The President of the United States of America, in the name of Congress, takes pleasure in presenting the Medal of Honor to Technical Sergeant Russell Dunham, United States Army, for conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at risk of life above and beyond the call of duty while serving with Company I, 3d Battalion, 30th Infantry Regiment, 3d Infantry Division. At about 1430 hours on 8 January 1945, during an attack on Hill 616, near Kaysersberg, France, Technical Sergeant Dunham single-handedly assaulted three enemy machineguns. Wearing a white robe made of a mattress cover, carrying 12 carbine magazines and with a dozen hand grenades snagged in his belt, suspenders, and buttonholes, Technical Sergeant Dunham advanced in the attack up a snow-covered hill under fire from two machineguns and supporting riflemen. His platoon 35 yards behind him, Technical Sergeant Dunham crawled 75 yards under heavy direct fire toward the timbered emplacement shielding the left machinegun. As he jumped to his feet ten yards from the gun and charged forward, machinegun fire tore through his camouflage robe and a rifle bullet seared a 10-inch gash across his back sending him spinning 15 yards down hill into the snow. When the indomitable sergeant sprang to his feet to renew his one man assault, a German egg grenade landed beside him. He kicked it aside, and as it exploded five yards away, shot and killed the German machine gunner and assistant gunner. His carbine empty, he jumped into the emplacement and hauled out the third member of the gun crew by the collar. Although his back wound was causing him excruciating pain and blood was seeping through his white coat, Technical Sergeant Dunham proceeded 50 yards through a storm of automatic and rifle fire to attack the second machinegun. Twenty-five yards from the emplacement he hurled two grenades, destroying the gun and its crew; then fired down into the supporting foxholes with his carbine dispatching and dispersing the enemy riflemen. Although his coat was so thoroughly blood-soaked that he was a conspicuous target against the white landscape, Technical Sergeant Dunham again advanced ahead of his platoon in an assault on enemy positions farther up the hill. Coming under machinegun fire from 65 yards to his front, while rifle grenades exploded ten yards from his position, he hit the ground and crawled forward. At 15 yards range, he jumped to his feet, staggered a few paces toward the timbered machinegun emplacement and killed the crew with hand grenades. An enemy rifleman fired at pointblank range, but missed him. After killing the rifleman, Technical Sergeant Dunham drove others from their foxholes with grenades and carbine fire. Killing nine Germans–wounding seven and capturing two–firing about 175 rounds of carbine ammunition, and expending 11 grenades, Technical Sergeant Dunham, despite a painful wound, spearheaded a spectacular and successful diversionary attack.