Global War

Baldwin enlisted in the Army in August 1943. He was a radioman and forward observer for a 4.2 inch mortar platoon when he landed on the island of Okinawa in April 1945. On April 26, while directing fire on enemy caves, Baldwin suffered multiple wounds, one a broken shoulder and another that cost him his left leg.

Cisneros joined the Army in 1943 when he was 19 years old. He wanted to be a pilot, but received training as a cryptographer to encode and decode secret messages. In 1944, he deployed to the Pacific aboard an Army troopship with his unit, arriving there four months before the end of the war. He attended college using the GI Bill and held several government jobs before completing law school in 1957.

MacDonald commanded an infantry rifle company during the Battle of the Bulge. Ordered to hold a vital crossroads, his company held off several attacks by German infantry. After the war, MacDonald published  “Company Commander,” widely considered to be the classic account of infantry combat in World War II.

Perry led an 81 mm mortar squad in the 366th Infantry. After providing airfield security in North Africa, the 366th moved to Italy where they fought in the battle for the Cinquale Canal in February 1945 and was disbanded a month later. Perry then transferred to the 226th Engineer General Service Regiment, which redeployed to build airfields in the Pacific theater.

In September 1942, while attending the University of Michigan, Bursian enlisted in the U.S. Army Air Forces. He was an aircraft engineering crew chief with the 330th Airdrome Squadron. In June 1945, the squadron moved to Myitkyina, Burma. Bursian received the Soldier’s Medal for saving a fellow Soldier from drowning in the Irrawaddy River.