Renowned war correspondent and author Joe Galloway spoke to command leaders during a professional development discussion at Explosive Ordnance Disposal Group (EODGRU) 2, headquartered on Joint Expeditionary Base Little Creek, Jan. 26.

Galloway, co-author of the award-winning book "We Were Soldiers Once...and Young," has spent more than half a century as a war and foreign correspondent and deployed to combat zones around the world. He is the only civilian awarded the Bronze Star Medal with "V" device by the U.S. Army during the Vietnam War for rescuing wounded soldiers under fire in the Ia Drang Valley in November 1965.

The late Gen. H. Norman Schwarzkopf first met Galloway in South Vietnam and called him "the finest combat correspondent of our generation; a soldier's reporter and a soldier's friend."

"We were extremely grateful for the opportunity to host Joe Galloway," said Capt. Josh Jackson, commander, EODGRU 2. "As a man who has been a witness to history and combat for more than 50 years, he has a unique perspective of what American military leadership has looked like during various conflicts and can lend his voice to professional development discussions in a special way."

Galloway opened the discussion by sharing lessons he learned from his time on the ground as a war correspondent, observing leaders like Lt. Gen Hal Moore leading troops under grueling circumstances during military operations.

"You represent the best our country has, and you must live up to that," Galloway said. "Your character must be impeccable, and your morals must also be impeccable. Sometimes some folks slip, but don't let it be you. Your troops' eyes are on you. You set the example. Your decisions are going to mean life or death for some of them, so you've got to do it good, you've got to do it right, and you've got to do it smart. If I could say so, you should be like Lt. Gen. Hal Moore. Study up on what you're doing and who you're fighting, and always, always take care of your troops first before you think about yourself. If you think about yourself at all, take care of their comfort first because if you take care of them they'll do their best to take care of you."

After completing his presentation, Galloway answered questions about his experiences of working closely with Moore, as well as his experiences away from the battlefield.

"So much of what Joe talked about loving was the time he spent around the troops while serving as a war correspondent for 50 years," said Lt. Cmdr. Jason Shell, executive officer of EOD Mobile Unit 2. "For all of the things we try to measure about combat readiness, the most important thing is the one thing we don't measure, and that is heart. It's something he thought Moore could measure and use to inspire his troops, and that might be one of the most important lessons about holding any command, even if you can't measure it."

EODGRU 2, headquartered at Joint Expeditionary Base Little Creek-Fort Story (JEBLCFS), oversees all East Coast-based Navy EOD mobile units, including one forward-deployed mobile unit in Spain, as well as EOD Expeditionary Support Unit 2, EOD Training and Evaluation Unit 2, and the only East Coast-based mobile diving and salvage unit, Mobile Diving and Salvage Unit 2.

For more information, visit www.navy.mil, www.facebook.com/usnavy, or www.twitter.com/usnavy.

For more news from Explosive Ordnance Disposal Group 2, visit www.navy.mil/.