Photos of MOH recipients Williams and Jenkins at the Kentucky Derby Opening Ceremonies 2011
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| MOH recipients Hershel Williams and Don Jenkins |
On April 16th, 2011, Medal of Honor recipients Hershel “Woody” Williams and Don Jenkins served as the official “Thundernators” for the Thunder Over Louisville show, at the Kentucky Derby Festival’s Opening Ceremonies 2011. See our previous article: MOH recipients Kentucky Derby 2011 Thundernators
Photojournalist Chuck Bauman (USCGR-Ret.) of the Louisville 2011 CMOH Convention Committee has shared photos of these great heroes with Medal of Honor News.
Williams is a World War II MOH now living in West Virginia; Jenkins is a
Vietnam War MOH residing in Quality, KY. At approximately 9:29 p.m. on
Saturday, April 16, Williams and Jenkins provided the Thunder countdown
and “zero” ignition to activate the Thunder launch system sequence in
the Command Center at the Galt House Hotel.
The men’s appearance at Thunder is a prequel to the annual 2011 Congressional Medal of Honor Society Convention
that will take place in Louisville Sept. 28 to Oct. 2. During that
time, Louisville will welcome all 85 living Medal of Honor Recipients.
The event marks the 150th anniversary of the creation of the Medal of
Honor in 1861 by President Abraham Lincoln.
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MOH recipients Hershel “Woody” Williams and Don Jenkins being interviewed by a television reporter before the “Thundernators” will activate one of the world’s largest fireworks displays. |
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| Hershel “Woody” Williams (left) and Don Jenkins (right) pose with Mike Berry (President of the Kentucky Derby Festival). |
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| Hershel “Woody” Williams and Don Jenkins pose with Wayne Hettinger (Producer of Thunder over Louisville) and Tim Creed (Director of Thunder Over Louisville) as the countdown clock marks the time left before “zero” ignition to activate the Thunder launch system sequence. |
Another significant development is that not only will four Medal of Honor recipients: Hershel “Woody” Williams; Ernest West; Don Jenkins and Gary Littrell be the Grand Marshalls for the Pegasus Parade on May 5th but will also carry the famous Kentucky Derby Garland of Roses (a garland of roses for the winning horse) to the Winner’s Circle after the race.
For more information about the Louisville 2011 CMOH Convention please visit the official website.
Check back next week for more photos.
Photo credit: Courtesy of the Louisville 2011 CMOH Convention Committee
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