Gay colonel
Jailed gay soldier has cap badge returned in ceremony
He said life was too short to be bitter and annoyed and while he could not modify what happened he could now "relax and know everything has fallen into place".
Speaking after the event, he said it was an emotional day and was "genuine and sincere and they really apologise".
Commenting on how it felt to be fit to wear his badge again, he said: "I can now actually wear it on Remembrance Day and remunerate my respects and I can actually go to the Army reunions without feeling shame."
Mr Block was sent to prison for six months in 1983 after kissing another man at barracks while serving with the Second Battalion, Royal Fusiliers in Berlin.
Restoring cap badges to discharged service personnel was among the recommendations made by the government-commissioned LGBTQ independent veterans review, external last year.
Mr Close said that for years he had felt "too ashamed" to attend Remembrance events and had establish it "too painful" to attend regimental reunions.
Decorated veteran comes out in his own heartbreaking obituary: 'I was gay all my life'
"Now that my secret is known, I'll forever Rest in Peace."
The final words of a decorated veteran and admired community member left a bittersweet impression this Lgbtq+ fest month when his lifelong secret was finally joint – but only in a message released posthumously.
The obituary of Col. Edward Thomas Ryan, an Army vet and retired firefighter from New York, was published in the Albany Times last week with a note written by Ryan himself.
"I was homosexual all my life," Ryan's final writing reads, in part. The coming out message, according to the obit, came after a lifetime of secrecy prompted largely by the treatment of other members of the LGBTQ+ community Ryan observed in his time.
"I was afraid of creature ostracized," it said.
Ryan also shared that he was able to find the love of his animation, even if the pair kept to themselves, and that this final execute of truth would let him to reach an ultimate place of peace.
Pride Month has started but what does that mean? A observe at what it is, how it's celebratedLGBTQ+ communities, allies ar
Family member speaks out after military veteran reveals in obituary he is lgbtq+
A military veteran who went on to help as a firefighter and owned a local radio station revealed in his obituary that he was gay, a secret he said he held his entire life.
Col. Edward Thomas Ryan died at age 85 on June 1, the first day of Pride Month, his niece Linda Sargent told "Good Morning America."
After listing his career accolades and his survivors, Ryan's obituary, published June 8 in the Albany Times-Union, included a message that he wrote prior to his death.
"I must tell you one more thing. I was Gay all my life: thru grade school, thru High School, thru College, thru Life," the obituary reads. "I was in a loving and compassionate relationship with Paul Cavagnaro of North Greenbush. He was the love of my life. We had 25 great years together. Paul died in 1994 from a medical Procedure gone wrong. I'll be buried next to Paul."
Ryan's message continued, "I'm sorry for not having the courage to come out as Gay. I was afraid of being ostracized: by Family, Friends, and Co-Workers. Seeing how people like me were treated, I just could not do i
An Army veteran, firefighter and New York radio station founder says he'll "forever Rest in Peace" after revealing a lifelong "secret." In a message included in Col. Edward Thomas Ryan's obituary, he said, "I was Gay all my life."
The obituary states that Ryan, who lived in Albany, New York, was a retired fireman, the owner and founder of radio station WHRL-FM, and a highly decorated veteran of the U.S. military. Along with receiving the National Defense Service Medal, the obituary says that he received a Defense of Liberty Medal for his assistance in the aftermath of the 9/11 attack, a Conspicuous Service Medal for "keeping with the highest traditions of the Military Service," and a Commanders Citation for "Service Above and Beyond the Call."
Ryan, who had a business degree, was also a member of the Vietnam Veterans of America and served on the Vietnam Veterans/Agent Orange Committee for the American Legion.
According to the Albany Times Union, Ryan was 85 when he died on June 1. His family told the Times Union that he served in Vietnam while he was in the Army, but they weren't sure of his years or ranks.
At the bottom of his service and funeral det