2015 Veterans Day Honorees

Honorary Sentinel: SERGEANT [E5] MARLENE SORENSON

Service Branch: United States Army

Combat Action: Operations Desert Shield and Desert Storm

Home Town: Lincoln

Military Specialty: Intelligence Analyst, Cryptanalyst, Linguist

Units:  501st Military Intelligence Battalion, 109th Military Intelligence Battalion, and the National Security Agency at Ft. Meade, Maryland

Citations and Awards: Joint Service Commendation Medal, Army Commendation Medal, Army Achievement Medal, National Defense Service Medal; Army Overseas Service Ribbon w/numeral “1”

Narrative

Remember the smart kids in school? No matter what subject – math, science, foreign languages, whatever – they just “got it.” They loved playing multiple games of chess simultaneously, beating their own personal best times solving the Rubik’s Cube, and warping the grading curve by plowing through those Algebra word problems that the rest of us hated, so much. Of course, they had to work hard, but they made it look so darned easy. The preppies and the jocks called them “nerds” or “geeks,” because they were jealous of and intimidated by the smart kids. As a smart kid, Marlene Sorenson rose above the jibes and teasing to use her fine mind in defense of our Country. Somewhere along the way, the U.S. Army spotted her potential and steered her toward intelligence analysis, cryptanalysis, and linguistics.

Cryptanalysis has been part of the U.S. military’s repertoire since World War One. Gather seemingly unrelated tidbits of information from myriad sources, confirm their reliability, and weave them into a concise briefing for the command authority to fold into their decision-making process. That was Sergeant Sorenson’s job – being available to commanders, field operation specialists, and mission teams with the information they needed to be successful; all the while melting into the background, away from the limelight, quietly decrypting, translating, and analyzing a new batch of intel for completion of her next task. Supporting both those in the intelligence field and those on the battlefield, she had to keep her mind open and receptive even to the least likely nuance of information and what it might mean to protecting American lives as they endeavored to accomplish their missions.

Having received her professional training from such prestigious organizations as the Defense Language Institute in Monterey, California; the Diplomatic Liaison Academy in Washington, DC; and the National Cryptologic School in Ft. Meade, Maryland; Sergeant Sorenson served for nearly ten years in various intelligence positions overseas and for the Department of Defense at the National Security Agency. In August of 1990 when Saddam Hussein moved to occupy Kuwait, Marlene’s cryptanalytic and linguistic skills were called upon to support Joint Forces deployed to counter Iraq’s aggression – doing precisely what, she can’t say. Wel-l-l, she could say – but only to those with a “need to know.”

Today, Marlene is a Peer Specialist and an Addiction Counselor for the Veterans Health Administration and serves on the Board of Directors of the Mental Health Association of Nebraska. She lives with her family in Lincoln.

  

 

Honorary Sentinel: QUARTERMASTER 1st CLASS WESLEY SHEPARD

Service Branch: United States Navy

Combat Action: WWII – Pacific

Home Town: Lincoln

Military Specialty: Amphibious Assault Ship Quartermaster

Units: Amphibious Landing Group – Transports, Amphibious Forces, Pacific Fleet
serving aboard both the USS Teton and the USS Anton

Citations and Awards:American Campaign Ribbon, American Defense Ribbon, World War II Victory Ribbon, Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Ribbon, Navy Occupation Service Ribbon, Navy Good Conduct Medal

Narrative

The USS Teton was a U.S. Navy, WWII, Mount McKinley-Class amphibious force command ship. Assigned to the Navy’s Pacific Fleet, Teton’s mission was to provide a naval platform for centralized coordination, command, communications, and control of landing forces – naval, marine, infantry, aviation, and associated support elements – conducting an amphibious assault. As a Quartermaster 1st Class serving on Teton’s bridge, Wes Shepard was responsible for 1) assisting the ship’s Navigator in charting and maintaining navigational logs and records; and 2) manning the helm to steer the ship’s course as ordered by the vessel’s Commanding Officer and plotted by the Navigator. Armed amphibious assaults are huge, complex, multi-force undertakings. The force flagship bridge was always buzzing with activity.

After being on station for 72 days of the Pacific Theater’s bloodiest battle – the invasion of Okinawa, the Teton sailed to the Philippines, arriving in Subic Bay on June 15th, 1945. That was where Wes Shepard joined her crew. The Teton was conducting exercises preparing for the coming invasion of Japan when the message was received from ComPacFlt that the Air Corps had detonated two nuclear devices over Hiroshima and Nagasaki, and the invasion had been cancelled in accordance with a joint Japanese-American order to “cease fire.” Wes stood watches at the Teton’s helm as she steamed to her station off the coast of Japan, joining the U.S. Pacific Fleet ships that were on hand for the Japanese signing of the Instrument of Unconditional Surrender. Wes served briefly with the occupation force in Japan before returning to the States to be discharged from the Navy.

After the war, Doctor Wesley Shepard was Superintendent of several rural public school districts in Nebraska, Minnesota, and Illinois, performing double duty as athletic coach for Football, Basketball, Track, Baseball, and Volleyball. After retiring from his Superintendent career, Wes continued coaching the Lincoln Christian High School and Parkview Christian High School boys basketball teams, as a volunteer. During his 48 years of coaching basketball, Wes recorded 519 wins against 168 losses. In 2002, he was inducted into the Nebraska High School Sports Hall of Fame and the National High School Coaches Association Hall of Fame.

 

 

Honorary Sentinel: SPECIALIST [E-4] SHAWN BURKE

Service Branch: United States Army

Combat Action: Operation Enduring Freedom

Home Town: Lincoln

Military Specialty: Infantry Rifleman

Unit: 5th Brigade, 2nd Division – Bravo Company, 1st Battalion,
17th Infantry Regiment [Thundering Herd]

Citations and Awards: Purple Heart, Combat Infantry Badge, Afghan Campaign w/Star, Army Good Conduct Medal, National Defense Medal, Afghan Campaign Medal w/Arrowhead, Global War on Terror Medal, Army Service Ribbon, Overseas Service Ribbon, Driver’s Badge, Mechanic’s Badge

Honorary Sentinel: CORPORAL AARON BURKE

Service Branch: United States Marine Corps

Combat Action: Operation Enduring Freedom

Home Town: Lincoln

Military Specialty: Ammunition Technician

Unit: Bravo Battery, 1st Battalion, 11th Marines, 1st Mar. Div. and Sea Service aboard the USS Boxer

Citations and Awards: National Defense Service Medal, Afghan Campaign Medal, Global War on Terror Expeditionary Medal, Global War on
Terror Service Medal, ISAF NATO Medal, Marine Corps Good Conduct Medal,
Sea Service Deployment Ribbon

Narrative

“Oh, Danny Boy, the pipes, the pipes are callin’ – from glen to glen and down the mountain side.
The Summer’s gone and all the roses fallen. ‘Tis you, ‘tis you must go, and I must bye…”

Every St. Patrick’s Day, the Irish-tenor wannabes crawl out of the woodwork with their lame renditions of what they believe to be an Irish folk melody. Two facts escape them: these lyrics (1) did not originate on the Erin Isle but in the Highlands of Scotland; and (2) they are not sung in the persona of a young girl saying “good-bye” to her lover, but that of a mother who must stand quietly and watch her son go off to war.

No mother wants to even think about her son going to war. If the world were ruled entirely by mothers, there would be no wars. Sadly, Homo Sapiens is a war-like species. Mothers and fathers around the world must bravely accept a son’s decision to take up arms and defend the way of life that they have instilled in him. It is hard enough for a parent to suffer that once. Dick and Kristy Burke suffered it twice. Both of their sons volunteered – Shawn as a Soldier, Aaron as a Marine.

Neither Dick nor Kristy was surprised when their older son, Shawn, enlisted in the Army. Since boyhood, he had talked of becoming a soldier. The 9/11 attacks only made him more determined. Assigned to Bravo Stryker Company, 1st Battalion of the 17th Infantry, the renowned “Thundering Herd” at Ft. Lewis, WA, Shawn was first and foremost an Eleven-Bravo – an infantry rifleman – but beyond that, he was also his Stryker squad’s armored vehicle driver/mechanic. Dick and Kristy took comfort in learning that the Stryker driver sat in the vehicle’s most fortified position. Their comfort was short-lived.

When a loved one is serving in combat, there is nothing quite so terrifying as to be awakened at 4:00 A.M. by a ringing telephone. Such was the case for the Burke family. A four-year emotional roller coaster ride that would include the amputation of Shawn’s lower left leg and Aaron’s eventual deployment to Afghanistan all began with that middle-of-the-night phone call and Shawn’s voice on the other end saying, “Dad, I got blown up.”

To Dick and Kristy’s surprise, Aaron enlisted in the Marines a year after Shawn joined the Army. Also Eleven-Bravo, Aaron’s collateral duty was as an Ammo Tech – the guy who made sure his squad was adequately supplied with ammunition – running under fire from one gun position to another carrying explosive ordinance – no stress in that. His first assignment aboard the USS Boxer amphibious assault vessel, patrolling the Indian Ocean against Somali pirates, was of international interest. During that deployment, Navy Seals from the Boxer rescued the captain of the MV Maersk Alabama who pirates had taken hostage. The incident was depicted in Tom Hanks’ portrayal of the title character in the film, Captain Phillips. Aaron was not part of the actual rescue, but that didn’t keep Dick from bragging to his buddies, “Yup. My kid was there.”

As far as Dick and Kristy knew, Aaron’s 2010 deployment to Afghanistan with Bravo Battery 1/11 was relatively uneventful, compared to Shawn’s experience. On his weekly calls home, Aaron masked his combat experiences, sounding frustrated with boredom. He knew that his folks were dealing with heightened anxiety due to Shawn’s wounds, and he did not want to add to their fears. He figured that boredom would be a welcome relief, so he simply did not share with them what he was actually doing. Aaron finished his Marine Corps hitch assigned to a UN peace keeping mission in Mongolia in 2011.

War is a failure of political leadership. As a result when harm threatens, warriors raise their hands answering duty’s call with their oath to defend their way of life with their lives, in spite of the politicians’ failure. All honor is due to warriors for their courage and sacrifice, regardless of war’s injustice. Too often, the price for their courage is paid with a mother’s tears.

To say that Dick and Kristy are proud of their sons is a HUGE understatement. Mostly, they are just happy to have them home, safe, moving on, and dealing with the emotions of their memories. Having joined that special cadre of military families, the Burkes know all too well that when warriors move into harm’s way, rarely – if ever – are their families left behind.

“…but come ye back when Summer’s in the meadow or all the valley’s hushed and white with snow,
it’s I’ll be here in sunshine or in shadow. Oh, Danny Boy – oh, Danny Boy, I love you so.”

 

Honorary Sentinel: SERGEANT ALEX M. NGUYEN

Service Branch: United States Marine Corps

Combat Action: Operations Iraqi Freedom (Sea Service Support) and
Operation Enduring Freedom

Home Town: Fremont

Military Specialty: Combat Engineer

Units: 1st Mar. Div. – 2nd Combat Engineer Battalion/6th Marines, 3rd Battalion/4th Marines

Citations and Awards: Purple Heart, National Defense Service Ribbon, Presidential Unit Citation, Navy/Marine Corps Unit Citation, Combat Action Ribbon, Operation Enduring Freedom Medal, Global War on Terror Medal, Global War on Terror Expeditionary Medal, Good Conduct Medal w/Oak Leaf, NATO ISAF Ribbon, Sea Service Deployment Ribbon

Narrative

Throughout the 240-year history of the United States Marine Corps, there have been protracted battles against entrenched, determined enemy forces fighting on their home ground in overwhelming numbers using indigenous guerilla tactics – battles that have epitomized the Corps’ legendary dictum of “Adapt, Improvise, and Overcome.” Sure, everyone knows about the planting of The Star Spangled Banner atop Iwo Jima’s Mount Suribachi, immortalized in the Marine Corps Memorial at Arlington Cemetery, but only those familiar with Marine Corps history know the stories of the bloody 82-day slugfest on Okinawa, or the month-long “two steps forward – one step back” trudge through the killing fields below Heartbreak Ridge, or the three-month siege followed by a six-month battle at Khe Sanh. The current generation of Marines have carved a new battlefield into Corps legend to respectfully reside alongside Montezuma’s halls and Tripoli’s shores – an obscure location in the Helmand province of Afghanistan. Now Zad or Nawzad was the site of a three-year battle between forces led by elements of the 1st Marine Division and Afghan forces controlled by the Taliban. Alex Nguyen is one of those Marines. He was a Combat Engineer with the 3rd Battalion, 4th Marine Regiment at Now Zad.

Alex joined the Marine Corps in 2007 intending to specialize in Aviation, but he switched to Combat Engineer, using metal detectors to search for buried bombs and working with explosives. Now Zad was his second combat deployment. His first was Sea Service aboard the amphibious assault vessel, USS Iwo Jima in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom.

Combat Engineers locate and neutralize explosive devices. Working with explosives used by friendly forces is dangerous enough. Working with those hidden by the enemy can be life-taking. Alex managed to complete his first tour in Afghanistan without sustaining injury. On his second Afghanistan tour in 2011, he was not so fortunate. While conducting a route clearing operation intended to ensure safe passage for coalition forces and Afghan civilians, Alex’s vehicle detonated a roadside bomb. He suffered bi-lateral ankle fractures, a broken left leg, and a broken left foot. After spending two years in rehabilitation, it became clear to Alex and his medical team that his right ankle was permanently and irreparably damaged. His right foot and ankle were amputated just below the calf.

“Since the amputation, my life has gotten better. I now compete in Paralympic style sports. I currently play for the U.S. National Paralympic A2 Sitting Volleyball Team. I also have been competing for a spot on U.S. National Paralympic Track and Field Team for the 2016 Paralympics in Brazil.” – Alex Nguyen

Without question, Alex has adapted, improvised, and overcome in his own protracted, personal battle.

It must be true – “Once a Marine, always a Marine.”

Semper Fi…

…ooh-RAH.

 

 

 

Honorary Sentinel: PRIVATE FIRST CLASS GEORGE KUBIK

Service Branch: United States Army

Combat Action: WWII – Pacific

Home Town: West Point

Military Specialty: Field Artillery Battery Crewman

Units: 7th Division, 159th Infantry

Citations and Awards: National Defense Service Ribbon, Expert Marksman Ribbon [Rifle], Combat Infantry Badge, Asia-Pacific Theatre Ribbon w/Bronze Battle Star, Three Overseas Service Bars, Army Good Conduct Medal.

Narrative

George Kubik served in the U.S. Army Field Artillery in the Aleutians Islands during World War II. After completing Basic Training and Artillery Training, George was transported by ship to Attu Island. The 14-day trip through heavy, rolling seas was no pleasure cruise. Sea sickness abounded, and the weather was cold and wet. As bad as the time aboard ship was, the year he spent on Attu was worse. Fortunately, George arrived after the Battle of Attu where the 7th Division had engaged 2,500 Japanese in the Pacific theater’s second bloodiest conflict. Still, at times, the miserable living conditions and viciously cold North Pacific weather were more than even a farm boy from Nebraska could tolerate.

George’s unit spent his first nine months occupying the uppermost ground on one of the island’s highest mountains. Gale force winds blew constantly with gusts that exceeded 100 MPH. Because of the constant rain, sleet, and snow, it was impossible to keep dry. Some of the men suffered from trench foot, some suffered from frost bite, some suffered from both. They had to carry everything up the mountain to keep their supplies in order – food, water, coal, equipment, even the 45-lb. artillery shells.

George was a replacement, so he missed the major battle on the island, but he served with men who had fought that battle. They told grim stories of fierce fighting against the enemy who was dug in, while the Americans had to advance through the sleet and snow, out in the open, with no cover on the treeless tundra. In the end when they were out of food, drinking water, and ammunition; hunger-crazed Japanese soldiers would wildly charge down the mountain only to commit suicide by falling on their bayonets or by detonating grenades held against their bodies. Not only were there a great many American casualties due to combat, but sickness and exposure to the severe weather also took their toll. George, himself, came under fire a few times during those nine months – usually from snipers that would have to be rooted out and neutralized, but once by aerial bombing. These brutal battlefield conditions gave an entirely different meaning to the term, “Cold War.”

George’s 12-man gun crew slept in a 12’ x 12’ underground shelter with a pot belly stove for heat. The men rotated watches on guard duty and manning the gun. George would sit every night and write letters to his wife, Marjorie, by candlelight. After six months, they managed to scrounge a generator, and they wired the shelter with one light bulb. They thought they were in heaven with that one light bulb replacing the use of candles.

After a year on Attu, George was sent to nearby Amchitka island where living conditions were much better. Amchitka had never been held by the Japanese. The troops lived in huts and slept on actual cots. Here, George unloaded ships. Finally after 33 months, George got to go home on a 30-day furlough. After his furlough, George’s unit trained, preparing for what was to be America’s ultimate invasion of Japan; but while they were awaiting embarkation in San Diego, the U.S. dropped two atom bombs on Japan, the war ended, and George went home for good. After the war, George farmed for 39 years near West Point, where he still lives, today.

Honorary Sentinel: TECHNICAL SERGEANT HERMAN BROWN

Service Branch: United States Air Force

Combat Action: Korea and Viet Nam

Home Town: Bellevue

Military Specialty: USAF Supply Specialist, USAF Special Services, Chaplain’s Aide

Units: Military Support and Services, Supply Squadron, Special Operations

Citations and Awards:Air Force Commendation Medal W/2 OLC, Air Force Outstanding Unit Award Ribbon, Air Force Good Conduct Medal [7], National Defense Service Metal w/Star, Korean Service Medal, Republic of Viet Nam Campaign Medal, United Nations Service Medal,
Vietnam Service Medal, Air Force Longevity Service Award (Ribbon) w/4 OLC, Small Arms Expert Marksman Ribbon

Narrative

“One of my memories is the great men and women that I served with, not all were fortunate enough to come home as I did but I will never forget their names and their faces. Many good men and women lost their lives in both wars. I remember a time in 1964-1965 in Vietnam that I was to go into a specific man hole during the bombing but I believe God was watching over me as a voice told me to go into another bunker which I did. The bomb hit the bunker I was to go into and if I had been there I would have lost my life that day. In 1965 there was a time that the Viet Cong would lob hand grenades at specific locations, always at 11:00 P.M. We called him ‘Bedtime Charlie’ because he always attacked at bedtime. I understood the danger of serving my country in both Wars and knew that my country needed me to serve in these military conflicts.

“My faith motivated me to pray and read my Bible every day. It was at the time the Chaplin’s saw me praying and reading the Bible to our troops. They asked me to come along side of them in praying and leading Bible studies for the troops. It wasn’t long afterwards I was asked to assist and do sermons in the Chapel to the troops. I found my calling to serve God at a time of war. I remember standing on a hill in Pleiku, Viet Nam calling out to God to lead me and to help provide provision to my family when I heard the voice of God say ‘Herman, I will bless your life. Trust me.’ Since then, I have followed Christ and trusted him and I have not been disappointed. I started a great church in Bellevue, Nebraska after my retirement and have been trusting God ever since. I was so excited to finally come home when my tours in Korea and Viet Nam were completed. Transition at times was very difficult – like the time that the alarm clock went off, and my automatic response was to roll off the bed onto the floor – symbolic of the sirens going off when my base was under attack. I have no regrets serving my country. It was my honor to serve our country and to secure our freedom rather at home or over sea’s my God Bless our Country and Go Big Red.

“My first child was born before I joined the military and the other nine were born while serving in the military. Even while serving in the military, I fought for equal rights for minorities and women. I tried to influence a positive impact on the communities in which I was stationed.”

-- Herman Brown
TSgt, USAF [Ret]

 

 

 

 

 

Honorary Sentinel: YEOMAN SECOND CLASS GIL HILL

Service Branch: United States Navy

Combat Action: World War II, Pacific Theater

Home Town: Chadron

Military Specialty: Ship’s Yeoman

Unit: USS Manderson Victory, Service Squadron 10, Pacific Fleet

Citations and Awards: National Defense Service Medal, American
Campaign Ribbon,, World War II Victory
Ribbon, Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Ribbon

Narrative

Gil Hill served in the U.S. Navy in the Pacific Theater during World War II aboard the naval munitions transport, USS Manderson Victory, a converted Merchant Marine vessel. With no armament of her own, the Manderson Victory sailed around the Pacific laden with high explosives, resupplying U.S. warships with ammunition.

On Christmas Day 1944, the crew of the Manderson Victory saw, first hand, the devastation and carnage perpetrated by the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. Four months later, they would experience the desperation of the Japanese as Kamikaze aircraft attacked the naval vessels landing troops on the beaches of Okinawa. Because of the massive flotilla required to deliver the huge U.S. invasion force, ships not normally used for amphibious assaults were pressed into duty for that purpose. As a result, the Manderson Victory spent the first week of April, 1945 not only carrying explosive ordinance but also a battalion of Marines. This made her a prime target for the crazed suicide plane-bombs loaded with gasoline and TNT.

The Japanese knew what was at stake. Okinawa was destined to become a major staging base from which the Americans would launch their ultimate invasion of the Japanese home islands. The Japanese deployed 100,000 infantry troops on Okinawa and conscripted 250,000 Okinawan civilians to defend the island. America would assault the beaches with 100,000 U.S. Army Infantry and Marines transported by a fleet of nearly 300 vessels of every imaginable size and shape, including the Manderson Victory.

The Naval bombardment began at dawn on Easter Sunday, April 1st, 1945. The Japanese retaliated with heavy artillery from the island. After two days of shelling, it was time for the assault troops to hit the beaches. This is the time when the unarmed transports are most vulnerable. They must remain stationary while the landing craft pull alongside and the Marines and Infantry scramble over the side and down the web work into the amphibious landing ships. “Sitting duck” doesn’t come near to describing the feeling of naked exposure. Battleships behind them fired their giant, deafening 15-inch guns broadside, sending mammoth shells over the transport sailors’ heads. While in front of them, Japanese heavy artillery returned fire, and 400 – 500 Infantry and Marines took what seemed like forever to get themselves and their gear into the bouncing, rocking & rolling 40-man “phibs.”

That’s when they heard it – the drone of the Japanese planes. The Japanese had launched 193 Kamikaze aircraft primarily aimed at the troop transports. Thanks to the Navy’s defensive network of planes and gunships, 169 of these were downed before they reached the fleet. Of the 24 planes that got through, six were successful in hitting their targets. Two transports were sunk, killing about 400 sailors and about 1,000 Marines. The remaining 18 planes all missed their targets, crashing harmlessly into the sea. One of these missed the Manderson Victory by about 100 feet. The word “Kamikaze” means “Divine Wind.” That day, for Gill Hill and the rest of the crew of the Manderson Victory, the wind was – indeed – divine.

Gil is a retired Presbyterian minister and lives with his wife in Omaha.