Michael Crescenz

He charged enemy bunkers to reopen his own company’s advance

Michael Joseph Crescenz earned a posthumous Medal of Honor in Vietnam’s Hiep Duc Valley on 20 November 1968. A corporal with Company A, 4th Battalion, 31st Infantry, he seized a machine gun after enemy fire halted the company’s advance. Crescenz charged uphill and silenced three bunkers, briefly opening the route for his comrades. When another concealed position began firing, he advanced toward it despite the danger. He was mortally wounded within five meters of the bunker. His assault enabled the company to maneuver and complete its mission.

Medal of Honor citation

Cpl. Crescenz distinguished himself by conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity in action while serving as a rifleman with Company A. In the morning his unit engaged a large, well-entrenched force of the North Vietnamese Army whose initial burst of fire pinned down the lead squad and killed the two point men, halting the advance of Company A. Immediately, Cpl. Crescenz left the relative safety of his own position, seized a nearby machine gun and, with complete disregard for his safety, charged 100 meters up a slope toward the enemy bunkers which he effectively silenced, killing the two occupants of each. Undaunted by the withering machine-gun fire around him, Cpl. Crescenz courageously moved forward toward a third bunker which he also succeeded in silencing, killing two more of the enemy and momentarily clearing the route of advance for his comrades. Suddenly, intense machine-gun fire erupted from an unseen, camouflaged bunker. Realizing the danger to his fellow soldiers, Cpl. Crescenz disregarded the barrage of hostile fire directed at him and daringly advanced toward the position. Assaulting with his machine gun, Cpl. Crescenz was within five meters of the bunker when he was mortally wounded by the fire from the enemy machine gun. As a direct result of his heroic actions, his company was able to maneuver freely with minimal danger and to complete its mission, defeating the enemy. Cpl. Crescenz's bravery and extraordinary heroism at the cost of his life are in the highest traditions of the military service and reflect great credit on himself, his unit, and the U.S. Army.