When a Good Man Gets Kicked in the Groin

Last updated on: April 29, 2013 at 1:01 am by marcusbrotherton

When a Good Man Gets Kicked in the Groin 2013-04-10T17:54:50-06:00 marcusbrotherton

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

New York Times bestselling author Adam Makos and I released a new book recently. It’s titled VOICES OF THE PACIFIC—the long awaited oral-history project featuring untold stories from the Marine heroes of WWII.

Over the past few weeks I’ve been giving you glimpses inside the book.

Jesse Googe

Today here’s Jesse Googe, a runner for Captain Andrew “Ack-Ack” Haldane, (the commander of K-3-5), remembering his beloved and widely-respected leader.

Googe tells a story that will make you wince, but it offers a strong example of effective leadership in action.

Any Marine has seen his share of good leaders and bad ones. God saw fit to give K-3-5 Captain Andy “Ack Ack” Haldane. You’ll never meet anyone like him. I haven’t in all the years since. I was his runner, so I operated by his side, running his orders to the lines and behind the lines.

He was always fair. Always selfless. Modest. I never saw him curse or lose his cool and get angry. He only spoke good of others and was never critical—and war gives a man lots to be critical of. That’s the thing—we were in awe of him.

On Peleliu, day after day of combat began to wear down our nerves. You could never predict when the guy next to you might flip out. Ack Ack would come to the front and talk to us, trying to spot a guy on the edge to try and talk him down.

But one day, a guy that he was trying to help just snapped. He started flailing and screaming. Ack Ack reached out to grab his shoulders and calm him down, and the guy kicked the Skipper in the groin—hard.

Ack Ack fell to the ground, rolling in agony. We looked on helpless; we couldn’t do anything to help him. He didn’t scream. He didn’t curse. He didn’t get angry at the guy who kicked him. He just took it. You bet someone “secured” the offender and dragged him away.

Captain Andrew Haldane

After the war, Paul Douglas, a decorated Marine who served with our regiment said this about Ack Ack: “He was a tiger on attack. His company always suffered fewer casualties than any other company, but in every engagement Andy was always wounded—always wounded and always wound up each engagement 20 or 30 pounds less than when he began because he would give his rations away. He would give his blankets away, he would give his shirts away; and we always had to protect him at Peleliu to see that he got enough food.”

That was Ack Ack. In my kitchen, these days, I have a corkboard where I pin photos of my family and grandkids. The board is full of them, all colorful pictures except for one photo in the center, in black and white: my only picture of Ack Ack.

Sixty-seven years after the sniper took him from us, his loss still hurts. But his example lives on.

VOICES OF THE PACIFIC

By Adam Makos with Marcus Brotherton

Ask for it at a bookstore near you, or order your copy HERE.

masculinity

Previous Post

April 24, 2013

How a traditional church can grow again

Next Post

April 30, 2013 Want a Good Marriage? Share Your Rules

Browse Our Archives

Select a Category Book Giveaway Book Review Bullying Career Christmas Church devotion Discipleship Donald Miller Drugs & Alcohol Easter eternity evangelism Family food giving thanks God humor James H. Pence Jonathan McKee Leadership love Marcus Brotherton marriage masculinity men's ministry men's studies movies music Parenting Pastoring patriotism persecution pilgrim politics pop culture Prayer Prison Ministry prosperity religion Saul secularism sex Social Media Television Thanksgiving Uncategorized women Worship youth culture

Select a Month December 2014 November 2014 October 2014 June 2014 May 2014 April 2014 March 2014 February 2014 January 2014 December 2013 November 2013 October 2013 September 2013 August 2013 July 2013 June 2013 May 2013 April 2013 March 2013 February 2013 January 2013 December 2012 November 2012 October 2012 September 2012 August 2012 July 2012 June 2012

TAKE THE

Religious Wisdom Quiz

At a well in Samaria, I asked a woman for a drink and told her about living water. How many husbands had she had?

Select your answer to see how you score.

Five Two Seven Three