The President of the United States of America takes pleasure in presenting the Silver Star to Captain Richard L. Bland (MCSN: 0-24168), United States Marine Corps, for conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity in action as Company Commander of Company B, First Battalion, First Marines, FIRST Marine Division (Reinforced), during operations against enemy aggressor forces in Korea on 21 September 1950. Assigned the mission of assaulting an enemy village, Captain Bland led his men in single file across a steel girder of a destroyed bridge and continued the assault through approximately 3,000 yards of open rice paddies infested with strong enemy positions. Despite the heavy casualties suffered, he and his men went forward under intense hostile small arms, machine gun and mortar fire and continued the attack until darkness. During the night, Captain Bland supervised the evacuation of the 29 wounded by hand-carry over the fire-swept field since there was no possible avenue of approach for vehicles. Resuming the attack in the early ours of morning, he discovered that the enemy had withdrawn leaving large numbers of their dead and a considerable amount of equipment. By his heroic initiative, inspiring leadership and courageous devotion to duty in the face of heavy hostile fire, Captain Bland aided directly in the successful completion of the assigned mission, thereby upholding the highest traditions of the United States Naval Service.