Posted on 01/14/2009 3:30:34 PM PST by posterchild
John Ripley's relationship with the Marines was love at first sight.
His initial glimpse of the Corps came when he was kid, hawking newspapers on a train. His father was a manager for the railroad.
"One day he sold papers to soldiers who were returning from World War II," said Stephen Ripley, 43, the eldest of John Ripley's four children. "Some Marines gave him a 50-cent tip for papers that cost 10 cents each. He also saw their swagger. He never forgot that."
After graduating from Radford (Va.) High School in 1957, he enlisted — and that commitment paid off for the Corps.
Ripley is best remembered for a particular feat during the 1972 Easter Offensive of the Vietnam War.
With Rambo-esque daring under fire, Ripley blew up a key river bridge, stopping a column of communist tanks trying to cross during a ferocious battle.
Exploits like that earned him a reputation as the Marine's Marine. Among his many medals, Ripley was decorated with the Navy Cross and Silver Star for his service in the Vietnam War.
(Excerpt) Read more at investors.com ...
We need to pass on to the younger generation more stories like this.
“Semper Fidelis”
Ripley rigged satchels with 500 pounds of TNT and C4 explosive.
“I used my teeth to crimp (each) detonator and thus pinch it into place on the fuse,” he told the Marine Corps Times last June. “I crimped it with my teeth while the detonator was halfway down my throat.”
~sheesh~
Total Stud.
DOOJHHHHHH
1/2 HOUR LONG EPISODE of a real Hero story!!
Why do they make movies about fantasies like Spiderman when guys like Ripley are real? RIP Ripley
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Just adding to the catalog, not sending a general distribution. |
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