Joseph R Kerrey
Joseph, also known as Bob, was born on the 27th of August 1943, in Lincoln, Nebraska, and was one of seven children. His father’s grandfather had served in the Army under then General Grant, and Bob’s father and uncle were both in the US Army during World War 2. When Bob graduated from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln with a Bachelor of Science degree in pharmacy, he knew he was likely to be drafted and instead volunteered for the US Navy in October of 1966. Following Officer Candidate School, he attended Basic Underwater Demolition/SEAL training and graduated with class 42 in December of 1967, then going on to join SEAL Team 1. By January of 1969, Bob was deployed to the Republic of Vietnam and within three months would display actions that would earn him the Medal of Honor. The citation reads:
For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty while serving as a SEAL team leader during action against enemy aggressor (Viet Cong) forces. Acting in response to reliable intelligence, Lt. (j.g.) Kerrey led his SEAL team on a mission to capture important members of the enemy's area political cadre known to be located on an island in the bay of Nha Trang. In order to surprise the enemy, he and his team scaled a 350-foot sheer cliff to place themselves above the ledge on which the enemy was located. Splitting his team in two elements and coordinating both, Lt. (j.g.) Kerrey led his men in the treacherous downward descent to the enemy's camp. Just as they neared the end of their descent, intense enemy fire was directed at them, and Lt. (j.g.) Kerrey received massive injuries from a grenade which exploded at his feet and threw him backward on the jagged rocks. Although bleeding profusely and suffering great pain, he displayed outstanding courage and presence of mind in immediately directing his element's fire into the heart of the enemy camp. Utilizing his radioman, Lt. (j.g.) Kerrey called in a second element's fire support which caught the confused Viet Cong in a devastating crossfire. After successfully suppressing the enemy's fire, and although immobilized by his multiple wounds, he continued to maintain calm, superlative control as he ordered his team to secure and defend an extraction site. Lt. (j.g.) Kerrey resolutely directed his men, despite his near-unconscious state, until he was eventually evacuated by helicopter. The havoc brought to the enemy by this very successful mission cannot be over-estimated. The enemy soldiers who were captured provided critical intelligence to the allied effort. Lt. (j.g.) Kerrey's courageous and inspiring leadership, valiant fighting spirit, and tenacious devotion to duty in the face of almost overwhelming opposition sustain and enhance the finest traditions of the U.S. Naval Service.
Bob was evacuated to Japan and then brought back to the States, where he spent eight months recovering in the Philadelphia Naval Hospital. His right leg below the knee was amputated and a little over a year after his actions, Bob traveled to the White House to receive the Medal of Honor from President Nixon, on the 14th of May 1970. In a ceremony with eleven others, he begrudgingly accepted the Medal, even though previously stating that he didn’t want to accept it and was a fan of military medals or the culture that surrounds them.
Bob went back to working as a pharmacist, this time at the University of Nebraska Medical Center, before owning a few restaurants and having a few more surgeries that helped him walk better. He was briefly married to Beverly Defnall, with whom he had a son and a daughter, and he then entered the world of politics. Bob served as the governor of Nebraska from 1983 to 1987, a senator from 1989 to 2001, and ran for President of the US in 1992, losing the nomination for Bill Clinton. He was remarried to Sarah Paley, with whom he had another son, and served on the 9/11 Commission after the terror attacks in 2001. Bob wrote a book in 2002 called, “When I Was a Young Man: A Memoir”, which he also narrated for the audiobook. He did try to get his old senator seat back in 2012 but was not successful, leading him to serve as a director for several health care companies. Joseph Robert Kerrey is 79 years old as of this recording.
