Graduates Awarded the Distinguished Service Cross
 Last Updated on: Monday, February 10, 2020 08:08:02 AM

1LT Lee B. Alley
Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 5th Battalion (Mechanized), 60th Infantry, 9th Infantry Division		 First Lieutenant Lee B. Alley, Class 18-66 Company C1

 Citation: The President of the United States of America, authorized by Act of Congress, July 9, 1918 (amended by act of July 25, 1963), takes pleasure in presenting the Distinguished Service Cross to First Lieutenant (Armor) Lee B. Alley (ASN: 0-5233466), United States Army, for extraordinary heroism in connection with military operations involving conflict with an armed hostile force in the Republic of Vietnam while serving with Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 5th Battalion (Mechanized), 60th Infantry, 9th Infantry Division. First Lieutenant Alley distinguished himself by exceptionally valorous actions on 18 November 1967 as leader of a platoon providing security for a fire support base in Ding Tuong Province. In the early morning hours, a Viet Cong battalion directed a coordinated mortar and ground attack on the platoon's perimeter. The numerically superior enemy soon closed on the unit's position, and Lieutenant alley decided to withdraw to a more defensible location near the artillery camp which was across a river. Braving savage fire, he exposed himself to the enemy weapons and directed his men to the stream, personally pulling a wounded comrade to the bank. Completely disregarding his safety, he then returned to his original position and poured murderous fire into the advancing enemy ranks to cover the movement of his troops. Heedless of a painful wound, he fought furiously until he ran out of ammunition. After obtaining another weapon and grenades, he continued his valiant fight until his men reached safety. He then maneuvered to join them and, after crossing the river, he sighted four soldiers remaining on the opposite side who were pinned down by heavy fire. Lieutenant Alley returned through a curtain of bullets to reach them and lead them back across the river to the new perimeter. He then directed ravaging air, artillery and gunship strikes on the insurgents which forced them to flee the battlefield in disorder. First Lieutenant Alley's extraordinary heroism and devotion to duty were in keeping with the highest traditions of the military service and reflect great credit upon himself, his unit, and the United States Army.


Posthumous Award

CPT Norman Earl Baldwin
Detachment B-20, Company B, 5th Special Forces Group (Airborne), 1st Special Forces
 Captain Norman Earl Baldwin, Class 18-66 Company C1

 Citation: The President of the United States takes pride in presenting the Distinguished Service Cross (Posthumously) to Norman Earl Baldwin (0-5233469), Captain (Armor), U.S. Army, for extraordinary heroism in connection with military operations involving conflict with an armed hostile force in the Republic of Vietnam, while serving with Detachment B-20, Company B, 5th Special Forces Group (Airborne), 1st Special Forces. Captain Baldwin distinguished himself by exceptionally valorous actions on 25 August 1968 as the commander of a mobile strike force company engaged in relieving the besieged Duc Lap Special Forces camp. During as assault on a hill occupied by an estimated North Vietnamese Army company, he found himself alone and under intense enemy small arms and automatic weapons fire. Shouting encouragement to his men to follow him, he rushed forward and single-handedly wiped out an enemy bunker, killing three aggressors. Seeing this heroic act on the part of their commander, his troops began to advance. Twenty feet from the crest of the hill Captain Baldwin and his company came under a withering barrage of small arms and automatic weapons fire from hostile positions southwest of their line of assault. Captain Baldwin placed a burst of fire on the enemy emplacements from an exposed position, inspiring his men to also locate and bring fire against them. He continued to lead the assault in the face of a hail of bullets, and when he had nearly reached the top of the hill he was mortally wounded by the North Vietnamese fusillade. Captain Baldwin's extraordinary heroism and devotion to duty, at the cost of his life, were in keeping with the highest traditions of the military service and reflect great credit upon himself, his unit, and the United States Army.



1LT Earl D. Greer
Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 2d Battalion, 34th Armor, 25th Infantry Division
 First Lieutenant Earl D. Greer, Class 2-67 Company B1

 Citation: The President of the United States takes pleasure in presenting the Distinguished Service Cross to Earl D. Greer (0-5241025), First Lieutenant (Armor), U.S. Army, for extraordinary heroism in connection with military operations involving conflict with an armed hostile force in the Republic of Vietnam, while serving with Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 2d Battalion, 34th Armor, 25th Infantry Division. First Lieutenant Greer distinguished himself by exceptionally valorous actions during the period 26 to 29 February 1968 as a platoon leader of a task force on a mission near Tan Hoa. On 26 February, Lieutenant Greer's personnel carrier was struck during an enemy attack by an anti-tank rocket and he was painfully wounded. He refused medical evacuation, quickly assessed the situation and directed fire into the insurgents' positions. When one of his platoon's vehicle commanders was severely wounded by the hostile fire, he dismounted his vehicle and, disregarding his safety, ran through a withering hail of enemy bullets to render aid to the man and move him to a place of safety. The following morning, Lieutenant Greer spearheaded the task force's attack by destroying several bunker complexes. During the continuous fighting that followed near the village of Ap Ban Tram, one of his personnel carriers was struck by a rocket which seriously wounded the vehicle's driver. Lieutenant Greer immediately returned the fire, killing the enemy gunner. While under intense fire from several other concealed positions, he dismounted his vehicle and attached a tow cable to the disabled armored personnel carrier to extract it from the battle area. After the vehicle had been removed, he led his platoon in an assault on the enemy, killing three and capturing four North Vietnamese soldiers. Later, infantry elements east of the village were pinned down by intense hostile automatic weapons fire. He maneuvered his vehicle into position and directed counterfire on the entrenched insurgents positions which allowed the beleaguered units to disengage the enemy. The movement exposed his armored personnel carrier to the insurgents and it was struck by anti-tank fire which resulted in the entire crew being wounded. With his carrier in flames and painfully wounded himself, Lieutenant Greer personally extracted the other crew members before allowing himself to be given medical treatment. Throughout the entire four days of fighting, his personal acts of courage were a constant source of inspiration to his troops. First Lieutenant Greer's extraordinary heroism and devotion to duty were in keeping with the highest traditions of the military service and reflect great credit upon himself, his unit, and the United States Army.


Fiddler's Green

1LT Alan Ace Cozzalio
Company D, 3d Squadron, 5th Cavalry, 9th Infantry Division
 Captain Alan Ace Cozzalio, Class 4-67 Company E2

Citation: The President of the United States takes pleasure in presenting the Distinguished Service Cross to Alan A. Cozzalio (0-5241198), First Lieutenant (Armor), U.S. Army, for extraordinary heroism in connection with military operations involving conflict with an armed hostile force in the Republic of Vietnam, while serving with Company D, 3d Squadron, 5th Cavalry, 9th Infantry Division. First Lieutenant Cozzalio distinguished himself by exceptionally valorous actions on 25 January 1969 as a helicopter pilot near Phu My Village in Dinh Tuong Province. An infantry company was crossing an open field when one of the elements suddenly received fire from an enemy bunker complex, killing five men and wounding several others. The proximity of the Americans to the communists and the difficulty of pinpointing the hostile strongholds made it nearly impossible for supporting helicopters to attack the foe. Lieutenant Cozzalio landed his Cobra gun ship and switched to a light observation helicopter to increase his maneuverability. Despite intense small arms, machine gun and anti-aircraft fire, he hovered ten feet above the bunker and made a nose dive, destroying the fortification with mini gun fire and fragmentation grenades. After landing to brief the ground commander on the best route of assault, he returned to his Cobra and kept the enemy troops pinned down until the ground unit overran them. First Lieutenant Cozzalio's extraordinary heroism and devotion to duty were in keeping with the highest traditions of the military service and reflect great credit upon himself, his unit, and the United States Army.


Fiddler's Green

  CPT Ralph A. Northrup
Troop B, 2d Squadron, 17th Cavalry, 101st Airborne Division (Airmobile)		 Captain Ralph A. Northrup, Class 8-67 Company B2

Citation: The President of the United States takes pleasure in presenting the Distinguished Service Cross to Ralph A. Northrup, Captain (Armor), U.S. Army, for extraordinary heroism in connection with military operations involving conflict with an armed hostile force in the Republic of Vietnam, while serving with Troop B, 2d Squadron, 17th Cavalry, 101st Airborne Division (Airmobile). Captain Northrup distinguished himself by exceptionally valorous actions on 11 January 1970 while serving as pilot of a Light Observation Helicopter operating in support of a Ranger patrol pinned down by an enemy force in Quang Tri Province. Upon arrival at the embattled patrol's location, Captain Northrup discovered that there was no landing zone. Despite heavy enemy fire and inclement weather, which had hindered previous extraction attempts by larger helicopters, Captain Northrup chose to cut a swath through the thick jungle canopy. Using his skids and rotor blades to part and chop several trees, he was able to hover about two meters above the ground. He remained in this position for three minutes while a critically wounded patrol member was strapped to the helicopter's skids. He then extracted the man from the jungle and flew him to a makeshift landing zone about two thousand meters away. He repeated this action three more times under intense enemy fire. Each time he maneuvered close enough to the ground so that the stranded patrol members could cling to the skids and be lifted free. As Captain Northrup extracted the last patrol members could cling to the skids and be lifted free. As Captain Northrup extracted the last patrol member, an estimated twenty-five man enemy force swarmed over the patrol's former position. Captain Northrup's helicopter was so battered by damage to the rotors and from enemy fire that he was later forced to make a successful emergency landing. His extraordinary heroism and devotion to duty and keeping with the highest traditions of the military service and reflect great credit upon himself and the United States Army.



1LT Mark L. Holbrook
Troop A, 7th Squadron, 17th Cavalry, 1st Aviation Brigade
 First Lieutenant Mark L. Holbrook, Class 12-67 Company F1
Citation: The President of the United States takes pleasure in presenting the Distinguished Service Cross to Mark L. Holbrook, First Lieutenant (Armor), U.S. Army, for extraordinary heroism in connection with military operations involving conflict with an armed hostile force in the Republic of Vietnam, while serving with Troop A, 7th Squadron, 17th Cavalry, 1st Aviation Brigade. First Lieutenant Holbrook distinguished himself by exceptionally valorous actions on 1 and 2 March 1969 while flying in support of Fire Support Base Swinger. Despite devastating enemy fire directed at his aircraft, Captain Holbrook began close-range firing passes over the enemy positions, destroying their anti-aircraft weapon emplacement. He then reported the location of each wounded American soldier to expedite their medical evacuation. After leaving the contact area to replace his badly damaged airplane, Captain Holbrook returned to the battlefield to aid a second unit under hostile attack. Flying into the middle of the enemy fire, he began to mark positions for air strikes. When he discovered a large enemy element maneuvering to surround friendly ground troops, he initiated low passes and halted their forward movement. With the hostile element pinned down, he flew to another area of contact where he spotted two enemy vehicles, which he marked as well as surrounding enemy positions. Despite sustaining numerous hits to the craft, he ran marking passes which resulted in the destruction of vehicles, an ammunition depot and much of the enemy force. Captain Holbrook's extraordinary heroism and devotion to duty were in keeping with the highest traditions of the military service and reflect great credit upon himself, his unit, and the United States Army.


Posthumous Award
James Sprayberry
CPT John Dehaas Curran
227th Assault Helicopter Company, 52d Combat Aviation Battalion, 1st Aviation Brigade
 Captain John Dehaas Curran, Class 23-67 Company C1

 Citation: The President of the United States of America, authorized by Act of Congress, July 9, 1918 (amended by act of July 25, 1963), takes pride in presenting the Distinguished Service Cross (Posthumously) to Captain (Armor) John Dehaas Curran, United States Army, for extraordinary heroism in connection with military operations involving conflict with an armed hostile force in the Republic of Vietnam, while serving with A/227th Assault Helicopter Company, 52d Combat Aviation Battalion, 1st Aviation Brigade. Captain Curran distinguished himself by exceptionally valorous actions on 25 May 1971 while serving as co-pilot on an emergency medical evacuation mission near Dac To. His helicopter was embarked on a mission to rescue a seriously wounded survivor of a U.S. helicopter which had crashed the day before. This involved braving intense enemy anti-aircraft fire since an estimated two enemy regiments surrounded the besieged firebase. Captain Curran realized the enemy situation and strength, but his concern for the life of a fellow American soldier overshadowed this knowledge. It was further learned that two ARVN soldiers were also critically wounded and in dire need of medical evacuation. Captain Curran's aircraft proceeded through the hail of fire to the firebase and picked up the seriously wounded American as well as the allied soldiers. Upon departing the firebase, his helicopter received heavy enemy fire and lost its motor before it burst into flames and crashed. Captain Curran's personal bravery and devotion to duty, at the cost of his life, were in keeping with the highest traditions of the military service and reflect great credit upon himself, his unit, and the United States Army.



CPT Carl B. Marshall
Air Cavalry Troop, 11th Armored Cavalry Regiment
 Captain Carl B. Marshall, Class 23-67 Company C1

 Citation: The President of the United States takes pleasure in presenting the Distinguished Service Cross to Carl B. Marshall, Captain (Armor), U.S. Army, for extraordinary heroism in connection with military operations involving conflict with an armed hostile force in the Republic of Vietnam. Captain Marshall distinguished himself by extraordinary heroism on 20 January 1970, while serving as an aircraft commander with Air Cavalry Troop, 11th Armored Cavalry Regiment, in the Republic of Vietnam. On this date, while flying a reconnaissance mission near the village of Bu Dop, a light observation helicopter received intense enemy ground fire, causing the aircraft to crash and burn in an open field, killing the co-pilot. The pilot made his way to a nearby bomb crater amidst a hail of fire from an estimated battalion of North Vietnamese Army Regulars, who were entrenched in bunkers surrounding the clearing. Captain Marshall, who was in command of a squad of gunships, circled the area in an attempt to locate any survivors. Once he identified the downed pilot, he notified his commander of his intention to accomplish a rescue. Cautiously lowering the craft near the crater, Captain Marshall was savagely attacked by a barrage of small arms and automatic weapons fire from the insurgents' position. Hovering his helicopter at the proposed site of recovery, he rotated his gunship, firing his minigun into the wood line, attempting to suppress the concentrated enemy attack. As Captain Marshall brought the craft to rest near the bomb crater and enemy mortar rounds began exploding in close proximity, the gunner opened the canopy and aided the wounded pilot aboard. With his helicopter grossly overloaded, Captain Marshall skillfully circled the open area to gain sufficient speed to clear the tree tops. After transferring the injured pilot to another helicopter at Bu Dop, Captain Marshall eagerly refueled, rearmed and returned to the contact area. Captain Marshall's profound courage, conspicuous flying ability, concern for his fellow human being, and unwavering devotion to duty are in keeping with the highest traditions of the military service and reflect great credit on him, his unit, and the United States Army.


Posthumous Award

 1LT Bernard Lawrence Pierce
Troop I, 3d Squadron, 11th Armored Cavalry Regiment		 First Lieutenant Bernard Lawrence Pierce, Class 30-67 Company D1

 Citation: The President of the United States takes pride in presenting the Distinguished Service Cross (Posthumously) to Bernard Lawrence Pierce (046-34-3275), First Lieutenant (Armor), U.S. Army, for extraordinary heroism in action in connection with military operations involving conflict with an armed hostile force in the Republic of Vietnam, while serving with Troop I, 3d Squadron, 11th Armored Cavalry Regiment. First Lieutenant Pierce distinguished himself by exceptionally valorous actions on 19 June 1969 while serving as leader of an armored platoon near An Loc. Late in the afternoon his troop and an element of infantry came under intense hostile rocket grenade and automatic weapons fire. Seeing that the squad of foot soldiers was pinned down in an exposed position, Lieutenant Pierce directed his vehicle and another track to go to their aid. As the two tracks moved in, Lieutenant Pierce's track was struck by an antitank rocket, the blast of which rendered him blind. Despite the pain of his serious wounds, he ordered the assault continued as he valiantly manned his machine gun, unleashing a fusillade of suppressive fire. Just after the other track succeeded in rescuing the wounded infantrymen, a rocket-propelled grenade again struck his vehicle and claimed Lieutenant Pierce's life. First Lieutenant Pierce's extraordinary heroism and devotion to duty, at the cost of his life, were in keeping with the highest traditions of the military service and reflect great credit upon himself, his unit, and the United States Army.



1LT Phillip L. Spackman
Troop E, 1st Cavalry Regiment, Americal Division
 First Lieutenant Phillip L. Spackman, Class 1-68 Company E1

Citation: The President of the United States takes pleasure in presenting the Distinguished Service Cross to Philip L. Spackman, First Lieutenant (Armor), U.S. Army, for extraordinary heroism in connection with military operations involving conflict with an armed hostile force in the Republic of Vietnam, while serving with Troop E, 1st Cavalry Regiment, Americal Division. First Lieutenant Spackman distinguished himself by exceptionally valorous actions on 2 July 1969 while serving as platoon leader during a unit patrol operation in the Rice Bowl district near An Lao. As the lead armored personnel carrier crossed a stream and penetrated a hedgerow, it was struck simultaneously be several rocket grenades, wounding all the occupants. A hostile force of North Vietnamese began moving down the stream bed to cut off the damaged vehicle from the rest of the troop. Lieutenant Spackman immediately killed the nearest enemy soldier and repelled the rest of the assailants. While reinforcements secured the river crossing, he dashed to the vehicle through strafing automatic weapons fire and removed the casualties from exposure to direct fire. Then he and the less severely wounded carried the injured across the stream. Deploying the other vehicles along the river bank to engage the hostile positions beyond the hedgerow, he directed their firing as well as that of the gunships which had arrived. He also established communication with and assisted the commander of an Infantry element that had been airlifted near the enemy force. When the infantrymen began advancing on the communists' flank, Lieutenant Spackman maneuvered his armored personnel carriers on line and rolled toward the enemy positions. Encountering stiff resistance from one bunker, he directed his driver to rush the position. Firing from atop his tracked vehicle, Lieutenant Spackman pinned the enemy down until his vehicle passed by the position into which he threw several grenades, which destroyed the structure and killed the enemy. With the last bunker eliminated, the enemy were routed from the area. First Lieutenant Spackman's extraordinary heroism and devotion to duty were in keeping with the highest traditions of the military service and reflect great credit upon himself, his unit, and the United States Army.

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