Seventy-six years after saving the lives of crew members from the USS Arizona, an Arkansas man posthumously received a Bronze Star on Thursday for his bravery at Pearl Harbor.
The daughter of Chief Boatswain's Mate Joseph George, Joe Ann Taylor of Cabot, traveled to Hawaii for the awards presentation, which was held on the anniversary of the Japanese attack. George died in 1996.
A "v" device -- a quarter-inch letter "V" -- was attached to the award; it acknowledges George's valor in combat.
Rear Adm. Matthew Carter, deputy commander of the U.S. Pacific Fleet, delivered the medal during a private ceremony at the USS Arizona Memorial in Pearl Harbor at 4:50 p.m. Hawaii-Aleutian time (8:50 p.m. CST).
[FLASHBACK: See Arkansas Gazette's Dec. 8, 1941, front page]
Earlier Thursday, in Iowa, a Silver Star was posthumously given to the family of Chaplain Lt. j.g. Aloysius Schmitt. The Roman Catholic priest, who remained aboard the USS Oklahoma as it was sinking, blessed sailors as they headed to safety and urged rescuers to save others first.
Secretary of the Navy Richard Spencer, who awarded the medals, said giving the medals was "not only appropriate but simply the right thing to do."
"One of my highest priorities is to honor the service and sacrifice of our Sailors, Marines, Civilians, and family members and it is clear that Lt. Schmitt and Chief George are heroes whose service and sacrifice will stand as an example for current and future service members," he said in a written statement.
George, a boatswain's mate second class at the time, was serving aboard the USS Vestal, a repair ship, on the morning of Dec. 7, 1941.
He was reading the Sunday newspaper when the bombardment began.
The Vestal was moored to the Arizona and, like the doomed battleship, was hit early in the bombing raid; crew members rushed to sever the lines and to stamp out the flames.
"Despite the extreme danger posed by enemy machine guns, bombs, and torpedoes," George "steadfastly maintained his exposed position topside to assist in damage control efforts and preparations to get VESTAL underway," the citation stated.
Minutes after the barrage began, a monstrous explosion shook the Arizona. Of the 1,512 men assigned to that vessel, 1,177 lost their lives because of the attack.
"Intense fires raged aboard ARIZONA and in the surrounding oil-slicked water, making escape nearly impossible. Several severely burned and stranded ARIZONA crewmembers hailed Chief George, who immediately tossed them a line, across which they crawled one by one to VESTAL. Chief George then assisted VESTAL in getting clear of the danger posed by ARIZONA."
Two men, now in their 90s, who crossed the rope have said they owe their lives to George.
On Thursday, the U.S. Navy concurred.
"Were it not for Chief George's actions, all the ARIZONA Sailors would likely have perished," the citation stated. "By his initiative, courage, and devotion to duty, Chief George reflected great credit upon himself and upheld the highest traditions of the United States Naval Service."
George, who retired from the Navy in 1955 as a chief petty officer, eventually moved to Arkansas -- his wife's home state.
He died on Sept. 27, 1996, at age 80.
Several years before his death, he shared his memories of Pearl Harbor with a researcher from the University of North Texas, relating that he had thrown the lifeline that saved six lives.
"They were surrounded by fire on the Arizona," he told the interviewer. "They were stranded over on the ship, and they were trying to get off."
It took several throws before George was able to reach the distressed sailors.
Battered and burned, they secured the rope to their dying ship and then, hand over hand, made their way across.
Dangling 45 feet above a flame-covered sea, they somehow traversed the 75-foot-long rope, escaping before the lines were finally severed. Soon thereafter, the Arizona slipped beneath the water.
Taylor has worked for years to draw attention to her father's heroism, arguing that his courage should be recognized.
Earlier this year, President Donald Trump agreed.
In July, he met with Taylor and with two of the men George saved: Donald Stratton of Colorado Springs, Colo., and Lauren Bruner of Torrance, Calif.
After thanking the survivors for a lifetime of service and sacrifice, Trump described George as "a true patriot" whose "courage knew no limits."
Stratton, the author of All the Gallant Men: An American Sailor's Firsthand Account of Pearl Harbor, said George had been ordered to cut the Vestal loose.
But George paused from his assigned task long enough to save six lives.
"Had Joe George not stood up for us -- had he not been a rebel and refused to cut the line connecting the Vestal to the Arizona -- we would have been cooked to death on that platform," Stratton wrote. "If anyone deserved a Medal of Honor that day, in my opinion, it was him. And I know at least five others who would second that."
George's bravery was admired by his commanding officer, who officially commended him for his actions.
But it took more than three-quarters of a century for a medal to be awarded.
After meeting with Trump at the White House in July, Taylor said she's pleased that her dad's bravery has been acknowledged.
"I'm enormously grateful," she said, "that my father's story is being told."
Metro on 12/08/2017