30 March

2Lt JOHN P. BOBO
3rd Battalion, 9th Marines, 3rd Marine Div.
Quang Tri Province, RVN
30 March 1967

While establishing night ambush sites, 2Lt Bobo’s unit was attacked by a reinforced North Vietnamese company supported by heavy automatic weapons and mortar fire.

Realizing the gravity of the situation 2Lt Bobo organized a hasty defense and kept his men in the fight.  Outnumbered and under murderous fire, Bobo saw an unmanned rocket launcher on the battlefield. Braving enemy heavy machineguns, the Lt recovered the weapon and organized a gun crew to man the launcher while he directed fire on enemy positions.

An enemy mortar round blew Bobo’s right leg clean off below the knee but he refused to be evacuated.  He ordered his men to move him to a firing position from where he could cover their movements.

Knowing he would soon bleed-out and become combat ineffective, 2Lt Bobo tried to use a web belt as a tourniquet.  Unable to get it tight enough to stop the bleeding,  the young Lieutenant jammed the stump of his leg into the dirt and bore weight on it stemming the flow of blood, allowing him to remain conscious and provide covering fire for his men.

2Lt Bobo stood his ground and delivered effective suppression fire on advancing enemy elements preventing his Marines from being overrun by a numerically superior force.

The last line of 2lt Bobo’s Medal of Honor Citation reads as follows:

(2lt Bobo’s) “tenacious stand enabled the command group to gain a protective position where it repulsed the enemy onslaught. 2d Lt. Bobo’s superb leadership, dauntless courage, and bold initiative reflected great credit upon himself and upheld the highest traditions of the Marine Corps and the U.S. Naval Service. He gallantly gave his life for his country.”