Air Force will award medal in honor of Bob Hope’s service

Dick Benoit

Thursday, Oct. 26, 2000 | 9:47 a.m.

The Air Force has added a new individual honor to its awards program. The Spirit of Hope medallion will be presented annually beginning next August.

The Air Force accepted the United Service Organization's offer to recognize one individual who reflects the spirit and values of entertainer Bob Hope, for whom the award is named, according to Maj. Bob Rennicker, chief, commanders' programs and recognition policy.

The Spirit of Hope medallion, the USO's most prestigious award, will be "presented to an individual who embodies the values of the men and women of the military: duty, honor, courage, loyalty, commitment and integrity," said USO President John H. Tilelli Jr. in a letter to Gen. Michael E. Ryan, the Air Force chief of staff.

"The medallion will be presented to a junior enlisted member," Rennicker said, "but there are still a number of criteria items such as nomination procedures and selection process that need to be worked out."

Rennicker said he expects the criteria to be set and published in January.

The medallion features a relief portrait of Bob Hope commissioned by the USO in 1997. Hope, who turned 97 in May, entertained troops with the USO for more than 50 years, spanning World War II, Korea and Vietnam.

The Basic High School Marine Corps Junior ROTC will celebrate the 225th birthday of the Marine Corps with a dinner dance, birthday cake cutting and ceremony at Fitzgeralds hotel Nov. 4.

The pageantry will feature cadets wearing Marine Corps uniforms representing different eras of the Corp's history. Special guest speaker for the event will be Marine veteran Chester Foulke, who fought in the famous battle for Iwo Jima in World War II.

Tickets are available to all former and present Marines for $25 a person. For more information call 564-1427.

Briefly

Navy officials report that El Dorado High School 1997 graduate Eric D. Curtis is making a significant contribution to the Navy's mission and the national defense aboard the aircraft carrier USS John C. Stennis.

Petty Officer 3rd Class Curtis, son of Derrick and Alma Holmes of North Las Vegas, serves in one of the oldest and most revered Navy career fields as a boatswains mate. As such he supervises the maintenance of the 97,000-ton ship's surfaces and deck equipment.