{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://web.archive.org/web/20140221055702/http://schock.house.gov/news/documentsingle.aspx?DocumentID=350827", "PJ Star: Medal presentation \u2018long time in the making\u2019 for Peoria veteran", "2013-09-23", "2013", "2013-09", "Republican", "House", "IL", "Aaron Schock", "S001179", "web.archive.org", null, null, "legacy", "By ANDY KRAVETZ (akravetz@pjstar.com)\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \nJournal Star\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \nPosted Sep 22, 2013 @ 04:18 PMPEORIA - Ben Percy wants to be clear: He\u2019s not a hero, but he\u2019s proud of his service to his nation and hopes that will continue thanks to efforts by his local congressman. On Monday, U.S. Rep. Aaron Schock, R-Peoria, will present Percy with several medals, including the Humanitarian Service medal, for his deployment to Egypt during Operation Eagle Claw, the failed attempt in 1980 to rescue 52 American hostages seized by revolutionary forces in Iran. The medals, Percy hopes, will help him with his desire to \u201ccontinue serving his country\u201d after his retirement from the Illinois State Police. When he tried to apply for jobs, he found his deployment for Eagle Claw was classified and not included in his records. Schock\u2019s office helped to change that and now he also is being presented with the Air Force Good Conduct medal, the Basic Security Police Qualification badge and the longevity service ribbon. \u201cThis ceremony has been a long time in the making for a well-deserved recognition of Benny Percy\u2019s heroic service to our country,\u201d Schock said. \u201cFor over three decades since his retirement from the Air Force, the story, and significance, of his contributions, including his involvement in the mission to rescue the 52 Americans during the Iran hostage crisis, have mostly been kept a secret. \u201cSo to have the chance to present him the medals he rightfully deserves after all these years is a unique moment for our community to celebrate and honor the many sacrifices Benny Percy has made on our behalf.\u201d Eagle Claw ended in the deaths of eight GIs and public humiliation for the Carter administration, but it had far-reaching implications on the nation\u2019s military as the service branches\u2019 special operations groups began working closer together and restructured their training. Percy, 54, of Peoria wasn\u2019t a special ops guy. He wasn\u2019t at the Desert One site where a helicopter crashed into a transport plane, and he wasn\u2019t injured. He was, however, stationed at Wadi Kena, Egypt, or Site Alpha, where he helped to protect the staging area used for the rescue mission. There was nothing in his records that indicated he was there, but he managed to save a few papers of his own to prove what he had done. Others, buddies of his, didn\u2019t. \u201cAnd there is nothing to show they were there,\u201d he said. \u201cThe Air Force can\u2019t change it as they don\u2019t have any way to show what they did.\u201d It matters in this War on Terror era, when veterans are given a leg up on jobs within the federal government, provided they have enough \u201cpoints.\u201d Such points can come from time in the service, deployments and awards. His orders, until recently, were classified, and so he never received awards that others in his unit received after leaving the service in 1981. That became a factor after he retired from the state police last year after 27 years, the last eight at the Par-A-Dice investigating allegations at the casino, and began looking within the federal government for a way to continue serving his country. Percy had tried on his own to have his records changed but was denied by the Air Force. \u201cI am comfortable with recognition for the efforts of Congressman Schock and Nate Hurn for standing by a veteran\u2019s request and their guidance through that process of record review by the (Air Force Board of Review),\u201d he said. \u201cAnd I want to encourage other veterans in need of records assistance to ask for help through Congressman Schock\u2019s office.\u201d Andy Kravetz can be reached at 686-3283 or akravetz@pjstar.com. Follow him on Twitter @andykravetz or read his military blog, information, on pjstar.com. http://www.pjstar.com/news/x1868842089/Air-Force-veteran-to-be-presented-with-medals-after-three-decades#ixzz2fpst3NB7", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["https://web.archive.org/web/20140221055702/http://schock.house.gov/news/documentsingle.aspx?DocumentID=350827"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 2.5783630553632975, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}