JANUARY 20, 2025 – Army Tech. 4th Grade Laverne Parrish saved many lives as a medic during World War II. He was unable to save himself, but his remarkable efforts during the campaign to return the Philippines to Allied control led him to posthumously receive the Medal of Honor.
Parrish was born on July 16, 1918, in Knox City, Missouri, to Clatious and Weltha Parrish. He had a brother named Irwin.
The family moved to Pablo, Montana, in 1934. Parrish graduated from nearby Ronan High School in 1937. Afterward, he spent time farming with his father while also working at a local lumber mill.
In March 1941, Parrish joined the Washington Army National Guard. About a year and a half later, after the U.S. had joined World War II, his unit was activated, and Parrish was sent to Hawaii to train as a medical aidman. Soon after, his unit was deployed to the Pacific Theater as a medical detachment with the 161st Infantry, 25th Infantry Division. They saw combat in several major campaigns, including Guadalcanal and the Solomon Islands.
In January 1945, Parrish’s unit arrived on the island of Luzon to help Allied troops regain control of the Philippines from the Japanese. By Jan. 18, Parrish was with Company C in Binalonan. Amidst the fighting, he noticed two wounded soldiers who were under enemy fire. Without regard for his own safety, Parrish moved one of the men to cover, then ran across 25 yards of exposed ground to give aid to the second man.
About a week later, on the 24th, Company C was crossing an open field near San Manuel when they came under intense enemy fire that required them to withdraw to a ditch for cover. Parrish was busy treating casualties in the ditch when he saw two wounded men in the field.
Without hesitating, Parrish left the relative safety of the ditch and crawled forward through enemy fire to get to them. It took him two trips, but he brought each man to safety. Afterward, he aided 12 more men in the same field, crossing and recrossing the exposed area as it continued to be raked by hostile fire. Parrish was also able to help three more men get to the ditch.
Sadly, after treating nearly all the 37 men injured in his company during the fight, Parrish was hit by mortar fire and killed.
Parrish’s bravery and valor did not go unnoticed. On Aug. 2, 1945, his parents received the Medal of Honor on his behalf during what they requested be a small ceremony at Fort Missoula, Montana.
Parrish’s remains were returned to the U.S., and he was buried in Mountain View Cemetery in his hometown of Ronan.
The young soldier hasn’t been forgotten where he grew up or in the military medical community. In 1948, Ronan named an athletic field the Sergeant Laverne Parrish Memorial Field. In 1954, Parrish Road near Fort Sam Houston’s medical training center was renamed for him. In 2003, the Laverne Parrish Memorial Building at Fort Missoula, which houses the Rocky Mountain Museum of Military History, was also named in his honor.
By Katie Lange
DOD News