FLORENCE, Ala. – Euell Stutts of Florence finally got a Bronze Star pinned to his lapel to recognize his service in Europe as a sergeant in World War II.
Stutts was honored Friday night at a veterans’ dinner in Huntsville and got his award pinned on by a two-star general. It was an award he should have received upon his discharge, but some got overlooked because of the high volume of heroes leaving the armed forces.
“They made a big deal out of it,” he told the TimesDaily on Saturday.
Stutts’ award resulted from a 1947 order stating all service members earning the Combat Infantryman Badge should also receive a Bronze Star for their “heroic or meritorious achievement.”
Pointing to his blue and silver Combat Infantryman Badge, Stutts said, “This one means you were fighting nose to nose and toe to toe with the enemy.”