While the campaign marked the first offensive victory for the Americans, it provided more than just a morale boost and a checking of Japanese aggression. This campaign illustrated the powerful synergy of American joint operations.

On August 23, 1945, high-ranking military officials and civilians gathered at the White House to watch President Harry Truman bestow the Medal of Honor among 28 veterans who served with valor during World War II.

News of the crushing Soviet victory at Stalingrad in February 1943 over the Third Reich and its satellite states struck the rest of Europe, indeed the globe, like a thunderbolt.

An Ace in the Jungle.

Joseph J. Foss was born on April 17, 1915, outside of Sioux Falls, South Dakota and became fascinated with flying at the age of 11 when he saw Charles Lindbergh on tour with his aircraft, the “Spirit of St. Louis”, at an airfield in Renner, South Dakota in 1927.

World War II saw an unprecedented level of inter-Allied cooperation that led to the formation of new staff organizations like the US Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) and the US-British Combined Chiefs of Staff (CCS).

During World War II, surgeons and medical assistants created new treatments and procedures in plastic surgery that are still used in modern practice. These techniques not only improved soldiers’ physical appearance, but also their morale, by restoring their sense of pride and confidence.

World War II ripped millions of men and women from their homes and hurled them around the globe. Americans like Charles Willis Davis discovered, though, under the most extreme circumstances, that they possessed incredible courage and ability.

Kenneth Newton Walker, Brigadier General, US Army Air Corps received the Medal of Honor for his actions during a fatal bombing mission over Rabaul, New Britain, on January 5, 1943.

Technician Fifth Grade Lewis Hall from Obetz, Ohio, was born March 2, 1895, and was 47 years old at the time of his action.

Born in Norwich, Connecticut, in 1913, William Fournier was raised in South Kingstown, Rhode Island.

James R. Hendrix was born on August 20, 1925, in the small town of Lepanto, Arkansas.

During the Battle of Buna, two soldiers of the 32nd Infantry Division went above and beyond the call of duty.