Montford Point Marine Congressional Gold Medal registration deadline announced

DC, UNITED STATES

04.05.2012

Courtesy Story

Communication Directorate             

WASHINGTON -The Marine Corps announced today that April 15 is the last day to register as an original Montford Point Marine in time to be invited to attend the Congressional Gold Medal ceremony here later this spring.

The Montford Point Marine Association is searching for and documenting the service of the original Montford Point Marines in preparation for a Congressional Gold Medal ceremony later this year. The ceremony will recognize the service and sacrifices of the Montford Point Marines, who will each receive a bronze replica medal.

Invitations to the ceremony are limited to:

-all properly documented living Montford Point Marines who register with the MPMA by April 15, 2012, plus one family member whom the Montford Point Marine officially designates
-one lineal descendent of each Montford Point Marine killed in action during combat operations in World War II
-one lineal descendent of each properly documented and MPMA registered Montford Point Marine who was alive when the bill awarding the Congressional Gold Medal to the Original Montford Point Marines was signed into law by President Obama on Nov. 23, 2011

Lineal descendents submitting paperwork under this exemption must provide a copy of the death certificate and specify the lineal descendent who will accept the Congressional Gold Medal on behalf of their deceased Montford Point Marine.

A lineal descendent is defined as a person who is in direct line to an ancestor, such as a child, grandchild, great-grandchild, etc. A lineal descendent is distinguished from a "collateral" descendent which would be from the line of a brother, sister, aunt, uncle or other first-degree relative.

Documentation of the individual's DD214 or discharge paperwork verifying completion of training at the Montford Point Camp, N.C., between 1942 and 1949 must be submitted to the MPMA by April 15 in order to receive an invitation to the ceremony.

When submitting the documentation, the requestor must specify whether the Montford Point Marine is living or deceased and provide current contact information, to include name, address, phone number and email address for the Montford Point Marine or the next of kin.

Other than those specified above, relatives of a deceased Montford Point Marine will not be eligible to attend the Congressional Gold Medal events in Washington, D.C., but will be recognized with certificates of service which officially document their relatives' Montford Point Marine status. These certificates will be prepared and delivered to one living relative of each Montford Point Marine at a later date.

Documentation must be provided to the address below, postmarked by the April 15 deadline:

MPMA, Inc., National Legislative Officer
Mr. Joseph H. Geeter, III
27 Red Tail Court
Limerick, PA 19468

Information regarding the details of the Congressional Gold Medal award ceremony will be released when they become available.

Those with questions regarding MPMA chapters or documentation of a Montford Point Marine's service can contact Joe Geeter at [e-mail] or [phone]. Media representatives interested in covering the ceremony can contact Capt. Kendra Hardesty at [e-mail] or [phone].

• Date Taken: 04.05.2012
• Date Posted: 04.05.2012 22:34
• Story ID: 86351
• Location: DC, US