Latest / The One Oʻahu Podcast with Mayor Rick Blangiardi / Colonel Ed Cruickshank on a recent Purple Heart ceremony at Honolulu Hale

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Colonel Ed Cruickshank on a recent Purple Heart ceremony at Honolulu Hale · The One Oʻahu Podcast with Mayor Rick Blangiardi

0:15
Welcome to the one oahu podcast.
0:17
I'm your host, Brandi Higa,
0:18
and this week we're sitting down with a very special guest.
0:21
Colonel Ed Cruickshank, U.S.
0:22
Army retired commander of the Rainbow Chapter of the order of the Purple Heart,
0:26
a Purple Heart recipient and president of the Oahu Veterans Council.
0:30
Colonel, thanks for joining us.
0:32
Well, thank you for inviting me.
0:34
You know, it's an honor to have you here.
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We thought it'd be a good time to get you on because August 7th,
0:39
it's now past what was National Purple Heart Day.
0:42
What does what does that mean?
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For those who aren't familiar?
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Well, what that means is,
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that's the Purple Heart day, when Purple Heart should never be forgotten.
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But to be thought about.
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And it's very special because,
0:56
you know, face
0:57
it, we have a lot of older population and a lot of Purple Heart.
1:01
Ours are slowly passing away, and we want to make sure
1:05
that if they're not there, their families are never forgotten.
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And that's why doing things like this is very important.
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And what Ric did today was fabulous.
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And what is the Purple Heart?
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The Purple Heart is an organization for an
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organization made up for those that have been wounded in combat.
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And, so you shed blood for your country.
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And to commemorate that, you just mentioned that
1:28
ceremony held at Honolulu Hall to celebrate something pretty unique.
1:33
New signage across the city and County of Honolulu.
1:35
But these are signs that folks may be seeing across town.
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Physical reminders.
1:42
What does that mean to you?
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It means we haven't been forgotten.
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When we go to ceremonies like this.
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It remembers the times when other people were with you but are no longer here.
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And it's it's great for the families.
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For example, the Lee family, they're all here in honor
2:00
of their their dad or husband, Henry. And,
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it's a time to be grateful and proud to be an American.
2:09
And who was Henry Lee?
2:11
Henry Lee was, he
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he didn't start the chapter, but he was a member of the chapter for years.
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Just like Ace Carlino.
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And they're the stalwarts or the
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the guts of the organization because they're so special.
2:27
And they're they're the ones that brought a lot of a lot of us in.
2:30
Yeah.
2:30
I mean, I got to meet ace, but not a lot of people know
2:33
who aces or really a lot of these Purple Heart recipients are local recipients.
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Can you talk about some of them?
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Yeah, I can. Well, Ace Galiano,
2:43
he he was a career, Army guy.
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He, He fought in the Korean War.
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He fought in Vietnam.
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Special forces, long range patrols.
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And set up the,
3:00
the jungle warfare school there.
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And at the 25th Division.
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He's,
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he's a black belt, ten degrees.
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So his belt is red.
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So he's a tough guy.
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He's losing his eyesight, which makes it very difficult for him to get around.
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But, for example, coming to these things here,
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he talks to people that he knows, and they have a lot in common.
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And that's what's so important.
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So we try and get them out as much as we can.
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And the same thing is true with Mu Taki ASU he's
3:34
having really mobility problems but he's just
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they never miss meetings because they have that ohana
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that we can miss a meeting because we represent the Purple Heart.
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What other extraordinary men have you?
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Men and women really have families.
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Have you met through this work?
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You know, we've had, you know, just 8 or 9 years ago,
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we used to have 27, 28 people, but they've all passed on.
4:01
A lot of them were were World War Two, and they've all passed on.
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Now we have a few in the Korean War,
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and the rest is really Vietnam and the Gulf War veterans.
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And, you know, every generation
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they pass on, which is part of life.
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Allen Kellogg was, of course, is a medal of honor.
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And and Allen Hall, has a medal or a Purple
4:26
Heart medal, but he also lost a son I know in Iraq.
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And so to see them all today.
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Can you talk about
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some of the conversations you heard or some of their reaction to the ceremony,
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or just really just being together in the same place?
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I think they, they said they liked they loved the ceremony.
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We got a chance to really sit and talk because we meet quarterly.
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Not every month now, because it's hard for them to meet every month. And,
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you know, they're excited to get out of the house and come here
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and being honored and recognize and talk to other people in the military.
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So they had a great day.
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That's all I could tell you.
5:03
Can you talk about that?
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The camaraderie that exists amongst you guys, I mean, I see the other branches
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coming up and congratulating you folks as well.
5:11
Well, you know, at one time, the camaraderie is once you've been in
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combat, it's a little different than those that have never been in combat.
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People with you becomes like your family.
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So all of a sudden, when you're getting into battle and you're fighting,
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you're American.
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Yes, but you're looking out for your buddy because he's looking out for you.
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That's the only way you're going to make it.
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And you become very close.
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It's like I'm in contact with people.
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I lead, in Vietnam back in 69, 70.
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If they're still alive, we get together every 2 or 3 years and just get together
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and reminisce and and it's good for everybody.
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And, because we all care about each other, and that will never go away.
5:58
Yeah.
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You kind of mentioned that in your speech about,
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the bravery that's been shown amongst your group.
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But for those who maybe didn't come to the ceremony
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or weren't able to watch it on a a little, can you share some of your speech?
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What what did you say?
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Well, I, I really don't know.
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When I got up there, a lot of times I have all these notes and it becomes
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very spontaneous for me and I, I just go off.
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But the fact is that it's all about family.
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It's all about family and friends.
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And when all of a sudden you see all these people there,
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they say, we haven't been forgotten, especially for the older ones,
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like Minnow and Ace.
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And, it's great to see them happy.
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And it did a lot for,
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Allen Kellogg, who just been able to have people come over and say,
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thank you, Allen, because he's the a medal, Medal of Honor recipient.
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And they came to him because you had the ceremony here.
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So he, he he loved it.
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And so did his daughter Tanya, who brought him here.
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Well, for those that miss it, we'll play part of your speech. Now.
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You know all the Purple Heart recipients here.
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Could you just stand for a minute so they can see
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if you can?
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Of course.
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Okay.
7:18
Thank you very much.
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You can sit down.
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There's two individuals that I'd really like to mention.
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One is Henry Lee and the other is Tommy Tanaka.
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They're not here.
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So Rick, I really thank you for having things like this, because we're
7:34
losing a lot of great people.
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You know, Henry was, I believe, 92.
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Tommy Tanaka was 97.
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And, all of us just love the guys.
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And we, you know, you couldn't say no to either one.
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But anyway, I like the, the Lee Ohana to just stand up
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because they're here today representing their dad.
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Thank you.
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Imagine when I was getting my uniforms cut down
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when I was a ROTC cadet at the University of Hawaii.
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Cruz cut down my uniforms all the time, so it's super.
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But anyway, with that, I just want to say just two things.
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First of all, freedom isn't free.
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You, the individuals here, the guests know how important it is.
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Especially in today's times,
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to always think and recognize people for doing so much.
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I always thought this years of years ago, when I first got permission,
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we had a six paragraph code of conduct.
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And what it is, even though it's 60
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plus years later, I'm an American
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fighting in the forces which guard
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my country and our way of life.
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I am prepared to give my life in its defense.
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I felt that way so many years ago for all of you here.
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You may be getting older, but we all feel the same way.
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Our body isn't what it used to be, but the brain wide.
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We're saying you guys are really special.
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So with that, I think that that completes it.
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But just remember, we will only remain the land of the free
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as long as we remain the land of the brave.
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Thank you very much.
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And for those who missed it or weren't
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able to catch it on Olelo, here's part of Mayor Rick Blangiardi speech.
9:35
Good morning and aloha.
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I can't thank you all enough for being here this morning.
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This is a very special occasion.
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And before I deliver my
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brief prepared remarks, just have to say a couple of things.
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I was born in 1946, a little bit more than 11 months after my father returned
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home from World War two, along with a bunch of uncles that I had.
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I grew up in a large Italian family.
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All of those men fought in World War Two,
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along with the kids that I went to school with, all their dads
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and moms that actually were involved in the war effort as well.
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And that was very impressionable on us as young kids.
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And those men never talked about their personal heroics.
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They never did.
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But they did
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talk about the impact of the war, and it was very impressionable as young.
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And then in the middle of grammar school, before we even understood the geography
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of the world, we're all talking about the Korean War and what that meant.
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And some of our dads actually went away to that.
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And then all came high school.
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Before I knew it, going to college in the late 60s.
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Vietnam was very real.
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And for the first time in my life, I personally knew people
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who were injured in the line of duty and some people who lost their lives,
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and that was profound in more ways than I could express to you.
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So I would tell you the first 25 years of my life, third of my life,
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my impressions and my respect
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for the men and women who serve our country
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and what they're willing to put on the line could not be any more profound
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in a moment in time like today, when we have the opportunity to make
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Honolulu a Purple Heart city
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is incredibly special.
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We're so grateful to our military past, present for future generations.
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And one last word I hold on the same parallel
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the men and women of our first responders that I now have a chance to work with,
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people that I know, willing to put their life on the line each and every day.
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Unlike a war like wartime condition.
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But that bravery, that courage, that special human
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being, goes beyond my ability to describe that.
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Except I have profound respect. I want you to know that.
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So it is with great privilege.
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I deliver these comments.
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Thank you for joining us today on this very special day.
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We are here to honor our veterans, an extraordinary sacrifice
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represented by the Purple Heart Medal.
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And to ensure that sacrifice is acknowledged
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every day going forward, all across our island.
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Just a couple of
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days ago, we participated in a memorial service
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commemorating the 80th anniversary of the bombing of Hiroshima.
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Our visit to the city was extremely thought provoking.
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Everywhere you look, there are still reminders of the day
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and of World War Two.
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On our trip, I was reminded of something
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powerful that the people of Hiroshima know and know well,
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and so do the members of our US military.
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War does not just end
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just because the fighting stops
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the wounds from military conflict.
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Whether you can see them or not,
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do not heal overnight.
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War leaves its mark on a nation,
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on an entire city, and on a man or a woman in uniform.
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Especially.
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The Purple Heart recipients we wanted to hear today.
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Know that better than anyone.
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They know that strength comes with a cost
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and they have paid it, whether their bodies or their minds.
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Our islands have
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long stood as a strategic gateway to the Pacific, and countless sons
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and daughters of Hawaii have answered the call to defend our freedoms.
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It was amazing today to hear the statistics on the number of men
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honor recipients we have in Purple Heart recipients, as well as testimonial.
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Proof positive of that very statement.
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Today, by officially unveiling Honolulu's new Purple Heart City signs,
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our communities are showing their appreciation in return.
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These signs are our promise to honor, support,
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and remember the sacrifices of our Purple Heart recipients
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and their families.
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I especially want to thank those of you in the audience today
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who support our efforts to celebrate these men and women.
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First, to hold the City Council for voting to pass
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a designation recognizing Honolulu as a purple hot city.
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Thank you.
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In a very special and heartfelt mahalo to you, Auggie
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Hill, for your leadership on this and your consistency.
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Well done, young man. Well done.
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I also want to thank everyone who assisted us in our efforts
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to install our purple hot city signs.
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It's different was already acknowledged in the state Department of Transportation.
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Jim Horton and the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific.
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Colonel Sullivan, Mike Donley and the team at U.S.
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Army Garrison Hawaii.
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Tom Leatherman, who I saw in Hiroshima this week.
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He was right here this morning. David Kilton is.
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And the team at the Pearl Harbor National Museum.
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Mahalo for your help.
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The public affairs officers in the Paycom and Navy Region, Hawaii.
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And finally, the installation crews within our own city's
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Department of Facilities Maintenance.
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The signs serve
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as a visible reminder to all who pass by that
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our city cherishes the freedoms, but at a very high price.
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We are thrilled to have them on display.
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Finally,
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in closing,
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I want to express my deepest gratitude to the Military Order of the Purple Heart
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and to all the veterans, organizations and individuals
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who worked to make this designation a reality.
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Thank you and
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and to our Purple Heart recipients with us today.
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We honor you. We truly do.
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We recognize the pain you have endured, the challenges you have faced,
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and the courage you continue to show each and every day.
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I made this designation as a purple hot city stand forever
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as a tribute to our heroes,
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and as a symbol of the enduring bond between this community
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and the brave men and women who have worn the uniform.
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So in behalf of the City and County of Honolulu, mahalo
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for allowing us the privilege to honor you on this day.
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Thank you, and may God bless our veterans.
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As service members and the United States of America.
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Mahalo.
15:59
You saw the sign here at Honolulu, Harley.
16:01
This also signs across the island.
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Have you been able to see the ones there?
16:06
You know, one next to the freeway. There's some. There are bases.
16:08
Have you seen them all? No, not really, but,
16:11
We they were going to put a sign
16:13
in front of us in front of the Wahoo Veterans Center.
16:16
They haven't done that yet.
16:18
Maybe they ran out of signs, I don't know.
16:19
I think they're still being made. Yeah.
16:21
And another story that was shared.
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The ceremony was about the Honolulu Fire Department.
16:26
For people who are familiar, maybe they never heard the story
16:28
or been to the fire museum over a headquarters.
16:31
What is that story?
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Well, that story was that,
16:36
When we were attacked,
16:39
the the Federal Fire Department
16:41
were killed and one Honolulu Fire Fire Department came over and helped.
16:46
And in Hickam, I guess, and where the fires were and, and I guess
16:51
some were killed.
16:52
From what I understand from the colonel that spoke about it.
16:55
And can you tell us about your time in service?
17:00
Well, I got commissioned,
17:02
from the University of Hawaiian in 1967.
17:07
Armor.
17:08
And, what does that mean?
17:10
I was an armor officer. Tanks.
17:12
Okay, okay.
17:13
And, I went to Ranger school.
17:16
Went to Germany,
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and had a company of M61 tanks and,
17:23
right outside of Nurnberg.
17:26
I was here about a year and a half
17:28
as a company commander.
17:32
We they we had people that came down
17:34
and asked for volunteers to to go to Vietnam because a company to do
17:38
so, I put in my paperwork for Vietnam and ended up, going to Vietnam
17:43
shortly thereafter and was with, Delta troops, second or 17th Cav.
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And what that really meant was,
17:52
you know, we
17:52
would, we would be just like the Calvary and old days.
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We'd repel down in certain areas, find the enemy,
18:00
and then a much larger force would come over and engage in combat.
18:04
But each platoon was only about 30 men.
18:07
So when we found the enemy, then 101st Airborne Division, which I was part of,
18:12
would send a battalion or even a brigade if necessary,
18:16
to deal with the enemy.
18:18
And you're a Purple Heart recipient when you talk about Hawaii
18:22
and our Purple Heart recipients, what does that look like comparatively
18:25
to other states in the nation? Other.
18:27
To be honest with you, I guess we're doing okay.
18:29
There are a lot of Purple Heart chapters on the mainland that are closing, because
18:34
people are just passing on.
18:37
And when, you know, it's not
18:38
like you just going to go and recruit somebody who has to be a Purple Heart or
18:42
so it makes it even more difficult for us to define them.
18:46
And there are a few out there, but it's not like it used to be before.
18:50
You used to have a lot of people because a lot of people were wounded
18:53
and the actions, combat actions were different than they are today.
18:58
And, you know, Colonel, I apologize.
19:00
I made a mistake by leaving out some very important titles in your introduction.
19:04
Former USU football player.
19:06
Yes. What was your favorite memory as a ball?
19:11
I think my favorite memory was
19:14
when I was sitting in the stands and June Jones was the coach.
19:16
And we're winning all these games.
19:20
You know, when I was there,
19:23
you know, it was a completely different time.
19:27
All the players, you knew, they played in high school.
19:31
We didn't have very many people from the mainland that came down.
19:34
Now it's a completely different ballgame, right?
19:36
So you kind of knew everybody.
19:40
And unfortunately, a lot of them are no longer here.
19:43
I was just talking to the mayor about that when I was down there today.
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But you've also been able to, I know, been on the field
19:50
to be recognized during games recently.
19:53
If you were to talk to the current team of Rainbow Warrior,
19:56
what would you tell them? You about yourself.
19:57
You're what's in their their cleats.
20:00
I probably look at them and say, you are so tall
20:02
and so big as compared to what we were before.
20:06
No, it's totally different.
20:08
You know, we when we were there, people were going to school.
20:11
A lot of them didn't get a college degree but had 12 credits.
20:14
So they were in a police department, a whole bunch of other jobs.
20:17
And after job they come to practice.
20:20
Because, and this is back in,
20:24
you know, 1962, 63, when we were very small.
20:30
But, you know, fun is fun.
20:31
Football is football.
20:33
And and you kind of get around and have a good time.
20:35
And when it's the football game, you do the best job you can.
20:39
So what kind of office did you guys run?
20:42
Well,
20:44
they called it a hula.
20:45
Hula t
20:48
but, you know, they converted it because they had to work a system
20:52
that was going to work for us based on the players we had.
20:55
Okay, so based on size, based on speed, based.
20:59
And who the quarterback was.
21:00
Who was your quarterback?
21:02
The quarterback was Mel Wise. And,
21:06
we had, you know, for a fullback, we had,
21:10
Paul Hayne and we also had Bill of Pisa.
21:13
Okay.
21:14
So we had some pretty big, good size
21:17
guys there and nothing as big as even though.
21:23
And so
21:23
what if if this is okay, I know you're not as they ask, but like what?
21:27
What was your height and weight in college?
21:31
My height was probably five nine.
21:33
It's probably five eight now.
21:34
Okay, not if not less.
21:37
And my weight was a 165 to 170.
21:39
That was it.
21:42
But you know you didn't
21:43
have players as big as you are now that can outrun a back.
21:46
The players now I can't even imagine being hit with a guy 300 pounds.
21:51
And he's running as fast as you are.
21:54
It's just it's just mind boggling how big the players have gotten.
21:57
Yeah.
21:58
Well Colonel you still look like hearing the chip.
22:01
That remains to be seen.
22:04
Thank you for your time.
22:04
Is there anything we missed?
22:05
Anything you want our listeners to know?
22:07
Well, the only thing is, is for the American public to know,
22:13
and my fellow
22:13
citizens here, that we really appreciate all they do
22:17
and the support of the military and support of the Purple Heart veterans,
22:23
because whatever the whatever happens and they're told to do,
22:27
they do it for the country.
22:29
So they should never be criticized for doing what they're asked to do
22:33
for the good of the country.
22:34
And, when you look at what's happened
22:37
on the mainland, you have to sit back and say, God bless.
22:40
I live in and I live in Hawaii, where everyone pretty well gets along.
22:45
Yeah. Lucky we live for you, Colonel.
22:46
Thank you so much for your time. Thank you.
22:49
And for more information on installation of those Purple Heart signs,
22:53
as well as more on the Purple Heart City designation,
22:56
just go to our website, honolulu.gov.
22:58
Next week
22:59
we'll be back with Mayor Rick Blangiardi right here on the One Oahu Podcast.
23:02
Mahalo for listening.
23:03
And until next time.
23:04
Aloha.
23:05
I need something, okay. Yeah, yeah. Perfect.
23:08
Let's talk about.