Capodanno, Vincent Robert
Navy Lieutenant

Vincent Robert Capodanno, age 38, from Honolulu, Hawaii, Honolulu county.

Service era: Vietnam
Military history: Navy Chaplain; On May 21, 2006, thirty-nine years after his death on the battlefield of Vietnam, Capodanno was publicly declared Servant of God, the first step towards canonization; Congressional Medal of Honor: In response to reports that the 2d Platoon of M Company was in danger of being overrun by a massed enemy assaulting force, Lt. Capodanno left the relative safety of the company command post and ran through an open area raked with fire, directly to the beleaguered platoon. Disregarding the intense enemy small-arms, automatic-weapons, and mortar fire, he moved about the battlefield administering last rites to the dying and giving medical aid to the wounded… Upon encountering a wounded corpsman in the direct line of fire of an enemy machine gunner positioned approximately 15 yards away, Lt. Capodanno rushed a daring attempt to aid and assist the mortally wounded corpsman. At that instant, only inches from his goal, he was struck down by a burst of machine gun fire.”

Date of death: Monday, September 4, 1967
Death details: Died in Operation Swift in the Thang Binh District of the Que Son Valley.

Source: National Archives, Pilot Catholic News, Archdiocese of Baltimore