Veteran Waited 61 Years for Medals
Foster's Daily Democrat | Nov 21, 2014 | by Judi Currie
NORTH BERWICK, Maine -- He volunteered to serve his country, went to war and waited 61 years for the recognition he deserved.
On October 27, 1950, at the age of 20,Ted Towne enlisted in the Army. Assigned to the Heavy Mortar Company, 180th Regiment of the 45th Infantry Division, Oklahoma National Guard, Towne served nine months on the front lines in Korea.
His discharge form, known as the DD2-14, was not completed properly; it failed to mention he served in Korea at all; and under medals and citations it simply read "unknown."
When he returned home Towne looked into receiving veteran's benefits. "I tried early and it bothered me because I failed,"Towne said. "You have to put it behind you and just live your life. As time went on it bothered me less and less."
Towne, now 84, who lives in North Berwick, was denied the recognition and benefits afforded combat veterans, including a Maine property tax exemption. He couldn't even get a Maine veteran's plate.
Enter Command Sergeant Major (Ret.) Anthony J. Cincotta, Jr. Cincotta had experience helping other veterans, so Towne, though fearful of another disappointment agreed to pursue it.
Military service records are maintained by a civilian agency called the National Personnel Records Center (NPRC), located in St. Louis, Missouri. In 1973 a fire on the sixth floor destroyed thousands of records, including Towne's.
After about a year of letters and fruitless calls, Cincotta wrote to one of the highest-ranking officials in the Army: a four-star general from North Berwick.
Cincotta says without the help of General Daniel Allyn, a 1977 graduate of Noble High School, Towne would still be waiting.
"There are only 11 four-star generals in the Army. If it hadn't been for Gen. Allyn we would not have succeeded. When one of these guys picks up the phone, things happen," Cincotta said.
The medals finally arrived in the mail last week without fanfare. That wasn't good enough for Cincotta who arranged for a formal presentation by Maine Governor Paul LePage.
In a ceremony on Monday, Towne was finally presented with his medals; the Combat Infantryman's badge, the Presidential Unit Citation, the Army Good Conduct Medal, the Republic of Korea War Service Award, given by the country ofKorea, and the Korean Service Medal, awarded by the U.S., the National Defense Service Medal and the United Nations Service Medal Korea.
Cincotta says there is still one medal missing, "..the Army Occupation Medal for Japan. He should have gotten that but the NPRC said he was only in Japan because he was on his way to Korea. Here was there nine months you only have to be there 30 days to get it. So we will work on that one," Cincotta said.
Towne was joined at the ceremony by Gil Ornsby who served beside him in the trenches, as well as nearly 30 friends and family members.
Because of sloppy paperwork and the loss of records Towne was denied both state and federal benefits for six decades, says Cincotta.
"Now if he wants to get a veteran's plate he can do that. He can join a veteran's organization if he wants to. He can get the property tax exemption. As a wartime veteran he can apply for disability benefits if he wants to. It's just the fact that he had to wait 61 years to prove that he was there," Cincotta said.
http://www.military.com/daily-news/2014/11/21/veteran-waited-61-years-for-medals.html?comp=7000023468004&rank=2
