Florida Vietnam War Sgt. 1st Class Melvin Morris to receive Medal of Honor

Medal of Honor for 24 forgotten heroes Staff Sgt. Melvin Morris will receive the Medal of Honor for his courageous actions while serving as Commander of a Strike Force drawn from Company D, 5th Special Forces Group (Airborne), 1st Special Forces, during combat operations against an armed enemy in the vicinity of Chi Lang, Republic of Vietnam on September 17, 1969.

MoH candidate thrilled at honor for Vietnam actions
Army Times
Joe Gould
Staff Writer
Feb. 22, 2014

Former Sgt. 1st Class Melvin Morris, one of the three living Medal of Honor candidates who will soon receive the award, is getting the honor for taking out enemy bunkers with grenades and rescuing wounded teammates, despite his own injuries, in Vietnam.

For that, he was awarded the Distinguished Service Cross in 1969.

Morris said he was thrilled to receive a call from President Obama last May to tell him his award would be upgraded.

“I dropped to my knees,” said Morris, who volunteered for two tours in Vietnam. “He told me he was calling to tell me I was receiving the Medal of Honor, and he wanted to apologize to me for not getting it years ago.”

He is one of 24 people who will receive the Medal of Honor, the White House announced Feb. 21.

Of those, 21 have died.
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