The President of the United States of America takes pleasure in presenting the Silver Star to Corporal Herbert C. Westfall (MCSN: 461883), United States Marine Corps Reserve, for conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity while serving as a squad leader of Company F, Second Battalion Twenty-eighth Marines, FIFTH Marine Division in action against enemy Japanese forces on Iwo Jima, Volcano Islands on 2 March 1945. Ordered to move his squad forward under heavy enemy fire to fill a gap between two advancing platoons, Corporal Westfall led his men with great courage and determination in the bitter fighting which ensued. Although painfully wounded in the left arm while placing his unit in position he refused medical aid or evacuation until his squad was reorganized and joined with the flanking elements of his company. Despite his wound, he braved heavy mortar and machine gun fire to move from one position to another, placing his men, contacting leaders of adjacent squads and deploying his attached machine gun. By his inspiring leadership and daring initiative, Corporal Westfall contributed greatly to the successful fulfillment of the company’s mission, thereby holding the highest traditions of the United States Naval Service.