DARKE COUNTY — The biography of PFC Douglas Dickey is now available.
Terence W. Barrett, PhD published his biography on Dickey, titled Remembering Douglas Eugene Dickey, USMC: “Reaching the Finest and Most Noble Heights” (Remembering USMC MEDAL OF HONOR RECIPIENTS) (Volume 3).
Dickey, a Medal of Honor recipient who grew up in Rossburg, sacrificed himself to save the lives of several fellow soldiers by falling on a grenade during his service in Vietnam.
Barrett takes a closer look at Dickey, one of America’s unsung heroes, in this 801-page biography.
The book is comprised of 24 chapters and four pages of praises by those who knew Dickey.
Amazon described Barrett’s product:
“While conducting a study of 294 marines who have been awarded the Medal of Honor from the American Civil War to the present, the author stumbled across the story of Private First Class Douglas E. Dickey.
“Beginning with the brief biographies he could find via newspaper articles and website searches, Barrett slowly started to piece together the extraordinary life and death of a young marine from Ohio.
“Through an examination of Dickey’s unfathomable heroism, in which he threw himself on a live enemy grenade in order to protect his fellow marines, Barrett raises important questions about the nature of bravery itself.
“What drives certain people to act against the seemingly natural instinct of survival? Could such a counterintuitive action be a different kind of natural instinct instead? Or is it always a conscious decision, a choice made in a split second that has permanent and unalterable consequences?
“Lovers of military history will enjoy learning more about this exceptional hero, as well as the psychology behind human courage, in this fascinating biography.”
Bob Sharp, secretary-treasurer of the Darke County Educational History Inc., commented, “Yes, it is an 800+ page book! It is full of information and includes information about other Darke County soldiers killed in Vietnam (eg) Rob Fowble on pages 481-2. Dr. Barrett has a great writing style by connecting what Doug Dickey was doing when other events like Rob’s last battle took place. Dr. Barrett mentions several local people providing him with information (eg) Terry Clark of Bear’s Mill, the Dickey family. Several of us at the Darke County Educational History Inc. purchased and sent this book to Doug’s fellow Marines — Greg “Doc” Long, Terry Alley, Jerry Idziak and Lionel “Chooch” Lawson. We also sent it to Tom C. McKenney who, as you know, headed the efforts in securing Doug’s MOH-FDO (Medal of Honor-For Display Only).”
Barrett, who has written three other books, is a graduate of the College of Wooster in Ohio, and earned advanced degrees from the University of Southern California, North Dakota State University and University of North Dakota. He served seven years in the U.S. Marine Corps and was activated for duty during Desert Storm in 1991, serving with the North Dakota Air National Guard. He retired 20 years later from military service.
He is now a licensed psychologist, teaching psychology courses at North Dakota State University. He is also a clinical consultant and Fargo VET Center. He is a former charter president of North Dakota Chapter of the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention and frequently travels across the United States to present seminars on various clinical topics.
Sharp said he does not yet know when the book will be stocked at the Garst Museum Gift Shop.
“They told me they were busy with other projects and won’t be ordering the book until next year,” he said.
Click here to view the book on Amazon, including a free sneak peek at an excerpt from it or just: http://www.amazon.com/Remembering-Douglas-Eugene-Dickey-USMC/dp/1511431148
