15 Jan 1999 REMEMBERED by his cousin, Carl Holden Current E-Mail address not available

 

20 October 2002 The ceremony for the award of the Silver Star for Galen Warren to his mother Virginia will be held on 19 Oct 2002 at 1400 (2:00PM) at Floral Hills Cemetery. Presenting the award will be the Commanding Officer, Naval Station Everett; also in attendence will be Congresswoman Jennifer Dunn (without whose help this would not be taking place), Galen's former Commanding Officer, his Platoon Radioman, and another member of Galen's Platoon. There will be Honor Guards from both active Navy and Marine Corps as well as a group of active Navy Corpsmen that have served or are presently serving with the Marines. The presentation will be held graveside, weather permitting, followed by a reception. Floral Hills is donating a marble stand to Galen's marker and is trying to secure a new marker to reflect both the Purple Heart and Silver Star Medals (thru the VA). If this cannot be done then they are prepared to donate one from a private company. Members of 423 Color/Honor Guard: The uniform of the day will be be Class As. Other members are invited to wear them if they have them. Please pass this information on to all other Vets. SFC Robert D. Hitchings USA (Ret.) RGR/ABN

 

5 Mar 2005 Galen and I were high-school friends. Galen, with Irvin Robinson, Freddy Bratton, and I formed a core that we thought would last forever. And now, over forty years after graduation, I found this. Thoughts of Galen, his girl friend Kitty, and the many changes that have happened - and what might have been - flood back. The Nation honored a good man with its Silver Star and its Purple Heart. It is a material token of the character of the man - courageous, giving, and absolutely loyal to those for whom he cared. I am honored to have known him. From a friend, W. Jake Jacobs wjj@u.arizona.edu

 

A Note from The Virtual Wall From the earliest days of major US involvement in Vietnam the North Vietnamese had taken free use of the Demilitarized Zone for granted, believing that political considerations would prevent American ground operations within the DMZ. And they were right for almost two years - until May 1967. On 18 May 1967 the Marines began OPERATION HICKORY with the mission of "removing enemy forces and installations from the southern half of the DMZ". Led by the 9th Marines, HICKORY was the first major incursion into the DMZ. The Allied attack was supported by a massive Navy-Marine-Air Force effort, the landing of SLFs Alpha and Bravo, and a parallel sweep by the 1st ARVN Division - all headed into the DMZ. HICKORY took the NVA by complete surprise. Although the operation lasted only ten days half a dozen enemy battalions were caught off-guard south of the DMZ. At least 815 of the enemy were dead; 445 killed by the Marines, 370 by the ARVN. The NVA had been given notice that the southern half of the DMZ would no longer be a sanctuary, their command and control arrangements had been disrupted, they had lost much in supplies and ammunition, and their fortifications had been dismantled. The operation was far from easy, though; the Marines lost at least 129 men: 2/9 Marines: 23 men 3/9 Marines: 40 men 2/26 Marines: 28 men 1/3 Marines: 20 men 2/3 Marines: 18 men HN Galen Warren was one of 24 sailors and Marines from 3/9 who died in heavy fighting on 20 May 1967. The President of The United States takes pride in presenting the SILVER STAR MEDAL to Hospital Corpsman Third Class Galen E. Warren United States Navy For services set forth in the following CITATION: For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidy in action while serving as a Hospital Corpsman with 2nd Platoon, Company L, Third Battalion, Ninth Marines, Third Marine Division (Reinforced) in the Republic of Vietnam on the evening of 20 May 1967. During operation Hickory, 2nd Platoon was point Platoon of Company L moving to bring a relief force to an embattled sister company when it engaged a strong enemy blocking force. The enemy opened up on the relief force with heavy automatic fire and grenades wounding several of the Marines on point. Without hesitation, responding to cries for help from the wounded Marines, and calmly accepting the consequences of his actions, Petty Officer Warren ran into the heavy enemy fire to aid the wounded Marines. With complete disregard for his own safety, Petty Officer Warren administered critical medical aid to the wounded Marines while under heavy enemy automatic weapons fire and a barrage of grenades. Petty Officer Warren shielded several of the wounded Marines from a grenade blast and continued to render medical aid until he was mortally wounded. Petty Officer Warren's outstanding courage, valiant fighting spirit, and selfless devotion to duty reflect great credit upon him and were in keeping with the highest traditions of the United States Naval Service. For the President

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