Ira T. Neal |

| Korean War, 1950-1953
Army
24th Infantry Regiment, 25th Infantry Division
Korea
Sergeant First Class
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In 1947, at the age of 16, Ira Neal dropped out of high school to join the Air Force. He soon learned that the segregated armed services had quotas for African American recruits; he was encouraged to enlist in the Army instead. By June 1950, he had just returned from a tour of duty in Japan when the Korean War began. He decided to re-enlist for a six-year hitch, and he arrived in Korea as a rifleman in an infantry unit. He admits that he was "blessed" when he was transferred to a weapons company as a forward observer. He directed mortar fire on the enemy, and his job was not without danger, but he believes it greatly increased his chances of survival. While he was in Japan, he obtained a GED, and he later used the G.I. Bill to get an advanced college degree, leading to a long career in public education.
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