Oglala man given medal for Korean War service

Rapid City Journal: Oglala man given medal for Korean War service
George Adolph Looks Twice tried to join the Army when he was 16.

"I wanted to go in when I was 16, but I looked like a 14-year-old," Looks Twice said.

He finally got in at 17, and after a trip to West Germany soon found himself in an active war on the far side of the world in Korea.

Sixty years after Looks Twice, now 77, first joined the Army, the Oglala resident was recognized for his service with a medal.

Looks Twice said he is honored to receive the Republic of Korea War Service Medal, an award offered by the South Korean government to American veterans of the 1950-1953 conflict.

The medal was originally offered shortly after the war ended, but at the time, Americans weren't allowed to receive medals from foreign countries.

As the 50th anniversary of the war approached in 1998, South Korea offered again to give the medal to U.S. Korean War veterans, or their next of kin.

Looks Twice received his medal with help from Sen. John Thune's office.

"We're grateful for your service," Thune said Thursday, pinning the medal on Looks Twice. "It's an honor.

Members of Thune's staff said many Korean War veterans aren't aware they are eligible to receive this medal.

"I told a friend of mine about it, to check on it," Looks Twice said. "I'm glad I got it."

While Looks Twice was serving as a rifleman as part of a machine gun crew in Korea, he was wounded in the face and torso by a land mine. He spent several weeks in the hospital before returning to active duty and received a Purple Heart.

Nicholas Black Elk, Looks Twice's cousin, said his relative remains a proud veteran to this day, sometimes marching in a veterans color guard at ceremonies.

Looks Twice echoed the same sentiment.

"You want to be part of something," he said.