Scharver, Jeffrey Richard, 1stLt

1st Lt Scharver was co-piloting a Cobra AH-1T in support of ground forces during Operation Urgent Fury. He was Killed in Action while attempting to repulse an assault by Cuban troops on wounded Cobra pilot, Capt. Howard. They stayed on station making dummy runs after they ran out of ammo when they were struck by ground fire and crashed into the sea. Capt. Giguere and 1stLt. Scharver were Killed in Action.

His Silver star citation follows. Citation:

Awarded for actions during the Invasion of Grenada The President of the United States of America takes pride in presenting the Silver Star (Posthumously) to First Lieutenant Jeffrey Richard Scharver, United States Marine Corps, for conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity in action while serving as an AH-1T (TOW) Cobra Attack Helicopter Pilot in Marine Medium Helicopter Squadron TWO HUNDRED SIXTY-ONE (HMM-261), Twenty-Second Marine Amphibious Unit conducting combat operations on the Island of Grenada in support of Operation URGENT FURY, on 25 October 1983.

While conducting an armed reconnaissance mission in support of ground forces, First Lieutenant Scharver's wingman was hit by multiple anti-aircraft artillery projectiles and forced down behind enemy lines. With full knowledge of their vulnerability as a single aircraft without a wingman's protective cover and with total disregard for their own safety, First Lieutenant Scharver and his pilot exposed their aircraft to heavy anti-aircraft artillery fire while engaging enemy ground forces and preventing the certain capture of the helpless and gravely wounded crew. Requesting assistance from a rescue aircraft and organizing the rescue attempt, First Lieutenant Scharver and his pilot fearlessly continued to engage the anti-aircraft emplacements that encircled the zone protecting the more vulnerable rescue aircraft and buying enough time to effect a successful rescue.

Purposely remaining behind until the rescue aircraft could escape the enemy fire, First Lieutenant Scharver sacrificed his life after a gallant struggle so that others might live. By his extraordinary courage, uncommon valor, and steadfast devotion to duty in the face of danger, First Lieutenant Scharver reflected great credit upon himself and upheld the highest traditions of the Marine Corps and the United States Naval Service. He gallantly gave his life for his country.
Action Date: October 25, 1983
Service: Marine Corps
Rank: First Lieutenant
Company: Marine Medium Helicopter Squadron 261 (HMM-261)
Division: 22d Marine Amphibious Unit

I would like to express my gratitude to the family of Edward Gargano (Fallen Beruit 1984) and Robert Gargano for the picture of Jeff Scharver and Jeb Seagle. Ohio State University Dedication: Remarks by The Honorable Jerry MacArthur Hultin Under Secretary of the Navy At the Re-Dedication of The 1st Lieutenant Jeffrey R. Scharver Room Naval Reserve Officer Training Corps The Ohio State University November 20, 1998 Ladies and gentlemen, as a former Ohio State University NROTC Midshipman, I am honored and humbled to be here today, as we re-dedicate the First Lieutenant Jeffrey R. Scharver Room. A room re-dedicated to the spirit of a fallen alumnus who, through his absolute courage in combat operations on the Island of Grenada, earned him one of our nation?s highest military awards for valor - the Silver Star. How can the First Lieutenant Scharver Room be more than the memorabilia that adorn its walls? How can it serve as more than the memories of a single individual? My answer: If you invest your life with character, then the First Lieutenant Scharver Room will continue to serve as personal proof of the caliber of citizen/warriors our great university produces! I impress upon you to use this room as a place for reflection, as a place for intellectual pursuit, and as a place for preparing yourselves to help shape our nation?s future. When you do this, you gain the knowledge and character necessary to contribute positively to ensuring our future. But this is not an easy task. General David M. Shoup, the twenty-second Commandant of the Marine Corps, once observed, ?Neither money nor machines can serve as a substitute for our fighting men. We cannot buy justice and freedom. We cannot manufacture them. We have got to want them. And wanting them, we have got to be willing to fight for them?without any selfish thoughts of our personal convenience.? First Lieutenant Scharver understood what General Shoup meant ? he was willing to serve, to fight and to die for his country. To our fellow ?Buckeye?, Semper Fidelis was a way of life. At the start of the 21st century, we are truly at a defining moment in our nation?s history ? we have the opportunity to make the new millennium a golden age for America. We are clearly the global power, economically, politically, and militarily. No nation in the history of mankind has ever been in such a position of power and influence. While some say with the end of the cold war clarity has been replaced by complexity you, with courage, can have clarity. The brave actions of First Lieutenant Scharver are a literal and figurative guide for how we must lead our nation into the 21st century. Just as First Lieutenant Scharver, we must act with courage. We must be selfless in character. We must act with neither reticence nor arrogance, but with vision and clarity. For we are the guarantors of freedom, peace and stability ? both economic and democratic. Just as this true American hero acted on behalf of those of us here, so too must we act now to shape the world of the future. So ask yourself, have you gained the character to be clear and courageous? If not now, when and where will you build that character? Will you be ready? Clear? Brave? In one brief moment, in an extraordinary and decisive act of courage and bravery, First Lieutenant Scharver made the ultimate sacrifice. He gallantly and unselfishly gave his life for his fellow Marines and forever changed the world of those who knew and loved him. First Lieutenant Scharver?s tremendous act of courage and clarity ? and so many others like it ? are what set our country apart. Let this room, in the words of General Douglas MacArthur, serve as an enduring reminder of the youth and strength, the love and loyalty that First Lieutenant Scharver displayed in the service to his country and Corps, in giving his life for his fellow Marines. Let all those who set foot within these walls be guided by his memory and the spirit of this young and courageous American hero. And may you, when called upon, in your own way have the courage and clarity to be so brave as our fellow citizen/soldier so early in his life.
Submitted by Alan H Barbour, Historian, USMC Combat Helicopter Association