Randy Ray Ward – US Marine Corps Combat Veteran, Recon, Beirut Veteran, PTSD, Corporal, Blog of Shame
1911/22/2015 by
BACKGROUNDRandy Ray Ward has been around the community of Beirut veterans and family next-of-kin for years. He participates in organized Beirut functions, Beirut blogs and Beirut Facebook groups … BUSINESS Ward has a business called Mr. Mom’s Attic which sells military related items which includes clothing, patches, decals and bumper stickers, coins, pins, ball caps plus other items. Several of these items have a Mulitnational Peacekeeping Force Beirut, Lebanon 1982-84 theme to them.
At the bottom of the website, which now appears to have been removed in favor of the ebay store, it states that “Mr. Moms Attic is proudly owned and operated by a US Marine Beirut Veteran.”
… UNIFORM Ward has also worn the US Marine dress blue uniform at several formal functions. Several aspects of his uniform stand out.
Notice that there are two rows of ribbons in the photos both above and below. The combination of ribbons would have been impossible for any phase of Beirut, Lebanon 1982-1984 although it is plausible that some were earned later.
Then, at another event the rows expand to three.
And in yet another event it expands to four rows… For convenience, the three separate events/photos are compared below.
Ward often wears military “bling” for civilian clothes.
Randy Ward participated in the Washington D.C. parade for Beirut Veterans on Memorial Day in May of 2010. Randy Ward claims that he was in Beirut, Lebanon in 1983.
Randy Ward’s posts to the various Beirut veteran-related Facebook groups took on a similar theme — that he was struggling from PTSD and, by implication, related to his experiences in Beirut, Lebanon in 1983. These posts took ominous turns but they would be quickly followed with posts of support and encouragement by Beirut veterans and family members that lost loved ones in Beirut.
“BATTLE BUDDY” Randy Ward claims that he lost a “battle buddy” in the Marine Barracks bombing on 23 Oct 1983. Then, Ward poses in his dress blues beside a photo of LCpl Leonard Walker who was killed on 23 October 1983.
Randy Ward was asked on occasion which unit he served with while in Beirut, Lebanon. Those questions may have been overlooked but they went unanswered. Several Beirut veterans began to have some curiosity about Randy Ward so a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request was made for Ward’s official military records. |
FOIA RESULTS – SELECTED
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FOIA RESULTS – COMPLETE |
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SUMMARY AND DISCUSSIONA query was made to the Department of Defense Manpower Data Center but it showed no results even after a systematic search for successive years after 1984. Due to a limitation of the database, it would not show active duty before 30 Sept 1984. This makes sense due to Ward being released from active duty in 1982. The systematic search was to also account for a second active duty performed but none was identified. The FOIA from the National Archives would have shown time in the hospital so there may not have been a medical related discharge. Since Ward was in the USMC for under a month, he would not have earned any medals and would not have earned the title of “US Marine” since recruits have to complete all phases of training before having that bestowed on them. SERVICE CLAIMS There is no record of assignments so Ward could not have been in Beirut, Lebanon, he could not have earned the Scuba and Jump wings. He was also not Recon qualified according to his records. There were no shooting badges awarded due to his limited time in recruit training. Randy Ward could not have made Corporal (E-4) and his records show him discharged as a Private (E-1). Ward would not have been awarded the Combat Action Ribbon which he wears frequently. This would be in violation of the Stolen Valor Act of 2013, especially if there were tangible benefits received. Ward’s service claims are not supported by his official military records. PTSD Without being directly involved in or having access to a veteran’s medical records, it is impossible to speak to whether someone has Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) or not. However, in Randy Ward’s case it makes one wonder how he could have gotten PTSD from a little over two weeks in recruit training with his training platoon and a week in Casual Company? A highly questionable practice is that Randy Ward posts to Beirut groups in regard to his PTSD. Ironically this has the potential to trigger episodes in Beirut veterans with combat-related PTSD. This would be highly unethical for someone to do without true combat related PTSD. “BATTLE BUDDY” Cpl Leonard Walker was killed in the Marine Barracks bombing on 23 Oct 1983. Since Ward’s records do not support him being in the Marine Corps beyond one month, he could not have served in “battle” and therefore could not have had a “battle buddy” unless it was a loose reference to something else. Walker went to recruit training in 1980, when Ward was fifteen (15) years old, so they could not have been boot camp buddies. There may have been some circumstance where their lives crossed paths, but it is safe to say it was not in battle and highly likely that it was not in the Marine Corps. Since they could not have been “battle buddies”, it may also shed some doubt that they could have been buddies. Impossible to say, though. |
PHOTOS and SOCIAL MEDIAPHOTOS
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/randy.ward.524 BUSINESS
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This Ain’t Hell: http://thisainthell.us/blog/?p=62915 |
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Wow, he also “earned” a Defense Meritorious Service Medal during this time. Amazing!
Turd, round, tapered, one (1) each. That should be how he qould be described. Less than two weeks actually training. He went straight to seps, no PCP (fat body) or MRP (medical) he was either fraudulent, erroneous or failure to adapt (AKA a pussy). That he attaches himself to a fallen Marine with his bullshit means there is a special place in poser hell for him.
Thank you very much for pulling all of this together. I have long suspected Ward of being a poser and a good friend of mine dug up his records and gave it to you guys (he may even be “you guys”). I appreciate the effort. Mike Toma, Sgt, USMC, Beirut “82 & ’83, MOPH
Mike, your questions and persistence were critical in this case. Thank you so much.
Mike,
What unit were you with? I was with Lima 3/8. I was there before and then again after the bombing.
Mike Kunkel
[…] folks at Military Phonies send us their work on this fellow, Randy Ray Ward, who claims to be a survivor of the Beirut […]
BLESSED THANKSGIVING MIKE TO YOU AND YOUR LOVED ONES GOD BLESS SEMPER FI !!!
Dress Blue belt buckle for Sgt and below should be smooth if memory serves me. SNCO’s had the eagle globe and anchor on the waist plate.
No that is the correct buckle for NCOs. SNCOs and Officers have the flanking leaves while junior enlisted have a plain buckle.
No Charlie, that is the correct buckle for NCOs. Junior enlisted have the smooth buckle and SNCOs and Officers have the EGA with flanking leaves buckle.
It’s obvious this clown is a fake, but in defense of real Marines who may be wearing the wrong buckle… Sometimes they might find themselves in a position where they are wearing the wrong buckle & can’t help it.
When my friend in the Corps went home to get married in his blues, he found himself taking marriage pics with the smooth buckle because he had just made Corporal & had no place to buy the other buckle. It was something he just didn’t think about before he left base.
I found myself in this position when my father died. I had been out for a few years. At his military funeral, I had to wear the smooth buckle because there was no time to seek & find the other buckle with no Marine bases nearby, or even army-navy stores. When I was in, I only wore my blues twice and was an E3 when I did. My blues were never updated when I was in because technically they weren’t part of the required uniforms to display during JOB inspections. When I was in, you didn’t get a set of blues. You had to buy them. Very few fellow Marines owned them. When we had JOB inspections, the only items required were what was issued in boot camp. When my father died, I jumped thru hoops to find a tailor & gave him a copy of the regs so he could sew on my chevrons, hash marks, & blood stripes, plus make alterations on the trousers & coat! It wasn’t until I was at the funeral that wondered about the buckle. At the time, I wasn’t even certain about what it should have been.
Another one of my friends from the Corps is a retired staff sergeant who ended up at a Marine Corps Ball years after he got out & was stuck wearing the smooth buckle. I guess like me, he never updated.
It would be great though if someone could post a reference to the regulations as to the wearing of the buckle.
The NCO waist plate was added in the late 80’s or early 90’s. Prior to that Corporals and Sergeants would have worn the smooth waist plate.
why dude? what would he even do this for?
Greedy punk.
I’d love to meet this turd in person….
Worthless peice of shit
He is consistent. The CAR is upside down in every picture.
What a PEICE OF SHIT….DEATH BEFORE DISHONOR
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