The President of the United States of America takes pleasure in presenting the Silver Star to Captain Robert P. Neuffer (MCSN: 0-7920), United States Marine Corps, for conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity while a member of Company D, First Marine Raider Battalion, during action against enemy Japanese forces on Guadalcanal, Solomon Islands, on the night of October 8, 1942. When the positions of the Marines along the Matanikau River were fiercely attacked by the enemy, Captain Neuffer, demonstrating exceptional leadership and initiative, successfully withdrew his company, with the exception of one platoon which was cut off by the Japanese. Establishing a secondary defensive position, intact in the darkness of the jungle, he was able to withstand the enemy assault for the remainder of the night and, by so doing, to secure the right flank of the battalion and hasten the eventual destruction of a stubborn and persistent foe.