The President of the United States of America, authorized by Act of Congress July 9, 1918, takes pleasure in presenting the Silver Star to Sergeant First Class William M. Stephen (ASN: RA-6359685), United States Army, for gallantry in action as a member of Company F, 2d Battalion, 27th Infantry Regiment, 25th Infantry Division, in action against an armed enemy in Korea. As part of a rescue patrol near Hasan, Korea, on 2 August 1950, Sergeant First Class Stephen was manning a .50 caliber machine gun mounted on a tank. Despite the increasing small arms fire for which he in his exposed position was a clear target, he refused to leave the gun but tried to put it back into action after it jammed. Unable to do that, he spotted targets for and directed fire of the tank guns so effectively that the troops the patrol was relieving were able to escape the enemy trap. Sergeant First Class Stephen’s valorous determination reflects great credit upon himself and upheld the highest traditions of the United States Army.