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Careers: Military--Army, Navy, Airforce, Marines, Coast Guard/Researching award/medal issuances
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Question
One of my inlaws just recently pass away. It was brought to our attention that he was the recipient of two bronze stars during a tour in Vietnam. He didn't share much in the way of his military career so we're unsure what the circumstances were surrounding the issuance of these medals to him. Is there public record or some other resource where this information could be found? Any place I can write to find out how/where/why the metals were awarded?
Your help is appreciated,
Desmond
Hi Desmond,
The citations (circumstances describing the exact circumsances of the award) will be a part of his military records, stored at the National Military Personnel Records Center, at St Louis, MO.
As the member is deceased, any family member who is considered a "next of kin," can request a copy of all (or any portion) of the member's military records.
In general, "Next-of-kin" are the unremarried widow or widower, son or daughter, father or mother, brother or sister of the deceased veteran.
For details, see my article, "Obtaining a Copy of Military Records," at: http://usmilitary.about.com/cs/generalinfo/a/milrecords.htm
For more information about the United States Military, feel free to visit my military information website at: http://usmilitary.about.com
Hope this helps!
Rod Powers
http://usmilitary.about.com
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Answers by Expert:
Rod Powers
Expertise
Rod Powers is considered one of the premire experts about U.S. Military career information on the planet. He has more than 30,000 articles about U.S. Military career information on the About.com U.S. Military Careers Information website at: http://usmilitary.about.com. Additionally, he is the author of "ASVAB for Dummies," "ASVAB AFQT for Dummies," (available in Dec 2009), and "Veteran Benefits for Dummies," all published by Wiley Publishing. He is also the author of "Barrons' Guide to Officer Candidate School Tests," published by Barron's Educational Series.
Experience
Rod Powers is a retired Air Force first sergeant, with 23 years of active duty service, 11 of those years as an Air Force First Sergeant. He has helped thousands of military members, recruits, and military applicants since he took over the About.com U.S Military Careers Information site in 1999. He has a reputation for "telling it like it is," so questions may not be answered based on "what you want to hear," but will be answered based of the bast available information, concerning the service/situation.
Education/Credentials
Rod is a distinguished graduate of the Air Force Noncommissioned Officers Academy, the Air Force Senior Noncommissioned Officer Academy, and the Air Force First Sergeant Academy. He also holds an Associates Degree in Personnel Administration from the Community College of the Air Force (CCAF).
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