March 25th is designated as national Medal of Honor Day. This year Tulsa International Airport hosted an event onsite in the Albert E. Schwab Hall.
The event was formally hosted by the Marine Corp League’s Albert E. Schwab Detachment #857. Two very special guests of honor were in attendance; Medal of Honor recipient SPC5 Dwight Birdwell and Captain Joe Ihle, who was present during the second wave at Iwo Jima. At 103, he is also Oklahoma’s oldest living marine! Semper Fi! Medal of Honor Day was officially designated by Congress on March 25, 1991. The day was chosen because on that day in 1863, the first Medal of Honor was presented to Private Jacob Parrott, for his participation in Andrews’ Raiders, a Civil War mission behind enemy lines.There are three versions of the Medal of Honor; one for the Army, one for the Navy, and one for the Air
Force. Recipients in the Marine Corps and the Coast Guard receive the Navy version, and
members of the Space Force receive the Air Force version. In 1861, President Lincoln signed a bill into law that authorized the creation of the Navy Medal of Valor, and in 1862, legislation authorized a similar medal for the U.S. Army. The Air Force Medal of Honor was
signed into law in 1956.
He kept his speech short and focused on the valor of the men he served with who didn’t come home and to helping our veterans nationwide. Staying true to every MOH recipient I have had the privilege to meet, he was humble as the day is long. He is a citizen of the Cherokee Nation and entered the Army on May 24, 1966. In addition to his medal of Honor, Birdwell earned two Silver Stars, a Bronze Star for meritorious service and two Purple Hearts. He received the first Silver Star for heroism on January 31, 1968, when his unit defended Tan Son Nhut Air Base during the Tet Offensive in Vietnam. This is the medal that was eventually upgraded to the MOH, which was presented to him at the White House on July 5, 2022.
Birdwell was a member of the Judicial Appeals Tribunal (Supreme Court) of the Cherokee Nation from 1987 to 1999, serving as its Chief Justice from 1995 to 1996 and 1998 to 1999.
In my attempt to interview CPT Ihle, I found him to be equally as humble as Birdwell. At 103, he is also incredibly spry and sharp. He was not interested in having any attention drawn to his service during WWII or at Iwo Jima. He told me there were more than 50,000 other men that fought in that battle and that he didn’t do anything more extraordinary than the rest. I gently reminded him that the fact that he was still alive was a reflection of the grit he still possessed that was surely present during his time of service. My grandfather, whom I loved and admired dearly, also served in WWII. There is no human alive today whose presence I am more honored to be in than a WWII veteran. I smiled and firmly shook CPT Ihle’s hand as I shared this thought with him. That made him smile too, however, I did not press him to tell me any more about himself. Being in his presence was enough of a gift.
During the ceremony, citations were read for three additional Oklahoma Medal of Honor recipients. One of them was for PFC Albert E. Schwab, (the namesake of the hall the ceremony was held in), whose medal was posthumously awarded for his valiant actions on May 7, 1945 at the Battle of Okinawa, Japan. His niece and nephew were in attendance. One of the others was for LTC Earnest Childers, a member of the Creek Nation, who earned his Medal of Honor for heroic actions on September 22, 1943, in Oliveto, Italy, during WWII. The Department of Veterans Affairs Outpatient Clinic in Tulsa is named in his honor.
Members of the Marine Corp League’s Albert E. Schwab Detachment #857, spent the
morning of the ceremony visiting the graves of some of NE Oklahoma’s other MOH recipients. According to the Oklahoma Military Heritage Foundation and state officials, there are 36 individuals with Oklahoma connections who have earned the Medal of Honor.
They are honored with a dedicated plaque in the state Capitol from conflicts ranging from the Indian Campaigns to the Global War on Terrorism. At the time of the dedication (April 2024), no other state has an installation like it. • by Jill Stephenson, staff writer
