Up and Coming Weekly is a weekly publication in Fayetteville, NC and Fort Bragg, NC area offering local news, views, arts, entertainment and community event and business information.
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WWW.UPANDCOMINGWEEKLY.COM MARCH 24-30, 2021 UCW 15 FEATURE JANICE BURTON, Contributing Writer. COMMENTS? Editor@upandcomigweek- ly.com 910-484-6200. As the siege continued, Staff Sgt. Br yant organized and led a patrol in a daring attempt to break through the enemy encirclement. The patrol had advanced some 200 meters by heav y fighting when it was pinned dow n by the intense auto- matic weapons fire from heav ily fortified bunkers, and he was severely wounded. Despite his wounds he rallied his men, called for a helicopter gunship support, and directed heav y suppressive fire upon the enemy positions. Follow ing the last gunship attack, Br yant fearlessly charged an enemy auto- matic weapons position, overrunning it, and single-handedly destroying its three defenders. Inspired by his heroic example, his men renewed their attack on the ent- renched enemy. W hile regrouping his small force for the final assault against the enemy, Staff Sgt. Br yant died. For his actions on that day, Br yant was posthumously promoted to Sergeant First Class and was awarded the highest honor a soldier can earn — the Medal of Honor. The citation reads: "For conspicuous gallantr y and intrepidit y in action at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of dut y. His self less concern for his com- rades, at the cost of his life above and beyond the call of dut y are in keeping w ith the highest traditions of the militar y ser- v ice and ref lect great credit upon himself, his unit, and the U.S. Army." In September 1974, Br yant Hall, the headquarters building of the U.S. Army John F. Kennedy Special Warfare Center and School on Fort Bragg, was dedicated in Br yant's memor y. On Feb. 16 of this year, the SWCS Command commemorated the anniversar y of the award presentation honoring Br yant's sacrifice w ith a ceremo- ny and the opening of the Br yant Galler y in the headquarters lobby. Br yant's sons, Greg and Kelv in, and their w ives were on hand to take part in the ceremony. Prior to the ceremony members of the SWCS staff v isited the Br yants and listened to their recollections and looked through what they had of their fathers, scrapbooks w ith photos, awards that proclaimed his braver y and love of countr y and love of his fellow soldiers. They also had the oppor- tunit y to see Br yant's Medal that was han- ging on a wall in Greg's house. Greg noted that his friends would come by and they would see it and think it was cool, but when he saw the reaction from the soldiers who v isited his home, he rea- lized where the Medal needed to be, and the family donated the Medal of Honor to SWCS as the centerpiece of the Br yant Galler y. During the commemoration cere- mony, Maj. Gen. Patrick Roberson, the Commander of the U.S. Army John F. Kennedy Special Warfare Center and School, noted, "Today, on the 50th anni- versar y of President Nixon's presentation of the Medal of Honor to Sgt. 1st Class Br yant's family, we once again gather to commemorate his legacy. Today, he would have been 88." "On 24 March, Sgt. 1st Class Br yant gave the last full measure of devotion to his teammates, his partners, and to the nation. Sgt. 1st Class Br yant so firmly believed in the values of freedom and pro- sperit y, that he was w illing to give his life to this cause. He fought bravely, leading from the front, until his last breath in the triple canopy jungle of Vietnam, on a lone fire base … w ith his comrades. The lessons learned from Sgt. 1st Class Br yant's expe- riences — operating in austere and remote conditions and fighting by, w ith, and through indigenous partner forces — are timeless." W hile the Br yant brothers can barely remember the ceremony at the W hite House where President Richard Nixon posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor to their mother, seeing it in the headquarters building that still carries his name was emotional for them, but it let them see and understand the k ind of man their father was, and that while he is gone, he has not been forgotten. The new Bryant Gallery memorializes the legacy of Sgt. 1st Class William M. Bryant and serves as inspiration to future generations of Green Berets training at the Special Warfare Center and School. Together, Maj. Gen. Patrick Roberson (left), Greg and Kelvin Bryant and their wives, cut the ribbon to the entrance of the new Bryant Gallery. The ceremony held Feb. 16 was the anniversary of the award presentation and Sgt. 1st Class Bryant's birthday. "For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity in action at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty." Sgt. 1st Class Bryant's family donated his Medal of Honor to SWCS to serve as the centerpiece in the new Bryant Gallery. (All photos courtesy U.S. Army John F. Kennedy Special Warfare Center and School)