Walter K Singleton

Walter was born on the 7th of December, 1944, in Memphis, Tennessee, and when he was born, his father, George, was in the Army and deployed to Europe, where he was captured during the Battle of the Bulge and was held as a prisoner of war. Walter enjoyed to hunt and fish with his father and was a member of the Future Farmers of America in addition to running track in school. He graduated from Nicholas Blackwell High School in 1963 and two months later, Walter and his brother Bobby Jo enlisted in the US Marine Corps. After completing recruit training at Parris Island in February of 1964, he was promoted to Private First Class and was then assigned to Camp Lejeune as an ammo-carrier and promoted to Lance Corporal. Walter returned to Parris Island in November of 1965 as an instructor and also had additional duty at the US Naval Academy , training midshipmen marksmanship.

Both Walter and his brother were promoted to Sergeant in Okinawa in September of 1966 and by December he would find himself deployed to Vietnam, with his brother not allowed to deploy due to only one sibling being allowed to deploy. It was Walter’s actions with Company A, 1st Battalion, 9th Marines, 3rd Marine Division, on the 24th of March, 1967, that would earn him the Medal of Honor. The citation reads:

For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty. Sgt. Singleton's company was conducting combat operations when the lead platoon received intense small-arms, automatic-weapons, rocket, and mortar fire from a well-entrenched enemy force. As the company fought its way forward, the extremely heavy enemy fire caused numerous friendly casualties. Sensing the need for early treatment of the wounded, Sgt. Singleton quickly moved from his relatively safe position in the rear of the foremost point of the advance and made numerous trips through the enemy killing zone to move the injured men out of the danger area. Noting that a large part of the enemy fire was coming from a hedgerow, he seized a machine gun and assaulted the key enemy location, delivering devastating fire as he advanced. He forced his way through the hedgerow directly into the enemy strong point. Although he was mortally wounded, his fearless attack killed eight of the enemy and drove the remainder from the hedgerow. Sgt. Singleton's bold actions completely disorganized the enemy defense and saved the lives of many of his comrades. His daring initiative, selfless devotion to duty and indomitable fighting spirit reflected great credit upon himself and the Marine Corps, and his performance upheld the highest traditions of the U.S. Naval Service.

Walter’s body would eventually be recovered and returned to the states, and his parents received his Medal of Honor on the 4th of September, 1968m from the Secretary of the Navy in a ceremony at the Capitol’s Marine Barracks. Walter Keith Singleton is buried in the Memphis Funeral Home and Memorial Gardens in Bartlett, Tennessee: Masonic Garden, Lot 243, Block C, Space 1. He was joined by his father in 2000 and his mother in 2005, and his name appears on the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Wall: Panel 17E, Line 39.