Beyond the Call: Medal of Honor Stories

Beyond the Call: Corporal Arthur O. Beyer at Arloncourt, Belgium, 1945 tells the story of a tank destroyer gunner whose solo advance under fire helped break a German defensive line in the closing months of the Second World War. This episode follows Beyer’s life from rural Iowa to the snow-covered ridges of Belgium, tracing the ambush that pinned his armored column, the daring assault that silenced...

Beyond the Call: Private Dale Merlin Hansen at Hill 60, Okinawa, 1945 tells the story of a young Marine who crawled alone into withering fire to break open a critical Japanese strongpoint during the brutal fighting on Okinawa in World War II. Listeners hear a ground-level narrative of the assault on Hill 60, the larger campaign that made this ridge so important, and the split-second decisions that...

Beyond the Call: Private Ova A. Kelley at Buri Airstrip, Leyte, 1944 follows a rifleman in World War II’s Pacific campaign as a single, stunning act of courage shatters a Japanese strongpoint and unlocks a stalled American attack. Listeners hear the ground-level narrative of Kelley’s solo charge, the wider fight for Leyte and its vital airfields, and a reflective look at how initiative, responsibi...

Beyond the Call: Corporal Hershel “Woody” Williams at Iwo Jima, 1945 follows a young Marine flamethrower operator as he battles through fortified pillboxes on the black sands of a crucial Pacific island in World War Two, opening a path for his pinned-down company. Listeners hear the larger story of the Iwo Jima campaign, the stalled advance, and the four hours in which Williams repeatedly crossed...

Beyond the Call: Staff Sergeant John C. Sjogren at San Jose Hacienda, 1945 follows an American infantry squad leader on a fortified ridge in the Philippines during World War II, tracing his solo assault on pillboxes, the rescue of a wounded sergeant across open ground, and the destruction of enemy positions that opened the way for his company. The episode sets his actions within the wider Negros c...

Beyond the Call: Captain Francis B. Wai at Red Beach, Leyte, 1944 follows a Chinese Hawaiian officer leading pinned-down soldiers off a deadly shoreline and into the flooded paddies of the Leyte landings in World War Two, where his decision to stand, move, and draw fire turns a stalled assault into a hard-won foothold. Listeners hear a clear narrative of the action, the larger campaign to liberate...

Beyond the Call: Sergeant Charles E. Mower at Leyte, 1944 follows a nineteen-year-old infantry leader in the brutal Philippine campaign, guiding listeners through a deadly jungle ravine crossing where he stayed exposed in a shallow stream to direct his squad’s fire and break a fortified Japanese position. The story places his final moments within the wider effort to retake the Philippines, then re...

Beyond the Call: Private James Henry Mills at Cisterna di Littoria, 1944 follows a young infantryman of the United States Army through his first baptism of fire in the Italian campaign of World War II, as he single-handedly clears enemy positions and then deliberately exposes himself to draw fire so his platoon can seize a critical strongpoint without casualties. Listeners hear the larger context...

Beyond the Call: Commander Lawson Paterson “Red” Ramage off Taiwan, 1944 follows a United States submarine skipper who drove his boat straight through a Japanese convoy in a daring night surface attack during the Pacific war of World War II. Listeners hear how Ramage’s decisions under fire shattered enemy shipping, protected his crew, and turned a chaotic engagement into a decisive victory at sea....

Beyond the Call: Technician Fifth Grade Eric Gunnar Gibson at Isola Bella, 1944 follows a company cook turned front-line guide as he leads fresh replacements along a shallow Italian ditch under German fire, silencing multiple enemy positions during the bitter fighting of the Anzio beachhead in World War II and giving his company the chance to survive and advance. Listeners hear the story of his li...

Beyond the Call: Commander Cassin Young at Pearl Harbor, 1941 follows the captain of the repair ship USS Vestal through the chaos of the surprise attack as he swims back to his burning ship, cuts her loose from the dying USS Arizona, and deliberately beaches her to save hundreds of lives and preserve a vital asset for the coming war. This story places listeners inside the harbor that morning, expl...

Beyond the Call: Lieutenant Colonel Harold W. Bauer at Guadalcanal, 1942 follows a Marine fighter leader through the brutal air campaign over Henderson Field, tracing his journey from Midwestern athlete to squadron commander in one of the Pacific war’s most desperate battles. Listeners hear how he led exhausted pilots, intercepted relentless enemy raids, and made the fateful decision to dive alone...

Beyond the Call: Captain Seymour W. Terry at Zebra Hill, Okinawa, 1945 follows an Arkansas-born infantry officer through the brutal ridges of the Battle of Okinawa in World War Two, tracing how repeated one-man assaults against pillboxes and trenches turned a stalled attack into a hard-won victory. Listeners hear the wider context of the campaign, the terrain and fire that shaped each decision, an...

Beyond the Call: Private George Phillips at Iwo Jima, 1945 follows an eighteen-year-old Marine in World War II whose split-second choice to smother a grenade saved his sleeping squad on a bitter night among the island’s black sands. This episode sets his sacrifice inside the brutal struggle for Iwo Jima, tracing his journey from Missouri railroad worker to rifleman in the 28th Marines and unpackin...

Beyond the Call: Colonel John Riley Kane at Ploesti, 1943 follows a United States Army air group commander through one of World War II’s most dangerous low-level bombing raids, as he leads damaged B-24 Liberators into the firestorm over Romania’s vital oil refineries. Listeners hear the story of Kane’s early life in Texas, the long flight from North Africa, the chaos of Operation Tidal Wave, and t...

Beyond the Call: Private First Class George Benjamin Jr. at Leyte, 1944 follows a young radio operator of the United States Army as he rises under fire, rallies a stalled attack, rescues a trapped tank crew, and ultimately gives his life trying to shield his comrades from a deadly explosion in the Philippines campaign of World War II. Listeners hear the story of the Leyte fighting, the terrain and...

Beyond the Call: Technical Sergeant Beauford T. Anderson at Kakazu Ridge, Okinawa, 1945 tells the story of a weapons platoon leader who faced an overwhelming predawn counterattack on Okinawa and chose to stand alone on a threatened flank to protect his men in the closing months of World War Two. Listeners hear how the fight for Kakazu Ridge fit into the brutal Pacific campaign, how Anderson improv...

Beyond the Call: Staff Sergeant George John Hall at Anzio, 1944 follows a young infantry leader from Stoneham, Massachusetts into the brutal Italian campaign of World War II, where his one-man assault on multiple German machine-gun positions turns a stalled attack into a fighting chance for his company. Listeners hear the story of the Anzio beachhead, the exposed farmland his unit had to cross, an...

Beyond the Call: Brigadier General Frederick Walker Castle at the Christmas Eve Air Raids over Germany, 1944 traces the final mission of an American bomber commander during World War Two, from the frozen skies above the Ardennes to a burning Fortress falling over Belgium. Listeners hear the story of a massive bomber formation sent to shield troops in the Battle of the Bulge, the engine failure tha...

Beyond the Call: Private First Class Dirk John Cornelius Vlug at Limon, Leyte, 1944 follows an infantryman in World War II who steps alone onto a narrow Philippine road to confront an oncoming column of enemy tanks, turning a likely breakthrough into a line of burning wrecks. This episode presents a vivid narrative of the action, sets it within the brutal Ormoc corridor fighting on Leyte, and refl...

Beyond the Call: Private First Class Thomas Eugene Atkins at the Villa Verde Trail, Luzon, 1945 follows a lone infantryman holding a shattered ridge against repeated night assaults during the Pacific war, blending front-line tension with the human story of Gene from Campobello, South Carolina. Listeners hear how his quiet leadership, endurance under fire, and refusal to abandon his post shaped the...

Beyond the Call: Private First Class Albert Ernest Schwab at Okinawa Shima, 1945 follows a young Marine flamethrower operator whose solitary assaults on two machine gun nests turn a doomed valley into a narrow, hard-won foothold in the Pacific war. Listeners hear the story of his journey from Tulsa oil fields to the First Marine Division, the desperate fight for a ridgeline on Okinawa, and the spl...

Beyond the Call: Platoon Sergeant Joseph R. Julian at Iwo Jima, 1945 follows a Marine platoon sergeant in World War II’s Pacific campaign as he leads solo assaults against entrenched positions on the island’s black volcanic slopes. The story traces his journey from Massachusetts hometown to drill instructor to frontline leader with the 5th Marine Division, then walks listeners through the desperat...

Beyond the Call: Major General James Lewis Day at Sugar Loaf Hill, Okinawa, 1945 follows a young Marine corporal leading a battered group of Marines through four days of relentless combat in one of World War Two’s fiercest island battles. Listeners hear the story of the brutal approach to Sugar Loaf, the desperate defense of a tiny forward position, and the choices that preserved lives under const...

Beyond the Call: Staff Sergeant Curtis F. Shoup at Tillet, Belgium, 1945 follows a young infantry leader of the 87th Infantry Division through the snow and shellfire of World War II’s Battle of the Bulge, from the moment his company is pinned on a frozen hillside to his lone advance on a German machine gun that turns near-certain defeat into a chance for survival. This episode weaves the battlefie...