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Mo vets receive Legion of Honor medal

hdes. copeland
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Three Missouri World War Two veterans have received France’s Legion of Honor medal, the highest award given by the French government for service to that country.  The three were recognized Monday at a ceremony at the State Capitol.

87-year-old Frank Crooks is a St. Joseph native who now lives in Jefferson City.  He served in the Army Air Forces as a turret gunner in a B-26 bomber.  His plane was forced to make an emergency landing at a German airstrip after being hit by enemy flack over France:

“We thought we’d probably end up being prisoners, (but) the Germans had pulled out five days before, so it was back in French control.”

90-year-old Bud Jones of Jefferson City served as a fighter pilot, earning two Distinguished Flying crosses.  88-year-old Lloyd Cain, also of Jefferson City, served in the U-S Army in France and Germany, and during one battle exposed himself to enemy fire while doing spotter duty for American mortars.

Missouri Public Radio State House Reporter Marshall Griffin is a proud alumnus of the University of Mississippi (a.k.a., Ole Miss), and has been in radio for over 20 years, starting out as a deejay. His big break in news came when the first President Bush ordered the invasion of Panama in 1989. Marshall was working the graveyard shift at a rock station, and began ripping news bulletins off the old AP teletype and reading updates between songs. From there on, his radio career turned toward news reporting and anchoring. In 1999, he became the capital bureau chief for Florida's Radio Networks, and in 2003 he became News Director at WFSU-FM/Florida Public Radio. During his time in Tallahassee he covered seven legislative sessions, Governor Jeb Bush's administration, four hurricanes, the Terri Schiavo saga, and the 2000 presidential recount. Before coming to Missouri, he enjoyed a brief stint in the Blue Ridge Mountains, reporting and anchoring for WWNC-AM in Asheville, North Carolina. Marshall lives in Jefferson City with his wife, Julie, their dogs, Max and Mason, and their cat, Honey.