Here are Thursday’s three Medal of Honor recipients

President Donald Trump awarded the Medal of Honor to three people Thursday for their actions during combat, including two people for their actions during the Vietnam War.The three former service members are Major James Capers, Jr., of the U.S. Marine Corps; Colonel John W. Ripley of the U.S. Marine Corps, who will receive the award posthumously; and Major Nicholas Dockery of the U.S. Army.
The Medal of Honor is given to service members who “distinguish themselves conspicuously by gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of their own lives above and beyond the call of duty,” according to the White House.
James Capers Jr:
Capers is receiving the award for his actions during a four-day reconnaissance patrol in the Vietnam War. Capers, who was a second lieutenant at the time, served as the Team Leader with 3d Force Reconnaissance Company, 3d Reconnaissance Battalion in the Republic of Vietnam from March 31 to April 3, 1967.
During the patrol, where the team was tasked with locating a North Vietnamese regimental base camp, Capers successfully directed fire onto an enemy base camp, thwarting an impending attack on a nearby Marine battalion.
On the final day, Capers’ patrol was ambushed by a claymore mine and came under intense fire where he sustained multiple serious wounds. 
“Ignoring his injuries and extreme blood loss, the officer continued to lead his team, coordinate supporting fire and direct their movement to an extraction site,” the White House said. “Refusing to be evacuated before all his men were safe, he ensured the entire team was extracted before finally boarding the helicopter.”
John W. Ripley:
Ripley is receiving the award posthumously for his actions in 1972, while serving as Senior Marine Advisor to the Third Vietnamese Marine Corps Infantry Battalion, where he played a “pivotal role in halting a major North Vietnamese mechanized assault,” by destroying a bridge while under heavy fire.
“To destroy the bridge, Captain Ripley single-handedly moved 500 pounds of explosives into position,” the White House said. “For three hours, he repeatedly exposed himself to intense enemy fire as he climbed beneath the bridge along its bridge’s steel beams to emplace the explosive charges at key structural points. 
“After successfully setting the explosives, he detonated the charges, completely destroying the bridge and stopping the enemy’s advance,” the White House added.
Nicholas Dockery:
The final recipient on Thursday was Nicholas Dockery, who received the medal for his actions as a Second-Lieutenant while serving in Afghanistan in 2012.
Dockery’s platoon, where he was serving as team leader, was ambushed by the Taliban on Oct. 2, 2012, where he risked his life repeatedly over the course of four hours to save and evacuate three wounded members of his platoon. 
“After consolidation and reorganization, he directed rotary wing aircraft in the defense against subsequent enemy counter-attacks from an exposed rooftop while his unit evacuated the wounded soldiers,” the White House said.
The president previously gave the Medal of Honor to three other American heroes earlier this year, including two posthumously for actions taken in World War II and actions taken in Afghanistan. The third was to another hero of the Vietnam War.
Misty Severi is a news reporter for Just The News. You can follow her on X for more coverage. 

Read Full Article: https://justthenews.com/government/white-house/here-are-thursdays-three-medal-honor-recipients?utm_source=justthenews.com&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=external-news-aggregators