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Coast Guard Good Conduct Medal

In 1923, the Coast Guard followed the Navy and the Army by adding a Good Conduct Medal to their growing list of the medals of America. These original Coast Guard medals remain largely unchanged to the current day, even though the Coast Guard has gone through several different incarnations under three different governmental bodies in the mean time, to finally arrive as a branch of the Homeland Security Department. These Coast Guard ribbons and medals are awarded to every active duty sailor who completes three years of honorable service. These military medals imply that a standard enlistment was completed without any non-judicial punishments, disciplinary infractions, or court martial offenses. If a service member commits an offense, the three-year mark \"resets\" and a service member must perform an additional three years of service without having to be disciplined, before the these military ribbons and medals may be authorized.

Service for the Good Conduct Medal must also be performed on active duty. During times of war, the Good Conduct Medal may be awarded for one year of faithful service. These US military medals may also be awarded posthumously, to any sailor killed in the line of duty.

The Coast Guard Good Conduct Medal is worn just below the Prisoner of War Medal and just above the Reserve Good Conduct Medal in the general order of precedence that has been established for the proper display of all Coast Guard military medals and ribbons. Service Stars have been used to denote additional awards since 1966.

The Coast Guard Good Conduct Medal is generally available as Coast Guard medals, ribbons, and lapel pins most commonly, but hat pins and embroidered versions are also available. The Coast Guard Good Conduct Medal can be worn as full slide-on medals and mini medals and 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 military ribbons to provide them with the smartest looking military award displays possible.