Sailors from Navy Medicine Training Support Center (NMTSC) at Joint Base San Antonio-Fort Sam Houston (JBSA-FSH) joined local veterans, Aug. 13, for a graveside memorial service honoring Hospitalman John E. "Jackie" Kilmer, who was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor.

Kilmer died from injuries sustained, Aug. 12, 1952, from enemy fire during the attack on "Bunker Hill" in Korea.

Nearly 100 people gathered for the ceremony, a team effort by the NMTSC Chief Petty Officer (CPO) Mess and several San Antonio-area Veterans of Foreign War (VFW) posts.

Marine Corps Vietnam Veteran John Rodriguez, from VFW Post 9186, has led the annual ceremony for 10 years. He described the importance of young hospital corpsmen (HN) experiencing their heritage.

"Here we have a man who gave his life so others can keep theirs," Rodriquez said. "I want these young Sailors to know this about one of their own. Master Chief Melissa Foster tells about seeing HN Kilmer's photo on the wall when she was a young corpsman and how that influenced her."

Master Chief Hospital Corpsman Melissa Foster, NMTSC command master chief, said Kilmer's picture has "graced the bulkhead of every military treatment facility I have been associated with throughout my career. As an HN I remember reading his Medal of Honor citation and thinking how he was so selfless and honorable at such a young age."

The ceremony included remarks by Rodriguez and the national anthem sung by the NMTSC student choir. VFW members paraded the American and five military service flags, and Lt. Cmdr. Scott Adams, NMTSC chaplain, gave the invocation and benediction. NMTSC CPO selectees read Kilmer's bio and his Medal of Honor citation, and they led the Hospital Corpsman Pledge.

Rodriguez said 32 Medal of Honor recipients have ties to San Antonio. Of those, only one is from the Korean War and served in the Navy. Kilmer was born Aug. 15, 1930, in Highland Park, Illinois. He quit high school at 17 to enlist in the Navy from Houston, Texas, and graduated from Hospital Corps School in San Diego, California, in April 1948.

Kilmer was assigned to the hospital ship USS Repose (AH-16) when war broke out in Korea. His enlistment term expired in August 1951, but he soon rejoined the Navy. Eventually Kilmer transferred to the Fleet Marine Force. On August 12, 1952, he took part in the attack on Bunker Hill and was mortally wounded after using his body to shield another man from enemy fire. Kilmer died the next day, two days before his 21st birthday.

Seaman Danielle Mobley was one of several Hospital Corps "A" school students from the Medical Education and Training Campus at JBSA-FSH attending the ceremony. A member of the NMTSC student choir, Mobley said she was deeply touched by the ceremony.

"I'm grateful I was able to be here," she said. "We walk past the pictures of the hospital corpsmen [on the memorial wall] every day. To be here and be in the midst of this is a great experience, it makes me happy about my choice to become a corpsman. It makes me feel honored to be a corpsman."

Hospital corpsman is the Navy's largest and most decorated rating with 22 Medals of Honor, and 20 Navy ships having been named after hospital corpsmen.

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