You can watch the Medal of Honor ceremony for James McCloughan streaming live on woodtv.com at 3 p.m.
WASHINGTON (WOOD) — Today, more than 48 years after he ignored his own wounds to save 11 lives, a veteran from South Haven will be awarded the nation’s most prestigious military decoration, the Medal of Honor.
These days, 71-year-old James McCloughan is well known in South Haven as a longtime teacher and coach. But before that, the southwest Michigan native served as a medic in the U.S. Army during the Vietnam War.
In May 1969, when he was 23, he and his company spent two days fighting enemy soldiers at the Battle of Nui Yon Hill. Even though Spc. McCloughan was hit by shrapnel from a rocket-propelled grenade during the first night, he insisted on remaining with his fellow soldiers — he was the only medic they had left.
“I knew that they were going to need me,” McCloughan told 24 Hour News 8 last year. “I wasn’t going to leave my men. Nope. I thought that would be my last day on Earth, though.”
He was hit again by shrapnel and took a bullet to the arm — stitching up the wound himself — but kept braving enemy fire to carry people to safety. In all, he’s credited with rescuing 10 soldiers and a Vietnamese interpreter over the course of 48 hours.
McCloughan already has several medals, including two Purple Hearts and two Bronze Stars.
This afternoon, he will be awarded the Medal of Honor. It will mark the first time President Donald Trump presents the medal.
>>Online: Medal of Honor website for McCloughan