Acknowledgement

The only momentos Collins received from his war service 60 years ago were the scars he endured to his leg from that exploding grenade. No medals, no letters of commendation. His son David Collins, however, felt his father deserved some recognition. He recently contacted Florida Congressman Jeff Miller and explained his father’s unacknowledged service to his country.

Miller’s office looked into Collins’ discharge papers and discovered he should have received several medals for his military service. This past month, the World War II veteran who now makes Pensacola, Fla., his home, was awarded the Bronze Star, as well as three other war medals.

Miller said it is not uncommon for medal-deserving veterans to have gone unrewarded.

“These men who served in World War II, they’re a quiet bunch of heroes,” Miller was quoted as saying in a Pensacola News Journal article about Collins.