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Champion Eagle Scout says scouting "defines" him as a person
HOWLAND
Freedom, the most precious thing an American can have, is given at birth in the United States, Medal of Honor recipient Marine Chief Warrant Officer Hershel “Woody” Williams told Scouts and Scout leaders at Monday’s Friends of Scouting Breakfast fundraiser.
Williams, who grew up on a dairy farm in West Virginia, said he was with the Civilian Conservation Corps in Montana when the leaders there told the workers about the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor.
“None of us had ever heard of Pearl Harbor. They told us America had been bombed and Americans killed, but when they said our freedom was threatened, that made the difference,” said Williams, who requested his release from the CCC and went home and enlisted in the Marine Corps.
Williams, who earned the Medal of Honor for his heroic actions during the Battle of Iwo Jima (Feb. 19– March 26, 1945) in the Pacific Theater during World War II for knocking out seven reinforced concrete pillboxes, was keynote speaker for the event at Leo’s Ristorante.
In a video and speaking in person, Williams said the commanding officer asked if there was anyone who could eliminate the pillbox holding the unit back.
Williams, trained for demolitions, heard someone say “I can. It might have been me.”
Williams, a corporal at the times, said the next four hours “really weren’t real.”
He and four ground Marines assigned to protect him, two of whom were killed, destroyed the pillboxes by getting on the side of them where they couldn’t be seen and then crawling on top and dropping demolitions through a hole.
“Don’t ask me how we did it. A bunch of Japanese soldiers came out of one to get me. I got them first,” he said.
President Harry Truman pinned the Medal of Honor on Williams’ uniform, and later he was invited into the office of the Marine Corps commandant.
“I don’t know which scared me the most,” he said.
The commandant, who was himself a Medal of Honor recipient, told him that the medal belongs to the Marines who didn’t come home and to never do anything to tarnish it because it stands for sacrifice and service.”
Part of the “Scout Oath” is to “do my duty to God and My Country.”
After the breakfast, Williams was escorted to the Trumbull County Veterans Memorial Park in downtown Warren where a brick was placed on the Pacific Theater side of the memorial inscribed with Williams’ name, service branch, war in which he served, and that he is a Medal of Honor recipient.
Other speakers included Jonathon Boyd, Eagle Scout from Boy Scout Troop 25 sponsored by Champion Christian Church; and Jason Wolf, Scout executive for the Greater Western Reserve Council.
Boyd, who is studying physics at Kent State University on a full scholarship, thanked his Scout leaders and the Scouting program for instilling the values that employers look for.
“Scouting defines me as a person,” said Boyd, who wore his Scout uniform for his high-school senior picture.
Boyd’s Scoutmaster was James Rapone, a former Marine and Vietnam War veteran, who was instrumental in bringing Williams as the event’s keynote speaker.
Wolf, in his “state of Scouting” report, said that in 2013 in the six counties served by the council, including Trumbull and Mahoning, the council served 8,500 young people, had 2,500 volunteers and touched 5,000 families.
He said that new merit badges are being developed to reflect the times, and that programs are being delivered by committed, trained, dedicated leaders who are passionate about what Scouting does.