For years, Lefty had claimed he had two Purple Hearts and a Bronze Star with V (see Al Zdon\u2019s 2015 article in the Minnesota Legionnaire newsletter shown above). However, he always claimed he had never received his second Purple Heart for his actions on Iwo Jima and had \u201clost\u201d his Bronze Star and its citation in a move. <\/p>\n

Knowing this, a group of well-meaning veterans decided that Lefty should get some long overdue recognition for his participation in the battle and historians began researching Lefty\u2019s participation in the assault on Iwo Jima. Instead of finding supporting documents to honor Lefty, they discovered that he had barely participated in the battle, let alone in the MOH incident involving the real hero Woody Williams.<\/p>\n

He had indeed served his country honorably before Iwo Jima. The year before Iwo, Lefty had been wounded on Guam;<\/p>\n