"In charge of the leading squad of Company E, he heroically spearheaded
the attack in furious house-to-house fighting. Early on 30 January, he
led his men through intense mortar and small arms fire in repeated
assaults on barricaded houses. Although twice wounded, once when struck
in the back, the second time when a mortar shell fragment passed through
his left hand and rendered it practically useless, he refused to
withdraw and continued to lead his squad after hasty dressings had been
applied. His serious wounds forced him to fire his rifle with 1 hand,
resting it on rubble or over his left forearm. To blast his way forward
with hand grenades,
he set aside his rifle to pull the pins with his teeth while grasping
the missiles with his good hand. Despite these handicaps, he created
tremendous havoc in the enemy ranks. He rushed l house, killing 3 of the
enemy and clearing the way for his squad to advance. On approaching the
next house, he was fired upon from an upstairs window. He killed the
sniper with a single shot and similarly accounted for another enemy
soldier who ran from the cellar of the house. As darkness came, he
assigned his men to defensive positions, never leaving them to seek
medical attention. At dawn the next day, the squad resumed the attack,
advancing to a point where heavy automatic and small arms fire stalled
them. Despite his wounds, S/Sgt. Kelley moved out alone, located an
enemy gunner dug in under a haystack and killed him with rifle fire. He
returned to his men and found that a German machine gun, from a
well-protected position in a neighboring house, still held up the
advance. Ordering the squad to remain in comparatively safe positions,
he valiantly dashed into the open and attacked the position
single-handedly through a hail of bullets. He was hit several times and
fell to his knees when within 25 yards of his objective; but he summoned
his waning strength and emptied his rifle into the machine gun nest,
silencing the weapon before he died. The superb courage, aggressiveness,
and utter disregard for his own safety displayed by S/Sgt. Kelley
inspired the men he led and enabled them to penetrate the last line of
defense held by the enemy in the village of Kesternich."
From S/Sgt. Kelley's Medal of Honor citation, awarded on September 10, 1945.
May you be at peace,
Brian & Mel
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