Silver Star group (Lt Col Robert C. Lewis, 76th Troop Carrier Squadron)

Group of eight to Lt Colonel Robert C. Lewis, US Army Air Forces and US Air Force: Silver Star, slot brooch, machine-engraved “Robert C. Lewis”; Air Medal, with 1 oak leaf cluster, slot brooch, unnamed; Purple Heart, slot brooch, unnamed; American Defense Service Medal; American Campaign Medal; Europe-Africa-Middle East Campaign Medals; World War II Victory; National Defense Service Medal. With an Air Force officer’s cap eagle and an Aviation Cadet cap badge (missing the screw post).

Lt Colonel Robert Clayton Lewis was born 11 January 1916 and joined the Army in July 1940. Lt Col Lewis commanded the 76th Troop Carrier Squadron, 435th Troop Carrier Group, during the D-Day and Market Garden operations. Colonel Lewis died on active duty near Grant, Colorado, on 9 March 1958. The request for his headstone notes his last assignment as the Air Force Personnel and Training Research Center, Lowry Force Base, Colorado. His grave marker in Alliance, Ohio, notes his World War II service and the award of the Silver Star and Air Medal. The 76th Troop Carrier Squadron received a Distinguished Unit Citation for 6-7 June 1944.