WASHINGTON (AP) — President Barack Obama is bestowing the Medal of Honor on an Army chaplain he says dodged bullets to provide medical aid and spiritual comfort to wounded soldiers during the Korean War.
Obama says Capt. Emil Kapaun (Kah-PAHWN) carried an injured American for four miles as Chinese captors led them on a death march. He says he cleaned captured soldiers’ wounds, convinced them to share scarce food and ministered to them in captivity.
Obama says Kapaun showed even in hellish situations, there’s a touch of the divine. He says Kapaun wielded a weapon mightier than the gun: a willingness to die to save his brothers.
The Kansas-born Roman Catholic priest died as a prisoner of war at age 35. Some of the soldiers helped by Kapaun attended the White House ceremony.
Copyright 2013 The Associated Press.
