The President of the United States of America, authorized by Act of Congress July 9, 1918, takes pleasure in presenting the Silver Star to Private First Class James R. Lee (ASN: 34838808), United States Army, for gallantry in action while serving with Company B, 1st Battalion, 254th Infantry Regiment, 63d Infantry Division, in action on 18 March 1945, in the vicinity of Eachringen, Germany. Private First Class Lee’s platoon was held up in the middle of town by a heavy concentration of machine gun fire. He quickly dashed to a point of vantage to find out where the fire was coming from. Upon locating the machine gun, he crawled towards it, ignoring the heavy fire that was being directed at him. After he reached a position thirty yards from the enemy gun, he jumped to his feet and raced forward, firing his automatic rifle. The bravery of the attack completely caught the enemy by surprise and those that he didn’t kill or wounded quickly withdrew, enabling the platoon to continue on and successfully complete their mission. While returning to join his squad he was wounded by artillery shell fragments and forced to be evacuated. The gallantry in action and devotion to duty displayed by Private First Class Lee reflect the highest credit upon himself and upon the Armed Forces of the United States.