2013 — Robert “Bob” Ford


 

Robert “Bob” Ford

Mr. Ford graduated from the University of Oklahoma with a BA in Business and commissioned as a 2nd Lieutenant in the Transportation Corps. He achieved the rank of Captain during his military service from 1966-1969.
 
After Mr. Ford completed his military schooling he served as Commander of a detachment of UH-1 helicopters operating in far North and South Vietnam. He flew in and out of Hue Phubai on numerous occasions while under extreme enemy fire to extract wounded and dead Soldiers during the Tet Offensive of 1968. He also served on the ground during the Tet Offensive, defending the capital city of Hue. Mr. Ford also served as a helicopter instructor pilot at Ft. Wolters, Texas upon returning from Vietnam, where he passed on the valuable skills he had learned to new aspiring aviators headed to combat.
 
His awards and decorations include: the Silver Star, the Air Medal with “V” Device, the Bronze Star Medal, the Vietnam Service Ribbon, the Vietnam Campaign Medal, and more.
 
After his military service, Mr. Ford moved to Okeene, OK to manage the Okeene Milling Company. At the time this award was conferred Bob served as the Executive Vice President of the Shawnee and Okeene Milling Companies. He has been very active in the Okeene Community and has served on many committees and boards including the Kiwanis Club and the Okeene Chamber of Commerce where he was recognized as a “Distinguished Citizen.” He has served on the Okeene School Board and has been an avid supporter of the Okeene Schools and Athletics. Each Veteran’s Day Bob invites a veteran to speak at the local high school, and he is always there in his “vintage” 1966 Class A (dress) uniform, which fits just like it did the first day he received it. He serves as a real role model for the youth in his community as a veteran, business man, as an encourager, and as a man who still trains for and participates in triathalons.
 
Mr. Ford was interviewed and has an article posted on the Vietnam War Foundation and Museum website. It was first published in the Daily Progress (Charlottesville, VA) on November 8, 2008. In the article his former crew chief, Joe Sumner, was quoted as saying “Bob Ford was a very good pilot, and he took care of the guys who worked for him. He couldn’t have been better.”