The President of the United States of America, authorized by Act of Congress July 9, 1918, takes pleasure in presenting the Silver Star to Staff Sergeant [then Sergeant] Lewis H. O’Dell (ASN: 15090281), United States Army, for gallantry in action while serving with the 504th Parachute Infantry Regiment, 82d Airborne Division, in action on 17 October 1944, near ****, Germany. Staff Sergeant O’Dell’s platoon, having been ordered to clean out a small town in a night patrol action, became disorganized by the loss of its platoon leader and by the fire which had trapped the unit in a mined and wire entangled area. Staff Sergeant O’Dell, although suffering from many head and face wounds from a concussion grenade, refused assistance and organized remnants of the patrol into a fighting unit. Under his aggressive leadership it fought free of the ambush. Unwilling to abandon his mission, though painfully wounded and crippled in loss of men, Staff Sergeant O’Dell then attacked the enemy until they were eliminated or forced from the town. Staff Sergeant O’Dell’s courage and devotion to duty reflects the traditional gallantry of the United States Airborne Forces.