Richard G. Wilson

Richard Gene Wilson (August 19, 1931 – October 21, 1950) was a United States Army soldier and a posthumous recipient of the U.S. military's highest decoration, the Medal of Honor, for his actions in the Korean War. A combat medic, Wilson was awarded the medal for attempting to rescue a wounded soldier at the Battle of Yongju.

Early years and family Wilson was born in Marion, Illinois, on August 19, 1931, to Albert and Alice Wilson. He had three brothers, Norman, Norris Dean, and Ronald, and three sisters, Rosemary, Shirley, and Jo Anne. The family moved to Cape Girardeau, Missouri, in 1939 where he attended May Greene School followed by Central High School. He was an avid sportsman and played right guard on Central's football team. After his junior year, Wilson left high school to join the Army; he enlisted on his seventeenth birthday, August 19, 1948.