Wilfred J. Picou

The President of the United States takes pleasure in presenting the Distinguished Service Cross to Wilfred J. Picou, Corporal, U.S. Army, for extraordinary heroism in connection with military operations against an armed enemy of the United Nations while serving as a machine-gunner with Company K, 3d Battalion, 38th Infantry Regiment, 2d Infantry Division. Corporal Picou distinguished himself by extraordinary heroism in action against enemy aggressor forces near Pungchon-ni, Korea, on 18 May 1951. On that date, Company K was subjected to a series of fanatical assaults by a numerically superior enemy force. During one of those assaults, Corporal Picou was driven from his position when an enemy grenade landed in his machine-gun emplacement. Immediately after the grenade exploded, three enemy soldiers took a position behind the machine-gun and began firing on the friendly troops. Unhesitatingly Corporal Picou charged through the hail of enemy machine-gun fire and single- handedly assaulted the enemy position with grenades, killing the three soldiers at the gun and two others who were nearby. His dauntless actions prevented the death of many of his comrades and removed a serious threat to the defense of his entire unit.
Headquarters, Eighth U.S. Army, Korea: General Orders No. 479 (June 30, 1951)