Friends, family, military members, and dignitaries unveiled something in Lincoln yesterday that will remind those throughout the years of a life given in defense of freedom.

It's been 28 years now, and you may not know who Gary Ivan Gordon was just off the top of your head. But he was certainly a man of courage and a man who believed at the right moment that he had a job to do.

Gary Gordon graduated from Mattanawcook Academy in 1978, and then joined the United States Army.  By 1986, Gordon was a member of the elite Delta Force, a unit that specialized in doing things like hostage recovery, counter-terrorism, and "direct action" maneuvers.

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In 1993, Master Sergeant Gordon was part of the now-infamous combat search and rescue team that was dispatched to a horrible scene in Mogadishu, Somalia, where two U.S. Military Blackhawk helicopters had been shot down.

Providing air cover and still hovering in the air over the scene of the second helicopter that was shot down, Gordon argued with his commander that he and his partner should be lowered to help, protect, and hopefully rescue the four injured and wounded crew members stranded on the ground below who were quickly being surrounded by opposing armed forces.

A heavily armed Gary Gordon and another Delta Force crew member, Sergeant First Class Randall Shughart, were eventually lowered into the battle scene where they valiantly fought the now surging numbers of hostile Somalis.

Vastly outnumbered, both Gordon and Shughart were killed.

In May of 1994, both Gordon and Shughart posthumously received the Medal of Honor, among other distinguished awards.  A book was written and a movie named Black Hawk Down was made.

The late Gary Gordon of Lincoln, Maine, is a definitive war hero.  He was what makes the United States of America, great, and the leader of the free world.

A statue was unveiled during a ceremony yesterday in Lincoln that will memorialize Mr. Gordon's life and his ultimate effort.  From the podium United States Senator Susan Collins had this to say, "No soldier goes into battle intending to make the ultimate sacrifice. But there are rare heroes who consciously make the decision to ricks their lives above and beyond the call of duty and, if need be, to give their lives to save others. This memorial to Master Sergeant Gordon commemorates a Medal of Honor soldier who fought with exceptional heroism and who gave his life so that his comrades might live."

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