Willard D. Purdy

The Distinguished Service Cross is presented to Willard D. Purdy, Sergeant, U.S. Army, for extraordinary heroism in action near Hegenbach, Alsace, July 4, 1918. Upon returning with his patrol after a reconnaissance on the enemy’s line, Sergeant Purdy was calling the roll of his men and collecting their hand grenades, when the pin of one of the grenades became disengaged. Seeing that the grenade could not be thrown away without injuring some of the men, Sergeant Purdy called on them all to run, while he picked up three of the grenades, and, bending over, held them against his stomach. The grenades exploded, killing Sergeant Purdy instantly, but his presence of mind and self-sacrificing act saved the lives of his comrades.