Published: October 18, 2011
SEBRING - Any soldier who was assisted by a corpsman in the field or by medical staff back behind the lines may appreciate the efforts of John Vawter, past commander of VFW Post 4300, who wants to honor military medical personnel.
Vawter said Monday he is trying to find a location in Highlands County to erect a small-scale version of a bronze statue like the one for the National Medical War Memorial and Youth Center in Blue Springs, Mo., where groundbreaking is already under way.
A statue that's 1½ times life-size will eventually be sculpted in wax, cast and placed on a 30-foot round pedestal in Blue Springs.
A scale-model statue, sculpted by Lewis Lee Millett Jr., depicts Congressional Medal of Honor recipient Donald L. Ballard, HM2, U.S. Navy, who on May 16, 1968 jumped on a live grenade while aiding three wounded Marines in Vietnam.
Actually, Ballard was treating seven Marines at the time of the incident while receiving small arms fire and grenade attacks, according to the event described by the citation. Full article
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