Valor Tales

Born in 1926 in East Los Angeles, Guy Gabaldon had an unconventional upbringing. Being of Mexican descent and one of seven children, he helped his family make ends meet by shining shoes in Skid Row. Joining a multi-ethnic street gang called the “Moe Gang” he was “adopted” by the Nakano family at age 12. Living with these Japanese-Americans, he attended language classes with the other children in the family daily, learning Japanese and about the culture. At the start of World War II, the Nakanos (with Gabaldon) were sent to a Japanese internment camp in Wyoming. From there, Gabaldon went to Alaska to work in a cannery. On his 17th birthday in 1943 he joined the US Marine Corps. Gabaldon (Right), During the War Receiving his basic training at Camp Pendleton, he went to San Diego for the Marine Corps Japanese language training. He was then assigned to Headquarters and Service Company (HSC), 2nd Marine Regiment, 2nd Marine Division (2nd MARDIV). June 15th, 1944 saw Gabaldon...

Let’s compare America to British, Canada, and Australia when it comes to military medals for combat valor and performance. The British system was used in Commonwealth countries (including Canada) up to and through World War II. This began to change as countries such as Canada, Australian, and New Zealand started to create their own systems of honors in the 1960’s.  The year 1993 saw a major change in all Commonwealth countries’ honors. The formerly overseas territories, such as Canada and Australia, fully created their own system of military awards separate from that used by Britain. Further, in Britain, the military awards system there removed distinctions of rank within the awards. Now enlisted and officers would receive the same award for the same performances. Previously, there were separate awards for officers and enlisted.  COMPARATIVE AWARDS British and Continental countries have long, complicated histories. This can make it hard for Americans (such as myse...

AMERICAN AWARDS - A Brief History America, fiercely against many European military traditions, did not have a formal system for any awards or decorations for decades after its forming. In fact, they were so anti-European, that the US Navy didn’t have the rank of admiral until the Civil War (nearly 100 years after the country’s founding) because it was too Imperial. There were two Revolutionary War-era awards however. Both were awarded in exceptionally small numbers (three awards each) and neither were awarded beyond the end of the war. The oldest, and first, American award was the Fidelity Medallion. It was awarded to the soldiers who captured British Major John Andre. Andre was famously the British point of contact for Benedict Arnold (a disaffected American general who turned traitor and gave Britain intelligence in exchange for a British generalcy). Only three men of the New York Militia received the award and it was never bestowed again. Often referred to (incorrectly) as A...

One thing that frequently appears while researching military bravery is that it often is a trait that runs in families. It is not uncommon to see that sons and fathers or brothers have acquitted themselves on the field of battle with such heroics that they have received similar valor awards as their family. Whether this is due to a familial bond over selfless service or if it’s a genetic trait and is literally in their blood is a debate for another writer. I merely report on these incredible stories. One such father-son pair of heroes is Francis Scanland Sr and Francis Scanland Jr. Both men served in the US Navy and they both received the Navy Cross, the US’s second highest award for combat valor, during the Second World War. They are perhaps the only father-son pair to receive the Navy Cross in WWII. Interestingly, they were both also at the same rank (Commander) when they were so awarded. For brevity and clarity’s sake, I’ll refer to them as Senior and Junior herein. Senior w...

In the history of the Medal of Honor there have been 3,523 awards, including 19 men who received the medal twice. The Army claims 2,454 of those awards, the Navy 748, the Marine Corps 300, and the Air Force only 19 (though in defense of my branch, we can claim many from WWI and WWII when we were a part of the Army). When asked what the composition of the United States military is, these four branches will be the common answer. There is one, often forgotten, branch of the US military; the Coast Guard. They can lay claim to having a single recipient of the Medal of Honor and only 36 Coast Guardsmen have been awarded a service cross (the Navy Cross in all such cases). This will actually be another two-person article. These two men, due to their inseparability in their personal and military lives after enlisting were known as the “Gold Dust Twins.” Today we speak of legendary Coasties Douglas Munro and Raymond Evans. In September, 1939 when the war in Europe kicked off with Germany...

Ten hours after the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, the second phase of Japan’s war against the US commenced. At 0220 local time on 8 December, 1941, the American forces in the Philippines received notice that an attack was underway at Pearl Harbor. Despite ample warning, including having three pursuit (fighter) squadrons in the air and radar tracks of incoming aircraft, there were numerous systemic and communication problems that led to many American aircraft being destroyed in the initial attacks. The air attacks were followed by a Japanese amphibious invasion of the island of Luzon. The US Asiatic Fleet had been largely withdrawn after suffering heavy losses to Japanese air superiority. Only submarines, small ships, and motor torpedo (PT) boats remained to contest the Japanese Naval forces. Taking the initiative, on 22 December, Japan landed more than 43,000 men and 90 tanks. The American forces numbered just over 31,000 at the end of November, with 12,000 of that being Phili...

The military is one of those rare places where two men from radically different backgrounds and stations in life can have their paths cross in the most amazing of ways. Today's story is one such as this. The morning of Dec 7th, 1941 is a day that, as FDR said, will "live in infamy." Of the many heroic men and women on duty and off on that fateful morning involved in the unprovoked Japanese attack, two found themselves coming together in the midst of the battle in an unexpected way. Captain Mervyn Sharp Bennion Captain Mervyn Bennion, 54 years old, of the battleship USS West Virginia, which was moored at Pearl, had been educated at Annapolis. Graduating third in his class of 1910, he was known as a fountain of knowledge to his fellow midshipmen, and was well regarded by staff and students alike. A child of Mormon pioneers in the Utah territory, he grew up working ranches and his father's store in the small town of Vernon. Bennion became a gunnery ...