Bob Weimann is former Commanding Officer,
Kilo Co., 3/1 and a senior contributing editor to
Defend Our Marines.
Posted on 04/10/2009 7:06:43 PM PDT by RedRover
Bob Weimann is former Commanding Officer,
Kilo Co., 3/1 and a senior contributing editor to
Defend Our Marines.
BUMP!
Bump back atcha, jaz! And, hey, did you notice who popped in a photo? There’s a Freeper in every crowd.
Keepers of the Faith. Guardians of the Faithful.
Semper Fi.
Hey Red, ya just can’t keep them FReepers down. They’re at all the events that mean anything!
Sgt Major Robert J. Weimann entered the Marine Corps in 1937, initially assigned as an artilleryman at Quantico, Virginia. Bob, always the athletic, participated in all Marine sports to include football, basketball, and coaching the Marine Corps boxing team. Bob excelled at marksmanship and was assigned as a Rifle Range Instructor at Quantico after making Corporal. While at the Quantico rifle range, he would participate in the evaluation of the M1 Grand the Johnson Rifle. Both rifles were under consideration by both the Army and the Marines as the next standard issue combat rifle. The Marine Corps would recommend the Johnson Rifle over the M1, however, the Army recommended and got the M1 Grand.
Bob would leave the Marines in early 1941 to begin a law enforcement career. Initially, he was a security guard at Lakehurst Naval Station. While there World War II broke out. Shortly after Pearl Harbor, Bob began seeing his “old corps” Marines come through Lakehurst for Marine parachute training. Bob would re-enlist at Lakehurst and join HQ Company, 1st Para-Marine Battalion, 1st Marine Division as the 60mm Mortar Platoon Sergeant.
During the Guadalcanal Campaign, Bob would land with the Para-Marines on the small island of Gavutu. The Guadalcanal airfield landing was unopposed because the 1200 Japanese defenders had fortified themselves on Gavutu and its adjoining island of Tanambogo. As the “Chutes” landed, they were caught in a three way cross fire from Gavutu, Tanambogo and Tulagi. Bob would land with C Company, its landing craft pulling next to the pier to off load their Marines. Bob initially stood on the side of his landing craft, grab a pier piling and hook his feet in the landing craft gunnels in order to keep the craft next to the pier allowing his follow Marines to quickly debark. Bob would move his mortar section to the beach and maintain suppressive fires on Tanambogo for the remainder of the day. The Para-Marines would secure Gavutu by the end of the day with a causality rate of almost 50%.
The 200 remaining Para-Marines were then attached to the Marine Raider Battalion. Bob would scrounge a Johnson automatic rifle and stand with Col Edison on Bloody Ridge the night a reinforced brigade of approximately 6000 Japanese attack the “Chutes” and Raiders. A recent book titled “Battalion of the Damned” by James Christ, captures that incredible story how Marines, outnumbered, starved, sick and short supplied, managed to prevail over a numerically superior enemy. Bob would become a causality that night from a Japanese grenade.
After med-evac and convalescence leave, Bob would be assigned to the heavy cruiser USS Quincy. The Quincy was a Utah Beach fire support ship for the Normandy D-Day landings. Towards the close of the war the Quincy would host the Yalta Conferences between President Roosevelt, Churchill and Stalin. Bob would serve as FRD’s aide while the President was aboard the Quincy.
Bob would serve in another combat tour during the Korean War with 7th Marines.
After the Korean War, Bob would serve on the Martine Corps Pistol Team at Quantico. Bob became a US Marine Distinguished Shooter, the Marines highest marksmanship honor, while on the Team.
Thanks for posting this account of Sgt. Maj. Weimann, he’s a Marines Marine, Lt. Col. Weimann has to be extremely proud of Dad.
Amen.
Always grateful.
An incredible life and record of service, to say the least! And he recognized a kindred spirit in Justin when Bob the son brought Justin’s story to his dad’s attention. That’s what prompted this award.
That's quite an impressive military history of Sgt. Major Weimann's time in the Corps. A Marine through and through.
From: Detachment Commandant
To: All Detachment Members and Present Guests
Subject: The Bob Weimann Achievement Award for Cpl Justin Sharrett
1. To all those present, greetings. This awarded is presented to Cpl Justin Sharratt for his actions on 19 November 2005, during combat action in the Iraqi city of Haditha. The purpose of this award is to recognize Cpl Sharrett’s exceptional bravery and demonstration of the United States Marine Corps values of Honor, Courage, Commitment and Presence of Mind.
2. On the morning of 5 November 2005, Cpl Sharrett was participating in a squad size motorized patrol providing support to his platoon and Kilo Company, 3rd Battalion, 1st Marine Regiment in the Iraqi city of Haditha. An enemy IED (Improvised Explosive Device) initiated an ambush on Cpl Sharrett’s squad. Immediately after the explosion, the enemy commenced small arms fire on the squad’s wounded and corpman.
3. As the squad began to respond to enemy fire and treat wounded, they identified enemy fire coming from a house south of the Marine casualties. As the squad leader organized and commenced a counter attack on the house, Cpl Sharrett manned a machine gun delivering suppressive and covering fire while squad members crossed an open kill zone. This action enabled the squad to position itself next to the building without casualties and commence a clearing attack.
4. Cpl Sharrett would then man an OP with two other squad members to secure the ambush area while casualties were evacuated. While in this OP, SSgt Wuterich, the squad leader, Cpl Salinas and Cpl Sharratt observe some Iraqi males looking over an exterior house wall. After observing this activity for a few minutes, Cpl Salines fires a M203 round at the wall and they see the males run into house. A few minutes later the males return to the wall and SSgt Wuterich makes the decision to investigate with Salinas and Sharratt.
5. When they get to the house, the three Marines realize that the house is actually two buildings. They enter the first building and find only women and children. The women communicate to the Marines that the males are in the next house. Salinas is left to maintain security on the Iraqi’s in the first structure. SSgt Wuterich and Cpl Sharratt enter the main hallway of the second building with Sharratt leading. As they move to the house’s center, an enemy combatant suddenly confronts Cpl Sharratt from one of the interior doors with an AK-47.
6. At this point during this engagement, Cpl Sharratt demonstrates those exceptional Marine traits of bravery, presence of mind, aggressiveness and marksmanship. When the enemy Iraqi, with the AK-47 appears in the doorway, Cpl Sharratt’s aims his weapon and it jams. At the same time, the enemy’s weapon has a miss fire. The enemy combatant pops behind the wall and Cpl Sharratt begins to move to cover. As Cpl Sharratt is moving, the enemy pops back into the doorway with a cleared AK-47. Cpl Sharratt releases his jammed weapon, draws his pistol and drops the armed enemy with a headshot. Cpl Sharratt then attacks into the room; sees four more enemy combatants with another AK-47. He commences and continues fire on this group of enemy until his pistol is empty. He then calls to his squad leader that his pistol is empty, steps to the side and while SSgt Wuterich continues to fire until all four enemy are dead.
7. Cpl Sharrett reacted based on his training, teamwork and comaraderie. Both Marines survived because Cpl Sharratt possessed the presence of mind to draw his pistol, when his light machinegun jammed, and aggressively assault into a room full of enemy.
8. Cpl Sharrett’s bravery, marksmanship, commitment, and presence of mind significantly contributed to the success of this combat operation. As a member of Kilo Company, 3rd Battalion, 1st Marine Regiment, Cpl Sharrett demonstrated the United States Marine Corps' values of Honor, Courage, Commitment and Presence of Mind.
It is with great pride, we present Cpl Justin Sharrett, with the Marine Corps League, Semper Fidelis Detachment, Bob Weimann Achievement Award.
Robert J. Weimann
SgtMaj, USMC Ret.
I'm glad you were there, Smooth.
Congratulations to Justin. You’re right, Red, there’s a FReeper in every crowd! Good job, smooth.
HA! Always good to see one of our own in the crowd. Great job and thanks for being there!
Glad you got here, Justa. What an honor for Justine and a well deserved one after what he went through. I’m also envious of Smooth for him being there, I would have been honored to be there with them.
Now that you’re on line with the hi tech stuff again we expect to see more of you ;-)
I’m sure Justin felt honored by the award and turnout. You are looking good, my friend!
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