MELVIN HAMPTON: A BLACK AMERICAN HERO

This Black American History Month, we are honoring the legacy of Black Americans who have made contributions to the Auto Industry. Most importantly, we would like to highlight one of our valuable employees, Melvin Hampton. He currently works with us as a Porter and has a fantastic story to tell!

Mr. Hampton was born and raised on the south side of Chicago. He attended Inglewood High School, where he was enrolled in a program that allowed him to work half of the day and attend classes for the other half of the day. With hard work and determination, Melvin graduated Inglewood High School.

At the age of 19, fresh out of Highschool, Melvin joined the Air Force. When Melvin joined the military, he had no idea what would become of his decision. He thought that by volunteering to join the military, he might be able to avoid going to Vietnam. Little did he know, that was exactly where he was headed. After enlisting, Melvin was sent to basic training at Lackland Air Force base in San Antonio, Texas. After completing basic training, he was sent to technical training at the Shepard Air Force base in Wichita, Texas.
Sergeant Hampton was then sent to Vietnam in 1969 and spent a year there. During his time in Vietnam, he was assigned to Air Mobility. This position required Sergeant Hampton to give combat support in Da Nang, forward resupply and munitions support. Later on in his military career, Sergeant Hampton was trained as an Air Cargo Specialist. He also served at the Scott Air Force Base located in Little Rock, Arkansas. During 1971 and 1972, Melvin served in the Mekong Delta as a combat specialist. In total, he served in the military from May 1969 to February 1973. For his service, Sergeant Hampton received: the Presidential Unit Citation, Vietnam Service medal, Vietnamese Presidential Citation and the Good Conduct Service medal.

Once Mr. Hampton completed his military service, he found his first job at a steel manufacturing company where he stayed for 20 years. We would like to say thank you to Mr. Hampton for his service to our country and hard work throughout the years. We are excited to have him as part of the Webb Automotive Family, and we appreciate everything he has done for us.