Father Kapaun awarded posthumously

Photo by Senior Airman Caitlin O’Neil-McKeown

Chaplain (Lt. Col.) Redmond Raux, 86th Airlift Wing Wing Staff Agency chaplain, holds a Catholic Mass in honor of Father (Capt.) Emil J. Kapaun, Medal of Honor recipient, April 11 in the Kapaun Chapel. Kapaun was awarded the medal posthumously for his extraordinary heroism while serving with the 3rd Battalion, 8th Cavalry Regiment, 1st Cavalry Division during combat operations against an armed enemy at Unsan, Korea, and as a prisoner of war from November 1950 to May 1951. In 1993, Kapaun was named a “servant of God” by the Vatican and is currently a candidate for sainthood after two alleged miracles were attributed to prayers for Kapaun to intercede.