David M. Gonzales
David M. Gonzales | |
|---|---|
  Pvt. David M. Gonzales, Medal of Honor recipient | |
| Allegiance | U.S. Army |
| Years of service | 1945 |
| Rank | Private |
| Unit | Company A, 127th Infantry, 32d Infantry Division |
| Battles/wars | Luzon, Philippines-World War II |
| Awards | Medal of Honor Bronze Star Purple Heart |
Pvt. David M. Gonzales (June 9, 1923–April 25, 1945), born in Pacoima, California, was a United States Army soldier who was awarded the United States' highest military decoration — the Medal of Honor — for his heroic actions in the Philippine Islands during World War II.
Early years
Gonzales, one of 14 children born to Mexican immigrants, joined the U.S. Army at the recruiting station in his hometown upon the outbreak of World War II. In 1945, his unit, Company A, 127th Infantry, 32d Infantry Division was sent to combat to the Philippines. He left behind his family which included his mother Mrs. Rita Gonzales Duarte, wife Steffanie and his new born son David Jr.
World War II
On April 25, 1945, his company found itself engaged in combat against Japanese forces at Villa Verde Trail on Luzon island in the Philippines. A 500-pound bomb smashed into the company's perimeter, burying alive five men. Gunsels and his commanding officer rushed to the buried men's rescue. His commanding officer was killed by enemy machinegun fire while Gonzales was digging out the men using a shovel and his bare hands. In an attempt to dig faster Gonzales stood up, exposing himself to enemy fire. With his actions he was able to rescue three of the four men before he was hit and mortally wounded.
On December 8, 1945, President Harry S. Truman, posthumously awarded a Medal of Honor to Gonzales and presented the medal to his surviving family. On February 2, 1949, Gonzales body arrived in funeral train at San Fernando, California where he was laid to rest.[1]
Medal of Honor citation
Pvt. David M. Gonzales
Rank and organization:Private First Class, U.S. Army, Company A, 127th Infantry, 32d Infantry Division.
Place and date: Villa Verde Trail, Luzon, Philippine Islands, 25 April 1945.
Entered service at: Pacoima, California
Birth: Pacoima, California
G.O. No: 115, 8 December 1945.
Citation:"He was pinned down with his company. As enemy fire swept the area, making any movement extremely hazardous, a 500-pound bomb smashed into the company's perimeter, burying 5 men with its explosion. Pfc.
Gonzales, without hesitation, seized an entrenching tool and under a hail of fire crawled 15 yards to his entombed comrades, where his commanding officer, who had also rushed forward, was beginning to dig the men out. Nearing his goal, he saw the officer struck and instantly killed by machinegun fire. Undismayed, he set to work swiftly and surely with his hands and the entrenching tool while enemy sniper and machinegun bullets struck all about him. He succeeded in digging one of the men out of the pile of rock and sand. To dig faster he stood up regardless of the greater danger from so exposing himself. He extricated a second man, and then another. As he completed the liberation of the third, he was hit and mortally wounded, but the comrades for whom he so gallantly gave his life were safely evacuated. Pfc. Gonzales' valiant and intrepid conduct exemplifies the highest tradition of the military service."[2]
Controversy
In 1999, David Gonzales Jr. and his wife Bea attended a ceremony for war heroes in Santa Ana, California. There they discovered that the picture the Army was sending out to military ceremonies was not of his father, but of someone else. Gonzales Jr. wrote to the Army in Washington, D.C. to tell them of their mistake, but did not receive a response. He then wrote to Congressman Howard Berman, who in turn referred the letter to his aide Fred Flores. Flores, who was also from Pacoima, California, immediately called Pentagon officials and had them correct the mistake. However, the controversy did not end there. Flores found out that the family had only been presented with a Medal of Honor and a duplicate Purple Heart Medal (The original one was stolen) and he realized that there were many other medals, including a Bronze Star Medal which Gonzales had earned.
On November 7, 2002, Congressman Berman flew in from Washington, D.C. and in a ceremony had at Los Angeles Mission College presented David Gonzales Jr. with the medals earned by his father which included the Bronze Star Medal, a Purple Heart Medal, the World War II Victory Medal, the Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal with two Bronze Service Stars, the Philippine Liberation Medal, the World War II Honorable Service Lapel Button, the Combat Infantry Badge, the Expert Rifle Badge, and the Gold Star Lapel Button that identifies the next of kin of members of the military who lost their lives while engaged in action.[3]
The photo of a soldier who was not Gonzales, but identified as that of the medal winner and that was erroneously displayed in the Pentagon's Hall of Heroes was removed and will be replaced with a correct one of Gonzales renovation of the Pentagon - made necessary by the 9/11 attack - is completed.[4]
In memory
In his honor, Pacoima Park was renamed David M. Gonzales/Pacoima Recreational Center, and the local Army recruiting station also carries his name, as does a county Probation Department camp in Malibu.
Awards and Recognitions
Among Pvt. David M. Gonzales' decorations and medals were the following:
Medal of Honor
Bronze Star Medal
Purple Heart Medal
Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal with two Bronze Service Stars
Philippine Liberation Medal
World War II Victory Medal
