When touring the William A. Neal Museum of the Health Sciences, visitors will see a Medal of Honor. This award commemorates the bravery and heroism of Corporal Thomas Bennett, a Morgantown native and West Virginia University Student. Despite his personal feelings towards the Vietnam War, Bennett served as a medic and sacrificed his life to care for wounded soldiers while under fire.
Thomas Bennett's Medal of Honor is on display in the William A. Neal Museum of the Health Sciences.
Thomas Bennett was born on April 7, 1947, in Morgantown. When he five years old, his father died of Hodgkin’s disease, leaving behind Bennett, his two brothers, and his mother.[1] Despite this tragedy, Bennett had a fairly ordinary childhood throughout the 1950s, growing up in the Suncrest neighborhood of Morgantown. Like many children of the period, he played Little League, joined the Boy Scouts, and joined school clubs. When he was in third grade, his mother married Kermit Gray, a WWII Navy veteran who served in the Pacific. Gray became a father to Bennett throughout the rest of his life, and his staunch patriotism and belief in duty to one’s country likely affected Bennett’s decision to serve in Vietnam. In high school, Bennett served as the president of the Morgantown High Student Body and governor of the West Virginia Key Clubs. Among other extracurriculars, he was also a trumpeter in the band, and an announcer of Morgantown High football games. The large focus on participation outside of the classroom, however, resulted in his grades flagging and his forced resignation from the presidency. The difficulties of balancing his schoolwork and his other activities caused a strain on Bennett’s mental health. In response, he turned to religion, establishing the deeply held religious ethics that would remain with him for the rest of his life.[2]
In the spring of 1964, the Vietnam War began to escalate, and almost immediately, began to personally affect Bennett. Dave Kovac, a classmate at Morgantown High, enlisted in the Marine Corps and was deployed to Vietnam. Around December 1965, Morgantown was shattered by the news: Kovac had been killed in action, shot in the jaw by a Vietcong sniper near Da Nang. The grief and shock of Kovac’s death consumed the local Morgantown community, including Tom Bennett.[3]
Bennett matriculated to West Virginia University in 1966, partially to avoid the draft. As he told his high school band director, he was afraid he would get drafted if he was not a student. In his first semester, Bennett earned a 2.65 (B-) grade point average, an omen for his continued academic struggles in the coming years. Indeed, through his five-semester collegiate career, Tom earned As in only two subjects, physical education and Air Force ROTC. Like in his high school career, Bennett was extraordinarily active in extracurriculars. Among other activities, Bennett drafted a students’ code of ethics, taught Sunday School, and founded and led the Campus Ecumenical Council. Like in high school, unfortunately, these busy extracurricular activities came at the cost of Bennett’s grades. By late 1967, Bennett found himself on academic probation and flunked out of WVU. This meant that he was no longer eligible for student deferment from the draft.[4]
Thomas William Bennett (West Virginia & Regional History Center)
"Five members of the company fell wounded in the initial assault. Cpl. Bennett ran to their aid without regard to the heavy fire. He treated one wounded comrade and began running toward another seriously wounded man. Although the wounded man was located forward of the company position covered by heavy enemy grazing fire and Cpl. Bennett was warned that it was impossible to reach the position, he leaped forward with complete disregard for his safety to save his comrade's life."Bennett's medal of honor citation
As a deeply religious person, Bennett was morally opposed to the taking of life, but, as someone raised by Gray to believe in American patriotism, he did not want to dishonor the sacrifices of American soldiers by refusing to serve or dodging the draft in Canada. The memory of David Kovac, who had supported American involvement in Vietnam and died there, especially loomed large. Bennett reconciled these conflicting feelings by registering as a conscientious objector who was willing to serve and enlisted in the US Army as a medic.[5] As a medic, he could still serve his country, but rather than taking lives, he would instead save them.
Basic training for conscientious objectors was different from regular soldiers. Since conscientious objectors did not have to carry weapons or participate in combat, their basic training was two weeks shorter. Rather than the usual eight-week basic training course that every soldier, including medics who were not conscientious objectors, men like Bennett went through an abbreviated training that instructed them on survival skills such as finding cover under fire, physical training, and protection from grenades. After basic training, medics received ten weeks of specialized combat medicine training. Vietnam veteran Bud Roach (Charlie Company, 1st Battalion, 22nd Infantry Regiment, 4th Infantry Division) described this training as “half hospital orderly training and half combat medic training.” In addition to standard hospital practices like inserting IVs, giving shots, administering medication, and making beds and changing bed pans, medics were also instructed on field medicine: treating gunshot wounds, staunching bleedings and saving wounded limbs, keeping the airway open, preventing shock, and other vital combat medicine skills.[6]
On January 5, 1969, after being trained as a medic throughout the summer and fall of 1968, Private First Class Thomas Bennett said goodbye to his family for the last time and travelled to Vietnam to join Company B (Bravo Company) of the 1st Battalion, 14th Infantry, 4th Infantry Division. The 14th Infantry, also known as the “Golden Dragons,” have a long and storied history, dating back to their formation in the Civil War. Except for World War I, the Golden Dragons have served in every major American conflict: the Civil War, the Indian Wars, the Spanish-American War, World War II (European Theatre), Korean War, Iraq War, and of course, Vietnam. The 1st Battalion was first sent to Vietnam in late 1965 and spent most of 1966 operating along the Cambodian border. Soldiers in the battalion participated in a total of twelve campaigns during Vietnam, receiving multiple awards for their service: three Medal of Honor recipients (including Bennett), a Navy Presidential Unit Citation (1967), a Valorous Unit Award (Alpha Company), four awards of Vietnam Cross of Gallantry with Palm, and one award of the Vietnam Civil Action Medal, First Class. The battalion was reassigned to the 4th Infantry Division on August 1, 1967. Through 1968 and 1969, the 1st Battalion operated in Vietnam’s western highlands. In June 1970, the 4th Infantry Division participated in the American invasion of Cambodia. In December 1970, the 1st Battalion was reduced to zero strength as a part of Nixon’s policy of reducing troops in Southeast Asia, effectively ending its Vietnam service.[7]
Throughout his training and service, Bennett sent letters and audiotapes to his family, describing his experience and the ethical struggle that remained. As he said in his November 1, 1968, letter home, “Out of obligation to a country I love I will go and possibly die for a cause I vehemently disagree with.” Most poignant, however, is his final tape home, recorded February 5: “And I want you to understand also that for some reason, right now I feel--how do I explain it, let’s see--I feel that they can’t hurt me in any way. I have had and am having such a rich, full, good exciting life that, well, nobody can take that away from me… there’s very little chance that anything’s gonna happen. And if it does--so what? You know, I’ve had my 21 good years.”[8]
Tragically, these words foreshadowed what was to come only four days later. On February 9, as Bennett’s company patrolled around Chu Pa, a mountain just outside of Pleiku in the thick jungle, they were ambushed by Northern Vietnamese troops. Despite the firefight, he ran forward give first aid to wounded men and carry each casualty back to safety. His sergeant, James McBee, nominated Pfc. Bennett for the Silver Star in honor of the risks he took to tend for the wounded. When nominating Bennett, McBee also told Company Commander Captain Carrett Cowsert that “nothing stops him… he said he wasn’t afraid at all, that he was trained to be a medic and that was his job. He said the Lord would protect him and if he dies it’s God’s will.”[9]
Throughout the night and next day’s combat, February 10, Bennett continued tending to wounded soldiers, regardless of the danger. At about 5AM on February 11, enemy snipers began firing on Bravo Company. Five men were wounded in the initial volley, and Bennett once again risked his life moving approximately 45 meters through the fire to treat one of the fallen soldiers. Despite the warnings from another soldier that he could never make it to a wounded man about 20 meters away, Bennett yelled back that he had to get to the wounded soldier because the man would die if he didn’t.[10] He left his cover and ran towards his comrade. As he did, he was mortally wounded by a burst of AK-47 fire. Thomas Bennett had been in Vietnam for only three weeks and was several months shy of his 22nd birthday.
Bennett’s willingness to risk himself, going above and beyond the call of duty, resulted in many lives saved. McBee wrote that, during the engagement of February 9-11, he saved the lives of three comrades, retrieved the bodies of those who had been killed in action, and gave medical aid to “many others,” which inspired the company in “soundly defeating the numerically superior enemy force.” As Sgt. Dominic Tomeo, another platoon leader of Bravo Company, wrote in his after-action report, “you don’t mind risking your life every now and then when you know you have a medic like Private First Class Bennett because if you should get hit you know he will come to your aid regardless of the enemy fire.”[11] McBee recommended that Pfc Bennett, posthumously promoted to Corporal, be awarded the Medal of Honor for his many selfless actions. Richard Nixon presented the medal to his parents on April 7, 1970, Bennett’s 23rd birthday. Bennett is the only conscientious objector to earn the Medal of Honor during the Vietnam War era and the second in history.
Thomas W. Bennett and Grandfather Floyd Bennett, Morgantown, WV, ca. 1968
(West Virginia & Regional History Center)
Bennett’s Medal of Honor citation is as follows:
For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity in action at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty. Cpl. Bennett distinguished himself while serving as a platoon medical aidman with the 2d Platoon, Company B, during a reconnaissance-in-force mission. On 9 February the platoon was moving to assist the 1st Platoon of Company D, which had run into a North Vietnamese ambush, when it became heavily engaged by the intense small-arms, automatic-weapons, mortar and rocket fire from a well-fortified and numerically superior enemy unit. In the initial barrage of fire, three of the point members of the platoon fell wounded. Cpl. Bennett, with complete disregard for his safety, ran through the heavy fire to his fallen comrades, administered life-saving first aid under fire, and then made repeated trips carrying the wounded men to positions of relative safety from which they would be medically evacuated from the battle position. Cpl. Bennett repeatedly braved the intense enemy fire, moving across open areas to give aid and comfort to his wounded comrades. He valiantly exposed himself to the heavy fire in order to retrieve the bodies of several fallen personnel. Throughout the night and following day, Cpl. Bennett moved from position to position treating and comforting several personnel who had suffered shrapnel and gunshot wounds. On 11 February, Company B again moved in an assault on the well-fortified enemy positions and became heavily engaged with the numerically superior enemy force. Five members of the company fell wounded in the initial assault. Cpl. Bennett ran to their aid without regard to the heavy fire. He treated one wounded comrade and began running toward another seriously wounded man. Although the wounded man was located forward of the company position covered by heavy enemy grazing fire and Cpl. Bennett was warned that it was impossible to reach the position, he leaped forward with complete disregard for his safety to save his comrade's life. In an attempt to save his fellow soldier, he was mortally wounded. Cpl. Bennett's undaunted concern for his comrades at the cost of his life above and beyond the call of duty are in keeping with the highest traditions of the military service and reflect great credit upon himself, his unit, and the U.S. Army.[12]
Across the United States, Cpl. Bennett’s legacy is remembered, especially in Morgantown. Bennett Tower, a dormitory at WVU in the Evansdale Residential Complex, is named for him, as is the Corporal Thomas Bennett Bridge, where the I-79 Freeway crosses the Monongahela River south of Morgantown. At Morgantown High School, his name is on a plaque along with other students who died in service to their country during Vietnam. There are also several barracks in Virginia and Hawaii, and a healthcare clinic at Fort Sam Houston, where he was trained.
The Thomas W. Bennett Papers (A&M 2714) are held in the West Virginia & Regional History Center, including letters written to and by him, transcripts of his audiotapes, and more details about his posthumous honors.