Iwo Jima Purple Hearts: Common Men, Uncommon Valor

In 1938, Betzala boarded the U.S.S. Henderson bound for Shanghai, China, where he was assigned to Company B, 1st Battalion, 4th Marines. He would remain with the unit until September 1940, when he returned to the United States. Having served his initial four-year enlistment, Betzala left the Marine Corps briefly but reenlisted on 15 December 1941 after the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor.

Promoted (due to his prior service) to the rank of sergeant, Betzala would spend 1943 in the United States training Marines and later served as a guard at the Navy Building, Washington, D.C. As manpower shortages become more evident in the Corps in 1944, Betzala was transferred to the 5th Marine Division's 3d Battalion, 26th Marines (3/26), at Camp Pendleton, California. His unit deployed to the Pacific in October 1944, in preparation for the assault on Iwo Jima.

When the Marine Corps deactivated the 1st Marine Parachute Regiment, then-2ndLt Hertzog (along with other Paramarine officers) helped to form the initial cadre for the 5th Marine Division. Hertzog participated in the invasion of Iwo Jima as a member of the 26th Marines.

Sgt Haffey was stationed on the island with the 6th Defense Battalion when the Japanese launched their attack on Pearl Harbor.

Haffey stated in a newspaper interview in March 1943, while home on leave, "I didn't think much about war. We did our work, trolled for tuna fish…and listened to the radio news. Then came Pearl Harbor and we knew we were in for it.”

Haffey recalled that activity increased in June 1942 when the Japanese moved in, “with every expectation of taking over.” The Marines held the Japanese off and Haffey returned to the United States in March 1943.

Haffey was not home for long before he was promoted to sergeant and assigned to Weapons Company, 24th Marines. He once again left for the Pacific in January 1944. Haffey participated in actions on Saipan and Tinian from June through August 1944.

On 23 February 1945, just four days into the battle, PFC Michels was a member of the combat patrol that placed the first American flag atop Mount Suribachi. They met no resistance in their climb, but upon reaching the summit, several enemy grenades were thrown at them by Japanese soldiers from nearby caves. The enemy forces were eliminated with the help of Marine flamethrowers.

This was an unusual time for a Marine to have served in Iceland since it was after the better-known tenure of the 1st Provisional Brigade. In this role, PFC Evans would have helped guard the Naval Base and later served with the Iceland Base Command of the U.S. Army as it helped build up men and material for the invasion of Europe.

In February 1945, Clayton Rockmore landed on Iwo Jima as the CO of “I” Company, 3/21. On 23 February, he led a direct attack against the main line of Japanese defenses. Fighting fiercely through the enemy pillboxes, trenches, barbed wire, artillery, and mortars, his company successfully pressed the assault to the island’s airfield, even after Rockmore was struck and killed by gunfire.

As part of the Fifth Amphibious Corps, Wormser landed on Iwo Jima on D-Day, 19 February 1945. He wrote of his experiences in a personal memoir:

Sgt Wormser, alongside PFC William Ohlmacher and another unidentified Marine, tried to dig a foxhole but the volcanic sand made the task impossible because the holes refilled as quickly as they were dug. The Marines took cover in a nearby shell hole with just enough room for the three of them to lie down. Wormser was in the middle with Ohlmacher behind him. Just as soon as they lay down, the Marine in front of Wormser was hit; Wormser patched him up and continued to take cover.

Suddenly, Wormser felt a sharp sting in his backside and then in his hip; he was alive, but bleeding badly. Several minutes passed and as more shells exploded around the three Marines, Wormser felt a more intense sledgehammer-like blow to his left foot. As he sat up to examine his injury, he saw what remained of Ohlmacher, tattered pieces of a uniform lay where the young Marine once had. His friend had taken a mortar round to the back and was killed instantly.

Following basic training at Parris Island, Cpl Jeeter was assigned to Company K, 3d Battalion, 25th Marines, and left for the Pacific in January 1943. Jeeter saw combat at Roi-Namur (Marshall Islands), Saipan and Tinian, and finally, on Iwo Jima.

On 12 March 1945, Jeeter was leading a Rifle Group when it came under fire from the Japanese. He spotted four wounded Marines within enemy lines. Risking his own life, Jeeter rescued the Marines, pulling each one of them to safety. While doing so, Jeeter received several wounds that resulted in his death on 14 March 1945; just six months shy of his 20th birthday.

By the summer of 1944, PFC Huntoon was attached to the 61st Replacement Battalion in preparation for combat operations in the Pacific. Ultimately joining Company K, 3d Battalion, 9th Marines, 3rd Marine Division, Huntoon was promoted to the rank of private first class and landed with his unit on 24 February 1945 between RED and YELLOW beaches as a part of the Reserve forces committed to Iwo Jima.

On 7 March 1945, General Erskine ordered the 9th Marines to make a major attack. The assault was spearheaded by Huntoon’s 3d Battalion. Their objective was to capture Hill 362C, the last obstacle between the 3rd Marine Division and the sea. The Marines moved out with a smokescreen to cover their advance. For thirty minutes the attack made progress as the Marines bypassed enemy positions, but an observant machine gunner opened fire on their left flank.

The Japanese began to mount increasing resistance. At 0600, 3/9’s officers radioed that they were at the top of Hill 362C; many enemy positions had been eliminated and casualties were light. Erskine was delighted. The euphoria was short-lived, however, as 3/9 realized that they were in fact on Hill 331, not Hill 362C, which was another 250 yards away. The unit decided to press forward under intense fire. Despite heavy casualties, by 1400, Richard Huntoon’s K Company had reached its objective.

By 1945, PFC Traub was assigned to Headquarters and Service Battery, 2nd Battalion, 13th Marines, 5th Marine Division. Traub's assignment to 2/13 coincided with their participation in the Battle of Iwo Jima. This would be his first and last action in the Pacific War.

Promoted to the rank of corporal in April 1946, Traub was transferred from the Marine Barracks Brooklyn to the Provisional Marine Guard, United Nations. This unique unit guarded the United Nations Headquarters from 1947 to 1950, before it was disbanded.