Hey, it's Memorial Day 2025, and this is a soldier's
story. As long as I'm alive, I will tell the
story of Sergeant Leroy Johnson. It's a story
worth telling, worth passing on. We need to be
reminded that freedom is never free. It's important
to remember stories of heroes who pay with their
lives. There is no better example of this than
Sergeant Leroy Johnson of Oakdale, Louisiana.
Since 1965 a bronze plaque has stood in the median
of Louisiana Highway 10 in the town of Oakdale.
This plaque summarizes the story of Sergeant
Leroy Johnson. The inscription on the plaque
ends with the wonderful words of Jesus from John
15 -13. Greater love has no one in this that
he lay down his life for his friends. This is
the story of Leroy Johnson. He was born December
6, 1920 near Caney Creek, Louisiana. His father
was a cartender. and his mother was busy rearing
a large family. Growing up, Leroy Johnson knew
what it was like to work hard and do the best
he could with what he had. Men like Leroy Johnson,
who later fought in our greatest war, grew up
during our nation's hardest time, the Great Depression.
I believe those hard years helped train the soldiers
who later won in Europe and the Pacific. Many
young men in this generation found work with
the civilian conservation corps. The CCC camps,
as they were called, gave these young men jobs
and some income, most of which was sent home
to their families. Most importantly, the CCC
gave young men a sense of self -respect and work
skills. Additionally, they learned to live and
work together, a trait that came in handy. during
the war years of the next decade. Leroy Johnson
worked in one of the many camps found throughout
the Kasachi forest in central Louisiana. In 1941,
prior to Pearl Harbor and the outbreak of war,
Leroy Johnson joined the Army. His departure
for boot camp marked the last time he would see
his family and be home in Allen Parish. Evidently
the Army agreed with him. From his letters, homes,
and comments from the men he served with, he
was born to be a soldier. They placed him in
the 32nd Infantry Division, and most of the men
of this division were from the northern states
of Wisconsin and Michigan. This division was
involved in the large -scale 1941 maneuvers,
then being held in the Forest of Louisiana. and
they plugged new southern enlistees like Johnson
into these northern units. From reading his service
letters and the history of this division, we
can track Leroy Johnson's travel over the next
few years of the war. He was part of the campaign
to take the eastern portion of New Guinea from
the Japanese. This invasion was to stop the Japanese
advance towards Australia. General MacArthur
stated his strategy when he said, we will protect
Australia from New Guinea. Reading the official
division history, the jungle fighting in this
large island was difficult, slow and deadly.
The Japanese troops were experienced jungle fighters,
and the 32nd Division, which would later spend
more days in actual combat than any other division
in war, was still green and untried. During this
time, Leroy Johnson was awarded his first Purple
Heart as well as two Silver Stars for gallantry.
He spent the next part of the year recuperating
in Australia from his wounds in the Guinea. The
32nd Division, or Red Air Brigade as it was called,
was part of the 1944 invasion of the Philippines.
The fighting with the Japanese on the many islands
of this country was tough and deadly. Company
K, in which Sergeant Johnson served, landed on
the eastern Philippine island of Letay. As they
fought to where inland, they reached an area
near the Filipino city of Limon. Company K's
commanding officer was Johnny B. Wax. Captain
Wax, also a Louisianaan, had been Johnson's commanding
officer for several months. Now the brave act
for which Leroy Johnson won a Congressional Medal
honor is best described in the following documents.
The first is an official Army citation of his
heroism on December 15, 1944. On 12 -15 -1944,
Sergeant Johnston was the squad leader of a nine
-man patrol sent to scout a ridge held by a well
-entrenched enemy force. Seeing the enemy in
machine -gun position, he ordered his men to
remain behind while he crawled within six yards
of the gun. One of the enemy crew jumped up and
prepared to man the weapon. Quickly withdrawn,
Sergeant Johnston rejoined his parole and reported
the situation to his commanding officer. ordered
to destroy the gun, which covered the approaches
to several other enemy positions. Johnson chose
three men, armed with hand grenades, and led
them to a point near the objective. After taking
partial cover behind the log, the men had knocked
out the gun and began assault when hostile troops
on the flank hurled several grenades. As he started
for cover, Sergeant Johnson saw two unexploded
grenades that had fallen near his men. Knowing
that his comrades would be wounded or killed
by the explosion, he deliberately threw himself
on the grenades and received the full charge
in his body. Fatally wounded by the blast, he
died soon afterwards. Through his outstanding
gallantry and sacrificing his life for his comrades,
Sergeant Johnson provided a shining example of
the highest traditions of the U .S. Army. This
is a letter sent to his mother Fenducos MacArthur,
General Headquarters, Southwest Pacific Area,
February 11, 1945, Mrs. Isaline Johnson, General
Delivery, Oakdale, Louisiana. Dear Mrs. Johnson,
In the death of your son, Sergeant Leroy Johnson,
you have my heartfelt sympathy. His service was
characterized by his devotion to our beloved
country. In his death, we have lost a gallant
comrade in arms. Very faithfully, Douglas MacArthur."
As commanding officer, Captain Johnny Wax sent
the following letter to Johnson's family. on
October 16, 1945. Dear Mr. and Mrs. Johnson,
Several times during the last few months I have
received good news, but none made me any happier
than when I picked up last Monday's tides pick
you in and learned that your son had been ordered
the Congressional Medal of Honor. He was a fine
boy and every inch a soldier. I was closely associated
with him for several months and always found
him cooperative and helpful in every way. I witnessed
the incident for which he received our country's
highest award. After receiving his fatal wound,
Leroy managed to get up, take about three staggering
steps, and reach about three of us who were rushing
up the hilltop to help him. We lowered him rapidly
down the hill. and he died within a few minutes.
Nothing can bring back his life, but I am sincerely
glad that a grateful nation could in some way,
even though small, show their appreciation for
what he did. His name and the sacrifice he made
will always stand out in a division as has been
outstanding throughout this war. Johnny B. Wax,
formerly CO Company K. Leroy Johnson received
a full military burial near Limon, Leyte, Philippines.
At a later date, his body was moved to the American
cemetery near Manila, the capital of the Philippines.
He is buried in plot C, row D, grave 79, along
with 17 ,000 206 other brave American soldiers.
Among this vast number of graves are the remains
of six other Congressional Medal of Honor recipients.
Think about Leroy Johnson's selfish act on that
day nearly 80 years ago. Several questions come
to my mind. First, when did he decide to fall
on those hand grenades? Was it a split -second
decision? Or maybe Leroy Johnson's act of laying
down his life to protect his three fellow soldiers
was not spontaneous. Could have been a decision,
or better yet, a commitment. He'd made days,
even weeks, maybe a month ago, of what he would
do in a situation like this. Maybe he had set
around a battlefield, campfire one night. The
men of his company eating cold sea rations, covering
mud. At that moment, he may have decided he would
gladly lay down his life for any of these men.
I wonder, do you look around at these men gathered
in a circle and think, if I need to, I'm willing
to die to save them? Then my second question
is maybe even more thought -provoking. What causes
a man to throw himself knowing sudden death awaits
on a hand grenade? In Sergeant Johnson's case,
he outranked the three men with him on his patrol.
Why was he, their leader, willing to die them?
My humble belief is that he did it because of
love. Now, soldiers of Johnson's group would
never use that term. They would have been embarrassed
at that term, I did it because I love you. But
I go back to the words of the plaque in Oakdale.
They are the words of Jesus, who also knew what
he was talking about when discussing self -sacrifice.
Greater love has no men in this, that he lay
down his life for his friends. I can think of
no better way to say it, and I will not attempt
to put it differently. Jesus' words and actions
speak for themselves. I guess one reason I've
always been fascinated by the story of Lee Roy
Johnson is how his actions in the Philippines
is a reminder of what Jesus did on the cross.
Once again, the leader, the ranking soldier in
his unit, saw that quick and decisive action
was required. He did not appoint a lesser soldier
to take action. He did it himself. Now he'd been
assigned his job by his commanding officer who
watched. from a short distance. He would finish
this assignment, no matter what it took, and
freely and willingly he took on the full brunt
of the enemy's fury. No one made him do it. He
did it on his own. Jesus freely sacrificed his
life. Although there is no need for it, he would
gladly do it again to save your soul, and a soul.
the part of a human that lives on when his physical
body dies and decays is invaluable and priceless
and whatever it takes. Once again, a soldier's
story of sacrifice, a soldier's story to remember
with both gratitude and respect.