George Benjamin , Jr . George Benjamin , Jr . , ( April 24 , 1919 – December 22 , 1944 ) was a United States Army soldier and a posthumous recipient of the U . S . military ' s highest decoration , the Medal of Honor , for his actions during the Philippines campaign of World War II . Biography . Benjamin was born in Philadelphia , Pennsylvania , and later moved to New Jersey . After graduating from Woodbury High School in Woodbury , New Jersey , he joined the Army from nearby Carneys Point in August 1943 . By December 21 , 1944 , Benjamin was serving in the Philippines as a private first class with Company A of the 306th Infantry Regiment , 77th Infantry Division . On that day , he was severely wounded while leading an assault against a strongly defended Japan ese position on the island of Leyte . After being evacuated to an aid station , he conveyed valuable information regarding the disposition of the Japanese emplacement to his superiors . He died of his wounds the next day . For these actions , he was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor six months later , on June 28 , 1945 . He is one of only two Medal of Honor recipients from Gloucester County , New Jersey . Aged 25 at his death , Benjamin was buried at the Manila American Cemetery and Memorial in the Philippines . On July 4 , 1995 to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the end of World War II , a memorial was erected in Woodbury , New Jersey , Benjamin ' s home town . It was also during this date that the George Benjamin Jr . Memorial 5K was inaugurated . Medal of Honor citation . Benjamin , George " Rank and organization : " Private First Class , U . S . Army , Company A , 306th Infantry , 77th Infantry Division " Place and date : " Leyte , Philippine Islands , December 21 , 1944 " Entered service at : " Carneys Point , New Jersey " Born : " Philadelphia , PA " Citation : " He was a radio operator , advancing in the rear of his company as it engaged a well - defended Japanese strong point holding up the progress of the entire battalion . When a rifle platoon supporting a light tank hesitated in its advance , he voluntarily and with utter disregard for personal safety left his comparatively secure position and ran across bullet - whipped terrain to the tank , waving and shouting to the men of the platoon to follow . Carrying his bulky radio and armed only with a pistol , he fearlessly penetrated intense machinegun and rifle fire to the enemy position , where he killed 1 of the enemy in a foxhole and moved on to annihilate the crew of a light machinegun . Heedless of the terrific fire now concentrated on him , he continued to spearhead the assault , killing 2 more of the enemy and exhorting the other men to advance , until he fell mortally wounded . After being evacuated to an aid station , his first thought was still of the American advance . Overcoming great pain he called for the battalion operations officer to report the location of enemy weapons and valuable tactical information he had secured in his heroic charge . The unwavering courage , the unswerving devotion to the task at hand , the aggressive leadership of Pfc . Benjamin were a source of great and lasting inspiration to his comrades and were to a great extent responsible for the success of the battalion ' s mission .