Thread: Widow's tribute - S/Sgt Olaf Schmid

Originally Posted by Adrian Roberts

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/news...r-husband.html

I thought this was an extremely moving tribute, by an ordinary young woman to her husband, not overwrought as is the case with much contemporary public emotion; dignified but "real".

I have heard that Olaf Schmid is in line for a posthumous award, if not a VC of GC then a CGC or DSO.

Thanks for posting Adrian.

An incredile man and an incredible woman.

Both are incredible people and i have a lot of admiration for them both. S/Sgt Schmid was a very brave man to of dealt with all those bombs and i believe that he deserves the VC. His wife i hope will go on to become a leading figure for the public in helping in getting the British out of that mess that was created by the Americans and looks like turning into another Nam for not just them but for us as well.
Sniper

Olaf Schmid and Kim Hughes have been awarded GCs.

And, contrary to some comments, the George Cross is not inferior to the Victoria Cross, according to its constitution; it is merely awarded in different circumstances.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/news...ghanistan.html

Two bomb disposal experts have received the George Cross for “awe-inspiring and humbling” courage as the military prepares to honour a record number of personnel for their bravery in Afghanistan.

Staff Sergeants Kim Hughes and Olaf Schmid, both 30, were described as “the bravest of the brave” by Air Chief Marshal Sir Jock Stirrup, the Chief of the Defence Staff.

The pair, who were members of the Royal Logistic Corps and close friends, between them personally disarmed over 150 of the Taliban’s improvised explosive devices.

Over 100 more medals will be awarded today for service in Afghanistan, following the bloodiest year for Britain’s Armed Forces since the Falklands War in 1982.

They will include a posthumous award to Lieutenant Colonel Rupert Thorneloe, 39, Commanding Officer of the 1st Welsh Guards, who was killed by a roadside bomb in Lashkar Gah in July.

S/Sgt Hughes was awarded his medal after clearing a safe path for his comrades through an “IED minefield” in August in which he disarmed seven bombs – three of them by hand, without any protective clothing, while under enemy fire.

S/Sgt Schmid, known as “Oz” and originally from Truro, Cornwall, won the GC posthumously after he died last October attempting to disarm a hidden bomb which had trapped his squad in an alley, in an act which saved their lives.

Speaking after receiving the medal, S/Sgt Hughes, of Telford, Shropshire, said the thought of death never entered his head.

“You are always thinking one step ahead. Thinking you are going to die doesn’t cross your mind at all,” he said. “You just crack on and get on with it.”

He dismissed his heroism as “just one of those things”.

However, Brigadier Tim Radford, the Commanding Officer of 19 Light Brigade in which the men served, read an excerpt from the citation which said: “It was the single most outstanding act of explosive ordnance disposal ever recorded in Afghanistan.”

S/Sgt Hughes has previously criticised the Government for failing to spend enough to support troops in the conflict.

When Bob Ainsworth, the defence secretary, visited Camp Bastion in Helmand Province, he asked the bomb disposal expert what he most needed and was told: “More troops on the ground.”

The widow of S/Sgt Schmid, Christina, 34, accepted the award on his behalf.

As the ceremony ended, S/Sgt Hughes embraced Mrs Schmid and kissed her on the cheek.

Mrs Schmid, who has been widely praised for her dignity after her husband’s death, said the medal was “a legendary award for my legendary husband”.

Asked how she was coping with her loss, she said: “I’m okay but it’s not easy.

“Having rewards like this and the fantastic reminders of what he achieved… it just brings back love and positivity for me and reminds me how fantastic he was.”

The two groups of bomb disposal experts that S/Sgt Schmid led in Afghanistan were known as Team Rainbow and Team Toilet Duck, the last because they cleaned up things that no one else wanted to touch.

Also present at the ceremony were two other recipients of the George Cross.

Col Stuart Archer, who is now 95, was one of the first to win the medal after he defused a series of unexploded Nazi bombs which had fallen on high-profile British targets during the Second World War.

Capt Peter Norton, 46, lost part of an arm and a leg as he investigated a bomb that exploded, killing four US soldiers in Baghdad in 2005, but managed to stay lucid enough to lead his team to safety.

The George Cross is awarded to military personnel for acts of bravery which are not in the face of the enemy. It can also be awarded to civilians.