Photo By Shaun Herron | Command Sgt. Maj. Richard C. Moore, the Fort George G. Meade command sergeant major,...... read more read more
ELLICOTT CITY, Md. – His service in uniform began with a lie.
Nearly 90 years later that service was honored with the presentation of the French Legion of Honor, equivalent to the U.S. Medal of Honor for France.
The prestigious award was established by Napoleon Bonaparte and presented to 1st Sgt. (Ret.) Leggio J. Sassi, 103, by Caroline Monvoisin, the Consul General of France. She presented the medal and a certificate signed by French President Emmanuel Macron. The medal and certificate bestowed the title of ‘chevalier’ to Sassi, making him a knight of the, “Ordre national de la Legion d’honneur.”
Command Sgt. Maj. Richard Moore, Fort George G. Meade Garrison Command Sergeant Major, gave the keynote address in the ceremony at VFW Post #7472. In that address he praised the resolve and determination shown by Sassi as one of the keys to Allied victory.
"America’s sons and daughters have been outnumbered, out-trained, and out-equipped since the American Revolution," said Moore. "But what we have had, and continue to have, is something no other country has – that is the best leaders a country could ever ask for."
A Storied Military Career
Sassi's military service began years before the events that earned him this recognition. In 1938, at just 15 years old, he lied about his age to join the Army, seeking a world beyond the coal mines of his hometown, Star Junction, Pennsylvania.
Uncle Sam didn’t disappoint – his first assignment took him to Hawaii for two years.
After returning to the mainland in 1940 to be discharged from Fort Meade, Maryland, the Army extended his service for a year to train Soldiers there.
He was honorably discharged in 1941, but his time as a civilian was brief.
Less than four months after the U.S. entered World War II, Sassi enlisted again.
From the Beaches of France to the Battle of the Bulge
Now of legal age to serve, his second enlistment brought him to England in February 1944 and then to France.
As part of the 44th Armored Infantry Battalion of the 6th Armored Division, his unit engaged in a 230-mile rapid march across France, reaching the Siegfried Line—the border between France and Germany—by October of that year.
In December, Sassi’s division was ordered to rush to the aid of surrounded troops at Bastogne, Belgium, to take part in the Battle of the Bulge. In severe winter weather, his unit attacked enemy troops south of Bastogne in what became known for its fierce fighting and the indomitable spirit of the Allies.
Liberation of Buchenwald and Return Home
Following the Battle of the Bulge, Sassi and his unit entered Germany, where they discovered the Buchenwald Concentration Camp on April 11, 1945.
"We aided some 21,000 of Germany’s so-called ‘undesirables’," Sassi recalled.
His time in combat ended shortly after, when he was wounded by shrapnel near Zeitz, Germany. He was evacuated to England and then to a hospital in Washington, D.C., to recover.
Sassi was honorably discharged on October 31, 1945, but re-enlisted the very next day.
In his final tour, he served in occupied Japan and Korea before returning to the U.S. to serve on President Truman’s Honor Guard and again train troops at Fort Meade.
He was honorably discharged for the final time Aug. 24, 1948.
A Quiet Hero and Beloved Father
Sassi’s daughter, Gail Conway, spoke lovingly of her father during the ceremony, describing him as a man who was always working but quick to join the neighborhood kids for a game of baseball.
"The neighbors’ boys used to knock on the door and ask if Dad could come out to play," she said.
Like many veterans of his generation, Sassi rarely spoke of his time in the military. Instead, he dedicated his life to his work at Westinghouse, and his family, which includes his beloved, late-wife Iris, two daughters, five grandchildren, and five great-grandchildren.
Recognition of a Lifetime
In addition to the French Legion of Honor, Sassi received numerous other honors during the ceremony, including:
- Citations from U.S. Senator Chris Van Hollen and Senator Angela Alsobrooks
- A citation of congressional recognition from Senator Sarah Elfreth
- A citation from the Maryland General Assembly from Senator Kate Fry Hester and Delegate Courtney Watson
- An Executive Proclamation from Howard County, making Nov. 28, 2025, "Lee Sassi Day"
- A governor’s citation from Governor Wes Moore
| Date Taken: | 12.12.2025 |
| Date Posted: | 12.12.2025 13:32 |
| Story ID: | 554048 |
| Location: | FORT GEORGE G. MEADE, MARYLAND, US |
| Hometown: | STAR JUNCTION, PENNSYLVANIA, US |
| Web Views: | 23 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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