Last fall, just days after attending a kick-off ceremony for the Medal of Honor Society’s national convention, recipient Leonard Keller was killed in a Florida motorcycle accident.
Two weeks ago, Vernon Baker, 90, a soldier who belatedly received a medal for his valor during World War II, died quietly at home in Idaho.
Though the deaths were months apart, they weren’t isolated. Five of their medal-wearing comrades also have died since October.
With the Congressional Medal of Honor Society’s September convention in Charleston approaching, the reality of “old soldier” mortality is catching up. From a group of 95 less than a year ago, their numbers have dropped to 88. The youngest, Gordon Ray Roberts, is 60. The oldest is Barney F. Hajiro, 93.