Medal of Honor recipients celebrated at new Texas museum that aims to honor heroes
A dozen living recipients of America's highest military decoration gathered Wednesday to commemorate the National Medal of Honor Museum, a landmark institution honoring the more than 3,500 service members who have received the prestigious award since the Civil War.
The museum — which opens to the public on March 25 in Arlington, Texas — aims to tell their stories through personal artifacts and interactive exhibits.
"We want a kid to walk in the front door of this place, and he's going to see heroes — so-called heroes, guys like me not wearing capes, they're wearing dog tags," said Maj. Gen. Pat Brady, who received the Medal of Honor in 1969.
Brady flew three different Huey helicopters under heavy fire in Vietnam in 1968, rescuing 51 people. A fully restored Huey now serves as a centerpiece exhibit in the museum.
"That's how I became the greatest helicopter pilot that ever lived," Brady said with a smile.
Museum curator Greg Waters spent years collecting artifacts that tell recipients' stories, including personal belongings like a high school jacket with a pin hinting at future military service, X-rays documenting injuries and recoveries, and a handwritten note from a mother desperately seeking information about her injured son.
"I've been on a nationwide hunt for artifacts, and that work involves connecting with Medal of Honor recipients or their families," Waters said.
The square exhibit hall hovers 40 feet above the ground, its weight supported by five pillars representing the five branches of the military.
Charlotte Jones, executive vice president of the Dallas Cowboys and chair of the Medal of Honor Museum Foundation, said that the facility is more than a memorial.
"It is certainly a recognition of what is that courageous act that I should do, and more importantly, what's the selfless act that I should do to make our country better?" Jones said.
