By: Reynaldo Leanos Jr.
Daniel Fernandez, 21, an Army Specialist Fourth Class was on a mission in Vietnam when he and others were trying to save a wounded soldier. When they came under enemy fire, Fernandez jumped over a wounded sergeant and onto a grenade to protect others, sacrificing his own life to save them.
Fernandez is one of about 60 Latinos who have been awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor, the highest award given to a person serving in the Armed Services for bravery in action against an enemy force.
Fernandez and five other Latino recipients of the Congressional Medal of Honor who have ties to New Mexico are being honored at an exhibit called “New Mexico Hometown Heroes: Hispanic Congressional Medal of Honor Recipients” at the National Hispanic Cultural Center in Albuquerque, New Mexico. The exhibit, which opened Thursday, celebrates their lives and service in the Armed Forces.
The exhibit honors World War II veterans Private Joseph Martínez, Private José Valdez and Master Sgt. Alejandro Ruíz. It also celebrates Vietnam War veterans Fernandez and Louis Rocco, and Leroy Petry of Operation Enduring Freedom.
All the recipients are deceased except Petry, who lost his hand when he picked up a live grenade to ensure it wouldn’t explode and hurt or kill his fellow Rangers, according to his citation.
Click here to read the entire story. This story originally ran on NBC News / NBC Latino on
November 9, 2018.
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