Medal of Honor Hero's Ham Radio Mission for Veterans

[00:00:00]I am known to be the first and only Medal of Honor recipient to have ever gotten a license.

[00:00:06]>> I think what you are doing and connecting veterans with ham radio is absolutely amazing. Is that your Medal of Honor you actually have there so the folks can see?

[00:00:15]>> President Nixon awarded this to me in 1970. I tell everybody I got it at Walmart, you know.

[00:00:21]>> You know, what was it that sparked your interest in ham radio? Maybe sort of that same interest that sparks a lot of veterans to follow your same path here.

[00:00:29]>> For the last 50 years, I've worked with the VA and other nonprofits that support veterans and I first responders. And so, I've been trying to help people that are suicidal. What can you say to somebody to help them come out of the dark and into the light? You know, it's just difficult to decide what to say, how to say it. There's a lot of organizations out there that do help for short period of time. But then, the veteran has to go back home and back to his old normal routine and he doesn't have a uh the ability to do anymore, you know, self-treating. So, my approach is to get them involved in the ham radio uh to where they can get up and do what they want when they want.

[00:01:16]>> Amazing.

[00:01:16]>> Even though they're disabled and they got a face for radio, they don't have to worry about it because the guy on the other end of the radio doesn't know what they look like. You know, all they can hear is the voice. So, it's it's a perfect conduct for this veteran to create a new venture, a new life, a new lifestyle.