The President of the United States of America takes pleasure in presenting the Navy and Marine Corps Medal to Seaman First Class Sam Caponio, United States Navy, for heroic conduct during World War II. As a member of an Armed Guard crew, Seaman First Class Caponio’s ship was torpedoed and his fingers were badly mangled while he was getting into a life boat. Suffering acutely from exposure and the emergency amputation of two fingers, he managed to send out blinker distress signals to a lighthouse before he collapsed from pain and loss of blood.