U.S. Naval Academy Dedicates Display to Medal of Honor Recipient Col. John Ripley '62

U.S. Naval Academy Dedicates Display to Col. John Ripley, Medal of Honor Recipient and Class of 1962

From U.S. Naval Academy Public Affairs

ANNAPOLIS, Md. – The U.S. Naval Academy dedicated a new display today in Mahan Hall’s Hart Room to honor the life and legacy of Col. John Ripley, Naval Academy Preparatory School Class (NAPS) of 1958 and U.S. Naval Academy (USNA) Class of 1962, following his recent posthumous presentation of the Medal of Honor at the White House in June for his actions during the Vietnam War.

Superintendent of the U.S. Naval Academy, Lt. Gen. Mike Borgschulte provided the keynote remarks to the ceremony attendees that included members of the Ripley family, classmates and senior U.S. Marine Corps officers.

“Col. Ripley represents the very best of what we ask of those who serve: courage when it matters most, commitment when the cost is highest, and an unwavering devotion to duty,” said Borgschulte. “This display is more than a tribute to a Medal of Honor recipient. It is a reminder to every midshipman who passes through this room that character is forged in moments of consequence, and that our duty is to be ready when those moments come. May Col. Ripley’s example continue to inspire generations of U.S. Naval Academy leaders to lead with courage, serve with honor, and never forget what they have sworn to defend.”

The display in the Hart Room includes: the original Medal of Honor citation signed by President Trump; Ripley’s Medal of Honor ribbon, his Service Dress Alpha uniform that he wore as the Senior Marine on the Yard, and his class ring; and a wooden “Ripley’s Raiders” sign. Mounted above the display is the artwork titled “Ripley at the Bridge”, painted by Col. Charles Waterhouse and signed by both Waterhouse and Ripley. During the ceremony, Borgschulte also announced that the U.S. Naval Academy’s future Colonel John Ripley Lacrosse Facility will be named in honor of him.

“We are building the next generation of warfighters,” said Borgschulte. “John reminds us exactly what we are asking them to become. Leaders of character, leaders of courage, leaders who put mission first….and leaders who when their nation calls, always step forward.”

Additionally, the U.S. Naval Academy dedicated a Bancroft Hall dormitory room in 7th wing to Ripley as the Brigade’s newest Medal of Honor room. Medal of Honor rooms are dedicated to Academy graduates who have been awarded the Medal of Honor and serve as a visible inspiration and reminder of the gallantry and intrepidity of the Navy and Marine Corps officers who once called Bancroft home. The Bancroft Hall room is not the only dormitory memorial to Ripley’s legacy. The Naval Academy Preparatory School also dedicated their entire dormitory in 2006 as “Ripley Hall” to honor the former graduate of the prep school and his legacy.

"My father held the Naval Academy as hallowed ground. It made him, and he never stopped serving it. After thirty-five years in uniform and a career that took him from Dong Ha to the Commandant's staff, he and my mother chose to retire in Annapolis, in a house just outside Gate 3. They spent their final years within sight of the Yard and now rest at Hospital Point,” said Tom Ripley, Col. Ripley’s son. “These are not artifacts to us. The uniform he wore as a senior Marine and the ring he received as a midshipman are the most personal things he owned, and they bracket the whole of his life. For the Academy to keep them here, among the seventy-three graduates who have received the Medal of Honor, means more to our family than I can say.”

Colonel Ripley enlisted in the U.S. Marine Corps in 1957. He attended the Naval Academy Preparatory School before graduating from the U.S. Naval Academy in 1962. As an advisor to the Vietnamese Marine Corps’ 3rd Infantry Battalion, he earned the Medal of Honor for extraordinary heroism during the 1972 Easter Offensive when he destroyed the Dong Ha Bridge to halt advancing North Vietnamese forces.

During the Easter Offensive, Ripley’s unit was ordered to “hold and die” against overwhelming enemy forces. Acting alone, he climbed beneath the Dong Ha Bridge and spent three hours placing explosives while under intense enemy fire. Knowing the danger, he remained focused on completing the mission. The resulting blast destroyed the bridge, stopping the enemy advance and enabling U.S. airpower to strike effectively. His actions delayed the offensive and became one of the most iconic acts of bravery in U.S. Marine Corps history.

After Vietnam, Ripley served within the U.S. Marine Corps Force Reconnaissance and held battalion and regimental commands. He led Naval Reserve Officer Training Command units at Oregon State University and Virginia Military Institute and served as the senior Marine at the U.S. Naval Academy, teaching both English and History in the School of Humanities and Social Sciences. He later became President and Chancellor of Southern Virginia University, Director of the Marine Corps History & Museums Division, and President of Hargrave Military Academy. In 2002, he was the first Marine officer to receive the U.S. Naval Academy’s Distinguished Graduate Award. Ripley passed away on October 28, 2008, at age 69 and is laid to rest at the U.S. Naval Academy Cemetery alongside his wife of 44 years, Moline Blaylock Ripley.

Founded in 1845, the U.S. Naval Academy today is a prestigious four-year service academy that prepares midshipmen morally, mentally, and physically to become professional officers in the naval service. More than 4,400 men and women representing every state in the U.S. and several foreign countries make up the student body known as the Brigade of Midshipmen. U.S. News and World Reports has recognized the Naval Academy as the #1 top public school, #3 national liberal arts college, and #5 best undergraduate engineering programs. Upon graduation, midshipmen earn a Bachelor of Science degree in a choice of 26 different subject majors and go on to serve at least five years of exciting and rewarding service as commissioned officers in the U.S. Navy and U.S. Marine Corps. For more information about the Naval Academy, visithttps://linkprotect.cudasvc.com/url?a=http%3a%2f%2fwww.usna.edu&c=E,1,jowqYvM6hcS_YCbUWK5nXrZh5pO2skIc1DWGfDwkZKgkvWQjeXRxnRaMuAEvqa-MuIBBWCp4Hp39ppV6nDFWcplumf30VW2jkJ_LChq0NLlAWlzkGjL3xnRx&typo=1and our social media via https://linkprotect.cudasvc.com/url?a=https%3a%2f%2flinktr.ee%2fusnavalacademy&c=E,1,Bp_Ap--RdqcEL7CVw1G6pMCn6zhMMleDdwDuCExkdlNy5DP_vwznPHWEgShO-nlPHki-e8ZW-CZK9Yc0b-l57ubctAQ7TQcMh0ftpzYjZvg5eP28nhE,&typo=1.

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