One of the first Black Marines finally gets his Congressional Gold Medal
Brenda Matthews heard about Black Marines who served at Camp Lejeune’s Montford Point Camp during and right after World War II being awarded the Congressional Gold Medal, and she wanted the same thing for her father, Gunnery Sgt. Charles Shaw, who died Oct. 29, 1979, at 62.
On Saturday, Oct. 10, Matthews, of Anaheim Hills, her five siblings, family and friends gathered at Friendship Baptist Church in Yorba Linda. In a long-awaited ceremony, Matthews finally got what she had been waiting so long for when retired Marine Staff Sgt. Mike Johnson, the Montford Point Marine Association’s national vice president, laid a bronze replica of the gold medal in her hands and read the official citation.
The medal – about 3 inches in diameter and 1/4 inch thick – is engraved with three Black Marines’ faces. On the back, it reads: “For outstanding perseverance and courage that inspired social change in the Marine Corps.”
“It’s like a dream come true,” said Matthews, 71. “It’s like I can take a deep breath. All these years, I wanted him to be recognized when I realized how important it was. All that comes full-circle now.”
On Veterans Day, Shaw’s medal will be displayed at the Bowers Museum in Santa Ana to recognize his and all other Montford Point Marines’ service. The Congressional Gold Medal is the nation’s highest civilian award.
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