Maximo Yabes First Sergeant Maximo Yabes ( January 29 , 1932 – February 26 , 1967 ) born in Lodi , California , was a United States Army soldier who posthumous ly received the Medal of Honor — the United States ' highest military decoration — for his actions near Phu Hoa Dong in the Republic of Vietnam during the Vietnam War . Yabes distinguished himself when he used his body as a shield to protect others in a bunker , moved two wounded men to a safer position where they could be given medical treatment and destroyed an enemy machine gun position before being mortally wounded . Early years . Yabes was born in Lodi , California , and at a young age moved with his family to Oakridge , Oregon where he received his primary and secondary education . In 1950 , he dropped out of Oakridge High School and joined the United States Army . Vietnam War . By 1967 , Yabes was a First Sergeant with a total of 15 years in the Army . He was assigned to Company A , 4th Battalion , 9th Infantry , of the 25th Infantry Division which found itself in the Republic of Vietnam . The division had been stationed at Cu Chi , a village northwest of Saigon since January 1966 . Yabes ' company — Alpha Company — was assigned to protect a squad of Army engineers whose assignment was to bulldoze a swath between the village and a plantation . The objective of this assignment was to deny the enemy ambushers and sniper s the protective cover of the lush jungles . On February 26 , 1967 , waves of Viet Cong , attacked Company A ' s position , blowing whistles and laying down deadly automatic weapon s fire . The Viet Cong , who penetrated the barbed wire perimeter , hurled grenades towards the command bunker . Yabes ran inside the bunker and covered its occupants with his body , all the while receiving wounds from numerous grenade fragments . Yabes then moved to another bunker and with a grenade launcher fired upon the enemy , halting a further penetration of the perimeter . Yabes then assisted two fallen comrades before he noticed an enemy machinegun within the perimeter which threatened the whole position . Yabes then proceeded to attack the enemy machine gun crew . He was able to kill the entire crew before falling mortally wounded . President Lyndon B . Johnson , presented Yabes ' wife and children with the Medal of Honor in a ceremony held at the White House . Medal of Honor citation . MAXIMO YABES " Rank and organization : " First Sergeant , U . S . Army , Company A , 4th Battalion , 9th Infantry , 25th Infantry Division . " Place and date : " Near Phu Hoa Dong , Republic of Vietnam , February 26 , 1967 . " Entered service at : " Eugene , Oregon " Born : " January 29 , 1932 , Lodi , California . Citation : Honors . First Sergeant Maximo Yabes was buried with full military honors at Fort Logan National Cemetery in Denver , Colorado . Dozens of individuals , businesses and organizations in Oakridge , Oregon , donated time , money , labor and supplies to build a memorial to honor Yabes . They hired sculptor Tim Outman to create the memorial which features a fountain , a flag pole and a bronze bust with the likeness of Yabes set on a granite pedestal . Engraved on the base are the details of Yabes ' Medal of Honor exploits . The memorial is located in Oakridge in the Greenwaters Park . Greenwaters Park is located on the east side of Oakridge , south of highway 58 . The city of El Paso , Texas also honored Yabes by naming an avenue after him . His name can be found on panel 15E , line 102 of the Vietnam Memorial Wall in Washington , D . C . Awards and recognitions . Among Maximo Yabes ' decorations and medals were the following : Badges Foreign unit decorations Further reading . References to First Sergeant Maximo Yabes exploits can be found in the following books :