Posted on 07/29/2005 4:59:50 PM PDT by SandRat
MARINE CORPS RECRUIT DEPOT SAN DIEGO, Calif. (July 29, 2005) -- Representatives from one of the Marine Corps' most decorated battalions bestowed to the depot a limited painting reproduction signed by more than 30 Medal of Honor recipients at James L. Day Hall July 15.
Second Battalion, 4th Marines Association veterans presented one of three prints to depot commanding general Brig. Gen. John M. Paxton Jr., who once served with 2/4.
Medal of Honor recipient Robert E. O'Malley's wife, Lily, created the artwork, which displays images of World War II, Vietnam and Korea. The print will hang at the command museum. The other two prints are gifts for Marine Corps Recruit Depot Parris Island, S.C., and Headquarters Marine Corps, Washington, D.C.
Retired Maj. Gen. James E. Livingston - who received the Medal of Honor for actions in 1968 as a captain leading a company in Vietnam - opened with a brief oral history on the battalion.
The Marine Corps's 26th Commandant, Gen. Louis H. Wilson Jr., also signed the print before he passed away June 21. Gen. Wilson received the Medal of Honor for actions in Guam, 1944.
Brig. Gen. Paxton told the association members he felt great to be back with the "Magnificent Bastards" of 2/4, and he assured them, "We will find a place of honor to hang this."
According to association officials, Lt. Col. Joseph R. "Bull" Fisher coined the moniker "Magnificent Bastards" in June 1964 at Kaneohe Bay, Hawaii, as he assumed command and addressed the battalion.
The battalion has been deactivated, reactivated and moved around different regiments.
The long and illustrious history of 2/4 began in 1914 during World War I when it was activated as one of the three battalions of the Fourth Marine Regiment.
From WWI to Operation Iraqi Freedom, the battalion's lineage spans events from major conflicts to expeditionary duty in many nations, to include Mexico, the Dominican Republic, China, Korea, Philippines and Vietnam.
No other battalion has served in both the 5th and 6th Marine Regiments, which rate wearing the French Fourragere earned during the Battle of Belleau Wood in France, WWI.
MCRD & MOH Ping.
Semper Fi from a few miles up the street form MCRD.
BTW my great uncle, a Marine, was wounded at Belleau Woods
Semper Fi to the Magnificent Bastards from an FMF Corpsman of the Fifth Marines.
Doc,
My best to you and your service!
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