Bruce W. Carter

He shielded fellow Marines from a grenade amid heavy gunfire

Bruce Wayne Carter received a posthumous Medal of Honor for protecting his fellow Marines during Operation Idaho Canyon in Vietnam. On 7 August 1969, in Quang Tri Province, the private first class served as a grenadier with Company H, 2nd Battalion, 3rd Marines, 3rd Marine Division.

Born in Schenectady, New York, on 7 May 1950, Carter enlisted in the Marine Corps in 1968 and deployed to Vietnam in April 1969. He was accredited to Jacksonville, Florida. Enemy fire and a spreading brush fire separated his unit's lead element from the rest of the squad. He stood under fire to force enemy soldiers back, then began leading his companions away from the flames. When a grenade landed among them, he covered it with his body.

Carter died that day. Vice President Spiro T. Agnew presented his medal to his family on 9 September 1971. Initially buried in Vista Memorial Gardens, Hialeah, Florida, he was later reinterred in Arlington National Cemetery.

Official Medal of Honor citation

“For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty while serving as grenadier with Company H in connection with combat operations against the enemy. Pfc. Carter's unit was maneuvering against the enemy during Operation Idaho Canyon and came under a heavy volume of fire from a numerically superior hostile force. The lead element soon became separated from the main body of the squad by a brush fire. Pfc. Carter and his fellow marines were pinned down by vicious crossfire when, with complete disregard for his safety, he stood in full view of the North Vietnamese Army soldiers to deliver a devastating volume of fire at their positions. The accuracy and aggressiveness of his attack caused several enemy casualties and forced the remainder of the soldiers to retreat from the immediate area. Shouting directions to the marines around him, Pfc. Carter then commenced leading them from the path of the rapidly approaching brush fire when he observed a hostile grenade land between him and his companions. Fully aware of the probable consequences of his action but determined to protect the men following him, he unhesitatingly threw himself over the grenade, absorbing the full effects of its detonation with his body. Pfc. Carter's indomitable courage, inspiring initiative, and selfless devotion to duty upheld the highest traditions of the Marine Corps and the U.S. Naval Service. He gallantly gave his life in the service of his country.”