Today’s #VeteranOfTheDay is Navy Corpsman Gary Norman Young.
Gary was killed in action in Vietnam, two months before his daughter was born, never knowing he was to have a child.
His daughter, Stephanie, was adopted at birth. It wasn’t until she was 26-years-old that she set forth to discover her birth parents.
Stephanie’s research led her to her father’s identity, as well as his legacy.
Gary and his crew members went down during a medevac mission. On February 7, 1969, in the Arizona Territory near An Hoa, his helicopter was approaching a rice paddy to evacuate a wounded Marine. The aircraft was shot down by the enemy and six of the seven crew members lost their lives.
We honor the service of Gary and his crew.
Nominate a Veteran for #VeteranOfTheDay
Do you want to light up the face of a special Veteran? Have you been wondering how to tell your Veteran they are special to you? You’re in luck! VA’s #VeteranOfTheDay social media feature is an opportunity to highlight your Veteran and his/her service..
It’s easy to nominate a Veteran. All it takes is an email to newmedia@va.gov with as much of the information as you can put together with some good photos. Visit our blog post about nominating for how to create the best submission.
Topics in this story
More Stories
This week’s Honoring Veterans Spotlight honors the service of Navy Veteran Ken Mattingly, who served as a pilot during the 1950s and later became an astronaut during the Apollo missions.
This week’s Honoring Veterans Spotlight honors the service of Air Force Veteran Gavino Cavazos, who served from 1949 to 1973 during both the Korean and Vietnam Wars.
This week’s Honoring Veterans Spotlight honors the service of Army Veteran Howard Brown, who served during the Vietnam War from 1964 to 1969 and the Gulf War from 1969 to 1992.
Gary Young and I were in boot camp together, and kept in touch until he was assigned to a Marine Unit and I was assigned to Submarine School.
He was a grand guy—the kind of young man people hope their kids become. I have talked with his daughter Stephanie, and shared how much Gary was respected by his peers.
He and millions of other U.S. Veterans have bought me the opportunity to reminisce quietly, before dawn on Memorial Day, 47 years after his death, in a still free land—and very grateful to be American.
In this predawn quiet I find that I am reminded of Thomas Jefferson’s writings, in which Jefferson proclaimed, ” “The tree of liberty must be refreshed from time to time with the blood of patriots and tyrants.” Today American patriots are still sacrificing their lives in opposition to a more current crop of despots and tyrants.—but despots and tyrants, none-the-less.
In that remembrance of Gary Young and many others, who sacrificed so we can find our way to all The Almighty intended for us to be in America; I am experiencing a profound sense of gratitude and awe.
May The Almighty rest their souls, hallow their memories and bless America.
Thank you, Gary; I know you are in a better place.
Fish