Jackson Free Press

Some of the most honorable and selfless men and women in our country's history have served in the armed services. Mississippian Roy Wheat entered this category with a heroic, selfless act during the Vietnam War.

The lives of the soldiers accompanying Wheat were spared when Wheat threw himself on an anti-personnel mine before it exploded. He had unintentionally triggered the concealed mine, according to reports, and warned the soldiers with him to clear the area before using his own body to shield them. Wheat, 20, died of his wounds from the explosion in Vietnam's Quang Province on Aug. 11, 1967.

President Lyndon B. Johnson awarded Wheat the Medal of Honor posthumously in 1969. Wheat is one of over a dozen soldiers from Mississippi to have received this highest U.S. military honor. Wheat has received a host of other awards including the Purple Heart with one Gold Star and the Vietnam Military Gallantry Cross. In 2003, the U.S. Navy named a ship after him.

Born in 1947 in Moselle, Miss., in rural Jones County, Wheat volunteered for the U.S. Marine Corps in Jackson in 1966 after two years of high school. He quickly rose to the rank of private first class, then to lance corporal two months before his death.

A Veterans Day commemoration in Wheat's honor will be held Tuesday, Nov. 10, from 2 to 4 p.m. at the Old Capitol Museum (100 S. State St.). Charles Sullivan, a historian and teacher at Mississippi Gulf Coast Coast Community College, will honor Wheat during the program with a film, "No Greater Love: Roy Wheat in Vietnam," which he co-produced with photographer Winfried Moncrief.

The event is free. For more information, call 601-576-6869.

Do you know a Jacksonian or Mississippian who should be the JFP Person of the Day? Briefly tell us his or her story, sending it to [e-mail missing]. Include contact information and a picture, if possible.

Previous Comments

ID

153198

Comment

This as a good article except for one not so very small point, Marines should not be referred to as 'soldier' or 'soldiers', they are properly called Marine or Marines.

Author

Macedonian

Date

2009-11-09T16:32:50-06:00

ID

153203

Comment

Thank you for recognizing this heroic Marine. He was not the only MOH recipient from Mississippi, however. Ed Freeman was from Neely, MS and Louise Wilson was from Brandon. Many other Mississippians ( 18 in all ) have won the MOH. We should all be proud and thankful for their sacrifice. http://www.homeofheroes.com/moh/states/ms.html

Author

Psyclist

Date

2009-11-09T23:38:36-06:00

ID

153211

Comment

Congratulations to the family and friends of this outstanding MARINE. We should also celebrate the fact that a Mississippian is recognized for such a heroic deed.

Author

justjess

Date

2009-11-10T10:00:54-06:00