The word hero gets used a lot.
People who throw a football well or run fast or survive catastrophes get the label. So do rock stars and cartoon characters.
But in the next few days, Denver is going to fill up with real, certified heroes, men whose bravery defies explanation, who committed acts of the throw-yourself-on-a-hand-grenade variety. A couple of them actually did that.
They are recipients of the Medal of Honor, the nation’s highest military award. Each year, they get together for a few days to sign autographs, enjoy each other’s company and, presumably, swap war stories.
This year, the annual Medal of Honor convention will bring 60 or 65 of the 100 living recipients to town Tuesday through Friday.
Organizers expect the oldest living recipient, 99-year-old John Finn, to be among them.
Finn was a Navy lieutenant, stationed at Kaneohe Bay, Hawaii, on the fateful morning of Dec. 7, 1941. Japanese planes found Kaneohe Bay that Sunday morning just a few minutes before they hit Pearl Harbor.
According to his Medal of Honor citation, “Lt. Finn promptly secured and manned a .50-caliber machinegun . . . in a completely exposed section of the parking ramp, which was under heavy enemy machinegun strafing fire. Although painfully wounded many times, he continued to man this gun and to return the enemy’s fire vigorously and with telling effect. . . . It was only by specific orders that he was persuaded to leave his post to seek medical attention. Following first aid treatment . . . he returned to the squadron area and actively supervised the rearming of returning planes . . . ”
The conventions, organized by the National Medal of Honor Society, have two main goals, said Jan Baker, convention spokeswoman.
“One is time for them to get together and fraternize and share experiences and see one another. That’s why there’s a public schedule and a private schedule, so they have their own time,” Baker said.
“The other part is reaching out to the public so the values they represent are conveyed.”
One of the main methods for meeting the second goal is the dozens of visits the recipients will make to area schools, she said.
The celebration will culminate Friday with a Patriots Award Gala, where the late philanthropist and media innovator Bill Daniels will posthumously receive the society’s Distinguished Citizenship Award.
In addition, the Bob Hope Award for Excellence in Entertainment will be presented to Academy Award-winning actor and director Clint Eastwood.
