Myron F. Diduryk (July 15, 1938 – April 24, 1970) was an American

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the primary Land warfare, land service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is designated as the Army of the United States in the United States Constitution.Article II, section 2, clause 1 of th ...

major Major most commonly refers to: * Major (rank), a military rank * Academic major, an academic discipline to which an undergraduate student formally commits * People named Major, including given names, surnames, nicknames * Major and minor in musi ...

, who played a key role as an infantry company commander in the

Battle of Ia Drang The Battle of Ia Drang (, ; in English ) was the first major battle between the United States Army and the People's Army of Vietnam (PAVN), as part of the Pleiku campaign conducted early in the Vietnam War, at the eastern foot of the Chu Pong M ...

, the first major battle of the

Vietnam War The Vietnam War (1 November 1955 – 30 April 1975) was an armed conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia fought between North Vietnam (Democratic Republic of Vietnam) and South Vietnam (Republic of Vietnam) and their allies. North Vietnam w ...

. His exploits in that battle were described by

Hal Moore Harold Gregory Moore Jr. (February 13, 1922 – February 10, 2017) was a United States Army Lieutenant general (United States), lieutenant general and author. As a Lieutenant colonel (United States), lieutenant colonel, he commanded the 1st Bat ...

in, ''We Were Soldiers Once and Young''. Moore said that Diduryk was, "… the finest battlefield company commander I had ever seen, bar none." Diduryk was killed in action on his second tour in Vietnam.

Early life and education

Born in Mużyłów,

Tarnopol Voivodeship Tarnopol Voivodeship (; ) was an administrative region of Second Polish Republic, interwar Poland (1918–1939), created on 23 December 1920, with an area of 16,500 km2 and provincial capital in Tarnopol (now ''Ternopil'', Ukraine). The Voi ...

(today Muzhyliv in

western Ukraine Western Ukraine or West Ukraine (, ) refers to the western territories of Ukraine. There is no universally accepted definition of the territory's boundaries, but the contemporary Ukrainian administrative regions ( oblasts) of Chernivtsi, I ...

), in 1938, Diduryk emigrated to the United States with his parents in 1950. His family settled in

Somerville, New Jersey Somerville is a Borough (New Jersey), borough in and the county seat of Somerset County, New Jersey, Somerset County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey.Jersey City, New Jersey Jersey City is the List of municipalities in New Jersey, second-most populous

, he enrolled at Saint Peter's College in Jersey City, New Jersey, where he was a member of Company N-8 National Society of

Pershing Rifles The National Society of Pershing Rifles is a U.S. military-oriented honor society for college-level students founded in 1894 as a drill unit at the University of Nebraska–Lincoln. It is the oldest continuously operating U.S. college organizatio ...

and earned a Bachelor of Science degree in physics from Saint Peter's and was commissioned as a Regular

Army Officer An officer is a person who holds a position of authority as a member of an Military, armed force or Uniformed services, uniformed service. Broadly speaking, "officer" means a commissioned officer, a non-commissioned officer (NCO), or a warra ...

on June 5, 1960.

Career

Diduryk completed

Airborne School The United States Army Airborne School—widely known as Jump School—conducts the basic paratrooper (military parachutist) training for the United States Armed Forces. It is operated by the 1st Battalion (Airborne), 507th Infantry, United S ...

and

Ranger School The Ranger School is a 62-day United States Army small unit tactics and leadership course that develops functional skills directly related to units whose mission is to engage the enemy in close combat and direct fire battles. Ranger training w ...

at Fort Benning, Georgia. He served tours of duty at Fort Benning and in Germany. He was married and the father of two children. During Myron Diduryk's first tour of duty in Vietnam he served as the company commander of Bravo Company 2nd Battalion, 7th Cavalry Regiment,

1st Cavalry Division (Airmobile) 1st Cavalry, 1st Cavalry Division, 1st Cavalry Brigade, 1st Cavalry Regiment or 1st Cavalry Battalion may refer to: Armies * 1st Cavalry Army, Soviet Union Corps * I Cavalry Corps (Grande Armée) * I Cavalry Corps (German Empire) * 1st Cavalry ...

. In November 1965 he played a key role in the Battle of the Ia Drang, the first major battle of the Vietnam War. His exploits in that battle are described by General Hal Moore in his best-selling book, We Were Soldiers Once and Young ... in which Moore describes Diduryk as "… the finest battlefield company commander I had ever seen, bar none." Diduryk was subsequently promoted to major and returned to Vietnam in October 1969, as the operations officer of the 2nd Battalion, 12th Cavalry, 1st Cavalry Division. On April 24, 1970, his battalion commander ordered his command helicopter to land and check out a North Vietnamese soldier who had been killed by the door gunner. As Major Diduryk emerged from his helicopter, he was fatally shot in the stomach by ambushing North Vietnamese soldiers. Diduryk is buried at

Fort Benning Main Post Cemetery Fort Moore Main Post Cemetery is a military cemetery at Fort Benning in Georgia. Over 10,000 United States Army soldiers and their dependents have been interred at the 8.38-acre facility since it was established in 1922. The first recorded interm ...

, Georgia. The Ukrainian American Veterans Post 30 in

South River, New Jersey South River is a borough in Middlesex County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2020 United States census, the borough's population was 16,118, an increase of 110 (+0.7%) from the 2010 census count of 16,008, which in turn reflecte ...

was named in his honor. Diduryk's name is listed on Panel 11W, Line 44 of the Vietnam Veteran's Memorial Wall in

Washington, DC Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and Federal district of the United States, federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from ...

. There is also a paver stone dedicated in his memory at the New Jersey Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Holmdel, N.J.

Awards and decorations

Silver Star The Silver Star Medal (SSM) is the United States Armed Forces' third-highest military decoration for valor in combat. The Silver Star Medal is awarded primarily to members of the United States Armed Forces for gallantry in action against a ...

With Oak Leaf Cluster *

Bronze Star The Bronze Star Medal (BSM) is a United States Armed Forces decoration awarded to members of the United States Armed Forces for either heroic achievement, heroic service, meritorious achievement, or meritorious service in a combat zone. Wh ...

With Oak Leaf Cluster and

"V" Device A "V" device is a metal Letter case, capital Letter (alphabet), letter "V" with serifs which, when worn on #Decorations eligible for the "V" device, certain decorations awarded by the United States Armed Forces, distinguishes a decoration award ...

Purple Heart The Purple Heart (PH) is a United States military decoration awarded in the name of the president to those wounded or killed while serving, on or after 5 April 1917, with the U.S. military. With its forerunner, the Badge of Military Merit, ...

Air Medal The Air Medal (AM) is a military decoration of the United States Armed Forces. It was created in 1942 and is awarded for single acts of heroism or meritorious achievement while participating in aerial flight. Criteria The Air Medal was establi ...

23rd Award * Army Commendation Medal ribbon

Army Commendation Medal The Commendation Medal is a mid-level Awards and decorations of the United States Armed Forces, United States military decoration presented for sustained acts of heroism or meritorious service. Each branch of the United States Armed Forces issu ...

Army of Occupation Medal The Army of Occupation Medal was a military award of the United States military which was established by the United States War Department on 5 April 1946. The medal was created in the aftermath of the Second World War to recognize those who had ...

National Defense Service Medal The National Defense Service Medal (NDSM) is a service award of the United States Armed Forces established by President Dwight D. Eisenhower in 1953. It was awarded to every member of the U.S. Armed Forces who served during any one of four s ...

Vietnam Service Medal The Vietnam Service Medal was a military award of the United States Armed Forces established on 8 July 1965 by order of President Lyndon B. Johnson. The medal is awarded to recognize service during the Vietnam War by all members of the U.S. ...

5 Campaigns *

Vietnam Gallantry Cross The Republic of Vietnam Gallantry Cross also known as the Vietnamese Gallantry Cross or Vietnam Cross of Gallantry () is a military decoration of the former Government of South Vietnam (Republic of Vietnam). The medal was created on August 15, 1 ...

with Palm *

Republic of Vietnam Campaign Medal The Republic of Vietnam Campaign Medal, also known as the Vietnam Campaign Medal (), is a South Vietnamese military campaign medal which was created in 1949 and awarded during the First Indochina War. During the Vietnam War (Second Indochina War ...

Senior Parachute Badge * Combat_Infantry_Badge

Combat Infantryman's Badge The Combat Infantryman Badge (CIB) is a United States Army military decoration. The badge is awarded to infantrymen and Special Forces (United States Army), Special Forces soldiers in the rank of Colonel (United States), colonel and below, wh ...

Ranger Tab

References

External links

Saint Peters College biographyTogether We Served biography
{{DEFAULTSORT:Diduryk, Myron F. 1938 births 1970 deaths People from Tarnopol Voivodeship Polish emigrants to the United States Pershing Riflemen United States Army officers Recipients of the Silver Star American recipients of the Gallantry Cross (Vietnam) Battle of Ia Drang United States Army personnel killed in the Vietnam War