Milfred Harold Dingman

The President of the United States takes pride in presenting the Distinguished Service Cross (Posthumously) to Milfred Harold Dingman (RA55020025), Sergeant First Class, U.S. Army, for extraordinary heroism in connection with military operations involving conflict with an armed hostile force in the Republic of Vietnam, while serving with Company C, 3d Battalion, 12th Infantry, 4th Infantry Division. Sergeant First Class Dingman distinguished himself by exceptionally valorous actions on 11 March 1969 as a platoon sergeant during a combat mission approximately twenty kilometers west of Polei Kleng, Kontum Province. An estimated company of North Vietnamese equipped with grenades, small arms and rockets unleashed a vicious attack and threatened to overrun Sergeant Dingman’s platoon. He immediately organized his men and led them down the hill where he established an effective defensive perimeter. He then made repeated trips to the top of the hill to administer first aid to the wounded and rescue the casualties from under the hostile fusillade. Braving a hail of bullets, Sergeant Dingman next moved among his troops to provide encouragement and distribute ammunition. As he was returning fire from a threatened sector of the perimeter, he was killed by an exploding enemy rocket. Sergeant First Class Dingman’s extraordinary heroism and devotion to duty, at the cost of his life, were in keeping with the highest traditions of the military service and reflect great credit upon himself, his unit, and the United States Army.
Headquarters, US Army, Vietnam, General Orders No. 2223 (June 24, 1969)