The President of the United States of America, authorized by Act of Congress July 9, 1918, takes pleasure in presenting the Silver Star to Sergeant [then Private] John K. McGuire (ASN: 42023405), United States Army, for gallantry in action in northern France while serving with the 359th Infantry Regiment, 90th Infantry Division. On 5 July 1944 in the vicinity of ***, France, Sergeant McGuire was acting as assistant squad leader. Noting enemy machine guns holding up their attack, he shifted to a position some sixty yards from his foxhole, leaving the squad in position. He crawled thirty yards to place himself in position to use rifle grenades against the enemy machine guns. When the rifle grenade failed to detonate, he crawled within close proximity of the machine gun position, which was then firing, and threw a hand grenade into the machine gun nest, killing three of the enemy gun crew and dispersing the remainder.