Medal of Honor Recipient Lieutenant Colonel Alfred Rascon: Commemorating Veterans Day, Recognizing Immigrant Patriots

Lieutenant Colonel Alfred Rascon

To commemorate Veterans Day, we are featuring foreign-born patriots and Medal of Honor recipients widely celebrated for their remarkable gallantry. Below, we recognize Lieutenant Colonel Alfred Rascon, whose heroism saved multiple lives on the battlefield during the Vietnam War.

Alfred Velazquez Rascon was born in Chihuahua, Mexico, in 1945. An only child, he and his parents immigrated to the United States and eventually settled in Oxford, California. There, a young Alfred attended school before enlisting in the U.S. Army after graduating from high school in 1963.

Initially volunteering for elite Airborne training, he later became a combat medic. In March 1966, while serving in the 173rd Airborne Brigade during the Vietnam War, Rascon and his platoon came under serious enemy fire. Though he was hit and wounded by both gunfire and multiple grenades, he ignored orders and his own injuries, risking his life to rescue his fellow soldiers. He crawled through the intense firefight to deploy life-saving medical aid and shield team members with his own body – while also losing a tooth to a bullet. Rascon only accepted medical care himself after he was safely airlifted from the combat zone.

A year later, in 1967, Alfred Rascon became a naturalized U.S. citizen. His remarkable heroism and unselfishness under such extenuating circumstances are credited with saving multiple lives in combat. Though botched paperwork and other bureaucratic errors delayed his initial 1966 nomination, Alfred was properly recognized in 2000, when President Clinton awarded him the Medal of Honor.

Alfred Racon’s remarkable service to the United States extended beyond the war. He continued serving as a commissioned officer in the Army and later worked for the Department of Veterans Affairs. Today, Rascon remains an inspiration to immigrants, soldiers, and all Americans, exemplifying how courage and dedication can transcend barriers of nationality and circumstance.  He retired from the military as a lieutenant colonel.