Penn Township soldier, other veterans to be recognized for heroism at Soldiers & Sailors Memorial

A Penn Township soldier who was awarded the Silver Star posthumously for his heroic actions to save fellow soldiers 51 years ago in the Vietnam War officially will join a hall of heroes Sunday in Pittsburgh.

Army Spc. 4 Larry L. Hohman of Paintertown will be inducted into the Hall of Valor at the Soldiers & Sailors Memorial Hall & Museum in Oakland. He was killed Dec. 6, 1969, during combat in South Vietnam, about two months after his actions that earned him the Silver Star.

“I was so surprised that he was recognized after all these years,” said his widow, Sharon Hohman Shickel of Paintertown. “It’s an honor.”

Sharon was pregnant with their son when her husband died, after about six months after he was deployed to Vietnam. Larry L. Hohman Jr., a Penn-Trafford School District elementary teacher, was born in February 1970.

Hohman will be among 11 members to be inducted into the Joseph A. Dungan Jr. Hall of Valor this year, said Tim Neff, director of the hall. More than 700 military members are in the Hall of Valor, which is reserved for those who have received medals for bravery and heroism during times of military conflict.

The pandemic forced the cancellation of the 2020 ceremony, Neff said, so this year’s class includes those who would have been inducted last year.

Because of the state’s restrictions on indoor gatherings, the 2 p.m. ceremony will be open only to a limited number of guests of the inductees. The general public is not invited. The event will be livestreamed on Facebook and YouTube.

Hohman was a graduate of the Penn-Joint High School, a predecessor to the current Penn-Trafford. He was drafted into the Army and sent to Vietnam on June 8, 1969.

“He was patriotic,” his widow said.

Hohman earned a Silver Star “for exceptionally valorous action” on Oct. 16, 1969, when he maneuvered his machine gun to the point of heaviest contact against the enemy and delivered effective fire on the enemy, according to the citation. With the enemy well concealed, Hohman gave his machine gun to the assistant gunner, took his rifle and as many grenades as he could carry and crawled toward enemy bunkers.

“Despite drawing fire, he crawled close to the enemy bunkers and threw grenades at them, silencing the majority of the hostile force,” the citation states.

Others to be inducted into the Hall of Valor this weekend are:

World War II

• Army Air Corps Capt. Philip Bagian, Philadelphia County

• Army Pvt. Donald Dukovich, Allegheny County

• Army Air Corps Tech. Sgt. Robert Kirsch, Allegheny County

• Army 1st Sgt. Gilbert Moser, Allegheny County

• Navy Aviation Machinist Mate Paul Stock, Allegheny County

Vietnam War

• Marines Lance Cpl. Frederick Monahan, Blair County

• Army 1st Lt. Stanley Rykaczewski, , Allegheny County

• Army Capt. James Siegman, Allegheny County

Persian Gulf War

• Navy Electronics Tech. Class Wayne Weaver, Allegheny and Jefferson counties

• Operation Iraqi FreedomMarines Cpl. Albert Gettings, Lawrence County

Plaques for those inducted, which will include their medal’s citation, will hang in the Hall of Valor for two years before being scanned into a computer kiosk for future viewing.

Those who want to watch the ceremonies on either Facebook Live or YouTube.