PEREZ, MANUEL, JR. - Medal of Honor Recipient
Rank and organization: Private First Class, U.S. Army, Company A 511th
Parachute Infantry, 11th Airborne Division. Place and date: Fort William
McKinley, Luzon, Philippine Islands, 13 February 1945.
Entered service at:
Chicago, Ill. Birth: 3 March 1923 Oklahoma City, Okla. G.O. No.: 124,
27 December 1945. Citation: He was lead scout for Company A, which had
destroyed 11 of 12 pillboxes in a strongly fortified sector defending the
approach to enemy-held Fort William McKinley on Luzon, Philippine Islands.
In the reduction of these pillboxes, he killed 5 Japanese in the open and
blasted others in pillboxes with grenades. Realizing the urgent need for
taking the last emplacement, which contained 2 twin-mount .50-caliber dual-purpose
machineguns, he took a circuitous route to within 20 yards of the position,
killing 4 of the enemy in his advance. He threw a grenade into the pillbox,
and, as the crew started withdrawing through a tunnel just to the rear
of the emplacement, shot and killed 4 before exhausting his clip. He had
reloaded and killed 4 more when an escaping Japanese threw his rifle with
fixed bayonet at him. In warding off this thrust, his own rifle was knocked
to the ground. Seizing the Jap rifle, he continued firing, killing 2 more
of the enemy. He rushed the remaining Japanese, killed 3 of them with the
butt of the rifle and entered the pillbox, where he bayoneted the 1 surviving
hostile soldier. Single-handedly, he killed 18 of the enemy in neutralizing
the position that had held up the advance of his entire company. Through
his courageous determination and heroic disregard of grave danger, Pfc.
Perez made possible the successful advance of his unit toward a valuable
objective and provided a lasting inspiration for his comrades.
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