Garfield Langhorn

Riverhead High School unveiled the Garfield M. Langhorn Veterans Wall of Honor Tuesday afternoon. The wall holds the name of 89 veterans and fallen soldiers who attended the Riverhead Central School District.

The town has launched a project to place banners depicting Riverhead veterans on Main Street light poles.

Tuesday marks the 50th anniversary of the death of Garfield Langhorn Jr., an Army radio man who threw himself on a live grenade to save fellow soldiers after an ambush in the Vietnamese jungle on Jan. 15, 1969.

“Let us all find the courage to right a wrong, to speak for the voiceless, to protect the defenseless. Let us each remember to honor our personal responsibilities and commitments and to offer service to our country, our communities and our families.” Riverhead Medal of Honor recipient PFC Garfield M. Langhorn was remembered at Pulaski Street School yesterday with the 14th annual Garfield Langhorn memorial essay contest.

PFC Garfield M. Langhorn was a true American hero, whose valor was recognized posthumously in 1970 President Richard Nixon with a Medal of Honor, the nation's highest military honor. Why has Langhorn been recognized so little over the years by his hometown of Riverhead?

When they finally found the mangled ruins of the helicopter, scattered deep in enemy territory in the Vietnam jungle, everyone inside was already dead. It was 1969, and Garfield Langhorn was very far away from home.

While his memory is kept alive in the hearts and minds of those who once served by his side, and by those who currently serve this nation in places near and far, the heroism of Congressional Medal of Honor recipient PFC Garfield M. Langhorn Jr. is also remembered right here in Riverhead.