Local war hero Col. Ola Lee Mize was honored at the Rainbow City City Council meeting on Tuesday, May 27, 2025.
The Etowah Patriots Association and members of Mize’s family were in attendance to receive the proclamation on behalf of Mize who passed away in March of 2014.
“He did a lot of stuff for the special forces community,” Leonard Kiser, member of the Gadsden-Etowah Patriots Association, said. “Even after he retired he was a great mentor and a great leader. Again, we, MOAA [Military Officers Association of America] and Gadsden-Etowah Patriots Association, we really appreciate what you’ve done.”
Betty Mize, Mize’s wife, said she was overwhelmed and so grateful for the recognition.
Many of the men thanked Betty Mize for the sacrifice of living and raising a family without him during all of his time overseas.
“I know that y’all lived apart so much of the time so that you could have your family raised in a reasonably normal environment,” Mayor Joe Taylor said. “And you gave him over to us. For these guys in here, every one of them received some type of training that was either developed under or by him, and that to me is very special.”
The Proclamation recognizes and honors the memory of Mize’s personal sacrifices, remarkable valor and outstanding military service. Mayor Joe Taylor proclaimed May 27, 2025, to honor Ola Lee Mize in Rainbow City.
Mize was forced to leave school after the ninth grade to help support his family. Although he was rejected from the Army when he originally tried to enlist, Mize attempted again. Although he had to be deceptive during the eye exam, due to the loss of vision in one of his eyes when he was five, he was finally able to enlist, according to The Andalusia Star News.
The Medal of Honor was awarded to Mize for his honorable actions at Outpost Harry during the Korean War, according to the proclamation. Although he was originally assigned to the 82 Airborne Division prior to the war, Mize re-enlisted and volunteered for combat on the frontline, according to the proclamation.
When Harry came under heavy enemy attack, Mize organized defensive positions, rescued wounded soldiers and engaged the enemy until reinforcements arrived around noon the next day, according to the proclamation. Of the 56 soldiers assigned to Outpost Harry, only eight survived, according to Star News.
Despite the fact that Mize was a recipient of the Medal of Honor he chose to return to the battlefield.
“He didn’t have to go back,” Council member Randy Vice said. “Once you get a Medal of Honor they try to protect you… But he chose to keep going back, and that defines character.”
In 1965, Mize was assigned to the special forces training group where he was the advance training committee chief for scuba, High Altitude Low Opening and skyhook schools, according to the proclamation, and was responsible for starting the present day combat diver qualification course in Key West, Florida.
Mize would return to Vietnam twice, 1966-67 and again in 1969, before being reassigned to Fort Bragg, North Carolina, in 1975, according to the Army, Together We Served website. Initially, he was the Special Forces School Chief for the Field Training Division and Resistance Division before becoming the Commander of the Special Forces School and then retiring in 1981.
A special meeting will be held at the Western Sizzler on June 14 to honor Mize for his contributions to the special forces. All are welcome regardless of whether they served or not. This meeting is held every second Saturday of June.
