Outskirts Press, INC.

AN INSPIRING JOURNEY OF

COURAGE AND SERVICE

On May 5, 1966, George W. Hughes was leading his platoon on a mission to

reinforce his fellow soldiers in a Vietnam village. Under fire for more than four

hours, he had a decision to make: maintain a tight position with his men grouped

together, or disperse them and return enemy fire.

His actions that day saved lives and later earned him the prestigious Distinguished

Service Cross. But they truly formed over the previous three decades, as Hughes

transformed from a wayward young man into a model career soldier and

inspiration to us all.

Always a Soldier documents his incredible journey from tenth-grade dropout to

decorated 20-year Army man and college graduate. This enlightening memoir

spans his impoverished early years during World War II, his initial enlistment in

the Army at 17, the formative experiences in training and combat, passage

into manhood and the growth of a family. It is a book about courage and

succeeding even when you think you can't, and serving others when most think

only of serving themselves. It is, above all, a humorous and honest portrait of

a life fully lived, one that proudly retells the good times while not flinching from

the bad.

When the mortars began to fall, I hid behind a tombstone in a Vietnamese graveyard. I yelled "Where is Sergeant Darby?". He said "Here I am". He was hiding on the other side of the tombstone and I had to laugh because one of us was hiding on the wrong side.