Sounds and looks fake to me. Probably is

"Ben met General William Westmoreland, had dinner with Congressional Medal of Honor winners, marched at the head of a Memorial Day parade, and was offered a full scholarship to West Point"
https://books.google.com/books?id=t9AFkUyeZOsC&printsec=frontcover&dq=gifted+hands&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0CDEQ6AEwAmoVChMIhKTth_CGyQIVhTg-Ch3zpwAB#v=onepage&q&f=false
(Page 49 of Gifted Hands.)