Morgan Stanley
Smith Barney
You are cordially invited to an inspirational evening to hear:
Medal of Honor Recipient
Sammy L. Davis, US Army Battery C, 2nd Battalion, 4th Artillery, 9th Infantry Division
Discuss his amazing story which is detailed in the book:
“Medal of Honor – Portraits of Valor Beyond the Call of Duty”
Hosted by:
Morgan Stanley Smith Barney
Date:
Tuesday, April 19, 2011
5:45pm Refreshments & Hors d’oeuvres
7:00pm Presentation
Location:
National Infantry Museum
1775 Legacy Way
Columbus, GA 31903
(706) 685-5800
Please RSVP to your Financial Advisor
Or to
Robbin Grier
Registered Associate
(706) 324-5471
The guest speaker is neither an employee nor affiliated with Morgan Stanley Smith Barney LLC. Opinions expressed by the guest speaker are solely his own and do not necessarily reflect those of Morgan Stanley Smith Barney.
© 2011 Morgan Stanley Smith Barney LLC. Member SIPC.
THE RHODODENDRON TRAIL
Tuesday evening was spent at The National Infantry Museum, [http://www.nationalinfantrymuseum.com/] where we toured some of the displays which are life-size dioramas showing significant infantry actions from the American Revolution through Iraq. Each display includes a video as a part of it; the one of Vietnam has the video screen which shows actual fighting scenes located in a full-size helicopter. We learned there is a firing range on the top floor which allows visitors to fire actual weapons, but we didn’t go there. We then went to the lower floor for refreshments before the presentation.
Bob Jerome, a Morgan-Stanley-Smith-Barney official from NYC, who works closely with the Medal of Honor Foundation, introduced Sammy Davis, Medal of Honor recipient, and the evening proceeded with a video featuring several recipients telling of their experience.Davis joined the Army from Indianapolis, Indiana, in 1965. By November 18, 1967, he was serving as a private first class with Battery C, 2nd Battalion, 4th Artillery Regiment, 9th Infantry Division, in the Republic of Vietnam. On that day, his unit was west of Cai Lay when they fell under heavy mortar attack by the Viet Cong as around 15,000 VC swarmed the area. Upon detecting an enemy position, Davis manned a machine gun to give his comrades covering fire so they could fire artillery in response. Davis was wounded, but ignored warnings to take cover, taking over the unit's burning howitzer and firing several shells himself. He also disregarded his inability to swim (due to injuries; Davis knew how to swim), crossing a river on an air mattress to help rescue three wounded American soldiers. He ultimately found his way to another howitzer site to continue fighting the VC attack until they fled. He was subsequently promoted to sergeant and received the Medal of Honor the following year. Davis was forced to retire in 1984 due to his injuries. Footage of his Medal of Honor award ceremony was used in the 1994 film Forrest Gump, with actor Tom Hanks' head superimposed over that of Davis.
Then Sgt. Davis and Bob Jerome took over in a Q & A format with the two of them sitting in chairs on a dais and talking. It was an emotionally moving evening with the emphasis on “I’m not a hero; anyone of those with me would have done the same for me. I was just doing my job.” Sgt. Davis’ rendition of “Shenandoah” on the harmonica linked with his memories of its ties to a Captain in Viet Nam brought tears. After the program, there was time for photographs and then each invitee received an autographed copy of the book Medal of Honor-Portraits of Valor Beyond the Call of Duty including a DVD.
[http://www.homeofheroes.com/sammydavis/index.html]
