The President of the United States of America, authorized by Act of Congress, July 8, 1918 (amended by act of July 25, 1963), takes pleasure in presenting the Silver Star to Sergeant First Class Roland G. Marquis, Jr., United States Army, for gallantry in action on 21 January 1968, while serving with an indigenous platoon operating deep in enemy-held territory. The platoon, having been assigned the mission of a bomb damage assessment, was ambushed by approximately two NVA companies. When the machine gunner was killed, Sergeant Marquis, with the aid of another American, moved to the front where the machine gun and gunner were, exposing himself to intense fire, and brought the gun and body back to the patrol’s perimeter. Sergeant Marquis then moved to an exposed position and was instrumental in beating back three direct assaults by the enemy and inflicting heavy casualties on the enemy. Although Sergeant Marquis was wounded twice, in the leg and back, he continued to hold his exposed position under heavy enemy fire until the patrol was able to withdraw. Upon withdrawal, Sergeant Marquis personally covered his patrol, delaying the enemy from following the platoon-sized force for 15 minutes, which was long enough to break contact. When everyone had been moved from the scene of the ambush, Sergeant Marquis called in air strikes on his old position halting immediate pursuit by NVA units. Sergeant Marquis personally killed four NVA soldiers. During the exfiltration of his forces Sergeant Marquis helped load and guide the aircraft, going out on the last load only after the last man was out. Sergeant Marquis’ gallantry in action, devotion to duty, and complete disregard for his own personal safety are a credit to himself, his unit, and the United States Army.