The third annual Alexander R. Nininger (‘41) Award for Valor at Arms was presented to CPT Bryan Jackson ’05 during a dinner at Washington Hall on Wednesday evening, 17 September 2008.
For his valorous actions while serving as a Field Artillery second lieutenant with Company A, Task Force 1-6 Infantry, on 27 September 2006 in Al Anbar province in Iraq, he was awarded the Distinguished Service Cross by Secretary of the Army Peter Geren at a ceremony in the Hall of Heroes at the Pentagon on 2 November 2007. CPT Jackson noted that, first and foremost, the Distinguished Service Cross and the Nininger Medal he received are worn to honor his classmates, including his former roommate, who made the ultimate sacrifice in the war on terror.
The Nininger Award was instituted upon a suggestion from Doug Kenna ’45 that the West Point AOG bring the stories of the contemporary valor exhibited by graduates in combat in the Global War on Terrorism to the attention of the Corps of Cadets. Mr. and Mrs. Kenna are committed to supporting the award annually and insuring its endowment in perpetuity. The award is named for 2LT Alexander R. “Sandy” Nininger ’41, recipient of the Medal of Honor, posthumously, for his conspicuous bravery, above and beyond the call of duty, during the early days of the Japanese invasion of the Philippines, 12 January 1942, near Abucay, Bataan.
