The Rose

On June 27, 1925, Mr. Phillip Herout was introduced to the world. The world with a deep divide between blacks and whites. As a self-proclaimed “segregation expert” Herout knew the trials, he would endure on June 27, 1942. On that day at the age of 17, Herout along with other young African-American men were the first to join the ranks of the Marines. He was one of many to integrate the last branch of the military to allow blacks to serve. The men were trained at the segregated Montford Point Camp in North Carolina, thus the name Montford Point Marines. Herout served for 4.5 years as a Marine in Bougainville and Guadalcanal, which are a part of Solomon Islands. His tenure as a Marine ended with an injury in Guadalcanal. On June 27, 2012, Herout’s birthday, the Montford Point Marines were awarded the Congressional Gold Medal by the United States Congress. Herout said, “My mother always told me it is nice to smell your roses while your alive and receiving this medal is smelling my rose.”

This slideshow requires JavaScript.