Campaign medal for Korean War a VFW qualifier for 52 years

VFW Magazine, June-July, 2002

Korean War (1950-53) veterans have been eligible for VFW since November 1950.

Veterans of Korea can take pride in being recipients of the Korean Service Medal (KSM), an award symbolizing honorable service and sacrifice in a full-scale war.

Created by Executive Order No. 10179 on Nov. 8, 1950, the medal covers the period June 27, 1950, through July 27, 1954--a full year after the armistice was signed. It includes service within the Far East Command: Korea, adjacent areas of Japan, Okinawa, the Sea of Japan and the Yellow Sea. It also recognizes 30 consecutive or 60 non-consecutive days of temporary duty in the theater of war.

Service with a unit or headquarters stationed outside the theater, but directly supporting Korea military operations during this time also entitled a veteran to the medal.

Approximately 1.5 million Americans earned their KSM on the soil of South Korea. Others served offshore or in neighboring Japan (in direct support), bringing the total to 1.8 million. Some 33,741 Americans were killed in action in the war; 103,284 were hospitalized for wounds.

Often called the "forgotten war," it has been anything but that at VFW. Instrumental in promoting the Korean War Veterans Memorial, the organization donated $600,000 toward its construction by dedication in July 1995.

VFW has welcomed Korean War vets into its ranks since 1951, shortly after the KSM was created; six have led the organization as commander-in-chief. Today, Korean War vets continue to hold offices at every organizational level. Among VFW's 1.8 million members, at least 20% are Korean War veterans.

Now into the third year of the war's 50th anniversary commemoration, VFW is playing a major role in recognizing those who fought it. VFW magazine is publishing a series of monthly articles commemorating the war's battles, and Posts are conducting special observances.

Editor's Note: The Korean Service Medal is not available from VFW. To learn how to obtain campaign medals, please refer to the article on the National Personnel Records Center in November 2000, pp. 12-18.

For more information on
VFW membership, contact:
Jim Rowoldt, Director
VFW Membership Department
VFW National Headquarters
406 W. 34th Street
Kansas City, MO 64111
(816) 756-3390, ext. 208

www.vfw.org/membership