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Born:
September 13, 1941
(Avondale , W.Va)
Entered Service:
Beckley , W.Va.
Branch: U.S.
Army
Duty: Vietnam War
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Medal
of Honor:
Portraits of Valor
Beyond the Call to Duty |
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[Purchase
Medal of Honor: Portraits of Valor Beyond
the Call to Duty]
Since the Civil War, more than 39 million
men and women have answered the call to serve.
Of those, 3,440 served with such uncommon
valor and extraordinary courage that they
were presented with the Medal of Honor, the
nation's highest military award. In this collection,
more than one hundred of America's living
Medal of Honor recipients are honored. Their
tales of bravery are recounted by best-selling
author Peter Collier, and also feature portraits
by award-winning photographer Nick Del Calzo.
More
Medal of Honor Profiles
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Near Kontum City, Republic of Vietnam, 7 June 1968
Photo
Courtesy of HomeOfHeroes.com
Phill G. McDonald
Private First Class,
U.S. Army
Company A, 1st Battalion, 14th Infantry, 4th Infantry Division |
Article Courtesy of DefenseWatch
Citation: For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity in action at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty. Pfc. McDonald distinguished himself while serving as a team leader with the First Platoon, Company A. While on a combat mission his platoon came under heavy barrage of automatic weapons fire from a concealed company-size enemy force.
Volunteering to escort two wounded comrades to an evacuation point, McDonald crawled through intense fire to destroy with a grenade an enemy automatic weapon threatening the safety of the evacuation. Returning to his platoon, he again volunteered to provide covering fire for the maneuver of the platoon from its exposed position.
Realizing the threat he posed, enemy gunners concentrated their fire on McDonald's position, seriously wounding him. Despite his painful wounds, McDonald recovered the weapon of a wounded machine gunner to provide accurate covering fire for the gunner's evacuation. When other soldiers were pinned down by a heavy volume of fire from a hostile machine gun to his front, McDonald crawled toward the enemy position to destroy it with grenades. He was mortally wounded in this intrepid action.
McDonald's gallantry at the risk of his life which resulted in the saving of the lives of his comrades, is in keeping with the highest traditions of the military service and reflects great credit upon himself, his unit, and the U.S. Army.
© 2005 DefenseWatch.
All opinions expressed in this article are the author's and do not
necessarily reflect those of Military.com.
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