfare helicopter. Utilizing turboshaft engines, it was the first amphibious helicopter ever built.
At the outset of the Cold War between the United States and the Soviet Union, the Russian Navy had constructed more than 200 submarines. The U.S. Navy opted for a countermeasure that focused on updated ASW technologies that included the Sea King. With its amphibious hull, it was capable of water landings, a significant design feature. The earliest aircraft had General Electric T58 turboshaft engines.
The Sikorsky S-61R was simultaneously built for both transportation and Search and Rescue missions by the U.S. Air Force and U.S. Coast Guard. Late 1961 and early 1962 saw modifications that resulted in a helicopter speed record of 210.6 miles an hour.
Production was ended in the 1970s. Showing its durability, in 2009, approximately 600 Sea Kings were still up and running.
For anti-submarine operations, a four-man crew was standard; the pilot and copilot in the cockpit and two in the cabin monitoring detection equipment and data obtained from sensors. The cabin section of the aircraft was multifunctional. It could accommodate up to twenty-two survivors, or nine stretchers and two medical officers in a Search and Rescue operation. While serving as a transporter, it had a 28 soldier capacity. For naval ops, the main rotor blades and the tail section could be folded for storage onboard a variety of ships.
As a retired engineer, I found the Sea Kings having deployable airbags on the sponsons for floatation and stability when contacting the sea to be an interesting design feature. During anti-submarine operations, armament included either four torpedoes or four depth charges. Some Sea Kings were armed with one or two Sea Eagles or Exocet missiles during anti-ship operations. A single B57 nuclear weapon was an option. They have a Service Ceiling of 14,700 feet and a travel range of 540 nautical miles.
Sea Kings were deployed in close proximity to aircraft carriers serving as a safety factor as planes launched, ready to respond to a crash during a takeoff or landing. In Vietnam SH-3's rescued crews of downed aircraft both over land and at sea. They were equipped with self-sealing fuel tanks, machine guns, and armor for recovery operations in hostile territory.
Throughout their service time, Sea Kings were instrumental in Medevac evacuations as well as disaster relief.
The President of the United States has used them as the official helicopter. Those aircraft carry the Marine 1 designation.
Over the years, there have been photos of them on the south lawn of the White House. In the 1990's it was replaced in the Anti-Submarine Search and Rescue functions with the newer Sikorsky SH-60 Sea Hawk. The SH-3, however, continues to operate in reserve functions. As well as the USS Midway Museum, you can see an SH-3 at the Pearl Harbor Aviation Museum, Aviation Heritage Park in Bowling Green, Kentucky, the Hickory (North Carolina) Aviation Museum, the National Naval Aviation Museum in Pensacola, Florida, and the Quonset (Rhode Island) Air Museum.
For those of you that have spent time in a Quonset Hut, yes, they were designed in Quonset, Rhode Island.
As many readers of the Dispatches Newsletter might be aware, "Make Peace or Die" is the motto of the 1st Battalion, 5th Marines. For Charles Daly, it became a regular choice he would have to make, time and again, over the course of his entire life.
"Make Peace or Die: A Life of Service, Leadership, and Nightmares" is everything the name promises it to be. At times terrifying, the book is always engrossing and descriptive. It’s one of the finest personal recollections of the Korean War today.
It’s also a joint collaboration the author co-wrote with the help of his son, Charlie Daly.
Daly grew up in a family of Anglo-Irish immigrants. They became American citizens when little Charles was just eight years old. Their story, as Daly admits from the start, was not the typical picture of huddled masses yearning to breathe free. His father was a Shell Oil Company Executive, and they came to the United States on a luxury liner in first class.
When World War I broke out in Europe in 1914, his father shipped over to serve as an officer in the 4th battalion of the Royal Dublin Fusiliers. Daly’s uncle served in the Great War. His father came home; his uncle did not. A few years after the war’s end, Charles Daly was born in 1927.
When it came time to fight in World War II, Daly would join the Navy as an enlisted man. It was the spring of 1945, so Daly wouldn’t make it to any front of World War II. Instead, his aptitude led him to a program designed to train naval aviators. Once accepted, he was on his way to college. Half of his class went to Yale; the other half went to Union College in Schenectady, New York. Daly ended up at Yale because his last name began with the letter "D."
He studied at Yale as a service member and later used the GI Bill to continue his studies. It was there that he first learned about a program that would turn him into a Marine Corps officer.
"At some point, I got to thinking that all of this was one hell of a deal for an immigrant," Daly writes. "I couldn’t get over the idea that I owed my country everything. I was possessed by the restless and romantic feeling that I ought to pay my country back through further service."
And serve he did. He was a Marine Corps reserve officer when North Korean tanks rolled across the 38th Parallel in June 1950. Anxious to get into the war, he went into training immediately. By the time he arrived in Korea, his Marines were there to bolster the number of troops and prepare for a counteroffensive.
"Make Peace or Die" begins with a brief but fascinating introduction to the author’s youth and family life before joining the U.S. military. His stories as a Marine not only cover the fighting during the Korean War but also the everyday life of a Marine officer. Daly is honest and blunt with his recollections, thoughts, and feelings during his time in Korea. He talks about losing friends, fighting the war, and even a chance encounter with one Lewis B. "Chesty" Puller.
The book also covers the action that resulted in Charles Daly being awarded the Silver Star for gallantry in combat during the war. It came as Daly led his Marines up a heavily defended hill near Inje, blazing a trail through small arms fire and automatic machine guns nests.
But Korea was just the beginning of a life of service for Daly. He returned to the United States wounded, traumatized, and decorated. After the war, he went to work for President John F. Kennedy as a congressional liaison, Robert F. Kennedy’s presidential campaign, the troubles in Northern Ireland, and a South African township devastated by the AIDS epidemic.
Whenever presented with the epic choice of "make peace or die," Daly always chose peace - and it resulted in a fascinating life of public service around the world. "Make Peace or Die: A Life of Service, Leadership, and Nightmares" is a must-read for any Korean War buff, Marine Corps history fan, and anyone who’s looking for personal guidance after service.
"Make Peace or Die" is available at Amazon on Kindle Reader for $6.99 or hardcover for $14.53.
One of those heroes was a civilian named Todd Beamer. Beamer died when United 93 crashed in a field near Shanksville, Pennsylvania. But his memory carried on, giving the U.S. military, American police officers, and firefighters around the world a new battle cry: "Let’s Roll."
ted to learn their fate, some of the passengers tried to sneak phone calls to loved ones using air phones, which were widely available at the time. Through these secret calls, they all learned that planes had struck New York and, by then, the Pentagon in Washington. 
In the days that followed, Beamer’s words and the heroics of the passengers aboard flight 93 were revealed to news outlets across the country. Beamer’s words, "Let’s Roll," became a rallying cry for the American people, not only in the face of terrorism but in the face of fear itself. The words would soon be found on fire trucks, morale patches, and murals from coast to coast. The U.S. Air Force put the words on at least one aircraft in every squadron. 
By March 1918, the newly-established Soviet Union made a separate peace with Germany and the other Central Powers with the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk, taking Russia out of the war. But even the Soviet Union was far from guaranteed. The Bolshevik forces formed the Red Army to counter a coalition of Tsarists and Republicans, the White Armies. 
A force of Czechs and Slovaks are known as the “Czech Legion," were tied up fighting Bolsheviks along the Trans-Siberian Railway. This front defended by the legionnaires was hundreds of miles long and wouldn't stay defensible for very long, so the American Expeditionary Forces were sent to help relieve the Czech Legion.
But getting home
Although the M2 has come in many variants over the years, it has still proven an effective weapon from the last days of World War l, into World War II, the Korean War, Vietnam, the Gulf War, and into the wars of today. And that's just the American conflicts it has seen. Britain, Australia, Israel, and Nigeria are just a few other countries that know the battlefield prowess of the "Ma Deuce."
Honestly, the .50-cal is good for that, so who could blame them? 
Responding to arguments raised by General McNair, Commander of Army Ground Forces, the US began to experiment with segregated combat units in 1941, and as one outcome, the 761st Tank Battalion was activated April 1, 1942. Rated Superior during training by Lt. General Lear, Commander Second Army, the unit fought with distinction across the European Theatre of Operations (ETO) as the first Black tank battalion to enter combat, eventually adopting the nickname Black Panthers, and is celebrated as one of the most effective armored battalions in WWII.
The Battalion arrived in England and underwent final training before entering the ETO through Omaha Beach on October 10, 1944. Then totaling 712 (36 officers and 676 enlisted men) and organized into five companies, the Battalion was transported to bivouac at Les Pieux, France, and immediately assigned to General Patton's 3rd Army, at his request. 
In less than one month, the 761st Tank Battalion entered combat and performed brilliantly in liberating over fifteen towns. Moreover, for his leadership and "extraordinary heroism in action" during this advance, Sargent Rubin Rivers posthumously received the Congressional Medal of Honor. However, the price paid for this success during November 1944 alone included 22 killed in action, 125 casualties, 14 tanks of the original 54 lost, and 20 severely damaged. As December unfolded, the 3rd Army was poised to cross the border from France into Germany. But no one could conceive of what was in store for the 761st.
Cactus in assaulting and breaching the Siegfried Line, opening the way for the U.S. 4th Armored Division into Germany. Leveraging earlier rapid advancement of the 761st, the unit was assigned to Task Force Rhine organized on March 21st and composed of the 761st Tank Battalion, 409th Infantry Regiment, and an Engineer Detachment. Assembling in Reisdorf, two columns proceeded north, clearing pillboxes and capturing five towns before seizing the mission objective of Klingen-Munster on March 23rd. The way now open for the 14th Armored Division into Germany, the 761st was reassigned to 3rd Army and crossed the Rhine themselves at Oppenheim on March 30th.
Edwin "Buzz" Aldrin, the second person to step foot on the moon, told the audience of the 2013 Spike TV Guys Choice awards that "Tang sucks." 
Because NASA decided to take this orange-like beverage on space flights, sales of the drink took off too. It was so closely linked with the United States space program that people came to believe NASA developed the powdered beverage, especially for astronauts. That built-in marketing gave it the lift it needed to stay on shelves ever since. 
For both our Utah pilot project and the D-Day fallen project we had more than a hundred volunteers participating. I hope to see that many volunteers or more for the Pearl Harbor Fallen Project. If we get 120 volunteers, we need to average one story a week per volunteer to get done. Of course, some of you will do many more than this, which is great. It is also okay to join this project and just write a few stories.
Villanueva was born at Naval Air Station Meridian in Meridian, Mississippi, on Sept. 22, 1988. His father, Ignacio, was an officer in the Spanish navy and was stationed there while working for NATO. Ignacio Villanueva's service took his family to Rhode Island, Belgium, and back to Spain. Along the way, young Alejandro learned to play rugby with the children of other NATO officers. 
Under President Donald Trump in 2019, the DoD changed the rules for academy athletes. They now can delay their service with the approval of the secretary of defense or repay the U.S. government for their education.
He was signed by the Philadelphia Eagles in 2014 to play defensive end. If he didn't make the team, he would have returned to Afghanistan. Although he was cut by the Eagles later that year, the Pittsburgh Steelers saw his potential during a preseason game with the Eagles. When Philadelphia cut him, Pittsburgh snatched him up.
In the early days of my service as an enthusiastic and very confident E2, armed with a fresh haircut and a guaranteed paycheck, I rushed into a mall jewelry store to purchase something unique for my girlfriend. This decision seemed like a good idea at the time; however, it would immediately affect my near-term financial well-being and general mental health. In short order, I was buttered up, upsold, approved for an excessive loan, and ultimately ripped off. That decision became precisely what I didn't want it to be - an embarrassing and difficult problem to resolve personally and professionally.
After a busy 11 years, I left the USMC and ultimately took the entrepreneur route. I earned my credentials from the Gemological Institute of America and worked in the industry for over 10 years. Building upon my industry and USMC experience, I created the Jewelry Republic, which contains everything from a design studio to a full-service factory. Our goal at TJR is to create unique products for America’s best sons and daughters, you. I also made a vow that my passion would serve the military community with integrity and honor.
The Jewelry Republic: Where Veterans Buy Jewelry® 
I had spent the majority of my career in the spacecraft business, so the decals that called out the recovery of Apollo 8 and Apollo 10, 11, 12, and 13 were certainly interesting. Of those Apollo recoveries, the most historic was on July 24, 1969, when Apollo 11 with Neil Armstrong, Buzz Aldrin, and Michael Collins splashed down after their successful moon landing and were taken to the USS Hornet (CVS 12) as the primary recovery ship. 
The Sikorsky SH-3 was the first twin-engine Anti-Submarine Warfare helicopter. Utilizing turboshaft engines, it was the first amphibious helicopter ever built. 
The President of the United States has used them as the official helicopter. Those aircraft carry the Marine 1 designation. 
"Make Peace or Die: A Life of Service, Leadership, and Nightmares" is everything the name promises it to be. At times terrifying, the book is always engrossing and descriptive. It’s one of the finest personal recollections of the Korean War today. 
The book also covers the action that resulted in Charles Daly being awarded the Silver Star for gallantry in combat during the war. It came as Daly led his Marines up a heavily defended hill near Inje, blazing a trail through small arms fire and automatic machine guns nests.