Jerry Summers: John Harlan Willis - Baby-Faced Hero Saturday, December 12, 2020 - by Jerry Summers
Jerry Summers
From looking at a photo of the baby-faced United States hospital corpsmen from Columbia, Tennessee the viewer would probably not recognize the young Medal of Honor winner in World War II for his heroics on Iwo Jima on February 29, 1945.
John Harlan Willis was born on June 10, 1921 in Columbia, Tennessee and graduated from Columbia Central High School
He enlisted in the Unites States Navy on November 5, 1940 and received training as a hospital corpsman at the Norfolk Naval Hospital, Portsmouth, Virginia.
John steadily was promoted through the corps until July 1, 1943 when he achieved the rank of pharmacist’s mate first class.