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Joe Ronnie Hooper, Captain, United States Army http://www.arlingtoncemetery.net/jrhooper.htm
1 of 15 4/9/2018 7:05 AM
Joe Ronnie Hooper, Captain, United States Army http://www.arlingtoncemetery.net/jrhooper.htm
Let's take a little test, shall we? Do you know who Audie Murphy
is? Sure you do. Most decorated soldier in World War II. Same
with Sergeant York, his WWI counterpart, Norman Schwarzkopf,
and where the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier is.
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Joe Ronnie Hooper, Captain, United States Army http://www.arlingtoncemetery.net/jrhooper.htm
Now let me ask you this. Do you know who Joe Hooper is?
Probably not. After all, he does not have a book about him and a
movie about him like Murphy does, or appear on Stephen King's
novel "The Green Mile," like York does.
Before you go all gung ho about looking him up and shaking his
hand, let me tell you he died in 1979 at the age of 40, but not
before receiving the Bronze Star, the Silver Star, eight Purple
Hearts and, in 1969, the Congressional Medal of Honor.
He was wined and dined after his return from combat, even
making it to Johnny Carson's famed couch one time. After that,
one of the greatest heroes in American combat was forgotten, as
were many of his more anonymous fellow soldiers who served in
Vietnam.
Murphy has his movies and his book, the latter selling at your
local retail stores. York has his share of our memory, too. In
comparison, Hooper has very little. Years before his death, he
knew such would be his fate.
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Joe Ronnie Hooper, Captain, United States Army http://www.arlingtoncemetery.net/jrhooper.htm
"It's sort of like the war itself," he said in 1977. "So many people
wanted to forget it when I was fighting it. Why should they want
to remember us now?"
Here's why.
With all that on his shoulders, he fought, and fought, and fought
some more. Just like Murphy and York and millions of others, he
fought. And just like them, he is a hero who deserves to be
remembered whenever this city and this Basin that so deeply
professes to love its troops pays them a tribute.
The willingness with which our young people are likely to serve
in any war, no matter how justified, shall be directly proportional
to how they perceive the veterans of earlier wars were treated and
appreciated by their nation.
– George Washington
War was his best moment and his worst. Visions of whistling
bullets, airborne body parts, screams of the wounded – and that
was a good day for Joe Hooper. The Medal of Honor winner and
most decorated soldier in Vietnam would bolt upward in his
Seattle bed, sweating booze from the night before. Those earlier
appearances on national TV, the possibility of a Hollywood
biopic, hanging out with Bob Hope and several presidents – that
just churned him up more inside. The catlike, strawberry-haired
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Joe Ronnie Hooper, Captain, United States Army http://www.arlingtoncemetery.net/jrhooper.htm
Then came Vietnam. Staff Sergeant Joe Hooper, 29, of the 501st
Airborne Infantry, killed at least 115 of the enemy – 24 of them in a
six-hour firefight, lobbing grenades into Viet Cong bunkers and
wading through withering machine-gun fire to repeatedly rescue
wounded American soldiers. Fourteen out of 189 survived. After
treatment for his wounds, Hooper broke out of the hospital to
return to his unit. Part American Indian, he said he could "smell US ARmy Photo
out" the enemy, and thought he was born to go to Vietnam. His
37 medals were more than those earned by World War II's Audie
Murphy and World War I's Alvin York – names that, unlike
Hooper's, still ring familiar today. Like others of his era, he
arrived home to accusations of being a baby killer. But that's not
what eventually soured him on Vietnam. "At high schools, when I
speak, the question kids most often asked me was, 'Would you
do it again?'" he told me once. "I would, the reason being I
thought my abilities helped save lives. But I would tell my
children, if [we] were to do this over, 'Go to Canada. Don't fight a
war you can't win.'"
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Joe Ronnie Hooper, Captain, United States Army http://www.arlingtoncemetery.net/jrhooper.htm
His death was said to be from natural causes. And that's what
scares everyone to this day.
"He was a casualty of war, and you can expect more of the same
after Iraq," says David Willson, a retired Green River Community
College librarian, editor of Vietnam War Generation Journal, and
a Vietnam vet who worked with Hooper on a collection of war
literature. "Look at the history – this is a country made by war on
the backs of vets who have never, ever been treated as
promised." Hooper's story is a lesson on that failure, Willson
says. "If we can't save our heroes, who can we save?"
For the country's ex-warriors, many of them aged and ailing – and
thousands of them homeless – medical and psychological
treatment is being rationed at home as meals and bullets
sometimes were in battle. Last year, the VA, the second-largest
government agency (behind the Defense Department) which
operates the nation's largest hospital system, treated 1.4 million
more veterans than in 1996, with 20,000 fewer employees. Since
1995, its hospital enrollments have shot up from 2.9 million to
more than 4.5 million annually. At least another 600,000 of
America's 25 million surviving male and female veterans will
enroll this year. Some will have to stand in line, others will be
refused, and still others may face new $250 enrollment fees.
Though hospital and outpatient care are readily available,
outreach programs are being downsized, and a lack of funding
will force a quarter-million vets to wait up to 10 months for
specialized treatment and surgery. Some clinics and hospitals
have shut their doors to new patients, and the VA has just closed
enrollment to about 164,000 vets who have no service-connected
health complications and rank in the VA's "highest income"
bracket (about $35,000 for a vet with no dependents, for example).
More than 450,000 disability claims are pending, and vets who are
denied face another long wait for appeals decisions.
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Joe Ronnie Hooper, Captain, United States Army http://www.arlingtoncemetery.net/jrhooper.htm
"My father," says Vietnam vet Willson, "a U.S. Marine, came back
from Iwo Jima with spots on his lungs from being buried in the
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Joe Ronnie Hooper, Captain, United States Army http://www.arlingtoncemetery.net/jrhooper.htm
With the first wars came the first mystery illnesses – the "irritable
heart" of the Civil War veterans, later found to be a psychological
disturbance not unlike shell shock in WWI, battle fatigue in WWII,
and post-traumatic stress disorder in Vietnam. With new ways to
fight wars came new ways to die from them – the ever-growing
Agent Orange division of medicine. It took 30 years of Vietnam
veteran complaints about toxic defoliants ruining their personal
and family health and shortening their life spans before the VA
accepted the disorders as treatable diseases. More discoveries
continue: Only last year did scientists find a new Agent Orange
link to a form of leukemia. Desert Storm vets – about 150,000
returned disabled from the "100-hour war" – are the latest to try to
prove their many illnesses are related to the effects of chemicals,
radiation, and biological weapons. But the VA says evidence
does not support claims that depleted uranium and sarin gas,
among others, are culpable. (Storm vets are, however, twice as
likely as the general population to develop ALS – Lou Gehrig's
Disease – and treatment for that is now covered.)
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Joe Ronnie Hooper, Captain, United States Army http://www.arlingtoncemetery.net/jrhooper.htm
Clearly, war casualties aren't the making of just our enemies. Like
U.S. defoliants in Vietnam, the radioactive residue from U.S.
munitions fired at Saddam's tanks are thought to have
contributed to cancer and birth defects among Desert Storm vets
– U.S. forces used weapons containing 640,000 pounds of
depleted uranium during Desert Storm – all in violation of the
Geneva accords, according to a United Nations report. Ralph
Nader and others are seeking congressional hearings on the
likelihood that troops in Iraq today are traveling through a "zone
of death" contaminated by the 1991 war. Last month, U.S. and
U.K. officials were reassuring the world that there was little threat
from depleted uranium weapons today, even though more than
10,000 allied bombs and missiles, some tipped with depleted
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Joe Ronnie Hooper, Captain, United States Army http://www.arlingtoncemetery.net/jrhooper.htm
Politicians' Memories
Many war vets say their complaints aren't about the working folks
at the VA or those who staff their hospitals, as I found out during
unauthorized strolls through the Seattle VA medical center a few
days back (reporters must have clearance, I was later
admonished). "My doctor's great! And the people here are the
sweetest," said a woman who gave her name as Emma and said
she was in the Army during WWII. Others echoed that sentiment.
The VA Puget Sound Health Care System, which includes the
updated 1950s Seattle hospital on Beacon Hill, American Lake
hospital south of Tacoma, and specialty care services to vets in
four states, ranks high in the VA system. But it, too, is under
pressure from new vets – 3,000 more (a total of about 54,000) vets
used hospital services here last year than the previous year, and
17,000 new outpatient visits were recorded. "Obviously, we can
only work within the parameters of the funding we receive," says
Seattle VA hospital spokesperson Ellen Flores. "But we have a
staff that truly cares and an administration dedicated to patient
care – the deputy director and chief of staff are veterans
themselves." The state has 670,000 vets, and hospital public
affairs director Jeri Rowe says care for some of them is evolving
almost daily. "We'll have more women vets than ever before, and
though fewer WWII vets will be here, we'll have aging Vietnam
and Gulf War vets." The regional system is serving more vets
with fewer dollars, she says, "but we're among the most
cost-efficient in the VA system."
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Joe Ronnie Hooper, Captain, United States Army http://www.arlingtoncemetery.net/jrhooper.htm
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Joe Ronnie Hooper, Captain, United States Army http://www.arlingtoncemetery.net/jrhooper.htm
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Joe Ronnie Hooper, Captain, United States Army http://www.arlingtoncemetery.net/jrhooper.htm
of duty in Vietnam.
His other decorations include two Silver Stars (one of them which
began as a recommendation for a second Medal of Honor), six
Bronze Stars and eight Purple Hearts.
HOOPER, JOE R
CPT US ARMY
VIETNAM
DATE OF BIRTH: 08/08/1938
DATE OF DEATH: 05/06/1979
BURIED AT: SECTION 46 SITE 656-17
ARLINGTON NATIONAL CEMETERY
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Joe Ronnie Hooper, Captain, United States Army http://www.arlingtoncemetery.net/jrhooper.htm
Updated:30 September 2000 Page Updated: 1 May 2001 Updated: 15 March 2003 Updated: 10 April 2003
Updated: 15 October 2004 Updated: 22 December 2005 Updated: 7 April 2006
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Award of Congressional Medal of Honor Files
Joe R. Hooper
Eyewitness Statement of Dale A. Urban
Eyewitness Statement of Edward J. Pettit,
Eyewitness Statement of George Parker,
Eyewitness Statement of Lee Grimsley
Eyewitness Statement of Lonnie Thomas
Eyewitness Statement of Tex Gray
Eyewitness Statement of William F. Aronow
Eyewitness Statement of William W. Erbach
Situation Diagrams
Description of Terrain
Draft of Citation
Eyewitness Statement of Dale A. Urban
Eyewitness Statement of Dale A. Urban, Company D,
Second Battalion (Airborne), 501st Infantry, 101st Airborne
Division, ca. 03/12/1968
JB we jnorod fewicd PflC DeldAay va3 hit* And again Sfit Hoopar
to WB position to help the voxnded naa, /.lithe tiiao ha wtf undor
Jl», and i w flTnn hit hlmflU. However Sgt Hooper rofuacd to cpit
Ai «B moved on there -were but Just a few man Imft* Continuing
sweap rciwand ha knocked ottf tm&ec after tnudeerj upon opa oj theeo
3gt Hocper, with utter din^gard for hi* own eafetyj fttig&t a HVA
officer la hand to hand
DALE A,
SOT, P i n Team
CoD 2/50
H3RGF»KSE0Elf
Eyewitness Statement of Edward J. Pettit,
Joa ft. Hooper led his squad against heavy enemy f i w on Ftebnuoy 21st
and roved out uodar this Hi* tlno after tinm t o fialp ths rounded* He wea
htnflfllf owrly in the fightijig but this didn't stop hinu Ho Smocked out
enenjr butiierc *& Wniee-lf, charging thoa Kith gwn&doa * In moot ceaca
the rest al his Den eaca on throogh oTler bs had alrts^p- Uhen flara of the slt~
uatlon, Be blaw up a cmpla hoachts with LlOfa and &t^bbed cne NVA tihsn the
gulc's riTla misfired, I know a J*i of men wore ewfftHy afraid t* #> forHfert
aineo th* ftnon^ ripe was tew34lc «rf they had toit&crf on every aifc* But fcho
roasmi no <H» lagged behind vaa tecaus* Sgt Hooper VBP tln^ra out ftont, «wi i t
kind of stewed them and nmdc them X&el more fionfidsnt at the &an» tins*
Hsppor mw "winded & j«f tin»9 but ho Just taspt right en lighting, H^an
t& thfl ftnal Unas the NTA Imd realfitroongburifcorfl and they waro pouring ffllt
•rttrT- hasvy fire. A l o t of EUJH wendored hew ws Wfira going t o tako the position
when Sgt Hooper cabled out for ewj^tiody t o corer Mm aa hft charficd thrcugh the
blowing up bimken i«ith hand grenailoa, Mn had 3Hi Urtoan follov right
hinuith his l i f U tff get whtt ha mlased* Sgl Hcopflr 9arcd /i lot of
UTOS that day, ana by h insult* killed nai* -than tim rest c f w put togettto
Even after the ttehting iras ovKsr ho <ttdji*t go and get his Katmdfl tatam oara of4
L-.^tftftd ho made SUJ« cvflrjbody «lee TOS taken cere of and then he prepared
men-fw tbo next day'a
the Delta "Haidsisi ware assaulting * strong cnncy position i»ar Jfue <m the
of Fcbniffly when heavy enemy rostefc, mtchin* ggn, mid aut acetic mapons fir*
halted tha Aflvoncu in freat of a 8tt*am abcut twenty foot uitte. S^t Hooper, a
fligud leader, got a faw s»n together end dashed acrose the stream and up into
ths face of tiie enany Slro wen thtutfi tha eneay was firing from bunkom just on
the oppogite bank. Thaw burikew MBM S W ™ , and somi the rest of ths coniffl^r
*Jt nwrtng foUowdns S^t Ifcwpar1? exasple, A couple am war* hit and left «c-
pesed to eaotay fiiw, but flgt Htoper brand th* fli* and wont out after tt*m, Hs
brought on& man baotc, aud then wnt after tho aucond men. Us got t D him but va*
munded in tho process. S t i l l he brought tho uon baoh to safdtj and then tmnt
out agsin flren though he was woundad himself. He t mihd SSfl Thonaa pinned down
and tried to find TAOTO the f±pj was coming frai. 3PJV Jfaunt wan up in fr^rti of
thorn so Sgt Hooper called cut to hi- to see i f he toyld DDVS botwacei tw> s t a l l
housss to locate the fire. Mount t*ok o » etep between tt» HOOBM raid was hit
in th* leg, BecaiMfr of hia uound he touJdn't IHOTB and tho enony fir*
elAddr md ckacr, Sgt Hooper t»lc drastic aotlon to prewnt Mount Cna. being
Jellied, Hs n»Wi4 ar^md the Isft ftf the houses ewn though tho ewony had
bunkers not mow than fifteen raters &aj- trcn the s i t e of the houas
ho get paat these bunkors and behind the housoa Trtjqre he flaw thrae bunfcew con-
mctftd by a tTflnoht Sgt H&psr get up and th^gnd th* first burksr (they ware
no mre than t^n astcra ap&H), thrmlng a grenade inside and thwi sttaying i t
with rifle f l i c . iMi JdHfld cireiyon* inside and frcm behind thia bunker he
started firing into the second byrikBr, «id thia fim eliminated everyflns in there
Ha got up and ran tewsrd the tttiid burilMt Just DS on l,VA raddjenen camo out, and
Heopftr ehot hia dead. Those btufcera had had roekots^ autmatic mapms, and
^ - -Fca'cFncfAinEOKLr
r*dia CCMUJIHK in Him* Sgf. Hooper then rttumsd to the riLv»riuiJc v l n n
i.
a lot of men ten hesitant about stirus Jciward. But attar seeing Sgfc Hoopor
they1 All got up to follow him. J u& t as they had deployed at the top of the bahte
thrift HVJl £vped out of the banb» <tfid started firing their AK-fcft, but the chap-
lain T«H the only man h i t , StlUL, everymo Just IVois coccept*Sgt Hooper uho
firod flHari dropping tm> of the CummlAta vhils tl» otl^r BMnaaed to cacapc.
S-gt HocpM* tl»^ "hflndaeod the clup^Uinr« mmul end helped him back to safety,
Vtan l}o returned lio led the uea in i ewoBp up to ths tlie three buyers ho had
just elinOnoted. In this a^eap the other bmito» en tha il«ifc >ra^ overrun.
S t i l l fire erne fron th* rl^htj sad soon i t WM detemdnad that i t was conia^
a enrim) in that a » i , Sgt Hooper ei^Hlnd fovword wtfct two oth»r men dnd
Jlw oa i t , Th» ensmy flw Boon ceased^ Jfetumiiie *« Mo munJ
led thcti dn another s-weop khich orerrai p. Jtow more bunkers^ HJTO the? halted
ageiji wid Sgt Itoopor flUubed OQ top of cue of tho burtcaiB to i i w on the. duaiy
Vhlle he w&s on top of i t an NVA offitif cl±=.tod out cmd f«intod hi* rifls at
Hboper'e heed, 3gt Hoopffr swun^ around but the HVA ptllcd tho trigger
his w^apen Jaamcd and 3gt Uoojifir found he was out of Hnnunitiqn,
started mining, t«t ^gt Hooper caught him and fettled Mm with hli
running In front of t t e touifeers and S^t ftopfier dashed dam thia tpflnch with
Wb*ui foU^witifi, ^ ]H passed ea&h CM hs tajacd a grenade i*to i t and
a u » the Jtfb was dcu t ^ pgmlnff idJJa fiw into flash one after the
This KUled all but tva detendew wh* st^afiarfld out of mo of tht burikcrs, shak-
en and blflcdy, and they YISTO taken priaflnsr* When thap gjot to the last tmnl«sr
thAy turned right and fired on two OTi behind ths next bunfcer dam the line. ^.
Thft NVA dwflkad dewtt gin4 3gt K»por rushed up to tha Tranhflr t r m xhei* he started
•
firing on two p»re bunkers dtswn th* lihd, one hoiwing a mactdns gun. But ba
round nit that tfie V»Q HVA vhoa he had ehot at wspa inside this tranter h». was
«i end ho dropped an incendiary grenade Inside which vw nwrully effectine.
Ife kept on ftrinc «i tl» tvro imnJifirsj JlnaJiy ailencing one and than the other.
Just then ho saw that SRV Gray v«9 Mounted in a trench rwar the tanker? h*
-had Jaet fceon firing en. Siimy tiie was a t i l l aweeping the ftejd^ but Egfc
over to Cray because dray cwilrtn^t e&t out of tho trejio.h and
FORQFFIGIAL USE OT
• F8R OFFICIAL HffiOaV !
\ Continuation of STtEvfrrtjEdS StfjffjatEro)
<>•••
ware firijig on MEL When Sgfc Kvcpir got thftre ho act hifl rfjfo dam since 1»
piatol dfflfli eo that ha ifflja i i f t Qtflj with both hancto, but Juet wh«i I»a got
up be saw «n WA earn ftit of hevbora and ptint hij r i f l e a t Sgfc tiwper's hoadf
Baforo thn WA c^ild jmll the trigger tlioiflh Sgt Hoopar hmi p i d » d yp the
and Maatod Ma, Thm he t f t * Grajr beck to a socme a » a ana oan» Tia^ t
and o » i ^ i i » wss & t i n caning in. But Sgt Hooper and 3 f t Urfwn spotted I t
and started firlue, Thso Sgb Ifaoper trwiod f W r t to t h » k the dusa&a and
found thrw HVA liflutehents with thedr heads Tdrid led by bqllflts; After that
wg morod <^it into the lioLl and pyebty woH eleaned up the area. Sgt
ft 2flt of tiua taking ftaifl ?r the winded uid f ijiaLly looted after hfct
I t wasn't Just the aetuil nwnt of pflBiticns or^xmi and a*m& killed vEilch
.SspDrtpnt^ Tmt far aflrB 50 H&S thft fawtastlc inspiration he gaiw ovary man i n
the caessvy. I t ^43 hlj poraonal courage on any nimibflr of occ&slisitg that leapt
CEQRE/P/JSER
E
' • * . •
FOR CFFICSAL USE . i
• .
• • .
(Continuation of EYEWITHSS ,
After clearing tfcrto bunkera £gt Hooper moved up t o cmotlrar onej one of the
t o hold mtj And started filing Into a mac tiino gun burit»T iuat a nhort di»-
*. HcwBwr he Ep£-irfinlly I«tfra6d tb*t t l » banter he VM firing ^K*H
s t i l l ociupicd a? he shortly threw a white phoaphotoas grcnaria into and th«i
I* £L» In** ths macliiflo gun bunker and tire bunksr adjacent i t j
fit* *f^Mtiv*lj r q^Dtirsd both burfwrs* Sgfc "ospjr epsnt the rQat of
oaring f°r the wounded and taking aur* they mre well tal^n caro of * lie
finally had Ma oXn vowute treated after everyone else was ta^cn care of;,
he s t i l l »fused t o be evacuated vfcila he orfaaised MA usn and preparod them
the naxt day'? £i£Hln£i Qnl2,r the mact mopoins did he aJlm Mrjil.f to be
I t la difficult t o adecpiatoly praise Sgb ttsoper for hi£ ructicna on thia dnjr. He
moj* aafltoj- pcoitions an* WUed mpje enauy soldiers by himself than
cl£±Dffd fftthtt end of thft dfiy, Ard i t is cflrtadn that
.^M, inapiratljcn and acAstns courage the,platoon and Btnraanyis auccoas K&uli
teen a great deal less than they warfl «id pasaio^ 1 mifiht hove been no au«eea at
all.
•„
FDRCFFKKAHBEOMY
Eyewitness Statement of Lonnie Thomas
'- .
of IffEHl?tiB3&
Aft^r Qosine another man get hit clearing A trench* and tire
- . • -
down loss than four asters frou an or.uny buxikisTjS^t Hsopop, onso ^ajii
lila cmn safety, crawled t o the twnch and MJB flntcrlng i t
even ttuwdi his riflu- waa ff^Ay+ I callaii to hlm.oni tosicd him a P4^
that ho "sight rtacd i t . Ho sfoner hpd hs.CBU^hD
• •
i t BM turned than he cams faoe t o face with ^ii HVA rii?ing a r i f l e t&-
HoDper'e head. 5gt Hooper djQizly Shot the nan dead with tfoJ p i i t i l
then tarried the wounded ran book to safety, next morning he wae
fron the
Lato in the day of 21 February- whan OUT ewipany had cjoaiod much of
resistance and we lud approached their final linen I wsa moving in a
trying to clwe in on j bunker wh-in tnezy firs wounded ae in the
dor* The 4*ench waa 30 aarraw that the only vay I would have been able to
have bton by pushing up on. ths sboulldQr that wan wmitid«t» And 1
do this &o 1 va9 trapped and. tmstny fire w^s s t i l l casing In at r.&,
Just -ttiofc I aesf 3gt Hooper running across the Held tatvrd nc with bulbrba
hitting a l l oiound hini Vhen he got to ne he »gt his rLrld down and I noticed
i t vasci't even leaded, He got into tho tronch tfi help Be out ind the bullet*
w)M landing right next to us. Just tlwu aacccaift toas^d hjm a ^45 caliber pifi-
t o l and ho caught i t . But ha &et i t doHn sa that ha eculri litfc QQ up. Just as
lj a VHJ sprang up out of nmrtuere and aipiod h3fl rifle right-at S^Jt Hoopor'a
But Sg.t Hooper grabbed thfl piatol and shot the W aJwut rive tirae, TSo
,45 tore gaping holss in tl» VC nad -hh«* w^tnH snch left of Mm. Then Sgt
carried sue biek to aafaty after saving my
FCaOFFIHftL-USEOHLY .
Eyewitness Statement of William F. Aronow
v B
v fit Hooper mis ctm^tantly flxpraing hlnsflir eiren. afl tha fearful
iFFEIAL USE ^ ^
Executive Officer
Eyewitness Statement of William W. Erbach
:
Situation Diagrams
These diagrams depict the terrain through which Staff Sergeant Joe
R. Hooper passed on 21 February 1968, at the battle of Hue,
Republic of Vietnam. Ultimately, Hooper was awarded the
Congressional Medal of Honor. In an extraordinary occurrence,
Staff Sergeant Clifford C. Sims of the same company earned the
Congressional Medal of Honor on the same day.
CF HAPS
. , : • : • . ' • • . - • • - ' . • • - • _ / . '. - . •
(1} 5gt Hooper find others lead attack and clear five
{2} $gt Hupw avoeuat«e wounded assistant j&Euhine gunner,
(3) 5gt Hooper i s wounded vhila evacuating uc-undfrd o&chlna
v
Sgt Hooper providftB coY^riiig fira as another nui cti?che ooarce of lira,
Sgt 33&aper air^liihandcdly olijuijiBtcn three cnaqy
(6J %b HaapAT fcfcutny ajud puts tan on lir.e.
(?) Tha ChapltLn ia wounded and Sgt Hoc-por k i l l ! tin of the three
He then assisted the Chaplain to ttis rear;
:
5gt Hooper lc^da sweep of ttia i r e s .
(9) Time NVA c » s » d the field and £&b
(10) 5gb Hnptf dcii-troyS house ind tvn crtc^y soldiers Vfith LrA
til) S^t Hooper destroys tvo DOT* liovses with li.A,N,s, killing
Egt Koqpsr mcives fornajTd to- dctcrjiinc result of flr««
%t Hooper leads sweep to m a l l Uuilwir Hns ¥
E^b Uo^par k i l l s iftTJL officer in hand to hand
(15) 3gt Hooper dears house irtth fire and grentfi
(16} Sgfr H-oopcr QlnglxinindlGdlT destroys four enen7 bunkers
(17) fllgb Hooper d^EtTt>ya harder «ri oc«^pa?it* with
IS) S£<b Hoop«r fciiift deforders of cnenp bunker w_th rifla
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Description of Terrain
Ths- terrain through which 3gt liatper HaP forced t o mwieqrar during meet of
dftjrlfl fighting vaP tremandougly denaft, maie up for the most part of t r i e s ,
thiefc undftrgrflwth* and high bantooo tiena, tht letter reaching upwards of forty
feet* Where the bfli±iOi grew A anrlad of intertwining vlmftft blocked svety hope-
ful passage, and the vines were thicfc with thorns. To aovo a&aluet a li
undgr normal conditions vould be (wtranply d l f n c v l t j and t o do so in
vhi^ja «i tfoo offinsiTrt ageinst stpcsig enemy bunterfl would Imvfl &j5Ba«d
bla, Close around ercrj hcunc tho foil^go thinned cut eomqwhat, wud tho«
Occflaidrtal garden- of TKirled VHgiat3(l>3fi&< Fcirthtl- t* thft Iftft w&s A grewtt* of
sugar ouw wwl on ths rf^bfc slda of the hard dirt patb^ftiioli bisectfld the area
was ideo aftar A certain distance VOwre there vaa na rice ttiere wafl no l
ther^ was stirub growth- Itowever 90f£ of Sgt Htm-irtr's attlenaa mare pgrfoirsd
in the dense wooda jind
Ih rront of tho WQodline ran. a fairly v e i l kept road^ be hir.d nhioh
trench which rwi "tho length of t l » woodliiia, and within the trwich w r e
ppKSmatc ly o v « y a i t fKwt, These wtro the flrat c ^ t a e ^ s Sgfc
to owrcaM vtien ho cr«so4 the BtTeam* Jlnd T*midjig poiTrtaditular to those
at vaiTins intervals war* rows of bunTcftra extending the depth &f th& wood.
Theae butikere w«» made of natural matariQls, bostly dug into the grc^nd with
boiibM plecad an. top, OTOP this voaHA be pieced dried clny and then another
ep of oambo* end i t l i l aora clay- The bunltoirj T*ere all connected by narrow
trenches + The eneany had also fortified most of the houses in tha nroa; these ha-i
desortcd by tho local villas^ro **hen th& HVA moved in. The enemy had. l
such things B& ehxlnefr to their advantage end tiieir OV«NJ1 d f
w auch that they cculd cco^tdnually f a l l tads t y at«e«3 i f hard
Shis in fact they did t*> fitaa ajdrtitj tut Sgt Hooper's actions t
boforo they could utiU«e thia plan*
3h front of the wn*dline no morenthan thirtyy meters wa» tha otrean. Jill i t s
approaches nsre eov&red by enflnj' £lre ± end. i t was diffioult t o trass in any
Tbja atwom w&s flgoprtKimately thirty fnet wifle and in coat places vp t o JIT* feot
Ch every side oif ths we?<i i«r* oj*p i i c * piddle^ enabliAg the enia^ to ob-
tain ^^TTrtim fields of fire and 6oservati<n* Thus the i n i t i a l approach was ren-
der*d most difficult, though not aa difficult afl t t mi^it have been as tho $rt*iziA
opposite the BtT&am frentii^ the voodlinje was slightly c-levotfld, sod while the
attocldng force WHS aff oideet no particular advantage 'by thi3 due t o the conceal-
ment of the enemy positiona* tho defenders wwra n<rt efl ehXe as tlisy oi^ht hare
boon t o render effective fire on thn approaching f o w w .
Draft of Citation
CITATION
AND iwrnEPiDiry J T THE MSJC CF HJS ixre ;,B>WE Ann HEHCHD T I E CALL OF
FEBEMIM 19^8 WHU£ SLBJUTIHG JS& SOlAD LEfJIEH WITH Ca<PJiMT J>f 2HD
V^S F i m E D DC«H BT Tffl3 FIEBCE f l S E , BUT SEB^AWT HOOPER RftLUED SSVER/J, HEH
STOPJ--D /J3WSS THE RlTERj OVBRKUroflHG THE BUHKEie OP TflE OFFOSITE.SEMStE. TKIS
JIEPIKED, TH3 R^T OP TEE COHFAHI WVED TO TIE .'LTTACHJ W4D / 5 XT GAINED KOMEBr;&J
THE EWEMC FIJffi IMCERJSEE, TOUKDHKJ /. KUMHEH OF HEW. WITH UTTER DJSEEGtftD Ffflt HIS
SJfJETT, SEEOE^Wr HOOPER MOVED OUT UHDES THE IlWEieE FIRS MJAIH .UID
XUfflttlflG BACK TO HIS MStt HATING APPLIED JV KJVK^HIFT B/iNDACE TO- ICES HOuMp.^ "WXTH
/ ELENTUBSS-EHEMf FIRE 5L0WTHG TKS JVETACK, SERGEiHT tKOQffiHMlCUTED OUT CH- HIS OHK TH
. . • ;
1
J
. ' THE FJtCE OF THIS FIHE / J O S MGLEKANlEEO" 3TOBHED THIEE EtGJfl1 Dli
/ / n u n * ^,™ . TT .,^ « « ™ ll^i
' THEM WITHHJU© C-IJ^ADBS AKD J t H I £ F E E * HE THEH 3HCJT /JflJ KJ
2HSMT -SOlbdEK W10 HftD JTTACKBO /JflJ HOUSTEO THE'CRJinJilH. LEAD; "KG H15 HEH FG:W&£
FIHtlltM KJ3 WEH UHDSS SEVEfffi PUffi F K H Jl HOUSE TO TiE FitOMT^ SEEGE/Jir POOFSji
• "-:-:r- ?URL^iCiALiiSi:QI-lli
• • . • • . . _
F08 GEflCMilS^ a
H0VS3) CMP AIX&5 TQ EL^iLTJAIE IKE TlflE^flND' 'DIDSO', EftE/luHlO INTO THE FtCUSE
THE OCHIPAMS WTM RI7LB FIEE AMD G-ffiHAEES. A5 H E StSTAD REACHED TEE
FIHAL L E E OF ErtEMT HESJ5TJIiIC£ THHf FOURD TIE FIBE CCMB» HWW SEVERAL
TOHE IK UME OK THEDt W T , TO BE tfi/JZLY (JlENCtfRfiBLE.
SEVERAL 1MHD t?aStf;£iiS AND THEM RAJCEO DOHJI A SHBlt TEEBCH WHIGH jyiK THE
CF THE 3UHKEH H U E , KESIHG CSEtfiU)© 3OTO EACH EtWKER i!0 HE F/BBED B I ,
DESTECK1M; THEM B » KULIJIG JILL Elff TWO CF THE OCCtltAHlSj
CAPTURED HMING BEEH BADO WDUlttED. WHH TKE3E
00M3EmJUHED CH THE L/ffT SSTORfX BUHKEffi B l WME FACING EOS HEW. HE J^mTCED THE
7JS&S WTTH m XHOESiDIARY GHEHJlIE AUD IHKH XLnm&SB TTO KOBE, CHS A H/JCKCIE GUW
BUKKEB, ET RIFLE FlflB- I E ^THEjf ftMED 7,fiE3Si-i AH ORB» FIBLS, STILL UTffiBi EHEHX FIKE>
TO RE&CWE A HOUHIBD HJttl WHO Wl£ TRAPPED IK A TRENCH, OH EEJWHBK? THE HUT
HOOFEli tfJi& JtTTACMED B* Jl WOfiTH VEEf!)JlffiSE SOlEJEH WHOM HE KIIIED WITH A
HE THEH MOTED TH£ WVMED MflH TO S/LFEEI JIMD RHUBMED TO HI3 KEM^ THOUGH WDUMDED
H B 6 E U SEraRAL TIME3 HOflfi SIHCE HE Wtf PlffiT H J t . BIJOiT/JlHfl THE FINAL
OF EEEtff RE3n3TANCE, BEEGEilHP HOOPER KE1ED THSEE MDiaK TJE^HAHESB 0FF1CEH3
FIRE* HAVING ISBOHSD HIS PJlIHFUL WffJJIDS AMD LOSS OF B I J X O THBOUGHOUT
, SEBGEAtfF HfiOTai ST1IJ. REFUSED TREJ^MENTj Fii£H;2 CEOT/JK THM HIS MHIj
THE 'rfCUMEB, WESE WEIL CjjHED FOR. HE TIEH EST/lBUSHSD A F3JIAL LIME ^J
KI3 HEN^ HOT A&CEPT1H& TUMTMHfT TIHP11 THIS W S AWCMPLEHED,
NOT UHTIL THE I^XT HORimK THfiT SEHQEAMF KH7£Q dOtSStlFSO TO 3Si;:c
H E SUPREME WJifll flM» 3MSFXEOna IEJJEB3HIP, COUPLED WICH HES HEROIC
MATURE iHD A FDSBCE GOTOTXGOT TO Blfifij VfAS 3Ji?E'jrLV BESPClBlBLE PCE )hVCH OF THE
OOfPAHT'S SEKCESS /ND PHOlTlDED A LJSTIMG EX,'iHPlE JH ESffiOHAJ, COUILM^ TOR
-ON THE FIELD, 3EHGBAWT HOOPER'S OOBSPICUDtlS GALXANTIffl JlHD iKJfP^fjLLITY ja; THE
OF HIS U E E IS- IM KEBPK& V l t H THE HL3HEST TRflDTIlOfS CF TEE i
HIFLECT3 GBE/J CflPBIF UPOH HUSfit? AKD TH5 AJfflED FORCB; OP H B
1 of 6 4/9/2018 7:02 AM
Joe Hooper (Medal of Honor) - Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joe_Hooper_(Medal_of_Honor)
Hooper couldn’t stay out of trouble and suffered several Article 15 hearings, being reduced to the rank of corporal in
July 1967. He was promoted once again to sergeant in October 1967, and was assigned to Company D, 2nd Battalion
(Airborne), 501st Infantry, 101st Airborne Division at Fort Campbell and deployed with the division to Vietnam in
December as a squad leader. During his tour of duty with Delta Company (Delta Raiders), 2nd Battalion (Airborne),
501st Airborne Infantry, 101st Airborne Division, he was recommended for the Medal of Honor for his heroic actions
on February 21, 1968 outside of Hue.
He returned from Vietnam and was discharged in June 1968. He reenlisted in the Army the following September, and
served as a public relations specialist. On March 7, 1969, he was presented the Medal of Honor by President Richard
Nixon during a ceremony in the White House. From July 1969 to August 1970, he served as a platoon sergeant with
the 3rd Battalion, 5th Infantry in Panama. He managed to finagle a second tour in Vietnam; from April to June 1970,
he served as a pathfinder with the 101st Aviation Group, 101st Airborne Division (Airmobile), and from June to
December 1970, he served as a platoon sergeant with Company A, 2nd Battalion, 327th Infantry, 101st Airborne
Division (Airmobile). In December 1970, he received a direct commission to second lieutenant and served as a
platoon leader with Company A, 2nd Battalion, 501st Infantry, 101st Airborne Division (Airmobile) until April 1971.
Upon his return to the United States, he attended the Infantry Officer Basic Course at Fort Benning and was then
assigned as an instructor at Fort Polk, Louisiana. Despite wanting to serve twenty years in the Army, Hooper was
made to retire in February 1974 as a first lieutenant, mainly because he had only completed a handful of college
courses beyond his GED. As soon as he was released from active duty, he joined a unit of the Army Reserve's 12th
Special Forces Group (Airborne) in Washington as a Company Executive Officer. In February 1976, he transferred to
the 104th Division (Training), also based in Washington. He was promoted to captain in March 1977. He attended
drills only intermittently and was separated from the service in September 1978.
For his service in Vietnam, the U.S. Army also awarded Hooper two Silver Stars, six Bronze Stars, eight Purple Hearts,
the Presidential Unit Citation, the Vietnam Service Medal with six campaign stars, and the Combat Infantryman
Badge. He is credited with 115 enemy killed in ground combat, 22 of which occurred on February 21, 1968. He became
one of the most decorated soldiers in the Vietnam War, and was one of three soldiers who were wounded in action
eight times in the war.
2 of 6 4/9/2018 7:02 AM
Joe Hooper (Medal of Honor) - Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joe_Hooper_(Medal_of_Honor)
Rumors persist that he became distressed by the anti-war politics of the time and took to excessive drinking which
contributed to his death.[2] He died of a cerebral hemorrhage in Louisville, Kentucky on May 6, 1979, at the age of 40.
Hooper is buried at Arlington National Cemetery in Section 46, adjacent to the Memorial Amphitheater.
Silver Star
Medal of Honor
w/ 1 bronze oak leaf cluster
Vietnam Cross of Gallantry Republic of Vietnam Campaign Navy Pistol Marksmanship Ribbon
w/ Palm Medal w/ "E" Device
Vietnam Presidential Unit Republic of Vietnam Gallantry Cross Unit Republic of Vietnam Civil Actions Unit
Citation Citation Citation
3 of 6 4/9/2018 7:02 AM
Joe Hooper (Medal of Honor) - Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joe_Hooper_(Medal_of_Honor)
4 of 6 4/9/2018 7:02 AM
Joe Hooper (Medal of Honor) - Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joe_Hooper_(Medal_of_Honor)
With these positions destroyed, he concentrated on the last bunkers facing his
men, destroying the first with an incendiary grenade and neutralizing 2 more by
rifle fire. He then raced across an open field, still under enemy fire, to rescue a
wounded man who was trapped in a trench. Upon reaching the man, he was
faced by an armed enemy soldier whom he killed with a pistol. Moving his
comrade to safety and returning to his men, he neutralized the final pocket of
enemy resistance by fatally wounding 3 North Vietnamese officers with rifle fire.
S/Sgt. Hooper then established a final line and reorganized his men, not
accepting treatment until this was accomplished and not consenting to
evacuation until the following morning. His supreme valor, inspiring leadership
and heroic self-sacrifice were directly responsible for the company's success and
provided a lasting example in personal courage for every man on the field.
S/Sgt. Hooper's actions were in keeping with the highest traditions of the military
service and reflect great credit upon himself and the U.S. Army.[3]
1. http://www.history.army.mil/html/forcestruc/lineages/branches/inf/0325in001bn.htm
2. Anderson, Rick (April 10, 2003). "A Crippled Home Front". Seattle Weekly. Article posted on Captain Hooper's
Arlington National Cemetery profile (http://www.arlingtoncemetery.net/jrhooper.htm). Accessed on 2006-07-10.
3. "Vietnam War Medal of Honor recipients" (http://www.history.army.mil/html/moh/Vietnam-a-l.html). Medal of Honor
citations. United States Army Center of Military History. August 3, 2009. Retrieved July 1, 2010.
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