"He distinguished himself by conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity above
and beyond the call of duty on 23 and 24 December 1944, near Bennwihr,
France. Early in the attack S/Sgt. Kefurt jumped through an opening in a
wall to be confronted by about 15 Germans. Although outnumbered he
opened fire, killing 10 and capturing the others. During a seesaw battle
which developed he effectively adjusted artillery fire on an enemy tank close to his position although exposed to small arms
fire. When night fell he maintained a 3-man outpost in the center of
the town in the middle of the German positions and successfully fought
off several hostile patrols attempting to penetrate our lines. Assuming
command of his platoon the following morning he led it in hand-to-hand
fighting through the town until blocked by a tank. Using rifle grenades
he forced surrender of its crew and some supporting infantry. He then
continued his attack from house to house against heavy machine gun and
rifle fire. Advancing against a strong point that was holding up the
company, his platoon was subjected to a strong counterattack and
infiltration to its rear. Suffering heavy casualties in their exposed
position the men remained there due to S/Sgt. Kefurt's personal example
of bravery, determination and leadership. He constantly exposed himself
to fire by going from man to man to direct fire. During this time he
killed approximately 15 of the enemy at close range. Although severely
wounded in the leg he refused first aid and immediately resumed
fighting. When the forces to his rear were pushed back 3 hours later, he
refused to be evacuated, but, during several more counterattacks moved
painfully about under intense small arms and mortar fire, stiffening the
resistance of his platoon by encouraging individual men and by his own
fire until he was killed. As a result of S/Sgt. Kefurt's gallantry the
position was maintained."
From S/Sgt. Kefurt's Medal of Honor citation, awarded in 1948.
May you be at peace,
Brian & Mel
Kefurt Fitness Center at Fort Benning, GA.
No comments:
Post a Comment