STUDIES FOR MEMORIAL.  The picture above is a collage of four pictures of life size cast busts of each of the four United States Marines who are thought to be the highest decorated flight crew for a single combat mission in American military aviation, tied with an Army Air Corps bomber crew from WWII.  They are left to right: LCpl John G. Phelps, Gunnery Sgt. Leroy N. Poulson, Capt. Rupert N. Fairfield, and Capt. Stephen W. Pless.  Pless earned the Medal of Honor and each of his crew received the Navy Cross for their daring rescue of three US Army soldiers trapped by enemy forces during the Vietnam War.   The sculptures were created as studies for a proposed memorial honoring the entire Pless flight crew. 

The clay model pictured at the left represents the Pless flight crew, or any other Marine helicopter flight crew upon their safe return from a  harrowing mission.

The crew has safely returned to base and the realization has sunk in that none of them have been hit by enemy fire, and there are no bullet holes in their helicopter. 

Based upon a similar "posed" official picture by a Marine Corps photographer taken after the MOH was recommended Stephen Pless, and the Navy Cross for the crew, the scupture is titled "Running Through The Rain".  This title came to mind when we recently asked Gordo Phelps how he felt that day when he was safely back at base.  He said "it was like running through the rain, and not getting wet."