Frank Medina
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Frank Medina is a former
U.S. Army The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cl ...
captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police department, election precinct, e ...
who organized and managed the successful nationwide campaign to award the
Congressional Gold Medal The Congressional Gold Medal is an award bestowed by the United States Congress. It is Congress's highest expression of national appreciation for distinguished achievements and contributions by individuals or institutions. The congressional pract ...
to the U.S. Army's
65th Infantry Regiment The 65th Infantry Regiment, nicknamed "The Borinqueneers" during the Korean War for the original Taíno Indian name for Puerto Rico (Borinquen), is a Puerto Rican regiment of the United States Army. The regiment's motto is ''Honor et Fidelita ...
, also known as the ''Borinqueneers''. The Congressional Gold Medal is the highest civilian honor that can be awarded by the United States. As of 2014, only six other military units have received this award: The
Tuskegee Airmen The Tuskegee Airmen were a group of primarily African American military pilots (fighter and bomber) and airmen who fought in World War II. They formed the 332d Fighter Group and the 477th Fighter Group, 477th Bombardment Group (Medium) of the ...
, the
Navajo Code Talkers A code talker was a person employed by the military during wartime to use a little-known language as a means of secret communication. The term is now usually associated with United States service members during the world wars who used their k ...
, the Native American Code Talkers, the Nisei Japanese soldiers, the
Women Airforce Service Pilots The Women Airforce Service Pilots (WASP) (also Women's Army Service Pilots or Women's Auxiliary Service Pilots) was a civilian women pilots' organization, whose members were United States federal civil service employees. Members of WASP became t ...
(WASPs), and the Montford Point Marines. Until 2014, when the Borinqueneers received it, the only
Latino Latino or Latinos most often refers to: * Latino (demonym), a term used in the United States for people with cultural ties to Latin America * Hispanic and Latino Americans in the United States * The people or cultures of Latin America; ** Latin A ...
in U.S. history to be awarded the Congressional Gold Medal was
Roberto Clemente Roberto Enrique Clemente Walker (; August 18, 1934 – December 31, 1972) was a Puerto Rican professional baseball right fielder who played 18 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Pittsburgh Pirates. After his early death, he was pos ...
.


Early life and education

Medina was born in 1979 in
Ponce, Puerto Rico Ponce (, , , ) is both a city and a municipality on the southern coast of Puerto Rico. The city is the seat of the municipal government. Ponce, Puerto Rico's most populated city outside the San Juan metropolitan area, was founded on 12 August 1 ...
. His family moved to the United States during his childhood and he grew up in
Bridgeport Bridgeport is the most populous city and a major port in the U.S. state of Connecticut. With a population of 148,654 in 2020, it is also the fifth-most populous in New England. Located in eastern Fairfield County at the mouth of the Pequonnoc ...
,
Connecticut Connecticut () is the southernmost state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the south. Its cap ...
. In 2002, he graduated from the U.S. Military Academy at
West Point The United States Military Academy (USMA), also known Metonymy, metonymically as West Point or simply as Army, is a United States service academies, United States service academy in West Point, New York. It was originally established as a f ...
. He earned a
Bachelor of Science A Bachelor of Science (BS, BSc, SB, or ScB; from the Latin ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for programs that generally last three to five years. The first university to admit a student to the degree of Bachelor of Science was the University of ...
degree in
Engineering Management Engineering management is the application of the practice of management to the practice of engineering. Engineering management is a career that brings together the technological problem-solving ability of engineering and the organizational, admini ...
in West Point, with a minor in
Electrical Engineering Electrical engineering is an engineering discipline concerned with the study, design, and application of equipment, devices, and systems which use electricity, electronics, and electromagnetism. It emerged as an identifiable occupation in the l ...
. In June 2012, Medina graduated from the
University of Florida The University of Florida (Florida or UF) is a public land-grant research university in Gainesville, Florida. It is a senior member of the State University System of Florida, traces its origins to 1853, and has operated continuously on its ...
with a
Master of Science A Master of Science ( la, Magisterii Scientiae; abbreviated MS, M.S., MSc, M.Sc., SM, S.M., ScM or Sc.M.) is a master's degree in the field of science awarded by universities in many countries or a person holding such a degree. In contrast to ...
degree in Industrial &
Systems Engineering Systems engineering is an interdisciplinary field of engineering and engineering management that focuses on how to design, integrate, and manage complex systems over their enterprise life cycle, life cycles. At its core, systems engineering util ...
, with a minor in
Information Systems An information system (IS) is a formal, sociotechnical, organizational system designed to collect, process, information storage, store, and information distribution, distribute information. From a sociotechnical perspective, information systems a ...
. He holds the
Project Management Professional Project Management Professional (PMP) is an internationally recognized professional designation offered by the Project Management Institute (PMI). As of 31 July 2020, there are 1,036,368 active PMP-certified individuals and 314 chartered chapters ...
certification along with several IT/Telecommunication certifications.


Military service

Medina served in the
Iraq War {{Infobox military conflict , conflict = Iraq War {{Nobold, {{lang, ar, حرب العراق (Arabic) {{Nobold, {{lang, ku, شەڕی عێراق (Kurdish languages, Kurdish) , partof = the Iraq conflict (2003–present), I ...
and rose to the rank of captain. During his military service, Medina's overseas assignments included
Seoul Seoul (; ; ), officially known as the Seoul Special City, is the capital and largest metropolis of South Korea.Before 1972, Seoul was the ''de jure'' capital of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (North Korea) as stated iArticle 103 ...
, South Korea;
Honduras Honduras, officially the Republic of Honduras, is a country in Central America. The republic of Honduras is bordered to the west by Guatemala, to the southwest by El Salvador, to the southeast by Nicaragua, to the south by the Pacific Oce ...
;
Kuwait Kuwait (; ar, الكويت ', or ), officially the State of Kuwait ( ar, دولة الكويت '), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated in the northern edge of Eastern Arabia at the tip of the Persian Gulf, bordering Iraq to the nort ...
; and a combat tour in
Iraq Iraq,; ku, عێراق, translit=Êraq officially the Republic of Iraq, '; ku, کۆماری عێراق, translit=Komarî Êraq is a country in Western Asia. It is bordered by Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq ...
with
Operation Iraqi Freedom {{Infobox military conflict , conflict = Iraq War {{Nobold, {{lang, ar, حرب العراق (Arabic) {{Nobold, {{lang, ku, شەڕی عێراق (Kurdish languages, Kurdish) , partof = the Iraq conflict (2003–present), I ...
. He served as a U.S. Army officer in the Signal Communications Corps.


The Boriqueneers

Capt. Medina first heard of the 65th Infantry Regiment from his Korean War veteran grandfather, Efraín Santiago, who talked about the discrimination that he and his fellow Puerto Rican ''Borinqueneers'' faced in the U.S. military. Over time, Medina was able to grasp the cultural context, and military significance, of the Borinqueneers' service during
World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
,
World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
, and the
Korean War , date = {{Ubl, 25 June 1950 – 27 July 1953 (''de facto'')({{Age in years, months, weeks and days, month1=6, day1=25, year1=1950, month2=7, day2=27, year2=1953), 25 June 1950 – present (''de jure'')({{Age in years, months, weeks a ...
. The ''Borinqueneers'' unit was created by the
U.S. Congress The United States Congress is the legislature of the federal government of the United States. It is Bicameralism, bicameral, composed of a lower body, the United States House of Representatives, House of Representatives, and an upper body, ...
in 1899 as an all-Puerto Rican unit, and is credited with waging the last battalion-sized bayonet assault in U.S. Army history. The men of the 65th, now attached to the Army's 3d Infantry Division, were amongst the first infantrymen to meet the enemy on the battlefields of Korea. After November 1950, they fought daily against units of the Chinese
People's Liberation Army The People's Liberation Army (PLA) is the principal military force of the People's Republic of China and the armed wing of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). The PLA consists of five service branches: the Ground Force, Navy, Air Force, ...
after the Chinese entered the war on the North Korean side. In April 1951, the regiment participated in the Uijonbu Corridor drives and in June 1951, the 65th was the third regiment to cross the Han Ton River. The 65th took and held Chorwon and were also instrumental in breaking the Iron Triangle of Hill 717 in July 1951. In November 1951, the regiment fought off an attack by two regimental size enemy units. Colonel
Juan César Cordero Dávila Major General Juan César Cordero Dávila (June 7, 1904 – July 20, 1965), was the commanding officer of the 65th Infantry Regiment during the Korean War, rising to become one of the highest ranking ethnic officers in the United States Army. ...
was named commander of 65th Infantry on 8 February 1952, thus becoming one of the highest ranking ethnic officers in the Army. The ''Borinqueneers'' were awarded battle participation credits for the following nine campaigns: UN Defense-1950, UN Offense-1950, CCF Intervention-1950, First UN Counterattack Offensive-1951, UN and CCF Spring Offensive-1951, UN Summer-Fall Offensive-1951, 2nd Korean Winter 1951–52, Korean Summer-Fall-1952 and 3rd Korean Winter-1952-53. They are also credited with the last battalion-sized bayonet assault in U.S. Army history. During the Korean War, the ''Borinqueneers'' were awarded one
Medal of Honor The Medal of Honor (MOH) is the United States Armed Forces' highest military decoration and is awarded to recognize American soldiers, sailors, marines, airmen, guardians and coast guardsmen who have distinguished themselves by acts of valor. ...
to Master Sargeant Juan E Negrón, nine Distinguished Service Crosses, 258
Silver Stars The Silver Star Medal (SSM) is the United States Armed Forces' third-highest military decoration for valor in combat. The Silver Star Medal is awarded primarily to members of the United States Armed Forces for gallantry in action against an en ...
, 628
Bronze Stars The Bronze Star Medal (BSM) is a United States Armed Forces decoration awarded to members of the United States Armed Forces for either heroic achievement, heroic service, meritorious achievement, or meritorious service in a combat zone. Wh ...
, and 2,771
Purple Heart The Purple Heart (PH) is a United States military decoration awarded in the name of the President to those wounded or killed while serving, on or after 5 April 1917, with the U.S. military. With its forerunner, the Badge of Military Merit, w ...
s. Seven hundred fifty Borinqueneers died in the Korean War.


Congressional Gold Medal initiative

Medina's decision to bring recognition to the ''Borinqueneers'' occurred when he attended a service academy minority alumni reunion, where he met a man named Raul Reyes Castañeira. A ''Borinqueneer'' and Korean War vet, Castañeira was the youngest of four brothers who served in Korea with the regiment. During the event, Castañeira pointed to a Montford Point Marine and said, "that Marine has a Montford Point gold medal. How can we get one?" At that moment, Medina decided to take action. In 2012, Medina founded the Borinqueneers Congressional Gold Medal Alliance—a group of individuals and organizations dedicated to obtaining the Congressional Gold Medal for the ''Borinqueneers'', which was sponsored by the ''You Are Strong!'' Center on Veterans Health and Human Services. From 2012 until 2014, Medina was National Chair for the Borinqueneers Gold Medal Alliance, and the driving force behind the effort to pass a congressional bill to recognize the unit. Medina and his colleagues, conducted a multi-front campaign which included nationwide cold calling, a website launch, and numerous letters to officials and legislators, including four Puerto Rican members of Congress: Rep.
José E. Serrano José Enrique Serrano (born October 24, 1943) is an American politician who was a member of the U.S. House of Representatives from 1990 until his retirement in 2021. Serrano, a Democrat from New York, represented a district that is one of the ...
(D-NY), Rep.
Nydia Velasquez Nydia may refer to: *Alba Nydia Díaz (born 1955), Puerto Rican actress *Carmen Nydia Velázquez, born in Puerto Rico, a comedian and singer *Nydia Caro (born 1948), American and Puerto Rican actress and singer *Nydia Rojas (born 1980), American si ...
(D-NY), Rep.
Luis Gutierrez Luis is a given name. It is the Spanish form of the originally Germanic name or . Other Iberian Romance languages have comparable forms: (with an accent mark on the i) in Portuguese and Galician, in Aragonese and Catalan, while is archaic ...
(D-Ill.) and Rep.
Raul Labrador Raul, Raúl and Raül are the Italian, Portuguese, Romanian, Spanish, Galician, Asturian, Basque, Aragonese, and Catalan forms of the Anglo-Germanic given name Ralph or Rudolph. They are cognates of the French Raoul. Raul, Raúl or Raül may re ...
(R-Idaho). In
Pennsylvania Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...
, Medina's efforts were supported locally by Pennsylvania State Senator
Mike Stack Michael Joseph Stack III (born June 5, 1963) is an American attorney and former politician who served as the 33rd lieutenant governor of Pennsylvania from 2015 to 2019. A member of the Democratic Party, he previously served as a member of the Pen ...
, his legislative assistant Juvencio Gonzalez, and veterans organizations who urged the House of Representatives and Senate to take action. In
Washington, DC ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan ...
, the staff of Resident Commissioner
Pedro Pierluisi Pedro Rafael Pierluisi Urrutia (born April 26, 1959) is a Puerto Rican politician and lawyer currently serving as governor of Puerto Rico. He has previously served as Secretary of Justice, Resident Commissioner, acting Secretary of State, i ...
worked tirelessly, advocating and coordinating with both houses of congress, until a bill on behalf of the ''Borinqueeners'' was sponsored by U.S. Senator
Richard Blumenthal Richard Blumenthal (; born February 13, 1946) is an American lawyer and politician who is the senior United States senator from Connecticut, a seat he has held since 2011. A member of the Democratic Party, he is one of the wealthiest members of ...
(D-Conn.) and Congressman
Bill Posey William Joseph Posey (born December 18, 1947) is an American businessman and politician serving as the U.S. representative for , in Congress since 2009. A member of the Republican Party, he formerly served in the Florida Senate and the Florida ...
(R-Fla.). On June 10, 2014, President
Barack Obama Barack Hussein Obama II ( ; born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who served as the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, Obama was the first African-American president of the U ...
signed the legislation to award the Congressional Gold Medal to the ''Borinqueneers''. In November 2014, Medina wrote an article about the Borinqueneers and the Congressional Gold Medal initiative, which was published in ''Army'' Magazine. In March 2015, Medina was recognized for his organization and leadership of the national Congressional Gold Medal campaign initiative. His advocacy continues with support for the renaming of East Main Street after the Borinqueneers, in the town of
Bridgeport Bridgeport is the most populous city and a major port in the U.S. state of Connecticut. With a population of 148,654 in 2020, it is also the fifth-most populous in New England. Located in eastern Fairfield County at the mouth of the Pequonnoc ...
, Ct.Connecticut Latino News, "Projects To Honor Borinqueneers In Connecticut, On the Move," by Bill Sarno, March 8, 2015.
/ref>


A national legacy

The 65th Infantry Regiment was deactivated in 1956. The Congressional Gold Medal initiative thus had sense of urgency to ensure that at least some of the ''Borinqueneers'' would be alive to be honored. In addition, Medina told
ABC News ABC News is the news division of the American broadcast network ABC. Its flagship program is the daily evening newscast ''ABC World News Tonight, ABC World News Tonight with David Muir''; other programs include Breakfast television, morning ...
that, "We need to weave the contributions of not only Hispanic veterans, but ''all'' Hispanics into the fabric of American culture. We definitely need to leave a positive image." Medina was also reported as having one more goal in mind for the group. "They deserve to have a
Hollywood Hollywood usually refers to: * Hollywood, Los Angeles, a neighborhood in California * Hollywood, a metonym for the cinema of the United States Hollywood may also refer to: Places United States * Hollywood District (disambiguation) * Hollywood, ...
movie made about them," he said.


Recent work

After departing from active military service, Medina joined the U.S. Army Reserves with the rank of mayor and worked as an IT
Network Analyst A network administrator is a person designated in an organization whose responsibility includes maintaining computer infrastructures with emphasis on local area networks (LANs) up to wide area networks (WANs). Responsibilities may vary between org ...
and was assigned to
Kabul Kabul (; ps, , ; , ) is the capital and largest city of Afghanistan. Located in the eastern half of the country, it is also a municipality, forming part of the Kabul Province; it is administratively divided into 22 municipal districts. Acco ...
,
Afghanistan Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan,; prs, امارت اسلامی افغانستان is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. Referred to as the Heart of Asia, it is bordere ...
, where he viewed the progression of the country's nascent government rebuild into a modern society. In June 2012, he graduated from the
University of Florida The University of Florida (Florida or UF) is a public land-grant research university in Gainesville, Florida. It is a senior member of the State University System of Florida, traces its origins to 1853, and has operated continuously on its ...
with a
Master of Science A Master of Science ( la, Magisterii Scientiae; abbreviated MS, M.S., MSc, M.Sc., SM, S.M., ScM or Sc.M.) is a master's degree in the field of science awarded by universities in many countries or a person holding such a degree. In contrast to ...
degree in Industrial & Systems Engineering with a minor in
Information Systems An information system (IS) is a formal, sociotechnical, organizational system designed to collect, process, information storage, store, and information distribution, distribute information. From a sociotechnical perspective, information systems a ...
. While completing his studies at the University of Florida, Medina helped to educate and mentor many undergraduate
Hispanic The term ''Hispanic'' ( es, hispano) refers to people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or Hispanidad. The term commonly applies to countries with a cultural and historical link to Spain and to Vic ...
students in the rigors of
graduate school Postgraduate or graduate education refers to Academic degree, academic or professional degrees, certificates, diplomas, or other qualifications pursued by higher education, post-secondary students who have earned an Undergraduate education, un ...
selection, admission applications and career advice/development, as well as what industry and occupations in which to specialize.Frank Medina - You are Strong! Featured Veteran. Retrieved July 1, 2014.
Medina holds the Project Management Professional certification along with several IT and Telecommunication certifications. He currently lives in
Orlando Orlando () is a city in the U.S. state of Florida and is the county seat of Orange County. In Central Florida, it is the center of the Orlando metropolitan area, which had a population of 2,509,831, according to U.S. Census Bureau figures rele ...
,
Florida Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to ...
, where he works with the Department of the Navy as a systems engineer for training and simulation technologies for
U.S. Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage of ...
Aircraft.


See also

*
Military history of Puerto Rico The recorded military history of Puerto Rico encompasses the period from the 16th century, when Spanish conquistadores battled native Taínos in the rebellion of 1511, to the present employment of Puerto Ricans in the United States Armed Forces ...
*
List of Puerto Rican military personnel Throughout history Puerto Ricans, including people of Puerto Rican descent, have gained notability as members of the military. They have served and have fought for many countries, such as Canada, Cuba, England, Mexico, Spain, the United States an ...
*
West Point The United States Military Academy (USMA), also known Metonymy, metonymically as West Point or simply as Army, is a United States service academies, United States service academy in West Point, New York. It was originally established as a f ...
(Notable Alumni)


References


External links


Borinqueneers Congressional Gold Medal Alliance Website

Borinqueneers WebsiteLatino AllianceHispanic Americans in the U.S. Army
compiled by the
United States Army Center of Military History The United States Army Center of Military History (CMH) is a directorate within the United States Army Training and Doctrine Command. The Institute of Heraldry remains within the Office of the Administrative Assistant to the Secretary of the Arm ...
{{DEFAULTSORT:Medina, Frank 1979 births Living people United States Army personnel of the Iraq War Military personnel from Ponce Korean War Puerto Rican Army personnel United States Army officers United States Army reservists United States Military Academy alumni University of Florida alumni