US Army SSG Marcario Garcia: Medal of Honor Recipient during WWII

Welcome back everyone. On today's episode of Duty & Valor, you’ll hear the story of a man who, though not a citizen, volunteered to fight for the nation he loved.  A man who displayed heroism on multiple occasions during WWII.  A man who single-handedly eliminated two machine gun positions, allowing his unit to achieve its objective.  This is the story of Medal of Honor recipient US Army Staff Sergeant Marcario Garcia. 

Born in Mexico on January 20, 1920 to parents Luciano and Josefa Garcia, Marcario was one of ten children.  When he was 3, the family made their way to Sugar Land, TX where they found work on a cotton farm.   Even at a young age, Marcario helped his family as much as he could, which forced him to miss many days of school and he never made it past grade school.

In later years Garcia was quoted as saying that “he felt a strong obligation to give back to the country he had called home for so many years”, so he enlisted in the US Army on November 11, 1942 and he was eventually assigned to Company B, 22nd Infantry Regiment, 4th Infantry Division.

Private Garcia was part of the Allied invasion of Normandy when he and the other men of his unit landed at Utah Beach.  During the assault, he was badly wounded and it took him four months of recovery before he could rejoin his unit around the time it was advancing into Germany. 

On November 27, 1944, Private Garcia who was acting squad leader and his company found itself about 325 southwest of Berlin, attempting to take the German town of Grosshau.  The fighting was intense and they were pinned down by artillery, mortar, and machine gun fire from the Germans whose various positions were well placed on a wooded hill.  The first target that the Americans had to neutralize was the machine gun nest that was firing nearly non-stop at them.  

Alone and without being ordered to do so, Private Garcia crawled forward toward the machine gun emplacement.  He could have attempted to engage the position with rifle fire from some distance away, but he chose to continue to crawl, with very little cover, until he was close enough to lob grenades into the machine gun nest.   His throws were accurate and his grenades destroyed the gun.  He then assaulted the position and killed three of the enemy with his rifle.  

Though badly wounded in the shoulder and foot from his solo attack on the machine gun, Garcia refused to be evacuated and he remained with his men.  At that time a second gun opened up on them, and Private Garia again single-handedly attacked it.  He charged that gun and killed three more Germans and captured four prisoners.  

It wasn’t until his company achieved its objective that he allowed himself to seek medical care.  Garcia later said, "I did not know the wound was so serious. I was numb, I think, and besides, we were moving forward, and it was not the time to stop."

For his courageous heroism that day, Private Marcario Garcia was recommended for and received the Medal of Honor.  The recommendation was put forth by his company commander, Captain Tony Bizzarro who “thought Garcia was nothing but the best soldier in the Army.” 

 On August 23, 1945 President Harry Truman personally bestowed the medal upon him, and with this honor, Marcario Garcia became the first Mexican national to be awarded the Medal of Honor. 

Garcia left active duty in February 1945 at the rank of Staff Sergeant.  Though he returned to the US as a highly decorated combat veteran, one who earned the nation's highest military honor, he faced widespread racism at that time.  

He was refused service at a restaurant in Richmond Texas due to his background and the owner badly beat him with a bat.  Ironically the owner pressed charges and Garcia was arrested.  He spent a night in jail and was later charged with assault, but when it became known that a military hero was being treated this way, those charges were eventually dropped. 

In 1947 he was granted US citizenship and went on to receive his high school diploma in 1951.  

On May 18,1952 he married Alicia Reyes and the two had three children.

For 25 years Garcia worked as a counselor at the Houston Veterans Administration and was regarded as a trailblazer in the Hispanic civil rights movement.

Staff Sergeant Marcario Garcia died on Christmas Eve 1972 at the age of 52, and he is buried at the Houston National Cemetery.   

Staff Sergeant Marcario Garcia's indomitable spirit and unwavering courage serve as a beacon of inspiration for generations. Born in Mexico and later becoming the first Mexican immigrant to receive the Medal of Honor, Garcia epitomized the resilience of the human spirit. He displayed extraordinary bravery, risking his life to save his comrades. His selfless actions not only earned him the nation's highest military honor but Garcia's legacy is a testament to the power of determination, courage, and the enduring impact one individual can have in shaping history. 

Thank you for listening to this episode of Duty & Valor.  To read more about this week’s hero, check out the sources used in today's episode in our show notes and at dutyandvalor.com.  

If you want to listen to our episodes early, we release new episodes on our YouTube channel of the same name on Fridays at 5pm.  Also, on our channel we release daily YouTube shorts that highlight our Nation’s heroes, most of whom haven’t been featured on the show yet. 

Be sure to like, follow, and share our episodes and please join us for our next episode, where we'll be sharing the inspiring story of another American hero who served with pride and lived with humility.