Anthony Kaho’ohanohano

Pvt. Barney F. Hajiro and Pfc. Kaoru Moto and Anthony T. Kaho’ohanohano are Maui residents who did extraordinary acts of courage, eventually receiving the U.S. military’s highest recognition — the Medal of Honor. This coming Memorial Day on May 26 pays tribute to them and others in the U.S. Armed Forces.

On Sept. 1, 1951, during the Korean War, Kaho’ohanohano manned a machine gun as his troops were forced to execute a withdrawal. Kaho’ohanohano continued to fight, and when his ammunition was depleted, he engaged the enemy in hand-to-hand combat until he was mortally wounded.

His stand inspired his comrades to launch a counterattack that repulsed the enemy.

Moto and Hajiro, both Americans of Japanese ancestry, were members of the 44nd Regimental Combat Team that fought in Italy and France during World War II.

On Oct. 19, 1944, Hajiro was near the town of Bruyeres, France, acting as a sentry to help allied troops attack a house 200 yards from him.

He put himself in danger by standing on an embankment to draw enemy fire toward him and away from his fellow soldiers, while directing fire back at them and taking down two enemy snipers himself.

A few days later, on Oct. 22, Hajiro again showed his bravery when he and another soldier ambushed 18 enemy soldiers on patrol not far from the U.S. soldiers’ platoon. The enemy was heavily armed, but Hajiro and the other soldier killed two of them, injured another and took the rest prisoner, according to the U.S. Department of Defense.

A week after that, the 442nd was fighting near the village of Biffontaine on Oct. 29 when Hajiro began an attack up a slope known as “Suicide Hill” and pressed on farther than the rest of his unit while under heavy fire. Undeterred, he spotted two camouflaged machine gun nests and fired back at them, single handedly destroying both and killing two enemy snipers.

Hajiro was shot four times during the battle, but he insisted that the other wounded men in the unit be evacuated first.

According to the Department of Defense, because of Hajiro’s bravery, the attack up Suicide Hill was successful.

Barney Hajiro

The 442nd would go on to help liberate Bruyeres and Biffontaine and rescue a Texas battalion that had been cut off from its division and surrounded by Germans.

Pfc. Kaoru Moto distinguished himself in action on July 7, 1944, near Castellina, Italy. While serving as first scout, Moto observed a machine gun nest that was hindering his platoon’s progress.

On his own initiative, he made his way to a point 10 paces from the hostile position and killed the enemy machine gunner. Immediately, the enemy assistant gunner opened fire on Moto. Crawling to the rear of the position, Moto surprised the enemy soldier, who quickly surrendered.

Kaoru Moto

Taking his prisoner with him, Moto took a position a few yards from a house to prevent the enemy from using the building as an observation post.

While guarding the house and his prisoner, he observed an enemy machine gun team moving into position. He engaged them, and with deadly fire, forced the enemy to withdraw.

An enemy sniper in another house fired at Moto, severely wounding him. Applying first aid to his wound, he changed his position to elude the sniper’s fire.

Relieved of his position, he made his way to the rear for treatment, when he spotted an enemy machine gun nest.

Opening fire, he wounded two of the three soldiers occupying the position. He then crawled forward to a better position and ordered the enemy soldier to surrender.