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Army SGT Joe Ronnie Hooper, Medal of Honor Recipient
Episode 2737 of the Vietnam Veteran News Podcast will feature a story about Army SGT Joe Ronnie Hooper and his Congressional Medal of Honor award. The featured story comes from The U.S. Department of Defense website and was titled: Medal of Honor Monday: Army SGT Joe Ronnie Hooper. It was submitted by Katie Lange, an outstanding writer for DOD News.
Lange, in her story, reported that several Medal of Honor recipients earn the honor for a moment of action. But for Army Sgt. Joe Ronnie Hooper, his moment lasted more than seven hours — fitting, considering he’s one of the most decorated soldiers of the Vietnam War.
Hooper was born Aug. 8, 1938, in Piedmont, South Carolina, but he grew up in Washington State. He enlisted in the Navy at 17, serving until his honorable discharge in 1959. He later decided to join the Army.
Hooper was on his second tour of duty in Vietnam during 1968’s Tet Offensive. He was a 29-year-old sergeant in Delta Company, 2nd Battalion, 101st Airborne Division, when he earned his Medal of Honor.
On Feb. 21, 1968, Hooper’s squad was northwest of Hue City, South Vietnam. They were attacking a heavily defended enemy position near a 20-foot-wide stream when a hail of gunfire and rockets came down on them from the Viet Cong — guerrilla allies of the North Vietnamese from the south.
Most of the company was pinned down by the gunfire, but Hooper and five other paratroopers weren’t, so he led them across the stream and into the heart of enemy fire, overtaking five enemy bunkers on the opposite shore. Shortly after, the rest of his company saw what they’d done and joined the fight.
Listen to episode 2737 and discover more Army SGT Joe Ronnie Hooper and his Congressional Medal of Honor award.
