| Manuel V. Mendoza | |
| Birth Date: | 15 June 1922 |
| Birth Place: | Miami, Arizona, US |
| Death Place: | Mesa, Arizona, US |
| Placeofburial: | Mountain View Funeral Home and Cemetery, Mesa, Arizona |
| Branch: | United States Army |
| Serviceyears: | 1942–1945 1949–1953 |
| Rank: | Master sergeant |
| Unit: | Company B, 350th Infantry, 88th Infantry Division |
| Battles: | World War II Korean War |
| Awards: | |
Manuel Verdugo Mendoza[1] (June 15, 1922 – December 12, 2001) was a United States Army master sergeant and Medal of Honor recipient.[2]
Mendoza was drafted into the United States Army in November 1942.[3] He reported for duty at Fort MacArthur, California, for basic training; before being sent to Camp Gruber, Oklahoma as a member of the 350th Infantry Regiment, 88th Infantry Division. He deployed with the regiment overseas on December 6, 1943, arriving in Casablanca, French Morocco on December 15.[4] He, and the rest of the 88th Infantry Division, trained in Magenta, Algeria, in preparation for combat operations in Italy, until February 1944. On February 6, 1944, Mendoza landed with the 88th, in Naples, Italy. He first saw combat on March 11, 1944 when his regiment relieved a British infantry division on the GUSTAV Line. He participated in Operation Diadem in May 1944, seeing combat during the captures of Spigno, Mount Civita, Itri, Fondi, Raccagorga, and Anzio. He was present when the 88th Infantry Division entered Rome on June 4, 1944. Mendoza went on to see combat throughout the Arno Campaign in July–August 1944. He participated in the 88th Infantry Division's GOTHIC Line offensive in September 1944, including the capture of Mount Battaglia. After his heroic actions on October 4, 1944, he became known in his regiment as "The Arizona Kid".
Mendoza was wounded on October 4, 1944 and would return to his unit in January 1945. He was present for the 1945 Spring Offensive, and entered Austria on the 30th of April 1945. The war ended while his unit linked up with the 103rd Infantry Division in Innsbruck. Mendoza would serve in the Occupation of Austria on the Morgan Line until September 1945 when he was discharged at the rank of Staff Sergeant. Soon after returning home he enlisted in the Arizona Army National Guard. He re-enlisted for active duty in 1948.[5] He went on to serve in the Korean War, where he was wounded once again. He was honourably discharged in 1953.
Mendoza is credited with single-handedly breaking up a German counterattack on October 4, 1944, at Mt. Battaglia, Italy. He was originally awarded the Distinguished Service Cross for his bravery.[6]
Nearly 70 years would pass before his heroism was properly recognized with the Medal of Honor. That belated recognition came through the Defense Authorization Act, which called for a review of Jewish American and Hispanic American veterans from World War II, the Korean War and the Vietnam War who had been awarded the Distinguished Service Cross to see if they had been denied the Medal of Honor by prejudice.[7] Mendoza was awarded the Medal of Honor by President Barack Obama in a March 18, 2014, ceremony in the White House. As Mendoza had died in 2001, his widow accepted his award.
His citation reads:
Mendoza awards include:[8]
| Badge | Combat Infantryman Badge with Star (denoting 2nd award) | ||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1sr row | Medal of Honor | ||||||||||||
| 2nd row | Bronze Star | Purple Heart w/ 1 Oak leaf cluster | Army Good Conduct Medal, 2 awards | ||||||||||
| 3rd row | American Campaign Medal | European–African–Middle Eastern Campaign Medal w/ 2 Service stars | World War II Victory Medal | ||||||||||
| 4th row | National Defense Service Medal | Korean Service Medal w/ 1 silver and 1 bronze Service star | French Croix de Guerre | ||||||||||
| 5th row | War Merit Cross (Italy) | United Nations Korea Medal | Korean War Service Medal | ||||||||||
| Badge | Marksmanship badge with rifle, bayonet, and pistol component bars | ||||||||||||
| Unit awards | Army Presidential Unit Citation w/ 1 Oak leaf cluster | Republic of Korea Presidential Unit Citation | |||||||||||
Mendoza was born on July 15, 1922, in Miami, Arizona, the eldest of 11 children. He married Alice Gaona in August 1944, two months before he was drafted into the army. They had four children together.[9] [10] After his military service Mendoza worked odd jobs as a handy man, until he became a foreman at the Palo Verde Generating Station. He retired in 1986 due to ill health.