that s when an enemy grenade landed among his men. every human instinct, every impulse would tell a person to turn away. but at that critical moment, henry svehla did the opposite. he threw himself on that grenade and saved the lives of his fellow soldiers. henry svehla s body has never been recovered. it s a wound in the heart of his family that has never been fully healed. it s also a reminder that as a nation, we must never forget those who didn t come home, are missing in action or taken prisoner of war. we must never stop trying to bring them back to their families. henry was awarded the distinguished service cross, but his family believed that he had earned this nation s highest military honor. they contacted their congressman and his staff who made it their
the footsteps of both anthony and henry, protecting and defending our lives and freedoms, and, lord, continue to bless and power and give great wisdom to our president, barack obama as he leads our nation in these challenging times. and, god bless america, in your holy name we pray, amen. thank you so much, everyone. please enjoy the reception. and, again, to the families, we could not be prouder of anthony and henry. we are grateful for their sacrifice. we are grateful for your sacrifice. you have made this country safer. tony and henry stand as a model of courage and patriotism. god bless you. god bless the united states of america. thank you, everyone. [ applause ] president obama honoring the sacrifice of two of the many americans who have laid down their lives with courageous action in defense of our country. in this case, awarding two
that afternoon, while private first class svehla and his platoon were patrolling to determine enemy strength and positions, they were subjected to intense automatic weapons and small arms fire at the top of the hill. coming under heavy fire, the platoon s at being a began to falter. realizing the safety of the remaining troops were in peril, he wlept to his feet and charge the enemy positions firing his weapon and throwing grenades as he advanced. in the face of this courage and determination, the platoon rallied to attack. private first class svehla disregarding his own safety in-nikted heavy casualties. when suddenly fragments from a mortar round exploding near by seriously wounded him in the face. he refused medical treatment and continued to lead the attack. when an enemy grenade landed
of their fellow soldiers. they led from the front and loved beyond measure, portraying the ultimate act of selfless service. oh, god, remind us again today our nation has risen to our true greatness on the shoulders of americans like anthony and henry. may this ceremony serve to reinforce our awareness as a nation that our country s way of life and our freedom is a priceless inheritance, one through the commitment and sacrifice of those who have selflessly paid for our freedom with their blood. may your blessings be upon the families of henry and anthony who have given their loved ones to this nation and who have kept their memories alive for this very moment. by your grace, may we never forget their sacrifice. in your holy name, amen. good morning, everybody. please be seated. on behalf of michelle and
in uniform. that is true now in today s wars. it has been true in all of our wars. and it is why we are here today. long ago a poet of the first world war wrote of the sacrifice of young soldiers in war. they shall not grow old as we that are left grow old. age shall not weary them, nor the years condemn, that the going down of the sun and in the morning, we will remember them. today we are joined by two american families who six decades ago gave our nation one of their own. private first class henry svehla and private first class anthony kaho ohanohano.