Page 242 - lake-city-florida-a-sesquicentennial-tribute-(h-morris-williams-kevin-mccarthy)-2009

Lake City, Florida: A Sesquicentennial Tribute (2009) H. Morris Williams, Dr. Kevin M. McCarthy

The late PFC
Robert H. Jenkins
Jr., the namesake of
our Robert H. Jenkins
Jr. Veterans
Domiciliary Home of
Lake City, was a 20-
year-old African-
American marine
serving in South Viet
Nam in 1969, when a
North Vietnamese
soldier threw a live
hand grenade near
PFC Jenkins and a
fellow marine, Fred
Ostrom.

PFC Robert H. Jenkins Jr.
Jenkins, knowing full
well the inevitable
results of his actions, pushed his comrade to the ground and shielded
him from the explosion. The comrade lived, but Jenkins died. For his
valor and sacrificial act, PFC Jenkins, from nearby Interlachen, was
posthumously awarded our nation’s highest medal, the Congressional
Medal of Honor.

Robert Jenkins Middle School at 1100 North 19th Street in
Palatka honors this brave soldier. Ostrom and fellow Marines fund
the prestigious Robert H. Jenkins Jr. Memorial Award, which is
awarded to students who exhibit good citizenship, hard work, and an
unselfish attitude.

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