Richard K. Sorenson

Richard Keith Sorenson was a United States Marine who served during World War II. He was awarded the Medal of Honor for his extraordinary heroism on the night of February 1–2, 1944, during the Marine landing on Kwajalein Atoll. While engaged in combat, he threw himself on a Japanese grenade to protect five of his fellow Marines from the impending blast.

Sorenson suffered severe injuries from the grenade fragments, which ripped through his thighs, hips, right arm, and right leg. Despite the intensity of his wounds, he miraculously survived the action. He was one of only four Marines in World War II to survive after throwing themselves on a grenade to save others, alongside fellow recipients Richard E. Bush, Jacklyn H. Lucas, and Carlton R. Rouh.

Sorenson enlisted in the Marine Corps and rose to the rank of First Lieutenant. In addition to the Medal of Honor, he was also awarded the Purple Heart for his combat wounds. His legacy remains one of the most prominent examples of self-sacrifice and survival in US military history.