Ray E. Eubanks | |
Birth Date: | 6 February 1922 |
Birth Place: | Snow Hill, North Carolina, U.S. |
Death Place: | Noemfoor, Dutch New Guinea |
Placeofburial: | Westview Cemetery, Kinston, North Carolina |
Placeofburial Label: | Place of burial |
Allegiance: | United States |
Branch: | United States Army |
Serviceyears: | 1942 - 1944 |
Rank: | Sergeant |
Unit: | 503rd Parachute Infantry Regiment |
Battles: | World War II |
Awards: | Medal of Honor |
Ray E. Eubanks (February 6, 1922 - July 23, 1944) was a United States Army soldier and a recipient of the United States military's highest decoration — the Medal of Honor — for his actions in World War II.
Eubanks joined the Army from La Grange, North Carolina in 1942,[1] and by July 23, 1944, was serving as a Sergeant in Company D, 503rd Parachute Infantry Regiment. On that day, on the island of Noemfoor in Dutch New Guinea, Sgt. Eubanks single-handedly assaulted an enemy position with a Browning Automatic Rifle (BAR). Although he was wounded and his BAR disabled during his approach, he nevertheless charged the position, using his gun as a club to kill several Japanese soldiers until he was himself killed. For these actions, he was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor eight months later, on March 29, 1945.
Eubanks, aged 22 at his death, was buried in Westview Cemetery, Kinston, North Carolina.
Sergeant Eubanks' official Medal of Honor citation reads: