Special Forces Association Chapter 76/ South Florida Chapter......... "THE GREEN BERETS"

Tuesday, November 29, 2022

Black Special Forces retired Colonel to receive MOH



Capt. Paris Davis, who disobeyed a direct order to abandon the battlefield and his Special Forces team, saving lives during an intense firefight during the Vietnam War, is getting close to receiving the Medal of Honor after over five decades of roadblocks.

A Pentagon official told Military.com on the condition of anonymity that Davis' nomination was approved by Gen. Mark Milley, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, in early November. It now sits on Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin's desk and then would also need to be approved by President Joe Biden.

Advertisement\Davis, a Black man who retired as a colonel, was nominated for the award by his chain of command following the hectic battle in 1965 and then again years later. But that nomination never progressed, and records of that process were lost by Army administrative officials at least twice, according to reporting for The New York Times.

Read Next: The First Woman in the Marines' Silent Drill Platoon and the Family History That Led to Her New Command

Davis' valor leading an early morning raid was seemingly never in question, with the Army citing his heroic deeds for multiple awards. Instead, the issue was the color of his skin, according to Davis.

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"I know race was a factor," Davis said during a television interview in 1969.

In January 2021, then-Acting Defense Secretary Christopher Miller ordered a review of Davis' lost nomination.

Davis was one of the first Black officers in Special Forces and joined during a period when violence tied to preventing racial equality in the U.S. was at a peak and as Army units were desegregated.

He was shot in the arm and leg during the 1965 battle. Many on his 12-man team were injured, including one soldier he was desperately trying to get to but was stuck in mud and under jungle debris with enemy machine gunners peppering the ground around those attempting rescue.

Davis was ordered by a colonel watching the battle from a helicopter above to retreat, which would mean leaving some of his teammates behind. Some of those soldiers were still likely alive.

"I told him, 'Sir, I'm not going to leave; I have an American still out there,'" he saidduring the 1969 interview. "I said some words I don't care to repeat, I did a little swearing I think was due to the intensity of the situation."

The small special forces team, and 90 South Vietnamese troops, fought off waves of enemy fighters for nearly 10 hours until reinforcements arrived. Davis and all the Special Forces soldiers made it out alive.

"We were stacking bodies the way you do canned goods at a grocery store," Davis said in the television interview.

Davis is yet another Black man who had to wait decades for awards to mark his valor, a wrong the Pentagon has slowly been trying to correct in recent years.

In 2021, after years of delay, Biden awarded the Medal of Honor to Alwyn Cashe, the first Black service member to receive the award since the Vietnam era. Cashe died rescuing his soldiers from a burning Bradley vehicle during the Iraq War. In 1997, President Bill Clinton awarded the medal to seven Black World War II veterans, including Lt. John Fox who died directing artillery fire at his location to limit a German advance.

Davis, 83, retired in 1985 after serving as commander of 10th Special Forces Group.

-- Steve Beynon can be reached at Steve.Beynon@military.com. Follow him on Twitter @StevenBeynon.


on November 29, 2022
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Wednesday, November 16, 2022

November 16, 2022 Hello Members and Friends of the Association, Thanks to all who attended our meeting at Bass Pro Shops in Dania Beach. The attached photos were taken.



 






on November 16, 2022
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Thursday, November 10, 2022

Free Lifetime National Parks Passes Are Coming for Veterans and Gold Star Families

All U.S. veterans and Gold Star family members will be able to get a free lifetime entrance pass for federal parks and recreation sites nationwide starting Nov. 11.

The pass, an expansion on the annual free pass for currently serving troops and their families, grants free access to about 2,000 parks and lands managed by the National Park Service; U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service; U.S. Forest Service; Bureau of Land Management; Bureau of Reclamation; and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, according to an announcement on the park service website. It also gives discounted amenity fees in some locations.




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While not every park or visitor area requires an entrance fee, many do. For example, Yosemite National Park in California charges a $35 entrance fee per vehicle, while Craters of the Moon National Monument charges $20. Other locations charge for entering museum or curation areas in the visitor center. For instance, the Begich, Boggs Visitor Center in the Chugach National Forest, Alaska, charges $5 per adult to access a film and exhibits.

Read Next: Veterans Day Free Meals and Restaurant Deals and Discounts

Those fees are waived for holders of the new lifetime pass, as well as those with the free active-duty America the Beautiful military pass or other passes sold or awarded by the agencies. The new pass covers the holder and any accompanying passengers in a private vehicle at sites that charge per car, or the pass owners and up to three adults age 16 and over at sites that charge per person.

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The new lifetime pass program does not exclude veterans with so-called "bad paper" discharges. To get the pass, veterans must submit one of the following:

  • Unexpired Department of Defense Identification Card (DD Form 2, DD Form 2765, or Next Generation USID replacement)
  • Veteran Health Identification Card (VHIC)
  • Veteran ID Card
  • Veteran designation on a state-issued U.S. driver's license or identification card

To receive a pass visit a National Parks or parks and land agency store or staffed fee kiosk, or order via the U.S. Geological Survey store. Passes ordered online carry a $10 processing and shipping fee. Passes received in-person are free.

Gold Star family members can receive the pass by presenting a self-verification form certifying they are the next of kin to a military member killed during service overseas. The form includes a signature block and confirmation that the user is an "eligible next of kin (NOK) of a member of the United States Armed Forces who lost his or her life in qualifying situation."

No other identification or proof is required for Gold Star family members who want to get a lifetime pass.

-- Amy Bushatz can be reached at amy.bushatz@military.com.


on November 10, 2022
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Tuesday, November 8, 2022

Free Lunch Veterans Day

---------- Forwarded message ---------
From: EDWARD PIJUAN <dzhalo@hotmail.com>
Date: Mon, Nov 7, 2022 at 17:44
Subject: Fwd Thank You, Veterans! Get a Free Lunch This Friday
To: 



Check your local restaurant for availability 



on November 08, 2022
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BG (Rest) Joe Shaefer to be guest at monthly meeting.





 

   

  SPECIAL FORCES ASSOCIATION

          Chapter 76 - South Florida 

                “The Green Berets”

 

November 1, 2022

Hello Members and Friends of the Association,

On Saturday November 12th at 1130 am Chapter 76 will meet at Bass Pro Shops, 200 Gulfstream Way, Dania Beach. Bass Pro Shop Map

BG(Ret) Joe Shaefer has advised that he looks forward to attending our November meeting all the way from Incline Village, NV and he would be very interested in a diving trip where he provides the food,  gas and beer if someone is interested within three or four days after our meeting.  Please advise.

 

It is the time of year for membership renewals and the attached form provides the info needed.  We would like to ask that you follow instructions on the attached renewal form so that your chapter receives its portion of membership dues until we resolve the issue of reimbursement from the SFA.   Currently we are receiving no such reimbursement.  For life members and those with current memberships, please disregard.  

 

 

Member John Swanson writes:  I will be back in Pompano Beach, more-or-less permanently, in mid-November, and will become active in SFA at that time. Coming from the Houston area, we had regular and active SF/Ranger breakfasts each month. I believe that it has been attempted to get this going in South Florida. The closest I know of is up in the Melbourne area. I am in contact with a Ranger who has tried to organize one down here.  If I spearhead this with him, do you think the SFA 76 folks would be interested? It's really just a very casual and unofficial gathering monthly for breakfast.

Please respond with your thoughts and we will pass it on.  Thx

- John Swanson

 

 

 

Joe Pruett on behalf of

Ed Pijuan

President

 

Chapter 76 Facebook Site: https://www.facebook.com/SFA-South-Florida-Chapter-76-111343950710574/

Chapter Blog is located at http://SFACH76.Blogspot.com/

Special Forces Association Online Teamhouse https://teamhousespecialforcesassociation.org

Please update your email address to prevent interruptions

 

ED PIJUAN 

PRESIDENT

 

ROGER KIDDER 

VICE PRESIDENT

 

AL HERNANDEZ 

SECRETARY

 

JASON PSALTIDES 

SECRETARY

 

JIM TRICE 

TREASURER 

 

TOM HOUSE 

SERGEANT-AT-ARMS

_________________

 

DAN POIRIER 

CHAPTER 76 BLOGGER

 

ED BELLO 

CHAPTER 76 WEBMASTER

 

JOE PRUETT 

COMMUNICATIONS

 

 


on November 08, 2022
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Wednesday, November 2, 2022

Monthly SF Chapter 76 Luncheon


   

  SPECIAL FORCES ASSOCIATION

          Chapter 76 - South Florida 

                “The Green Berets”

 

November 1, 2022

Hello Members and Friends of the Association,

 

BG(Ret) Joe Shaefer has advised that he looks forward to attending our November meeting all the way from Incline Village, NV

 

On Saturday November 12th at 1130 am Chapter 76 will meet at Bass Pro Shops, 200 Gulfstream Way, Dania Beach. 

Bass Pro Shop Map


BASS PRO SHOPSDANIA BEACH, FL

Open NowCloses at 9:00 PM
200 Gulf Stream Way Dania Beach, FL 33004

(954) 929-7710 

It is the time of year for membership renewals and the attached form provides the info needed.  We would like to ask that you follow instructions on the attached renewal form so that your chapter receives its portion of membership dues until we resolve the issue of reimbursement from the SFA.   Currently we are receiving no such reimbursement.  For life members and those with current memberships, please disregard.  

 

 

 

Joe Pruett on behalf of

Ed Pijuan

President

 

Chapter 76 Facebook Site: https://www.facebook.com/SFA-South-Florida-Chapter-76-111343950710574/

Chapter Blog is located at http://SFACH76.Blogspot.com/

Special Forces Association Online Teamhouse https://teamhousespecialforcesassociation.org

Please update your email address to prevent interruptions

 

ED PIJUAN 

PRESIDENT

 

ROGER KIDDER 

VICE PRESIDENT

 

AL HERNANDEZ 

SECRETARY

 

JASON PSALTIDES 

SECRETARY

 

JIM TRICE 

TREASURER 

 

TOM HOUSE 

SERGEANT-AT-ARMS

_________________

 

DAN POIRIER 

CHAPTER 76 BLOGGER

 

ED BELLO 

CHAPTER 76 WEBMASTER

 

JOE PRUETT 

COMMUNICATIONS

 

 


on November 02, 2022
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Tuesday, November 1, 2022

SFACON 2022 Symposium Series videos

SFA Members,

 
Below are the links to the SFACON 2022 Symposium Series videos.   We had a great time in Colorado Springs, CO and want to thank John Kress, Chris Sorenson, and the entire SFACON 2022 team, including the 10th SFG (A) Public Affairs Office that put these amazing videos together.  Great job!
 
We had the opportunity to spend time with four (4) Medal of Honor Recipients; COL (RET) Roger Donlon, MAJ (RET) Drew Dix, SGM Matthew Williams, and MSG Earl Plumlee, as well as, four (4) original members of the 10th SFG (A); SFC (Ret) Henry Bertrand, former SSG Richard Simonian, CH (COL) (Ret) Vahan Sipantzi and MAJ (Ret) Clyde Sincere.  Thanks to Howard Massingill and SFA Chapter IV-XXIV (4-24) for hosting SFACON 2022.  Hope to see everyone in Indianapolis, IN in May 2023.  DOL
 
Kevin

 

 

YouTube link with all videos: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PL-qMqt2nuknyTAWBU4PzXnfyJ7F-QrlvC

 

DVIDS links 

 

Original Mike Force

https://www.dvidshub.net/video/862111/special-forces-association-convention-2022-original-mike-force

 

Detachment-A

https://www.dvidshub.net/video/862150/special-forces-association-convention-2022-detachment-msg-ret-charest

 

El Salvador

https://www.dvidshub.net/video/862153/special-forces-association-convention-2022-el-salvador-bg-ret-stringham

 

Task Force Viking

https://www.dvidshub.net/video/862289/special-forces-association-convention-2022-task-force-viking-ltc-ret-grdovic

 

Task Force Dagger

https://www.dvidshub.net/video/862151/special-forces-association-convention-2022-task-force-dagger-col-ret-rosengard

 

FOB Ghazni

https://www.dvidshub.net/video/862215/special-forces-association-convention-2022-fob-ghazni-msg-plumlee

 

Battle of Shok Valley

https://www.dvidshub.net/video/862216/special-forces-association-convention-2022-battle-shok-valley-sgm-williams

 

The Originals Panel

https://www.dvidshub.net/video/862097/special-forces-association-convention-2022-originals-panel




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on November 01, 2022
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on November 01, 2022
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