The President of the United States of America, authorized by Act of Congress, July 9, 1918, takes pleasure in presenting the Distinguished Service Cross to Sergeant William J. Parker (ASN: 1319291), United States Army, for extraordinary heroism in action while serving with Company A, 120th Infantry Regiment, 30th Division, American Expeditionary Forces, near Bellicourt, France, 29 September 1918. Severely wounded in the abdomen while in charge of a detail carrying up trench mortar ammunition, he refused to be evacuated, advancing 500 yards until his left arm was blown off by shell fire. Refusing to be carried in a stretcher, which he said was needed for more severely wounded men, he walked two kilometers to the first-aid station.