CULLMAN, Ala. – Congressional Medal of Honor recipient, U.S. Army Capt. Gary Michael “Mike” Rose will be the special guest speaker at tonight’s Cullman County Sheriff’s Office (CCSO) Citizens’ Academy graduation ceremony. The event will take place at 6 p.m. at Temple Baptist Church (30 County Road 1184, Cullman, AL 35057).
Rose was a Green Beret medic serving with the 5th Special Forces Group serving in long-undocumented operations in Laos as a member of the top-secret Military Assistance Command Vietnam Studies and Observations Group (MACVSOG, often referred to as MAC-SOG). On a four-day mission, Rose’s unit found itself already under fire before its helicopters even landed. Repeatedly placing himself in the line of fire and even boarding a crashed and burning troop transport helicopter to tend the wounded, Rose brought home all but three men of a 136-man force, though almost half were wounded, some multiple times.
His nomination for a medal would have to wait until the U.S. government went public with its involvement in the secret Laotian war. The process began in the late 1990s, taking almost 20 years until August 2017, when Rose received a phone call at his home.
Rose was presented the Medal of Honor by President Donald Trump in October 2017.
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