Medal of Honor recipient will headline this year’s Marine Birthday Ball
January 26, 2015
By W. Thomas Smith Jr.
U.S. Marines have a long-held reputation of being “first to fight.” They are also first – at least early – when it comes to planning their annual birthday ball here in the Midlands; this year being the 240th anniversary of the Marine Corps.
Celebrated worldwide since Nov. 10, 1921 – the 146th birthday (American Marines were brought into existence by an act of the 2nd Continental Congress, Nov. 10, 1775) – the Corps hammers its birthdate into the minds of fledgling leathernecks during boot camp. And all Marines – active, Reserve, retired, and former (there are no ex-Marines) – commemorate the date throughout their lives.
“This is a big day for us,” says Maj. Gen. Eugene F. Rogers, Joint Services Det., SCMD (Ret.), a former Air Force Reserve JAG officer and World War II-era Marine NCO. “We have been celebrating our birthday since then-commandant Gen. John Lejeune issued an order in the 1920’s directing that ‘Marines should commemorate the birthday of our corps by calling to mind the glories of its long and illustrious history.’”
The theme for this year’s birthday ball in Columbia is “The title, MARINE, is earned, never given.” Hosted by the Greater Columbia Marine Foundation and various Marine Corps League Detachments, the 2015 birthday ball will be celebrated Nov. 7 (a few days before Nov. 10) at the Embassy Suites Hotel. Guest speaker will be retired Marine Maj. Gen. James E. Livingston, recipient of the Medal of Honor, the nation’s highest award for combat valor. Livingston was awarded the Medal for his actions as a young captain in the 1968 battle of Dai Do, Vietnam.
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– W. Thomas Smith Jr. – a former U.S. Marine rifleman – is a military analyst and partner with NATIONAL DEFENSE CONSULTANTS, LLC. Visit him at http://uswriter.com.
