The 1st Infantry Division and Fort Riley will host the next Big Red One Year of Honor event Wednesday, April 21. The day’s theme is “Virtue.” Honoring two Medal of Honor recipients, the day’s events provide an opportunity to increase the ability of the division’s personnel to serve, lead and live honorably.
The day begins with a 9 a.m. Commemoration Ceremony at Victory Park honoring Airman First Class William Pitsenbarger and Sergeant James Robinson, Jr., both of whom earned the Medal of Honor in April 1966 during the Vietnam conflict. Maj. Gen. D.A. Sims, 1st Infantry Division and Fort Riley commanding general, will speak at the ceremony, relating their battlefield gallantry as examples for today’s Army personnel.
Soldiers and civilian employees will then participate in Virtue Leadership Panels combining live and virtual appearances by individuals locally and nationally who inspire volunteerism and selfless service. The panel will discuss selfless service and aspects of honorable living in everyday life.
Participating panel members include Jim Hake, CEO of Spirit of America, Dan Goldenberg, Executive Director of Call of Duty Endowment Activision, Shelly and Sande Williams, CEO and COO of the Manhattan Soup Kitchen, Becky Margiotta, 100,000 Homes Campaign, Doug Barrett, Homeless Veterans Project, and Maj. Heather Barton, Irwin Army Community Hospital Registered Nurse.
In the afternoon, Fort Riley will unveil new street signs in honor of Pitsenbarger and Robinson, the April Medal of Honor recipients. Details of their gallantry may be found on the First Division Museum website: https://www.fdmuseum.org/about-the-1st-infantry-division/medal-of-honor-recipients/.
The Big Red One Year of Honor is a year-long observance of the 37 service members who earned the Medal of Honor while serving with the 1st Infantry Division. By extension, the campaign will enhance esprit-de-corps, foster leader development, and increase unit morale and cohesion through authentic examples of virtue, leadership, and living a life of honor.
Due to COVID, attendance at the Big Red One Year of Honor Commemoration Ceremony will be limited. A live stream is available via Facebook at 9 a.m.: https://www.facebook.com/events/306178650860145/
The Street Memorialization Ceremony takes place at 4:00 p.m. and will also be live streamed: https://www.facebook.com/events/494023558435664/