Hershel W. "Woody" Williams, the last remaining Medal of Honor recipient from World War II, died Wednesday. He was 98.
Williams' foundation announced on Twitter and Facebook that he died at the Veterans Affairs medical center bearing his name in Huntington.
As a young Marine corporal, Williams went ahead of his unit during the Battle of Iwo Jima in the Pacific Ocean in February 1945 and eliminated a series of Japanese machine gun positions.
His MOH citation:
For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty as demolition sergeant serving with the 21st Marines, 3d Marine Division, in action against enemy Japanese forces on Iwo Jima, Volcano Islands, 23 February 1945. Quick to volunteer his services when our tanks were maneuvering vainly to open a lane for the infantry through the network of reinforced concrete pillboxes, buried mines, and black volcanic sands, Cpl. Williams daringly went forward alone to attempt the reduction of devastating machine-gun fire from the unyielding positions. Covered only by four riflemen, he fought desperately for four hours under terrific enemy small-arms fire and repeatedly returned to his own lines to prepare demolition charges and obtain serviced flamethrowers, struggling back, frequently to the rear of hostile emplacements, to wipe out one position after another. On one occasion, he daringly mounted a pillbox to insert the nozzle of his flamethrower through the air vent, killing the occupants, and silencing the gun; on another he grimly charged enemy riflemen who attempted to stop him with bayonets and destroyed them with a burst of flame from his weapon. His unyielding determination and extraordinary heroism in the face of ruthless enemy resistance were directly instrumental in neutralizing one of the most fanatically defended Japanese strongpoints encountered by his regiment and aided vitally in enabling his company to reach its objective. Cpl. Williams' aggressive fighting spirit and valiant devotion to duty throughout this fiercely contested action sustain and enhance the highest traditions of the U.S. Naval Service.
The Second World War is going from living history to just history. They deserve the highest honor.
4 comments:
THANKS for that info!
When I was a kid, the Scoutmasters were all WWII vets. It's weird to think that was 50 years ago. They're all gone now.
- Borepatch
Scout leaders, the parents of the neighborhood kids.
The housewife next door was a WASP. She didn't talk about it until years after we had moved away. She lost some friends in that program and it still was painful. Kid down the street's dad was an 8th Air Force B-17 copilot. He didn't say much. But when she went to West Germany as an AFS student, the first question that she got from everyone was "what did your father do during the war." She told them that he fought on Guadalcanal and everyone was content.
I think of all the people who paid so much to get rid of the Nazis, and the fact that we're in an era where Nazis in all but name are not only marching through Skokie but are in the halls of government, and I think maybe it's a good thing that the WW2 generation is just about gone. If the current population is going to spit on what they accomplished, maybe it's better that they don't have to stick around and see it.
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