(Citation Needed) – SYNOPSIS: The President of the United States of America, authorized by Act of Congress July 9, 1918, takes pleasure in presenting the Silver Star to First Lieutenant (Chaplain’s Corps) James Walter O’Brien (ASN: 0-406259), United States Army, for gallantry in action against the enemy while serving as Prisoner of War of the Japanese, on 24 October 1944. There, when not joining in the back-breaking labor of the camp work details, he continued to hear confessions and say Mass. He was among the 1,800 prisoners who sailed from Manila for Japan aboard the Arisan Maru. On October 24, 1944, the un-marked ship was sunk by American submarines in the China Sea. Eight men survived the open-sea disaster by clinging for days to floating debris. One of the eight recalled that Chaplain O’Brien prayed with and granted absolution to the Catholic men until the ship was completely submerged. The gallant actions and dedicated devotion to duty demonstrated by Chaplain O’Brien, without regard for his own life, were in keeping with the highest traditions of military service and reflect great credit upon himself and the United States Army.