The President of the United States of America takes pleasure in presenting the Silver Star to Corporal Enrique Alvarez (MCSN: 2192883), United States Marine Corps, for conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity in action while serving as a Squad Leader with Company A, First Battalion, Fourth Marines, THIRD Marine Division (Rein.), FMF, in connection with combat operations against the enemy in the Republic of Vietnam. On the night of 7 May 1967, Corporal Alvarez led his squad in an ambush patrol on Hill 109 in the vicinity of Con Thien in Quang Tri Province. Early the following morning, when a numerically superior enemy force was observed, he unhesitatingly directed a heavy volume of accurate fire against the enemy positions. Almost immediately, his squad came under intense small arms fire from the large North Vietnamese force. With complete disregard for his own safety, Corporal Alvarez fearlessly exposed himself to the enemy fire as he moved from one fighting hole to another, directing and controlling the fire of his men and cautioning them to conserve ammunition. During the fire fight his squad was surrounded by the enemy and came under artillery and mortar fire. Fully realizing the hazards involved, Corporal Alvarez continued to expose himself to the intense enemy fire to direct the actions of his men and encourage them to continue fighting in the face of seemingly overwhelming odds. As a result of his skillful positioning of each man in the ambush site, his squad suffered no casualties despite the intensity of enemy fire. With the arrival of daylight, the beaten and confused enemy broke contact and retreated. Leading his squad through the ambush area in pursuit of the enemy, Corporal Alvarez captured five enemy soldiers, forty automatic weapons and three rocket launchers. His military proficiency and courageous fighting spirit throughout the engagement inspired his men and were instrumental in killing thirty-two North Vietnamese soldiers, contributing significantly to the accomplishment of his unit’s mission. By his extraordinary bravery, superior leadership and selfless devotion to duty in the face of extreme danger, Corporal Alvarez upheld the highest traditions of the Marine Corps and of the United States Naval Service.