#VeteranOfTheDay Army Veteran John N. Reese, Jr.

John N. Reese, Jr., of the Choctaw tribe, was born in Oklahoma in 1923. He enlisted in the U.S. Army in late 1942, and served in Company B, 148th Infantry Regiment, 37th Infantry Division in 1945.

On Feb. 9, 1945, Reese fought for the Paco Railroad Station in Manila. The 21-year-old private and one of his comrades charged ahead of the rest of the unit in an effort to dislodge the 300 Japanese defenders inside the station. In what historian Ian Toll deemed “an hour of extraordinary combat,” Reese and his companion single-handedly took out over 80 enemy combatants before running low on ammunition. Reese died while pulling back to the main line.

Such extraordinary heroism earned him a posthumous Medal of Honor. His citation reads, in part: “By his gallant determination in the face of tremendous odds, aggressive fighting spirit, and extreme heroism at the cost of his life, Pfc. Reese materially aided the advance of our troops in Manila and providing a lasting inspiration to all those with whom he served.”

Reese was buried in Section 2, Site 1259-E at Fort Gibson National Cemetery, Oklahoma. Honor his service at his Veterans Legacy Memorial page.

This #VeteranOfTheDay is from the Veterans Legacy Program. To learn more about the VLP, our partnerships and how we share the stories of Veterans in our national cemeteries, please visit the VLP webpage.