Destroyer named for Navy Corpsman who earned Medal of Honor hits milestone
Source: Task & Purpose
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Former Marine Joseph Barna carried the memory of the Navy corpsman who saved his life and the lives of many other Marines during vicious fighting in the Korean War. In interviews and a book he later wrote on corpsmen who served in the war, Barna told the story of a deep stab wound he suffered and the sailor who pulled him into a hut to stitch it closed.
“I was bleeding, ready to fall asleep, and I hear a voice say ‘Joe, Joe, if I don’t stop that bleeding, you’re gonna bleed to death,’” Barma recalled in a 2015 interview, one of many he gave on Kilmer and his time in Korea. “So here was Doc Kilmer, this Navy corpsman, 21 years old. He said, ‘I’m going to stop that bleed.’ So he took the flamethrower off my back, carried me into a bunker, and there was one Marine there. He held a candle, and Doc Kilmer sewed me up with a needle and thread.”
Barma died Aug. 19, at 96. In his final years, he saw the start of construction on a Navy ship named after that same Navy corpsman, John Kilmer, who was awarded the Medal of Honor in 1953 for saving two other Marines.
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Last week, the ship crossed a major milestone when shipbuilders in Bath, Maine, laid down the keel on the future USS John E. Kilmer, an Arleigh Burke-class destroyer
Kilmer’s Medal of Honor action came about two weeks after he patched up Barma. During the Battle of Bunker Hill — an elevated position that took its name from the Revolutionary War battle — he was assigned to Company H, 3rd Battalion, 7th Marines, 1st Marine Division.
Today, Kilmer is a key figure in Navy medical history. Every August, students and instructors at the service’s Hospital Corps A School at the Navy Medicine Training Support Center in San Antonio, Texas, gather for a ceremony at the local cemetery where Kilmer is buried.
Barma spoke frequently in recent decades of his time in Korea and of Kilmer’s actions. He dedicated a book on Navy corpsmen, “God Makes Angels and Navy Corpsmen, A Korean War Veteran’s Memories of the War and Life,” to Kilmer.
“His face is forever cemented in my mind and my heart,” Barna told the Times-Leader in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania. “Jackie was tall, maybe 6 feet 2 inches, and very thin. He had a high squeaky voice, like the Wally Cox TV character Mr. Peepers. In those few quiet times between battles, I shared a bunker with Jackie, and we became good friends.”
The post Destroyer named for Navy Corpsman who earned Medal of Honor hits milestone appeared first on Task & Purpose.
Classification
Region
North America
Analytical Domain
Tactical
Primary Category
Military Operations
Subcategory
Naval Engagement
SALUTE Report
Size
Not specified
Activity
Construction of a Navy destroyer named after Navy corpsman John Kilmer
Location
Bath · Maine
Unit
USS John E. Kilmer (Arleigh Burke-class destroyer)
Time
Recent milestone in construction
Equipment
Arleigh Burke-class destroyer
Summary
The keel for the USS John E. Kilmer, an Arleigh Burke-class destroyer, was laid down in Bath, Maine, marking a significant milestone in its construction. The ship is named after Navy corpsman John Kilmer, who received the Medal of Honor for his bravery during the Korean War. Joseph Barna, a former Marine who was saved by Kilmer, frequently spoke about his experiences and passed away on August 19 at the age of 96.
Key Facts
- USS John E. Kilmer is an Arleigh Burke-class destroyer named after Navy corpsman John Kilmer.
- The keel for the destroyer was laid down in Bath, Maine.
- John Kilmer was awarded the Medal of Honor for his actions during the Korean War.
- Joseph Barna, a former Marine, shared stories about Kilmer's heroism.
- Barna passed away on August 19 at the age of 96.