All five branches of the US military Services offer the same Armed Forces Reserve Medal which is presented to both officers and enlisted service persons. These medals of America service awards are considered the successor to the US military medals formerly known as the Naval Reserve Medal and the Marine Corps Reserve Ribbon in those two branches of service. These Army, Navy, Marine Corps, and Coast Guard ribbons were first authorized by President Harry Truman and have existed since 1950. These military medals recognize the service performed by the Reserve and National Guard forces of the United States. On the reverse of every Armed Forces Reserve Medal is a crest denoting the branch of service in which Reserve or National Guard duty was performed.
The Armed Forces Reserve Medal is awarded to service members that complete a total of ten years of service as a member of either a Reserve or National Guard component. The service may be cumulative provided that the requirements have been met within a period of 12 consecutive years. Service during voluntary recalls to active duty is not eligible for inclusion in the 10 year service requirement for this award, nor is service time spent within the Individual Ready Reserve. The Armed Forces Reserve Medal is also awarded to any member of the Reserve or National Guard who is involuntarily mobilized under Title 10 USC or Title 14 USC, or volunteers for federal active duty during any such mobilization. In such cases, the ten year period criterion is waived and the Armed Forces Reserve Medal is presented regardless of time in service. A service member’s disciplinary history is not considered a factor when authorizing these military ribbons.
Previous to 1995, the first award of the Armed Forces Reserve Medal was presented without a device, and subsequent awards were denoted by Hourglass Emblems. Today, these military ribbons are presented with a bronze Hourglass device upon the initial award for 10 years of service. Additional awards are represented by upgrading the Hourglass device to silver for twenty years and gold for thirty years of service. A rare fourth award of the Armed Forces Reserve Medal, for 40 years, is denoted by a bronze and gold Hourglass device worn simultaneously. The Mobilization Device is awarded as an attachment to the Armed Forces Reserve Medal in all cases of involuntary mobilization to active duty. Subsequent mobilizations result in the addition of an Award Numeral device which is worn in connection with the “M” device.
In the Army the Armed Forces Reserve Medal is worn below the Humanitarian Service Medal and above the Army Professional Development Ribbon. In The Air Force these military awards are worn below the Air Force Recruiting Ribbon and above the Air Force Professional Military Education Graduate Ribbon. In the Navy these military decorations are worn below the Navy Recruiting Ribbon and above the Philippine Defense Medal. In the Marine Corps, the AFRM is worn below the Marine Recruiting Ribbon and above the Philippine Defense Medal. In the Coast Guard these military medals are worn below the Coast Guard Sea Service Ribbon and above the Philippine Defense Medal.
These awards are available in the traditional full size slide on medals, mini-medals, and ribbons. Nowadays however, more and more military service personnel are realizing the value to their career goals of always having their uniform decorations looking their best, and have turned to the slimmer and trimmer thin military medals and mini medals and the ultra thin ribbon racks to provide them with the smartest looking military award displays available to any service person today.
On July 15, 1997, the Secretary of the Navy, John Dalton, established the Marine Corps Security Guard Ribbon. These medals of America service awards honor the Marine Corps personnel who have served as U.S. Embassy Security Guards and is retroactive to January 28, 1949. To earn these US military medals a service member must hold the Marine Corps military occupational specialty (MOS) 8156 (previously 8151) Marine Corps Security Guard qualification and must have served twenty-four months of service at an American Embassy or Consulate. The award is only presented to Marine Security Guards for their service at American Embassies or Consulates in a foreign country. These Marine Corps ribbons do no have corresponding military medals.
Additional awards of the Marine Corps Security Guard Ribbon are denoted by Service Stars, unless they are for awards presented retroactively. In that case, the Marine Corps Security Guard Ribbon is a one time only decoration. These Marine Corps ribbons are worn below the Marine Corps Drill Instructor Ribbons and above the Philippine Defense Medal in the general order of precedence that the Marine Corps has established for all military ribbons and medals. These military awards are available as ribbons and lapel pins, and are often worn as slide-on military ribbons. In these more competitive days, however, more and more military service personnel are realizing the value to their career goals of always having their uniform decorations looking their best, and have turned to the slimmer and trimmer thin military medals and mini medals and the ultra thin ribbon racks to provide them with the smartest looking military award displays possible.
The Marine Corps Drill Instructor Ribbon was created in July of 1997. These medals of America awards recognize enlisted members of the Marine Corps who have trained and qualified as Marine Corps Drill Instructors. To qualify for these US military medals Marine Corps personnel must hold the Military Occupational Specialty (MOS) of 0911 or have served a successful tour of duty in one of the following positions: Recruit Training Battalion Commander, Executive Officer, S-3, or Sergeant Major; Recruit Training Company Commander, Series Commander, or Assistant Series Commander; Marine Corps Officer Candidate Company First Sergeant, Company Gunnery Sergeant, or Platoon Commanders; or, Naval Aviation Officer Candidate School First Sergeant, Battalion Gunnery Sergeant, or Class Drill Instructors. Furthermore, the duties of the Marine’s billet must be executed satisfactorily for three years before the award is authorized. These Marine Corps ribbons have no corresponding military medals.
The Marine Corps Drill Instructor Ribbon is worn below the Marine Corps Recruiting Ribbons and above the Philippine Defense Medal in the general order of precedence that the Marine Corps has established for the proper display of all medals and ribbons. The Marine Corps Drill Instructor Ribbon is retroactively authorized to October 6, 1952. Multiple awards of the decoration are denoted by Service Stars. These Marine Corps awards are available as military ribbons and lapel pins, and have usually been worn as traditional slide-on military ribbons. The Marine Corps Recruiting Ribbon was authorized by order of the Secretary of the Navy in June of 1995. These US military medals were made retroactive to January of 1973. These medals of America awards are presented to Marine Corps officers and enlisted personnel who complete a standard 36 month tour in a US Marine Corps Recruiting Command. For enlisted personnel, a military occupational specialty (MOS) of 8411 must be held for the Marine Corps Recruiting Ribbon to be bestowed. Officers must hold a billet as the Commanding Officer, Executive Officer, Operations Officer or Officer Selection Officer of a Marine Corps Recruiting Command. Local command recruiters and recruiting aides are not eligible for these Marine Corps ribbons. There are no corresponding military medals for this award.
Additional awards of the Marine Corps Recruiting Ribbon are denoted by Service Stars. These military ribbons are worn below the Navy Overseas Service Ribbon and above the Military Training Instruction Ribbon in the general order of precedence established for the display of all Marine Corps military medals and ribbons. These Marine Corp ribbons are generally available as ribbons and lapel pins, and are often worn as traditional slide-on military ribbons. The Coast Guard Recruiting Service Ribbon was created by the Commandant of the United States Coast Guard on November 2, 1995. These US military medals were made retroactive to January 1, 1980. These medals of America are presented to any member of the Coast Guard who completes a standard two year tour as a Coast Guard Recruiter. The Coast Guard also issues a Recruiter Badge as a temporary decoration worn while a service member is presently serving as a Coast Guard Recruiter. These Coast Guard ribbons have no corresponding military medals.
Additional awards of the Coast Guard Recruiting Service Ribbon are denoted by Service Stars. These military ribbons are worn below the Coast Guard Sea Service Ribbon and above the Coast Guard Restricted Duty Ribbon in the general order of precedence established by the Coast Guard for the display of all military medals and ribbons. These Coast Guard awards are available in military ribbons and lapel pins, and are traditionally worn in the form of slide-on military ribbons. In more recent years however, more and more military service personnel are realizing the value to their career goals of always having their uniform decorations looking their best, and have turned to the slimmer and trimmer thin military medals and mini medals and the ultra thin ribbon racks to provide them with the smartest looking military award displays available anywhere.
The Marine Corps Recruiting Ribbon was authorized by order of the Secretary of the Navy in June of 1995. These US military medals were made retroactive to January of 1973. These medals of America awards are presented to Marine Corps officers and enlisted personnel who complete a standard 36 month tour in a US Marine Corps Recruiting Command. For enlisted personnel, a military occupational specialty (MOS) of 8411 must be held for the Marine Corps Recruiting Ribbon to be bestowed. Officers must hold a billet as the Commanding Officer, Executive Officer, Operations Officer or Officer Selection Officer of a Marine Corps Recruiting Command. Local command recruiters and recruiting aides are not eligible for these Marine Corps ribbons. There are no corresponding military medals for this award.
Additional awards of the Marine Corps Recruiting Ribbon are denoted by Service Stars. These military ribbons are worn below the Navy Overseas Service Ribbon and above the Military Training Instruction Ribbon in the general order of precedence established for the display of all Marine Corps military medals and ribbons. These Marine Corp ribbons are generally available as ribbons and lapel pins, and are often worn as traditional slide-on military ribbons. The Coast Guard Recruiting Service Ribbon was created by the Commandant of the United States Coast Guard on November 2, 1995. These US military medals were made retroactive to January 1, 1980. These medals of America are presented to any member of the Coast Guard who completes a standard two year tour as a Coast Guard Recruiter. The Coast Guard also issues a Recruiter Badge as a temporary decoration worn while a service member is presently serving as a Coast Guard Recruiter. These Coast Guard ribbons have no corresponding military medals.
Additional awards of the Coast Guard Recruiting Service Ribbon are denoted by Service Stars. These military ribbons are worn below the Coast Guard Sea Service Ribbon and above the Coast Guard Restricted Duty Ribbon in the general order of precedence established by the Coast Guard for the display of all military medals and ribbons. These Coast Guard awards are available in military ribbons and lapel pins, and are traditionally worn in the form of slide-on military ribbons. In more recent years however, more and more military service personnel are realizing the value to their career goals of always having their uniform decorations looking their best, and have turned to the slimmer and trimmer thin military medals and mini medals and the ultra thin ribbon racks to provide them with the smartest looking military award displays available anywhere.
The Coast Guard Recruiting Service Ribbon was created by the Commandant of the United States Coast Guard on November 2, 1995. These US military medals were made retroactive to January 1, 1980. These medals of America are presented to any member of the Coast Guard who completes a standard two year tour as a Coast Guard Recruiter. The Coast Guard also issues a Recruiter Badge as a temporary decoration worn while a service member is presently serving as a Coast Guard Recruiter. These Coast Guard ribbons have no corresponding military medals.
Additional awards of the Coast Guard Recruiting Service Ribbon are denoted by Service Stars. These military ribbons are worn below the Coast Guard Sea Service Ribbon and above the Coast Guard Restricted Duty Ribbon in the general order of precedence established by the Coast Guard for the display of all military medals and ribbons. These Coast Guard awards are available in military ribbons and lapel pins, and are traditionally worn in the form of slide-on military ribbons. Nowadays however, more and more military service personnel are realizing the value to their career goals of always having their uniform decorations looking their best, and have turned to the slimmer and trimmer thin military medals and mini medals and the ultra thin ribbon racks to provide them with the smartest looking military award displays available anywhere.
Throughout history there have been many US military medals a person can be awarded for being involved in the United States military and Armed Forces. Also, there have been many medals of America that have been awarded to civilians at world’s fairs and expositions; and there are even civilian awards of military medals as well. Regardless of the status of each of the military ribbons and medals of America, there is no doubt that each and every one of them is unique and special in its own right to those who receive them.
World’s fairs and expositions are nothing new to the American way of life, in fact it is a natural seeming tradition. This historical value makes some of the old medals of America very precious and valuable to collectors. One of the most treasured of these historical American medals is the 1893 Saint Gauden’s award medal. This American medal is even in the book of 100 Greatest Medals. This is one of the medals of America that was made for the 1893 Chicago Columbian Exposition. This commemorative medal has a full-length figure of Christopher Columbus stepping ashore on the soil of the New World. On the other side is a six line commemorative inscription with two semi-nude females flanking him above and a sailing ship that rests underneath. These medals of America represent the discovery of America’s 400th birthday and the astounding world’s fair that celebrated it.
The American Campaign Medal is one of the most popular medals of America representing a war campaign. Originally issued as the American Theater Ribbon, these medals of America were intended to recognize members of the U.S. military who served in the American Theater of Operations during World War II. The American Theater was important in Submarine warfare and had the Axis Powers ever invaded the United States, they would have been the front line. This is one of the US military medals that celebrates bravery and valor.
The World War I Victory Medal is one of the more cheerful medals of America. Over 15 million people died in World War I and finally having a victory gave Americans some hope for a brighter and freer future for most of the worlds populations. This is the only one of the medals of America that was not created by and act of Congress. Instead, the Victory Medal was created through the service departments who established them by using general orders. All who served in the war wanted these medals of America, so the United States Army published orders for the Victory medal in April of 1919 and the United States Navy followed suit by issuing theirs in June of that same year.
The highest-ranking of all the medals of America is the Medal of Honor. Usually given posthumously, this medal is the greatest honor bestowed on service members by a grateful country. To receive this award a member of the United States Armed Forces must go well above the normal call of duty and show true heroism and self-sacrifice while engaged in combat against an enemy of the United States. This is one of the US military medals that is usually sad to give because in so many cases the heroism required also results in the death of the service member. Even though The Medal of Honor may be sad for some it is truly the most admirable of all the medals of America since it represents the ultimate good in the human spirit that drives exceptional persons to heroic deeds of self sacrifice for the good of their fellow soldiers.
Both the Air Force and the Coast Guard offer medals of America as awards for exceptional recruits who graduate at the top of their basic training classes. The Coast Guard created their Basic Training Honor Graduate Ribbon in March of 1984. These US military medals are bestowed upon those service members who graduate in the top three percent of their basic training instruction class. These Coast Guard ribbons may be awarded retroactively upon application from a service member to the Coast Guard, but supporting documentation and a written request must be supplied for the request to be granted. These Coast Guard ribbons have no corresponding military medals.
Due to the one-time-only nature of graduating from basic training, there are no provisions for additional awards of the Coast Guard Basic Training Honor Graduate Ribbon. These military ribbons are worn below the Coast Guard Restricted Duty Ribbon and above the Philippine Defense Medal in the general order of precedence established by the Coast Guard for display of all military awards. The Restricted Duty Ribbon is available as a lapel pin, and is often worn as a traditional slide on military ribbons. Nowadays however, more and more military service personnel are realizing the value to their career goals of always having their uniform decorations looking their best, and have turned to the slimmer and trimmer thin military medals and mini medals and the ultra thin ribbon racks to provide them with the smartest looking military award displays possible.
The Coast Guard created their Restricted Duty Ribbon in March of 1984. These US military medals recognize personnel who have completed an unaccompanied duty tour. When service persons are assigned to a duty location where family members cannot join them, the duty status is known as unaccompanied. These medals of America honor standard, unaccompanied duty tours which are normally one to two years in length and occur in remote locations such as Greenland or the Arctic. The Restricted Duty Ribbon is awarded at the conclusion of the duty tour to honor this difficult service. These Coast Guard ribbons have no corresponding military medals.
The Coast Guard is the only one of the five branches of service to offer these decorations for unaccompanied duty tours. Additional awards of the Restricted Duty Ribbon are denoted by bronze or silver Service Stars. These military ribbons are worn below the Coast Guard Sea Service Ribbon and above the Coast Guard Basic Training Honor Graduate Ribbon in the general order of precedence for all military awards. The Restricted Duty Ribbon is available as a lapel pin, and as a traditional slide on military ribbons. Nowadays however, more and more military service personnel are realizing the value to their career goals of always having their uniform decorations looking their best, and have turned to the slimmer and trimmer thin military medals and mini medals and the ultra thin ribbon racks to provide them with the smartest looking military award displays available anywhere today.
The Air Force created the Air Force Basic Military Training Instructor Ribbon in December of 1998. These US military medals are granted to any member of the Air Force who completes 12 consecutive months or more of duty as a military training instructor attached to the Air Force Training Command. These medals of America may be awarded retroactively provided a service member was on active duty, or a member of a reserve component, as of December 1998. These Air Force ribbons have no corresponding military medals available. The Air Force also awards the Air Education and Training Command Instructor Badge for military instructors who qualify, and both of these awards may be presented for the same tour of service.
The Air Force Basic Military Training Instructor Ribbon is worn below the Air Force Longevity Service Ribbon and above the Air Force Recruiting Ribbon in the general order of precedence established by the Air Force for the display of all military ribbons and medals. Additional awards of the Basic Military Training Instructor Ribbon are presented for each consecutive three year tour of duty as a military training instructor with such additional awards denoted by Oak Leaf Clusters. These Air Force awards are available as military ribbons and lapel pins, and are traditionally worn as slide-on military ribbons. The US Air Force was the last to establish a Recruiting Service Ribbon, and did not institute it until June of 2000. These US military medals are worth 2 points in the Weighted Airmen Promotion System. These medals of America are awarded to personnel graduating from the Air Force Recruiting School provided that the service member is presently serving in a United States Air Force Command. After thirty six months of recruiting duty these Air Force ribbons may be awarded permanently providing the service member’s tour as a recruiter as been free of disciplinary action. The Air Force also issues a Recruiter Badge for temporary wear while serving in duties as an Air Force Recruiter. There are no corresponding military medals for these awards.
Additional awards of the Air Force Recruiter Ribbon are denoted by Oak Leaf Clusters. The award is retroactive to any member of the Air Force who performed thirty six months or more as an Air Force recruiter, provided that the service member was on active duty after June 2000. These military ribbons are worn below the Air Force Military Training Instructor Ribbon and above the Air Force Professional Military Education Graduate Ribbon in the general order of precedence established by the Air Force for display of all military medals and ribbons. These Air Force awards are available as military ribbons and lapel pins, and are traditionally worn as slide-on military ribbons. Nowadays however, more and more military service personnel are realizing the value to their career goals of always having their uniform decorations looking their best, and have turned to the slimmer and trimmer thin military medals and mini medals and the ultra thin ribbon racks to provide them with the smartest looking military award displays available anywhere today.
The US Air Force was the last to establish a Recruiting Service Ribbon, and did not institute it until June of 2000. These US military medals are worth 2 points in the Weighted Airmen Promotion System. These medals of America are awarded to personnel graduating from the Air Force Recruiting School provided that the service member is presently serving in a United States Air Force Command. After thirty six months of recruiting duty these Air Force ribbons may be awarded permanently providing the service member’s tour as a recruiter as been free of disciplinary action. The Air Force also issues a Recruiter Badge for temporary wear while serving in duties as an Air Force Recruiter. There are no corresponding military medals for these awards.
Additional awards of the Air Force Recruiter Ribbon are denoted by Oak Leaf Clusters. The award is retroactive to any member of the Air Force who performed thirty six months or more as an Air Force recruiter, provided that the service member was on active duty after June 2000. These military ribbons are worn below the Air Force Military Training Instructor Ribbon and above the Air Force Professional Military Education Graduate Ribbon in the general order of precedence established by the Air Force for display of all military medals and ribbons. These Air Force awards are available as military ribbons and lapel pins, and are traditionally worn as slide-on military ribbons. Nowadays however, more and more military service personnel are realizing the value to their career goals of always having their uniform decorations looking their best, and have turned to the slimmer and trimmer thin military medals and mini medals and the ultra thin ribbon racks to provide them with the smartest looking military award displays available today.
