SC H5290

South Carolina House Resolution honoring First Sergeant Fred J. Grooms Sr. (Retired), born March 19, 1941, in Hopkins, South Carolina, for his lifetime of service to community, church, and nation

Served over two decades in the United States Army, rising to First Sergeant rank, including combat tours in the Dominican Republic and two tours in Vietnam, plus service with the 82nd Airborne Division

Received numerous military decorations including Bronze Star Medal with "V" Device, Purple Heart with Oak Leaf Cluster, Air Medal, and Combat Infantryman Badge; sustained gunshot wounds to chest and leg during 1967 Vietnam ambush while attacking enemy position

Helped establish the Reeder Point Association Community Center in Lower Richland area in 1970; earned associate degree in business management from Midlands Technical College in 1986; worked as building supervisor at A.C. Moore Elementary School

Ordained deacon in 1980 at Sweet Home Baptist Church in Columbia, serving over 45 years as Sunday school superintendent, chairman of the deacon board, and various church roles; married to Annie Ruth Evans for 60 years until her death in 2024