America (My Country Tis of Thee)

In 1984, years before he was posthumously awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor, 1st Lt Garlin Murl Conner of Albany, Kentucky was honored at a July 4th commemoration at Camargo Church of God in Mount Sterling for being one of the highest decorated military veterans in Kentucky. The war hero spoke to a crowd of about 365 people. There was a flag ceremony, the presentation of the colors, the Pledge of Allegiance and the congregation sang "The Star Spangled Banner," “America, the Beautiful” and “America (My Country Tis of Thee)."

Did you know that ''The Star Spangled Banner'' wasn't adopted as the official national anthem of the United States until 1931? Before that, the nation had a few de facto national anthems, and ''The Star Spangled Banner'' wasn't even the most popular. That honor goes to ''America (My Country, 'Tis of Thee)." For a century, this was the most beloved 'unofficial' anthem of the nation.

The hymn was written In 1831 by Samuel Francis Smith, a student at the Andover, Massachusetts Theological Seminary, who had been asked to translate the lyrics in some German school songbooks into English. The "God Save the Queen" melody caught his attention, but rather than translate those lyrics, he was moved deeply by the desire to create a national hymn that would allow the American people to offer praise to God for our wonderful land. And so, in just thirty minutes, "America (My Country, 'Tis of Thee)" was born. The song was first performed on July 4, 1831, by a children’s choir in Boston.

All four stanzas of "America (My Country, 'Tis of Thee)," glorify freedom and liberty. God is the author of liberty. The hymn acknowledges no limits on freedom. The first three verses encourage and invoke national pride, while the last verse is a petition to God for His continued favor and protection of the United States of America. "Long may our land be bright with freedom’s holy light," 2 Corinthians 3:17 says “Where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty (aka freedom)," which is to say Christ is where true freedom is found. It is a freedom that lasts for an eternity, not anything temporary. The kind of freedom we will never have to worry about being stolen or taken away. All four stanzas glorify freedom and liberty. God is “author of liberty” and unlike “America” the poem acknowledges no limits on freedom.

My country, 'tis of thee
sweet land of liberty
of thee I sing
land where my fathers died
land of the pilgrims' pride
from every mountainside
let freedom ring!
Click here to read more about 1st Lt. Garlin Murl Conner

Sgt. York was a Symbol of American Courage and Sacrifice

On this day in 1918, then Cpl. Alvin C. York and sixteen other soldiers under the command of Sergeant Bernard Early were dispatched before sunrise to take command of the Decauville railroad behind Hill 223 in the Chatel-Chehery area of the Meuse-Argonne sector in Northeast France.

The seventeen men, due to a misreading of their map (which was in French not English) mistakenly wound up behind enemy lines. A brief fire fight ensued which resulted in the confusion and the unexpected surrender of a superior German force to the seventeen soldiers. Once the Germans realized that the American contingent was limited, machine gunners on the hill overlooking the scene turned the gun away from the front and toward their own troops.

After ordering the German soldiers to lie down, the machine gun opened fire resulting in the deaths of nine Americans, including York's best friend in the outfit, Murray Savage. Sergeant Early received seventeen bullet wounds and turned the command over to corporals Harry Parsons and William Cutting, who ordered York to silence the machine gun.

Fearlessly leading the seven remaining soldiers, York charged with great daring a machine gun nest which was pouring deadly and incessant fire upon his platoon. When the smoke cleared, he had taken the machine gun nest, killing twenty and singlehandedly capturing 132 German soldiers, including four officers, and several guns.

Alvin York's actions that day are recognized as one of the most significant combat feats by a single Soldier during WWI. For his exceptional heroism in the face of danger, he was awarded the Medal of Honor.

Lauded by The New York Times as “the war’s biggest hero," upon his death in 1964, President Lyndon Johnson called him alvin“a symbol of American courage and sacrifice” who epitomized the gallantry of American fighting men and their sacrifices on behalf of freedom.”

For an in-depth look into the heroics of Sgt. Alvin C. York visit:

Alvin C. York and the Meuse Argonne Offensive

To read about Sgt. York's struggle with being a soldier and having to fight in a war and how he finally found peace in it, go to:

How To Wrestle with a Difficult D,ecision - Advice From Sergeant Alvin C. York

"Lt. Murl Conner Was A Courageous Warrior"

Garlin Murl Conner's bravery and heroism during World War II did not begin and end on January 24, 1945 near Houssen, France, which earned him the Distinguished Service Cross in 1945 and was upgraded to the Congressional Medal of Honor this past Tuesday, June 26, 2018.

The Albany, Kentucky did much more. In October of 1943, then-Sgt. Conner earned a Silver Star for an act of bravery that occured during a heavy enemy counter attack when he left the safety of a covered position to direct fire and place men in a gap in the line. These men, at the time, were separated from their own platoon and were under the heaviest of fire from the enemy who were attempting to infiltrate through our lines. Even though he was a Communication Sergeant at the time of the action, Sgt. Conner, on his own initiative and with utter disregard for personal safety, took control of the situation, giving orders and first aid to many of our wounded, who were unable to be evacuated at the moment.

On January 30, 1944, near Ponte Rotto, Italy, Tecnical Sergeant Conner earned a Bronze Oak Leaf Cluster in lieu of a Second Award of the Silver Star. At about 0200 hours, he stormed a strongly fortified house, leading an assault group which he had organized, and succeeded in clearing it. Held by enemy soldiers armed with machine guns and machine pistols, the house blocked an attack being made by Company K. Four men previously sent to capture it were wounded. Taking a bazooka team and two rifle grenadiers with him, Technical Sergeant Conner led the way across 50 yards of exposed terrain and openly directed such effective fire on t he enemy at 25 yards range that one machine gun and two machine pistols were silenced and the crew of a fourth automatic weapon was routed. As a result, Company K continued its advance unhindered.

On September 11, 1944, then 2nd. Lt. Garlin Murl Conner earned a Second Bronze Oak Leaf Cluster in lieu of a Third Award of the Silver Star. His fearless leadership under devastating enemy shell and small arms fire, resulted in the capture by his company of a road junction i southern France. Despite shells bursting within 10 yards of him, first hitting six men and later wounding three more, 2nd Lt. Conner continued advancing and inspiring his platoon to follow him until he was approximately 300 yards from the enemy. He then crawled forward alone for about 250 yards through mortar, machine gun and rifle fire that barely missed him, and observed the enemy's dispositions. Leading his platoon by a covered route to the rear of the enemy, he launched a surprise attack that knocked out a machine gun and two mortars, killed three of the enemy, captured seven, and forced the remainder to flee.

On February 3 1945, 1st Lt. Garlin Murl Conner earned a Third Bronze Oak Leaf Cluster in lieu of a Fourth Award of the Silver Star for gallantry in action against the enemt. At 1700 hours, in southern France, he assumed command of a badly battered and disorganized rifle company and led it in an assault over 200 yards of fire-swept ground. Despite bullets which barely missed him, 1st Lt. Conner dashed forward with such grim ferocity that the enemy's morale was shattered. Closing in hand-to-hand combat he led his assault elements in killing 12 and capturing 75 of the enemy, totally shattering enemy resistance in the town.

Lt. Conner served with 3rd Battalion, 7th Infantry, 3rd Infantry Division. According to U.S. Army's official website, army.mil, he took part in campaigns in Algeria-French Morocco, Tunisia, Sicily, Naples-Foggia, Anzio, Rome-Arno, Southern France, Rhineland, Ardennes-Alsace, Central Europe.

His awards and decorations include:

*Congressional Medal of Honor
*Distinguished Service Cross
*Silver Star with three Bronze Oak Leaf Clusters
*Bronze Star
*Purple Heart with two Bronze Oak Leaf Clusters
*Army Good Conduct Medal
*American Defense Service Medal
*American Campaign Medal
*European-African-Middle Eastern Campaign Medal with Bronze Arrowhead and two Silver Service Stars
*World War II Victory Medal
*Presidential Unit Citation with one Bronze Oak Leaf Cluster
*Combat Infantryman Badge
*Expert Infantryman Badge
*French Croix de Guerre
*French Fourragere
*Honorable Service Lapel Button-WWII

“Today we pay tribute to this Kentucky farm boy who stared down evil with the courage of a warrior and the heart of a true hero. [He] was indeed a giant in his daring, his devotion and his duty. He was larger than life." - President Donald J. Trump, June 26, 2018.