THE WALL OF FACES

Thank you for your service to our country so long ago sir. Your Medal of Honor citation attests to your courage and devotion to your fellow soldiers. As long as you are remembered you will always be with us….

Dear Sgt James Robinson, Thank you for your service as an Infantryman and for receiving the Medal of Honor. I researched you on your 81st birthday, happy birthday. Saying thank you isn't enough, but it is from the heart. Autumn begins today. Time passes quickly. Please watch over America, it stills needs your strength, courage, guidance, and faithfulness, especially now. Rest in peace with the angels.

I shipped out with Charlie Co 2nd B 16th Inf from Ft Riley on the USS Gorden under Col.Burke. Was transferred to the 25th Inf in Nov 65. I heard about operation Abilene which was Easter Sunday in Nam. These were my friends and each and everyone of them deserves all of our respect and gratitude for their sacrifice. After 55 years you are not forgotten.

May this remembrance find you in the Kingdom of the Lord !
May you enjoy all the God can provide to you!

James William Robinson

Medal of Honor
AWARDED FOR ACTIONS
DURING Vietnam War
Service: Army
Battalion: 2d Battalion
Division: 1st Infantry Division
GENERAL ORDERS:
Department of the Army, General Orders No. 35 (September 13, 1967)
CITATION:
The President of the United States of America, in the name of Congress, takes pride in presenting the Medal of Honor (Posthumously) to Sergeant James William Robinson, Jr. (ASN: 16780221), United States Army, for conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty while serving with Company D, 2d Battalion, 16th Infantry Regiment, 1st Infantry Division, in action against enemy aggressor forces at Republic of Vietnam, on 11 April 1966. Company C was engaged in fierce combat with a Viet Cong battalion. Despite the heavy fire, Sergeant Robinson moved among the men of his fire team, instructing and inspiring them, and placing them in advantageous positions. Enemy snipers located in nearby trees were inflicting heavy casualties on forward elements of Sergeant Robinson's unit. Upon locating the enemy sniper whose fire was taking the heaviest toll, he took a grenade launcher and eliminated the sniper. Seeing a medic hit while administering aid to a wounded sergeant in front of his position and aware that now the two wounded men were at the mercy of the enemy, he charged through a withering hail of fire and dragged his comrades to safety, where he rendered first aid and saved their lives. As the battle continued and casualties mounted, Sergeant Robinson moved about under intense fire to collect from the wounded their weapons and ammunition and redistribute them to able-bodied soldiers. Adding his fire to that of his men, he assisted in eliminating a major enemy threat. Seeing another wounded comrade in front of his position, Sergeant Robinson again defied the enemy's fire to effect a rescue. In so doing he was himself wounded in the shoulder and leg. Despite his painful wounds, he dragged the soldier to shelter and saved his life by administering first aid. While patching his own wounds, he spotted an enemy machinegun which had inflicted a number of casualties on the American force. His rifle ammunition expended, he seized two grenades and, in an act of unsurpassed heroism, charged toward the entrenched enemy weapon. Hit again in the leg, this time with a tracer round which set fire to his clothing, Sergeant Robinson ripped the burning clothing from his body and staggered indomitably through the enemy fire, now concentrated solely on him, to within grenade range of the enemy machinegun position. Sustaining two additional chest wounds, he marshaled his fleeting physical strength and hurled the two grenades, thus destroying the enemy gun position, as he fell dead upon the battlefield. His magnificent display of leadership and bravery saved several lives and inspired his soldiers to defeat the numerically superior enemy force. Sergeant Robinson's conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity, at the cost of his life, are in keeping with the finest traditions of the U.S. Army and reflect great credit upon the 1st Infantry Division and the United States Armed Forces.