The Armed Forces Reserve Medal (AFRM) is a service medal of the United States Armed Forces that has existed since 1958. The medal recognizes service performed by members of the reserve components and is awarded to both officers and enlisted personnel. The medal is considered a successor award to the Naval Reserve Medal and the Marine Corps Reserve Ribbon, which were discontinued in 1958 and 1965, respectively.
If the medal is awarded for periods of service, it is accompanied by an hourglass device. Depending on the length of service, a bronze, silver, gold, or bronze and gold hourglass are worn on the suspension ribbon and service ribbon, indicating 10, 20, 30, or 40 years of service, respectively.
If the medal is awarded in connection with a mobilization, it is accompanied by an "M" device. Subsequent mobilizations under an unrelated presidential call-up order result in a numeral device being worn to indicate the number of mobilizations.
For service – the Hourglass device
In the Army Reserve and National Guard, a service member qualifies for the medal after completing a total of ten years' service in the active reserve. This service may be cumulative, provided that the combined ten years of service was performed over a period of twelve consecutive years. Voluntary recalls to active duty are not counted within the ten years of service. In addition, unlike the Reserve Good Conduct Medal, a service member's disciplinary history is not a factor when awarding the Armed Forces Reserve Medal. In the Navy Reserve, members of the Individual Ready Reserve are eligible for the medal after 10 years of service. Commissioned officers with reserve commissions serving on active duty for 10 years or longer are eligible for the Armed Forces Reserve Medal.
Periods of service for the Armed Forces Reserve Medal are denoted through the use of the hourglass device. The length of the period for which the Armed Forces Reserve Medal is awarded is indicated using a bronze hourglass, silver hourglass, gold hourglass, or bronze and gold hourglasses together. The "M" device is a bronze "M" quarter of an inch in height.
Subsequent mobilizations for a different executive order call-up authorize a numeral device ("2", "3", etc.), sometimes called an award numeral, to be worn with the initial "M" device on the service ribbon and suspension ribbon of the medal. For example, if a soldier mobilized multiple times under , once for Operation ENDURING FREEDOM and twice for Operation IRAQI FREEDOM, the soldier would still only be awarded one "M" device despite having been mobilized three times.
If no "M" device is authorized, the appropriate hourglass shall be positioned in the center of the ribbon. If no hourglass is authorized, the "M" device shall be positioned in the center of the ribbon, followed by Arabic numerals indicating the number of times the device has been awarded (e.g., 2 to 99—no number is worn for the first award). If both the hourglass and the "M" device are awarded, the hourglass(es) shall be positioned in first position on the ribbon (at the wearer's right), the "M" device in middle position, and the number of times the "M" device has been awarded in the remaining position (at the wearer's left).
{| class="wikitable"
|-
! Operation(s)|| Persian Gulf
|-
| RESTORE HOPE|| Somalia
|-
| UPHOLD DEMOCRACY || Haiti
|-
| JOINT ENDEAVOR, JOINT GUARD, and JOINT FORGE|| Bosnia
|-
| DESERT FOX, NORTHERN WATCH, and SOUTHERN WATCH|| Persian Gulf
|-
| ALLIED FORCE|| Kosovo
|-
| NOBLE EAGLE, ENDURING FREEDOM, IRAQI FREEDOM, NEW DAWN, FREEDOM'S SENTINEL, and INHERENT RESOLVE || war on terrorism
|-
|align="left" colspan="2"| NOTE 1: Multiple periods of service during one designated contingency shall count as one "M" device award.<br>NOTE 2: Even if an operation is not officially named but it results in an involuntary call to active duty, the AFRM with "M" device is authorized.
|}
See also
- United States military award devices
References
External links
- Department of The Army Institute of Heraldry website
- Armed Forces Reserve Medal