Overdue Recognition
Army Cpl. Tibor Rubin, a Holocaust survivor and a Korean War POW, has received the Medal of Honor for his bravery in combat and his selfless efforts giving aid to his fellow soldiers.

In a White House ceremony Sept. 23, former Cpl. Tibor Rubin, 76, was awarded the Medal of Honor, receiving long-overdue recognition for his bravery during the Korean War.
 
While serving with Company I, 8th Cavalry Regiment, 1st Cavalry Division, Rubin single-handedly defended a hill for 24 hours against an overwhelming number of North Korean troops so his unit could withdraw to safety. Later, when Chinese forces attacked his unit, he manned a .30-caliber machine gun at the end of the unit’s line until his ammunition was exhausted, slowing the enemy’s advance and helping his fellow soldiers retreat. During the battle Rubin was severely wounded and captured by the Chinese.
 
In a POW camp, Rubin, a Hungarian immigrant not yet a U.S. citizen, used what he had learned about survival while held in a Nazi concentration camp to help his fellow prisoners. During his 30 months there, he risked his life nightly by sneaking out of the camp to steal food and provided medical care and moral support, helping some 40 soldiers survive.

Rubin had been recommended previously for the Medal of Honor, but it is believed a superior officer failed to submit the paperwork because Rubin was Jewish. It was Rubin’s fellow POWs who, in the early 1980s, began a campaign to have his actions honored.

Living Legends

Airmen are getting a chance to learn what it is like to wear heavy cotton khaki uniforms instead of camouflage battle dress uniforms. Living Legends, started at Dover AFB, Del., is a group of active duty airmen who wear vintage Air Force uniforms to honor those who have served in the past.

Airmen don vintage uniforms during events such as Air Force milestones, POW/MIA Observance Day, and annual award ceremonies. They perform normal, everyday duties — including checking identification at the front gate — in their throwback attire.

“It’s amazing watching a civilian pull up [who has] worn that uniform from the Korean War or the Vietnam War,” says Chief Master Sgt. Mark Brejcha, 90th Mission Support Group superintendent at F.E. Warren AFB, Wyo. “They are just flabbergasted.”

Locating uniforms is key to the program, and Brejcha challenges each airman wearing a vintage uniform to learn about the person who wore it.