Medal of Honor: Gary B. Beikirch – Vietnam War – April 1, 1970
Wounded once, then wounded again, he still refused treatment. He kept returning into the fire until his body finally gave out.
April 22, 2026
Name: Gary B. Beikirch
Rank: Sergeant
Branch: U.S. Army
War: Vietnam War
Unit: Company B, 5th Special Forces Group, 1st Special Forces
Date of Action: April 1, 1970
Location: Kontum Province, Republic of Vietnam
Summary of Action
On 1 April 1970, Sergeant Gary B. Beikirch was serving as a medical aidman with Detachment B-24, Company B, during the defense of Camp Dak Seang in Kontum Province.
The camp came under a fierce enemy assault launched from well-concealed positions surrounding the perimeter.
The bombardment and ground attack caused numerous casualties among the allied defenders.
Without hesitation and with complete disregard for his own safety, Beikirch moved through withering enemy fire to reach the wounded.
He administered first aid where men had fallen and helped carry them to the medical aid station.
During the battle, he was informed that a seriously wounded American officer lay in an exposed position.
Beikirch immediately ran through the hail of fire to reach him.
While carrying the officer back to safety, he was seriously wounded by fragments from an exploding enemy mortar shell.
Ignoring his own injuries, he refused treatment.
Instead, he left the relative safety of the bunker and returned to the battlefield in search of more wounded men.
He then found a critically injured South Vietnamese soldier.
As enemy fire continued, Beikirch dragged the man toward shelter while simultaneously administering mouth-to-mouth resuscitation to keep him alive.
During this rescue he was wounded a second time.
Still he refused medical care and continued searching for other casualties.
Only after he physically collapsed from his wounds did he allow himself to be treated.
Gary Beikirch’s total devotion to the lives of others, even at the risk of his own, upheld the highest traditions of the United States Army.
Medal of Honor Citation
BEIKIRCH, GARY B.
Citation:
For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity in action at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty. Sgt. Beikirch, medical aidman, Detachment B-24, Company B, distinguished himself during the defense of Camp Dak Seang. The allied defenders suffered a number of casualties as a result of an intense, devastating attack launched by the enemy from well-concealed positions surrounding the camp. Sgt. Beikirch, with complete disregard for his personal safety, moved unhesitatingly through the withering enemy fire to his fallen comrades, applied first aid to their wounds and assisted them to the medical aid station. When informed that a seriously injured American officer was lying in an exposed position, Sgt. Beikirch ran immediately through the hail of fire. Although he was wounded seriously by fragments from an exploding enemy mortar shell, Sgt. Beikirch carried the officer to a medical aid station. Ignoring his own serious injuries, Sgt. Beikirch left the relative safety of the medical bunker to search for and evacuate other men who had been injured. He was again wounded as he dragged a critically injured Vietnamese soldier to the medical bunker while simultaneously applying mouth-to-mouth resuscitation to sustain his life. Sgt. Beikirch again refused treatment and continued his search for other casualties until he collapsed. Only then did he permit himself to be treated. Sgt. Beikirch’s complete devotion to the welfare of his comrades, at the risk of his life are in keeping with the highest traditions of the military service and reflect great credit on him, his unit, and the U.S. Army.
