Vwegba Blogging World

Jacklyn Lucas, the youngest Marine to received the Medal of Honor at 17 years old. In 1942, when he was only 14 years old, Jacklyn "Jack" Lucas enlisted in the Marine Corps after convincing the recruiter he was 17 years old.  Posted to a depot unit at Pearl Harbor, Jack was bored and wanted action. In January 1945, he rolled up a combat uniform under his arm, sneaked out of the camp, and stowed away aboard a naval transport vessel that was taking 1st Battalion, 26th Marines, 5th Marine Division to Iwo Jima. Not knowing what to do with him, the Marine battalion commander demoted Jack, then assigned him as a rifleman to C. Company. A few days later, Jack turned 17 in 1945. The day after landing on Iwo Jima, Jack dove on top of a Japanese grenade, and then pulled another one beneath him. The blast ripped through his body, but saved his comrades. It took 21 surgeries to save him. He carried more than 200 large pieces of shrapnel in his body for the rest of his life.  On 5 October