Corporal Anthony Peter Damato (March 28, 1922 – February 20, 1944) was a

United States Marine The United States Marine Corps (USMC), also referred to as the United States Marines or simply the Marines, is the maritime land force service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is responsible for conducting expeditionary ...

who received the

Medal of Honor The Medal of Honor (MOH) is the United States Armed Forces' highest Awards and decorations of the United States Armed Forces, military decoration and is awarded to recognize American United States Army, soldiers, United States Navy, sailors, Un ...

posthumous Posthumous may refer to: * Posthumous award, an award, prize or medal granted after the recipient's death * Posthumous publication, publishing of creative work after the author's death * Posthumous (album), ''Posthumous'' (album), by Warne Marsh, 1 ...

ly for his valor and sacrifice of life during

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. On the night of February 19–20, 1944 on Engebi Island in the

Marshall Islands The Marshall Islands, officially the Republic of the Marshall Islands, is an island country west of the International Date Line and north of the equator in the Micronesia region of the Northwestern Pacific Ocean. The territory consists of 29 c ...

, Corporal Damato sacrificed his life to save the lives of his fellow Marines.

Biography

Damato was born on March 28, 1922, in

Shenandoah, Pennsylvania Shenandoah is a borough (Pennsylvania), borough in Schuylkill County, Pennsylvania, Schuylkill County in the Coal Region of Pennsylvania. It is distinct from Shenandoah Heights, Pennsylvania, Shenandoah Heights, which is part of West Mahanoy Tow ...

. He was educated in the elementary and high schools of Shenandoah. Before enlistment, he was last employed as a truck driver. Damato enlisted in the

United States Marine Corps The United States Marine Corps (USMC), also referred to as the United States Marines or simply the Marines, is the maritime land force service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is responsible for conducting expeditionar ...

on January 8, 1942. He went to

Derry Derry, officially Londonderry, is the second-largest City status in the United Kingdom, city in Northern Ireland, and the fifth-largest on the island of Ireland. Located in County Londonderry, the city now covers both banks of the River Fo ...

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, in May of that year. During the first year of his enlistment, he distinguished himself, volunteering for special duty with a select invasion party that took part in the North African landings. He was advanced in rate for especially meritorious conduct in action while serving aboard ship at the port city of

Arzew Arzew or Arzeu (, ) is a seaport, port city in Algeria, 25 miles (40 km) from Oran. It is the capital of Arzew District, Oran Province. History Antiquity Like the rest of the Maghreb, the site of modern-day Arzew was originally in ...

Algeria Algeria, officially the People's Democratic Republic of Algeria, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It is bordered to Algeria–Tunisia border, the northeast by Tunisia; to Algeria–Libya border, the east by Libya; to Alger ...

, on November 8, 1942. Landing with an assault wave entering the port from seaward, he assisted in boarding and seizing vessels in the harbor, and ultimately the port itself. He returned to the United States in March 1943, and three months later, sailed for duty in the

Pacific The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean, or, depending on the definition, to Antarctica in the south, and is bounded by the cont ...

. Damato was serving with an assault company of the 2nd Battalion, 22nd Marines, 5th Amphibious Corps, on Engebi Island, Eniwetok Atoll,

when on the night of February 19–20, 1944, while in a foxhole with two companions, he threw himself upon an enemy

grenade A grenade is a small explosive weapon typically thrown by hand (also called hand grenade), but can also refer to a Shell (projectile), shell (explosive projectile) shot from the muzzle of a rifle (as a rifle grenade) or a grenade launcher. A mod ...

, absorbing the explosion with his body, resulting in his instant death. Corporal Damato was initially buried in the Temporary American Cemetery on Kiririan Island in the Marshall Islands. Later, his remains were reinterred in the National Cemetery of the Pacific in

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. Damato's brother, Captain Neil Damato, was killed in action over Germany in 1943 while serving in the US Army Air Corps.

Honors

On April 9, 1945, the tiny mining community of Shenandoah, Pennsylvania, turned out en masse to pay homage to Corporal Damato at the presentation ceremonies for the Medal of Honor. The presentation was made to his mother by Marine Corps Brigadier General M. C. Gregory at the J.W. Cooper High School, where Cpl Damato had been a student. The , a

Gearing-class destroyer The ''Gearing'' class was a series of 98 destroyers built for the U.S. Navy during and shortly after World War II. The ''Gearing'' design was a minor modification of the , whereby the hull was lengthened by at amidships, which resulted in mor ...

of the

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the naval warfare, maritime military branch, service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is the world's most powerful navy with the largest Displacement (ship), displacement, at 4.5 millio ...

, was named in honor of Corporal Damato. In June 2009, students from Shenandoah Valley High School began work on a 150-foot-long and up to 30-foot-high mural honoring Damato on the north wall of the American Legion post named after him. With assistance from local artist Martin Braukus, the mural was completed in December 2011.

Medal of Honor citation

The

President of the United States The president of the United States (POTUS) is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president directs the Federal government of the United States#Executive branch, executive branch of the Federal government of t ...

takes pride in presenting the MEDAL OF HONOR to for service as set forth in the following CITATION:

References

: * *

Biography

Honors

Medal of Honor citation

See also

References

Further reading