When Lt. Col. James Moyes took command of 3rd Battalion, 39th Infantry Regiment and unfurled its colors on Victory Field on Wednesday -- with a little help from a couple dozen Vietnam veterans -- the unit's metamorphosis from the Provisional Lightning Battalion was complete.
The veterans were there to add Vietnam War battle streamers to the colors, making the ceremony especially poignant because they had served in the battalion being reactivated.
The ceremony included "attaching six of the eight Vietnam campaign streamers by veterans who served with the battalion during the actual campaign," said Maj. Jeffrey Little, battalion executive officer.
"The battalion commander during the Tet Offensive, retired Col. Anthony Deluca and retired Command Sgt. Maj. Stanley Thornburgh, a Platoon Sergeant for Bravo Company during Vietnam, assisted with the uncasing of the 3-39 colors."
Six other veterans attached campaign streamers from the campaigns in which they had participated, Little said.
Moyes said during the ceremony that after Deluca, a three-time Silver Star awardee, agreed to help with the ceremony, "Amazingly enough, as soon as he was on board, we had a resurgence of outreach from the veterans of our battalion."
The more than 30 veterans of the 3-39th attending the event were instrumental in the ceremony, as well as creating the battalion's lasting legacy, Moyes said.
Among the veterans, "we have numerous stories of heroism and bravery; tragedy and loss, and joys and triumphs. Over the past few days, our battalion and its veterans have come to know each other and have learned from each other's experiences.
"I cannot stress enough how honored we are to have each of you here today."
Besides fighting in Vietnam, the battalion also participated in combat operation in both world wars.
Constituted May 15, 1917, the battalion fought on the Western Front during World War I. It earned World War II campaign streamers for fighting in North Africa, Sicily, Italy, France and Germany.
During the battle of Kasserine Pass in 1943, the 3-39th - then attached to the 1st Armored Division's Combat Command B in North Africa - helped cover the left side of the II Corps line in Tunisia to prevent German attempts to move west.
The battalion also landed on Utah Beach during the Normandy Invasion, battled its way across France and participated in the bloodbath in the Hurtgen Forest in 1944-1945.
After a series of inactivations and activations during the postwar years, the battalion returned to active duty at Fort Riley, Kansas, as part of the 9th Infantry Division.
It departed Fort Riley on Jan. 1, 1967, for Vietnam and didn't leave Southeast Asia until Aug. 9, 1969.
It was last inactivated at Fort Dix, New Jersey, in December 1988.
The Army didn't just assign the 3-39th to be activated at Fort Jackson. The unit leadership helped decide.
Jennifer Nichols, a historian with the Army Center of Military History, said units have a say in what unit they want to be activated as.
Little said battalions from the 34th, 39th and 61st Infantry Regiments were studied "with the recommendation of selecting a battalion from the 39th regiment."
"We in the battalion command team were provided the campaigns and citation breakdown for each battalion," Little said. Because of the 3-39th's service, the team "requested our designation of 3rd Battalion, 39th Infantry Regiment."
A choice is usually comes after "looking at what regiments are on post," she said. TRADOC had only a few regiments from which to choose, and that made it easier.
Normally, units selected for activation are similar to the ones inactivating and have a prestigious history.
The 39th Infantry Regiment, which has a storied history, will join its sister battalion - the 2nd Battalion, 39th Infantry Regiment - in the 165th Infantry Brigade.
"Of the inactive battalions, the 3rd had the most active history," Nichols said. "The unit served in both world wars and Vietnam, while other battalions didn't."
The 1st Battalion served in the world wars; the 4th Battalion served in World War II and Vietnam.
Social Sharing