Forgotten Her es Highly Decorated Servicemen

By Avi Heiligman

Throughout American history, men and women have served bravely on the battlefield. That battlefield could be on the beaches of Normandy, the skies over Europe and the Pacific, or on or below the ocean’s surface. There are a few service members who performed bravely time and time again and were awarded many medals and citations for their courageous actions. Medals and citations have evolved since the founding of America, and some awards are different in certain branches of the military. Here are some of the stories behind some of the most decorated service members in American history.

Colonel Jack Treadwell from Alabama earned 30 medals, including the Medal of Honor, during his 33 years in the U.S. Army. He served with the 180th Infantry Regiment, 45 th Division during World War II and as the chief of staff for the American Division in the Vietnam War. He first served in North Africa and was part of the amphibious landings in Sicily. Later, Treadwell saw action at Salerno, Southern France, Alsace and the Rhineland. His awards included the Medal of Honor, the Distinguished Service Cross, the Silver Star, the Legion of Merit with three bronze oak leaf clusters, the Purple Heart with three bronze oak leaf clusters, the Air Medal with the award numeral 13, and the Soldier’s Medal, among other awards and medals.

It was at Nieder-Wurzbach in Germany on March 18, 1945 that Treadwell earned the Medal of Honor. As the commander of Company F, he led his men in attacks along the Siegfried Line against determined German resistance. Enemy fire was coming from several bunkers, pillboxes and other defenses, and Company F was unable to advance as eight men were shot down in the open terrain. Treadwell then sin- glehandedly ran across the open ground and tossed grenades into the closest pillbox. Four German came out and surrendered, while a fifth German was

Honor for his actions that day.

In addition to the Medal of Honor, Treadwell received the Distinguished Service Cross for action on May 24, the American lines, and Treadwell was able to stop the attack with his excellent leadership. Hand-to-hand fighting soon broke out, but the Americans under Treadwell repulsed the enemy. killed. Treadwell then took six defense positions in this manner and captured a total of eighteen Germans including their commander. The rest of Company F soon overran the rest of the hill and allowed the battalion to make its objectives. Treadwell earned a promotion and later in 1945 was awarded the Medal of

While many service members have earned more medals than Corporal John Pruitt, he is just one of nineteen people in history to have received the Medal of Honor twice. Born in Arkansas, Pruitt joined the United States Marine Corps shortly after the U.S. entered World War I in 1917 and was assigned to the 7 th Company, 6 th Regiment, 2 nd Division. They were soon shipped to France and on October 3, 1918 were at Blanc Mont Ridge. That day, Pruitt singlehandedly took out and captured two German machine guns and continued to fight along the enemy trenches. He soon captured forty enemy soldiers that were in a nearby position. The next day, he succumbed to wounds that he received while sniping at the enemy. Both the army and the navy awarded him the Medal of Honor, and he was awarded three Silver Stars and two Purple Hearts. The navy named a World War II destroyer, the USS Pruitt (DD-347), in his honor.

1944. The 180th Infantry Regiment was at Carano, Italy, and Treadwell was a platoon leader at the time. The enemy advanced on their positions. Seeing that two other platoons were without their officers, Treadwell organized a successful defense against the Germans. Enemy troops were beginning to penetrate

The most decorated Jewish serviceman is Sergeant Abraham Todras from Brooklyn. His decorations include the Distinguished Service Cross with two Oak Leaf Clusters (the equivalent of three such awards), the Silver Star, the Bronze Star, the Air Medal with nineteen Oak Leaf Clusters, the Purple Heart with Two Oak Leaf Clusters, the Croix de Guerre and a Presidential Unit Citation. The Brooklyn native was a bombardier in the Army Air Corps when the U.S. entered World War II and went on to serve in several theaters of war. He participated in the Battle of the Coral Sea and was shot down. Todras then crawled through enemy lines after landing on an island and made it safely back to friendly territory. Todras then fought in the Aleutian Islands and help sink a Japanese destroyer. He was sent to England and parachuted into France prior to D-Day to photograph enemy positions. During D-Day, he flew on a bombing mission but was shot down and taken prisoner. Together with other prisoners, he overwhelmed the German guards and escaped.

There have been many other highly decorated Jewish servicemen including fighter pilot Malcolm Hormats of Troy,

NY, who earned a total of 25 medals and citations. He earned the Distinguished Service Cross for actions in Tunisia. He was “alone and unaided” when he saved a group of eleven Allied bombers from a group of German fighters that unsuccessfully attacked the formation due Hormat’s daring. His radio wasn’t working, and he therefore couldn’t contact the bombers to let them know of the danger. Hormats then flew into the enemy formation with guns and cannons blazing, totally disrupting the attack, and the bombers remained unharmed.

Hormats flew Spitfires while with the 307 th Fighter Squadron stationed in the Mediterranean Theater of Operations. Credited with shooting down at least four enemy planes, including a JU-88 over Salerno, he also flew with the Royal Air Force during the Battle of Britain. Some of his other awards included the Distinguished Flying Medallion (a British honor), the Croix de Guerre (a French medal), the Purple Heart, the Air Medal with eighteen Oak

Leaf Clusters, and a Presidential Unit Citation.

These medals and decorations are a testament of heroics on the battlefield, and they are rarely talked about today, making them Forgotten Heroes.

Avi Heiligman is a weekly contributor to The Jewish Home. He welcomes your comments and suggestions for future columns and can be reached at aviheiligman@gmail.com.

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