"I was working in the Newport News, Virginia, ship yard and my boss offered me a deferment. But I felt like it was an honor to serve my country, according to the dictates of my conscience." (Video Interview, 2:42)

Desmond Thomas Doss

Desmond Doss, being presented the Congressional Medal of Honor by President Harry Truman [10/12/1945] War: World War II, 1939-1946 Branch: Army Unit: B Company, 1st Battalion, 307th Infantry Regiment, 77th Infantry Division Service Location: Guam (Mariana Islands); Leyte Island (Philippines); Okinawa Island (Ryukyu Islands) Rank: Corporal Place of Birth: Lynchburg, VA

Desmond Doss was the only man to win the Congressional Medal of Honor while serving under conscientious objector status. A religious Seventh-Day Adventist, Doss asked for non-combatant status when he was drafted in 1942, but he was told that he could only serve as a C.O. Doss trained as a military medic and proved himself a selfless hero during the fierce battle for Okinawa. When 75 wounded GIs were stranded atop the Maeda Escarpment, Doss personally made sure each one was lowered to safety, all of this taking place under enemy fire.