This Saturday, Jack pinned a Bronze Star on retired Senior Master Sergeant Tom Davis, recognizing his service in the Philippines during the Second World War. The Bronze Star is one of the highest honors offered by our Armed Forces, awarded only to men and women who showed extraordinary bravery and sacrificed for the cause of freedom.
Davis’ distinguished military career spanned thirty six years and three wars. Davis was a prisoner of war in the Philippines and Japan for three and a half years, and is a survivor of the infamous Bataan Death March.
Davis was deployed to the Philippines in October of 1941, just two weeks after marrying his wife, Rose, whom he met while stationed at Hunter Army Air Field in Savannah.
Davis fought bravely in defense of Mariveles on the Bataan Peninsula. On April 9, 1942, US troops surrendered to Japanese General Masaharu Homma. The next day, Davis and 78,000 other prisoners began a seventy mile forced march from the Bataan Peninsula to Camp O’Donnell that would go down in history as one of the most atrocious war crimes of the Pacific Theater of World War II. Thousands died because of vicious abuse and arbitrary execution at the hands of their Japanese captors.
Davis was one of only 52,000 men who survived the Death March. After surviving the horrific march, Davis suffered for three more years in Japanese labor camps before returning home to Georgia.
He was joined on Saturday by his wife of nearly seventy years and their four daughters. Davis, now eighty nine years old, jokingly said of his award, “I was a little surprised it took this long.”
Less than seventy five survivors of the Bataan Death March are still living today. Meeting one of these heroes is a rare honor. Jack said, though it is “a great honor to be in the US Congress,” “sitting next to Master Sergeant Davis has been the best honor I’ve ever had as a US Congressman.”
Davis epitomizes service before self and is a true American hero. Davis said, “I see a lot of good people carrying on what I did, keeping this country safe.”
Jack implored the audience to always remember the sacrifice of men like Tom Davis and to “never let our duty as defenders of freedom fall. We owe it to him.”
Elizabeth is a student and Washington and Lee University currently interning in Jack's Washington, D.C. office.
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