Daniel D. Fernández

Daniel D. Fernández (June 30, 1944 – February 18, 1966) was a United States Army specialist four who was killed in action during the Vietnam War. He was awarded the nation's highest military award for valor, the Medal of Honor, posthumously, for his heroic action in Hậu Nghĩa province, Republic of Vietnam, on February 18, 1966.

Early years
Born in Albuquerque, New Mexico, on June 30, 1944, Fernández grew up in nearby Los Lunas. He had two younger brothers, Peter and James, and a younger sister, Rita.

Fernández joined the Army from Albuquerque in 1962, and by 1966, he was on his second tour of duty in Vietnam. During that deployment, Fernández served as a specialist four in Company C, 1st Battalion, 5th Infantry Regiment (Mechanized), 25th Infantry Division. On February 18, 1966, in Củ Chi, Hậu Nghĩa province, his 16-man patrol was ambushed by a Viet Cong rifle company and forced to fall back. Fernández and two others volunteered to follow a sergeant back to the ambush site and rescue a wounded soldier who had been left behind. After reaching the injured man, the sergeant was shot in the knee and Fernández took over command of the patrol. All five men were pinned down by heavy fire when a rifle grenade landed in their midst. In the scramble to get away from the device, Fernández accidentally kicked it closer to the rest of the group. He then shouted "move out", jumped over the immobile sergeant, and threw himself on the grenade. Fernández was killed in the resulting explosion, but successfully saved the lives of his fellow soldiers.

For this action, Fernández was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor in November 1966. He was the first of nine Mexican Americans to receive the medal in Vietnam.

Medal of Honor
His official Medal of Honor citation reads:

A Requiem Mass was held for Fernández at Los Lunas High School prior to his burial at Santa Fe National Cemetery. Fernández's name is inscribed on the Vietnam Veterans Memorial ("The Wall") on Panel 05E, Row 046.

Honors
In Fernández's hometown of Los Lunas, a number of structures have been named in his honor. In March 1966, the newly opened Los Lunas Junior High School was renamed Daniel Fernández Junior High School in his honor. It has since been reorganized as Daniel D. Fernández Intermediate School. A park and recreation facility, Daniel D. Fernández Memorial Park, was dedicated in 1972. The local Veterans of Foreign Wars post bears his name, as does a road, Fernandez Street.

Students at Daniel D. Fernández Intermediate School wrote a biography of Fernández, titled Man of Honor: The Story of Daniel D. Fernández, which was published in 2009 by Author House Publishing.