General Cody is a true American Patriot. His contributions to our Army and Nation are to numerous to list, but his dedication to our Soldiers and Nation is without question the driving force in his life. Fully deserving of a Presidental Medal of Freedom.
I am proud to announce that General (USA, Ret) Richard Cody, my Army War College and Shippensburg University Master's Program classmate, was honored with the Fox Ultimate Patriot Award tonight! A stellar leader, a brilliant soldier, a true patriot and a great friend, General Cody is a true American hero. He served in a number of high level command and staff assignments, many of those in combat, including Commander of the 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment (SOAR), Commander of the 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault), Deputy Chief of Staff for Operations on the Army Staff and Vice Chief of Staff of the United States of the Army. The Patriot Award, however, was not given for his magnificent service in uniform. It was given for his support to those suffering during the disasters that affected the poor people of North Carolina after the recent hurricanes that affected that area. During those difficult times, even though already retired, he flew his own personal helicopter after the deluge to assess the damage and to deliver critical supplies to those affected. Just as he did in his stellar career in uniform he risked his life and donated his time and resources to respond to a contingency that put his fellow Americans at risk. His unfathonable courage, devotion to duty, selfless sacrifice and dedication to the Nation are in keeping with the highest standards of the United States Army and the military service! Congratulations, Sir! I am honored to be your brother in your arms, your Army and Master's Program classmate and your humble friend. I believe that your heroic efforts are more than wothy of an award of the Presidential Medal of Freedom!
Early in my career I had a meeting on detainee policy with the VCSA Gen Cody, he struck his head prior to the meeting. He was bleeding pretty good and asked his COS for napkins but refused to reschedule. He said my (GS13) time was as important as his and he would take care of it later. I gave my brief while he held the napkins on his head. I applied that lesson my entire career and when I was an SES I knew, from his example, your team is the value proposition. Slaute Sir.
A true Patriot. I worked for General Cody twice in the Pentagon - when he was Army G-3 and later when he was Vice Chief of Staff. In typical Cody fashion, when he was Army G-3, he stopped by the Pentagon to drop off cookies his wife had made on Christmas day while my team was on duty as the current ops/watch team. He then spent about an hour talking to our Soldiers and providing his senior level insights on world events. What a treat for my troops to get a personal OPD from one of the Army’s senior leaders. That’s why Soldiers loved him. He was one of them!
Truly an inspiring leader that I met and served with for many years. He was a "Soldiers General" and took the time to listen and care for those around him.
Seeing the story of his work with Samaritan's Purse on the news made me proud to be able to say that I served under General (then LTC) Cody when I was a young First Lieutenant and very Junior Captain at the 1st Battalion, 101st Aviation Regiment (Attack). It is good to see him using his talents and that beautiful helicopter to bless others. In so doing, he continues to set a good example for others to follow.
Mark Scheid
1w
Always the Senior Army Transporter, they don't grow leaders better than Gen Cody
It was an honor to have served with you ENM.
He is the best and deserves it! I will never forget Gen Cody pulling up in his red convertible corvette with 20+ pizzas for my Soldiers as we were prepping CH-47 aircraft for deployment to Afghanistan in 2001. He crawled under the aircraft, and told me to have the Soldiers take a break and get some food. Amazing Leader!!!!!
Lee Knox Jr.
1w
Congratulations Sir for continuing to go above and beyond for your fellow Americans in times of need. Honor is given to those whom honor is due.
Mitch Ellken
3d
Out FREAKIN standing Sir!
Congressional Fellow
1wI worked for GEN (R) Cody when he was the 101st CG and briefed him when he visited us in AFG. I always appreciated how he wanted to be briefed by the junior soldiers when he visited. I ran into him at Reagan airport baggage check many years later and approached him and introduced myself. He didn’t remember me (didn’t expect him to) but he made me feel just as valued as ever! The people’s General! Would work for him again any day. Couldn’t think of a more deserving person to be honored.