We thought it would be nice to put these caches out for Veterans
Day, so we chose 100 of the 246 Medal of Honor Recipients from the
Vietnam War, and each one of the caches will honor one of these
American Heroes. Of the 246 MOH Recipients from the Vietnam War 63%
were awarded posthumously. ( ** Represents MOH Awarded
Posthumously) Please take the time to read the citation for each
and remember them this Veterans Day.
HAVE FUN!!
John Franklin Baker JR
Rank and organization: Sergeant (then Pfc.), U.S. Army, Company
A, 2d Battalion, 27th Infantry, 25th Infantry Division. Place and
date: Republic of Vietnam, 5 November 1966. Entered service at:
Moline, Ill. Born: 30 October 1945, Davenport, Iowa. Citation: For
conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity in action at the risk of his
life above and beyond the call of duty. En route to assist another
unit that was engaged with the enemy, Company A came under intense
enemy fire and the lead man was killed instantly. Sgt. Baker
immediately moved to the head of the column and together with
another soldier knocked out 2 enemy bunkers. When his comrade was
mortally wounded, Sgt. Baker, spotting 4 Viet Cong snipers, killed
all of them, evacuated the fallen soldier and returned to lead
repeated assaults against the enemy positions, killing several more
Viet Cong. Moving to attack 2 additional enemy bunkers, he and
another soldier drew intense enemy fire and Sgt. Baker was blown
from his feet by an enemy grenade. He quickly recovered and
single-handedly destroyed 1 bunker before the other soldier was
wounded. Seizing his fallen comrade's machine gun, Sgt. Baker
charged through the deadly fusillade to silence the other bunker.
He evacuated his comrade, replenished his ammunition and returned
to the forefront to brave the enemy fire and continue the fight.
When the forward element was ordered to withdraw, he carried 1
wounded man to the rear. As he returned to evacuate another
soldier, he was taken under fire by snipers, but raced beyond the
friendly troops to attack and kill the snipers. After evacuating
the wounded man, he returned to cover the deployment of the unit.
His ammunition now exhausted, he dragged 2 more of his fallen
comrades to the rear. Sgt. Baker's selfless heroism, indomitable
fighting spirit, and extraordinary gallantry were directly
responsible for saving the lives of several of his comrades, and
inflicting serious damage on the enemy. His acts were in keeping
with the highest traditions of the U.S. Army and reflect great
credit upon himself and the Armed Forces of his country.