Robert E. Bush was born in Tacoma, Washington, on Oct. 4, 1926. He entered the U.S. Navy in 1943, while he was only 17 years old. He'd dropped out of high school and went to Idaho for his basic training in the Naval Medical Corps. Less than a year later he was disembarking an amphibious assault vehicle going ashore at Okinawa, Japan for what became the longest, bloodiest battle in the Pacific Theater of WWII. His actions during that battle earned him the Medal of Honor.
Injured in battle, Bush was sent to Hawaii for treatment, then he was sent home. He re-entered high school and married his high school sweetheart. At 19 years old, the newlyweds took the train across the country to Washington, D.C. for Bush to receive the Medal of Honor from President Harry S.Truman.
Bush enrolled in classes at the University of Washington and then bought a small lumber company and spent the next 50 years building it into a multi-million dollar business.
Several monuments have been built in Bush's honor. One statue depicting him in action, is located in his hometown of Southbend, Washington. A second monument, The Robert E. Bush Memorial Hospital, located in Twentynine Palms, California. The last monument is The Bush Health Care Clinic, located in Camp Courtney, Okinawa, Japan.
Robert E. Bush has a chapter dedicated to him in Tom Brokaw's book The Greatest Generation.
For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty while serving as a Medical Corpsman with a rifle company, in action against enemy Japanese forces on Okinawa Jima, Ryukyu Islands, May 2, 1945.
Fearlessly braving the fury of artillery, mortar, and machine gun fire from strongly entrenched hostile positions, Bush constantly and unhesitatingly moved from one casualty to another to attend the wounded falling under the enemy's murderous barrages. As the attack passed over a ridge top, Bush was advancing to administer blood plasma to a Marine officer lying wounded on the skyline when the Japanese launched a savage counter-attack. In this perilously exposed position, he resolutely maintained the flow of life-saving plasma.
With the bottle held high in one hand, Bush drew his pistol with the other hand and began firing into the enemy's ranks until his ammunition was expended. Quickly seizing a discarded carbine, he trained his fire on the Japanese charging pointblank over the hill, accounting for 6 of the enemy despite his own serious wounds and the loss of one eye suffered during his desperate battle in defense of the helpless man.
With the hostile force finally routed, he calmly disregarded his own critical condition to complete his mission, valiantly refusing medical treatment for himself until his officer patient had been evacuated, and collapsing only after attempting to walk to the battle aid station. His daring initiative, great personal valor, and heroic spirit of self-sacrifice in service of others reflect great credit upon Bush and enhance the finest traditions of the U.S. Naval Service.
