Vietnam veteran gets Distinguished Service Cross he never knew he was awarded

Vietnam veteran gets honors he never knew he was awarded
By LISA PERKINS
The (Traverse City, Mich.)
Record-Eagle
Published: June 9, 2012

TORCH LAKE VILLAGE, Mich. -- Clarence "Sonny" Szejbach performed heroically on June 6, 1969.

Today, he will be recognized for his feat, more than four decades since receiving serious battle wounds while serving in Tay Ninh Province, Vietnam.

Szejbach will be presented with the Distinguished Service Cross, the nation's second-highest award for military valor.

"I thought I was just doing what was expected of me in the heat of the battle," said Szejbach, 63, who lost his right hand and sustained severe neck and facial injuries during an enemy attack.

Accounts of the incident show Szejbach unselfishly responded when a wounded enemy soldier threw an anti-tank grenade at his company commander.

He "unhesitatingly moved in front of the officer, deflected the armed weapons, and then picked it up and threw it. The grenade exploded as it left his hand, inflicting severe wounds on him," said his company commander in his recommendation for Szejbach's citation.
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