John F. Baker, 5 feet 2 inches and 105 pounds, had tried to join the Marine Corps out of high school but was turned down, so the Army took him. By 1966, he was serving as private in South Vietnam with Company A, 2d BN, 27th Infantry, 25th ID and in early November, his company was sent out to rescue the remnants of another company that had been trapped by the Viet Cong in a jungle near the Cambodian border.
The enemy soldiers - more than 3,000 - were hiding in trees, in bunkers and in tunnels when Private Baker's company of 200 men arrived. As they approached, the Viet Cong were yelling, "Come on, G.I., come and get us"
As the company began its rescue effort, the lead man in Private Baker's column was killed. Under intense enemy fire, Private Baker sprung to action, took out two enemy bunkers, killed four Viet Cong snipers and then led repeated assaults, killing more Viet Cong. During his forays, he rescued wounded soldiers out of kill zones and at point he was knocked off his feet by a grenade, which didn't deter him from killing more enemy soldiers and rescuing more of his men.
In addition to saving the lives of eight men, he was credited with knocking out 6 VC machine-gun bunkers, killing 10 enemy soldiers.
During the extraction, his entire uniform was completely covered in blood.
For his actions, he was awarded the Medal of Honor along side Capt Foley who also earned his during the same battle, serving in the same company. #stayzero #zerofoxtrot #vietnamwar #hero #gruntlife #badassoftheweek