Les LeCompte is a Korean War veteran who lives in Edgewater, Maryland. He is heading an effort to
try to get the Bronze Star for Meritorious Service for Korean War combat veterans and Korean War veterans
who were in direct support of combat operations.Forgotten War
When we were needed,
we were there.
We got no decorations,
but who cares?
50 million South Koreans
live free, thanks to soldiers
like you and me
- written by a Korean War veteran
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Letter from Les LeCompte to the Korean War Educator
June 2010
"In 1993 I let the Korean War Veterans Association know about the Republic of Korea Korean War Service
Medal. The President of the Korean War Veterans Association and several Korean War veterans wrote
letters to the Department of Defense and their Senators. The President of the KWVA wrote to the
Department of the Army Awards Branch. All of the letters were rejected. The standard reply was
the Korean War veterans received a service medal and after "extensive research" no one could find any
offer to the United States Forces of this medal from the South Korean government.
I decided to go to the National Archives and research the files to see if this medal was ever offered.
I spent several weeks going through all the documentation on the Korean War and found several places where
the offer was made by the South Korean Government. The offer was in the Far East Command
Headquarters files and the State Department files. To make this shorter, the documentation was given
to the Army Awards Branch and the Judge Advocate General's office and after five years of hard work the
Korean War veterans received approval to receive the Republic of Korea Korean War Service Medal they
deserved.
The reason I mentioned this, while researching the documentation on the Korean War I found
documentation from Far East Command Headquarters, which I have enclosed, about the Bronze Star Medal for
Meritorious Service. My effort is to try and get Korean War combat veterans and Korean War veterans
in direct support of combat operations the Bronze Star for Meritorious Service during the Korean War on
the eve of the 60th anniversary of the start of the Korean War.
The Korean War veterans received the least number of decorations of any veterans in a major war.
(See enclosed table.) The enclosed documentation says the Korean War veterans are operationally
qualified for the Bronze Star for Meritorious Service. I believe if you are "Operationally
Qualified" and have an honorable discharge you should be entitled to this medal. The Korean War
veterans need an Executive Order from the President of the United States or a Directive from the Secretary
of the Army to make this possible.
I have many Korean War veterans of all ranks wanting me to continue my efforts to get the Bronze Star
for Meritorious Service for the Korean War combat veterans and Korean War veterans in direct support of
combat operations during the Korean War.
On the eve of the 60th anniversary of the start of the Korean War, without the Executive Order or
Directive, the Korean War veterans will continue to be denied this honor which I believe they deserve.
General Marshall went to President Roosevelt to get this blanket award for the World War II veterans who
received the Combat Infantryman's Badge or the Combat Medic Badge. But this left out all the other
deserving combat veterans of the Second World War. Hopefully this does not happen to the combat
veterans of the Korean War."
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Prologue & Introduction
Prologue
As the nation begins the start of the 21st century and the 60th anniversary of the start of the Korean
War, a remembrance is in order to one of the bloodiest wars in the history of the United States of
America--a war with over 166,096 casualties to American forces: 54,246 dead; 103,284 wounded; 7,190
prisoners of war, of which 40 percent did not return from captivity. 389 American servicemen
known to be captured were not returned or accounted for. Also, the Korean War, which lasted three
years and one month, was fought in some of the worst weather conditions on the face of the earth. In
the winter the temperatures would drop to 30 and 40 degrees below zero and in the summer the temperatures
would rise well above 100 degrees. In addition to a very determined enemy, the United States forces
faced fatal diseases, fatal accidents, and a large guerrilla force. The total number of combined
casualties on both sides during the Korean War was between 3,000,000 and 4,000,000--maybe more with untold
numbers of civilians unaccounted for during the war.
The majority of the Korean War veterans were born during the Great Depression of the late 1920s and early
1930s. They were born during some very hard times in the history of our great country. During
World War II, as children going to school they collected scrap metal, old tires and other items for the home
front contribution to the war effort. After graduating from high school, this same generation was
called upon to fight a war in a distant land called Korea to stop communist aggression. After the
Korean War ended they came home to no parades or ceremonies and returned to civilian life to work their jobs
and raise their families.
What better way to honor these men and women now in their seventies and eighties who fought the war in
Korea than to have the United States of America make a blanket award of the Bronze Star medal for
Meritorious Service to the nation on the eve of the 60th anniversary of the start of the Korean War.
Introduction
General Headquarters Far East Command issued a directive that all personnel who performed service on the
ground in Korea from 25 June 1950 to 27 July 1953 are operationally qualified for the Bronze Star medal.
The enclosed information is an effort to get the United States government to honor the Korean War veterans
with the award of the Bronze Star Medal for Meritorious Service and achievement on the eve of the 60th
anniversary of the start of the Korean War for their sacrifices in saving 49 million South Koreans to live
in freedom. The Korean war veterans now in their late seventies and eighties should be awarded this
honor on the eve of the 60th anniversary of the start of the Korean War. The reasoning behind this
request is the Korean War veteran was the least decorated veteran of any major war. Less than 9
percent of Korean War Army veterans received any kind of decoration during the Korean War and 50 percent of
these decorations were Purple Hearts.
The following documents were obtained from the National Archives concerning the award of the Bronze Star
medal and Commendation medal from General Headquarters Far East Command and approved by Brigadier General
K.B. Bush, adjutant general, United States Army and Major General W.A. Beiderlinden, assistant Chief of
Staff, G-1, General Staff Corps.
In my opinion an Executive Order from the President of the United States or a Directive from the
Secretary of Defense or the Secretary of the Army to designated commanding officers of the Army should be
made for awarding the preferred decoration to all qualified Korean War veterans who have met the operational
requirements. I believe all men serving units receiving battle participation credit should receive the
Bronze Star award and all men serving in direct support units for combat operations in Korea should receive
the Bronze Star medal for meritorious service between June 25, 1950 and July 27, 1953.
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Documentation
- Executive Order 9419
- Headquarters FEC Check Sheet - 9 February 1951
- Headquarters FEC Outgoing Message - 10 February 1951
- Headquarters Office of Assistant Chief of Staff - 10 February 1951
- Executive Order 11046
- Executive Order 11382
- Percentage of Decorations (WWII, Korea, Vietnam)
- Estimated Percentages (Iraq & Afghanistan)
- Recommendation for Award
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Army Medal Count by Conflict
- World War I = 354,268 (244,137 Purple Hearts)
- World War II = 2,601,474 (800,735 Purple Hearts)
- Korea = 262,508 (117,315 Purple Hearts)
- Vietnam = 2,674,938 (220,516 Purple Hearts)
- Grenada = 9,802 (114 Purple Hearts)
- Panama = 1,781 (237 Purple Hearts)
- Operation Desert Storm = 115,442 (396 Purple Hearts)
- Somalia = 694 (188 Purple Hearts)
- Operations Iraqi and Enduring Freedom = 1,200,000 (30,000
Purple Hearts and counting)
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About Les LeCompte
Les L. LeCompte was born in Washington, DC on March 5, 1930. He graduated from Charlotte Hall
Military Academy in 1948. After graduation he worked in the printing business and joined the 163rd
Military Police Battalion DC National Guard. When the Korean War broke out, the 163rd MP Battalion was
one of the first units in the nation called to active duty.
In September 1951, LeCompte landed at Inchon, Korea, and went to Chunchon where he was assigned to Co. B,
519th MP Battalion, 8th Army. The objective of the 519th was to keep the main supply routes open in
the central and northeast sectors, engage guerrilla forces and defend small villages and towns against
attack, and find and rescue fighter pilots downed in their sector of operations.
Les LeCompte received the following awards: Meritorious Unit Commendation with Bronze oak leaf,
Korean Presidential Unit Citation with Bronze oak leaf, Korean Service Medal with three Bronze Stars,
National Defense Service Medal, United Nations Medal, Republic of Korea War Service Medal, Army Good Conduct
Medal, and the Korean War Veterans Medal from the Republic of Korea.
After serving his tour of duty in Korea, LeCompte returned to the United States and was discharged in May
1952. He worked 32 years as an associate engineer on Navy Navigation Satellites and the Trident
Submarine Missile programs at the Applied Physics Laboratory, Johns Hopkins University, Laurel, Maryland.
He is a life member of the Korean War Veterans Association, member of the American Legion, charter member
for the Battle of Normandy Museum, patron of the South China Yangtze Patrol Asiatic Fleet, and patron of the
USS Bunker Hill Association.
Les and his wife Julie have two daughters, Marie and Mary, and three grandsons, Chris, John and Andy.
Les and Julie live in Edgewater, Maryland.
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Contact Information - Les LeCompte
Les LeCompte
695 Hillmeade Road
Edgewater, MD 21037
(410) 798-5154
E-mail: lescom@verizon.net
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