Veteran’s Day Salute – Col. Ken Reusser

by equity design

On this Veteran’s day, it gives us great honor to tell you a bit of the story of our friend, Col. Kenneth Reusser.  Col. Reusser and his wonderful wife Trudy are among our most beloved and respected clients. Col. Reusser is a most distinguished pilot in the United States Marine Corps. During his service to our country, this gentleman earned a total of 57 medals and awards, including two navy Cross medals, two legion of Merit medals, five Distinguished Flying Cross medals, a Bronze Star, nineteen Air Medals, and four Purple hearts.  He was also brought down six times in three wars by enemy action, suffering grievous wounds in several of these episodes. He is believed to be the most decorated three-war (WW II, Korea, and Vietnam) Marine Corps pilot living in Oregon. Here is a section of his story from the attached biography: “Heavy fire hit them… Reusser was hit in the leg with a large caliber round, and the chopper’s controls were shattered.  This meant there was but one direction to go – down. Slamming into a Vietnamese rice-paddy the chopper explosively engulfed in flames.  The fuel-fed fire swirled into the cockpit from behind, and Reusser found his safety belt’s quick release refused to let go.  Because the Huey was broken and crushed, men in the rear compartment were also trapped and screaming…. Colonel Reusser began leaning back into the fire, hoping to burn through his unyielding harness. More and more aggressive the fire soon caused the Styrofoam lining of his helmet to melt and ignite… Over and over he lunged against the burning harness, until with a final heave the straps parted… Though his flight suit was still smoldering, instead of helping himself, Reusser began pulling and tugging on the men caught in the back, all the time being shot at and hit again…” Colonel Kenneth Reusser survived, spending over a year in the Bethesda Naval Hospital, enduring numerous operations and skin graphs over 35% of his body.” Ken was also blessed in life to meet Gertrude Palm. “Trudy” is an amazing woman with an amazing story of her own!! Ken and Trudy proved to be a force to be reckoned with together, and built and ran a very successful consulting business. Trudy has also taken great care of Ken and is the sparkle in his eyes! Today, Ken and Trudy live in Milwaukie. They have a very full schedule and continue to be active members of the community. They are also two of the loveliest souls we have had the pleasure of meeting and serving! Please join us in saluting them both!

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You’re currently reading “Veteran’s Day Salute – Col. Ken Reusser,” an entry on Equity Design.

Author:
equity design
Published:
8am on 11/11/08
Category:
Community Lives, Member spot-lights

1 Comment

  1. Evan 11.11.08 / 6pm

    Great entry! Thanks for sharing.

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