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Maj. Gen. Thomas R. Csrnko, USASFC commanding general and USASFC Command Sgt Maj., CSM Parry Baer, lay a wreath at the First Special Service Force Memorial during a ceremony at Helena, Mont. on Friday, August 18. Original members of Second World War’s “Devil’s Brigade” are in Helena for their annual reunion.
RELEASE NUMBER: 060821-01
DATE POSTED: AUGUST 21, 2006
Special Forces Soldiers honor First Special Service Force vets at 60th reunion
U.S. Army Special Operations Command Public Affairs Office
HELENA, Mont. (USASOC News Service, Aug. 21, 2006) – U.S. Army Special Forces Soldiers paid tribute to more than 80 surviving veterans of the First Special Service Force, a World War II special operations outfit to which they trace their commando lineage, during that unit’s 60th reunion here Aug. 17-19.
The FSSF, a unique American and Canadian combined force, was activated in July 1942 at Fort William Henry Harrison here and saw heavy action in Italy and southern France before its deactivation in December 1944.
With representatives from all seven U.S. Army Special Forces groups and the U.S. Army Special Forces Command present, the Green Berets – joined by their Canadian Special Forces colleagues – provided interpretive equipment displays, parachute jump demonstrations, and participated in all FSSF remembrance activities during the three-day reunion.
The FSSF is recognized as the predecessor of the U.S. Army’s Special Forces groups, the first of which stood up in 1952 and based much of its original doctrine on the FSSF’s experiences.
On Aug. 17, the reunion’s first day, Force veterans and their families toured Fort Harrison by bus, visiting their old training grounds and watching static-line parachute demonstration jumps by U.S. and Canadian Special Forces Soldiers using a CH-47 Chinook helicopter. The Soldiers took the opportunity to use each other’s parachute equipment, and later held a foreign jump wing exchange ceremony. The Soldiers also displayed some of their military equipment for the veterans and answered numerous questions about their gear’s advanced technology.
The reunion’s two main remembrance events were both held Aug. 18: a memorial service and a military Tattoo.
The memorial service, at Helena’s Memorial Park, featured a crowd of hundreds gathered to pay respects to all members of the FSSF, living and dead. Wreaths were placed at a stone memorial with an encased FSSF flag, while silent prayers were uttered during a bagpipe rendition of “Amazing Grace.”
Later, at Fort Harrison, the Tattoo included a number of re-enactments and musical performances dedicated to the FSSF, including Canadian and American pipe-and-drum marching bands. A crowd favorite was a demonstration of military free-fall parachuting by a U.S. Special Forces team, which landed safely and impressively on the post’s parade field.
At a banquet Aug. 19 held in honor of the Force, hundreds of people – Force veterans, along with their families and friends – gathered with the dozens of present-day Soldiers to honor fallen comrades, recall the unit’s history and recognize the legacy of modern Special Forces units spawned by the Force’s creation.
During the event, the winners of the First Special Service Force Association’s annual Frederick Award were announced. Named for Maj. Gen. Robert T. Frederick, the decorated first commander of the FSSF, the Frederick Award is presented to both an American and a Canadian Special Forces Soldier carefully selected by their respective commands in recognition of outstanding contributions to their military units and local communities.
1st Sgt. Daren Drudy of the 5th Special Forces Group (Airborne) at Fort Campbell, Ky., and Canadian army Sgt. Gary Grant, a seven-year veteran of Canadian special operations forces, were named the recipients of the Frederick Award.
“How humbling it is to be associated with the First Special Service Force, and to have your name mentioned in the same sentence as General Frederick,” Drudy said. “The true blessing in receiving this award was the fact that I got to come here and see, to rub elbows with, the men … who served with the First Special Service Force.”
Later, three shell casings and a piece of stone from the cliffs of Monte la Difensa, the site of the Force’s first battle in the Italian theater, were presented by a Italian delegation as a gift to the FSSF Association for its famed defeat of Nazi troops there in December 1943. The items were accepted by Maj. Gen. Randall D. Mosley, Montana’s adjutant general, on behalf of the association; the artifacts will be displayed at Fort Harrison’s museum.
The events at Monte la Difensa were famously profiled in a 1966 book and 1968 film, both titled “The Devil’s Brigade,” a nickname the Force had earned and adopted because of its fierce and unconventional fighting style.
Capping the evening’s events was an announcement from Maj. Gen. Thomas Csrnko, commanding general of the U.S. Army Special Forces Command, that the Department of the Army had approved the awarding of the Bronze Star Medal to the Canadian members of the FSSF. Only the American FSSF veterans had previously been eligible to receive the award.
The Johnsons, a Canadian family visiting the reunion from Parksville, British Columbia, in honor of late family member and Force vet Ernest Chipchase, cheered upon hearing the news.
“It’s fantastic, and it’s about time!” said Stan Anderson. Anderson remarked that he thought the Bronze Star was well-deserved by the Canadian service members, who had worn American uniforms and used American weapons during their time in the Force. “I’m glad to see it happen.”
At last year’s reunion, held in Calgary, Alberta, the Canadians were presented with the U.S. Army’s Combat Infantryman Badge in recognition of their hard-won contributions to the Force’s fight.
Thomas Phillips, 84, of Fairmount, Ga., was with the Force from its early days in Helena and participated in all unit deployments, from the Aleutian Islands in 1943 to action in southern France in 1944.
Speaking of a fallen comrade – a close friend – killed during combat in Italy, Phillips embodied the bittersweet emotions that permeated the reunion, “It brings tears to my eyes to think of what we accomplished – and what we lost,” he said.
Phillips also spoke with sadness of a friend and Force veteran he had been hoping to see at the reunion, but who had died suddenly just before the reunion began – underscoring the fragility of the surviving Force and the significance of this reunion.
Although this year’s gathering was originally planned as the last official reunion, the governing FSSF Association voted during a meeting Aug. 19 to hold a 61st reunion next year in Canada.
Csrnko said he was excited about the possibility of honoring the FSSF again at another reunion.
“I was sad to see the (FSSF) colors cased, and I’ll rejoice to see them uncased,” he said. “I understand it’s very difficult on the Force to travel, but we owe an awful lot to them.”
Whether there is another reunion or not, Csrnko said, the spirit of the First Special Service Force will continue to live on through the U.S. Army Special Forces Soldiers of today.
“We followed in their footsteps, so the legacy that we are born from is a mantle we have to hold high and maintain,” he said. “We will continue to uphold the standards that they set.”
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A static-line parachute jump takes place involving U.S. Army and Canadian Special Forces Soldiers at Fort Harrison, Helena, Mont. on Aug. 16. The Soldiers used each other's parachute equipment. (Photo by Gillian M. Albro, USASOC PAO)
The First Special Service Force Soldiers pass by their successors as they march into the memorial service held in their honor at Memorial Park, Helena, Mont. Aug 19. (Photo by Gillian M. Albro, USASOC PAO)
Soldiers from the First Special Service Force are honored in downtown Helena, Mont. with a memorial service Aug 19. (Photo by Gillian M. Albro, USASOC PAO)
Canadian and American pipe-and-drum bands play "Amazing Grace" during a memorial service Aug 18 that paid respects to the First Special Service Force veterans. The event was part of the 60th reunion of the FSSF Soldiers at Helena, Mont. (Photo by Gillian M. Albro, USASOC PAO)
Maj. Gen. Thomas Csrnko, commanding general of the U.S. Army Special Forces Command, presents American jump wings to Canadian Special Forces Soldiers during jump wing exchange ceremony at Fort Harrison, Helena, Mont. on Aug. 18. (Photo by Gillian M. Albro, USASOC PAO)
At Fort Harrison, Mont. a Tattoo is held Aug. 18 for the First Special Service Force veterans that included a number of re-enactments, such as a demonstration by the cavalry. (Photo by Gillian M. Albro, USASOC PAO)
The First Special Service Force colors are encased during the Tattoo held at Fort Harrison, Helena, Mont. Aug. 18. (Photo by Gillian M. Albro, USASOC PAO)
Maj. Gen. Randall D. Mosley, Montana's adjutant general, accepts a piece of stone from the cliffs of Monte la Difensa, the site of the First Special Service Force first battle in the Italian theater. The gift to the FSSF Association, presented during a banquet Aug. 19 at Helena, Mont., will be displayed at the Fort Harrison museum. (Photo by Gillian M. Albro, USASOC PAO)
Other Assorted Photos by Gillian M. Albro, USASOC PAO