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Karl G. Taylor Sr.’s Valor at Operation MEADE RIVER

Staff Sergeant Taylor, along with another Marine, crawled through a barrage of hostile fire to reach the embattled unit.

November 9, 2024

On the night of December 8, 1968, during Operation MEADE RIVER in the Republic of Vietnam, Karl G. Taylor Sr. served as Company Gunnery Sergeant. Upon learning that the lead platoon commander had been mortally wounded and the unit was pinned down by heavy enemy fire, Staff Sergeant Taylor, along with another Marine, crawled through a barrage of hostile fire to reach the embattled unit. He encouraged the men, gave them instructions, and positioned them in cover. Together with his companion, he repeatedly crossed an open area to rescue severely wounded Marines who couldn’t move on their own.

After discovering more wounded Marines lying exposed near an enemy machine gun position, Staff Sergeant Taylor led four comrades across the fire-swept terrain to attempt their rescue. When the group was halted by intense fire, he directed his companion to return to the company command post. Taylor then took up his grenade launcher and, in full view of the enemy, charged across an open rice paddy toward the machine gun, firing as he advanced. Although he sustained multiple wounds, he succeeded in reaching the enemy bunker and silencing the machine gun moments before he was mortally wounded. For his heroism, he was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor.