World War II Honoree

Boyce Eugene Atkins

Branch of Service

U.S. Marine Corps

Hometown

Gaffney, South Carolina

Honored By

Orville L. Kline

Rank: Sergeant Major. He served in Lima Company, as the Company’s First Sergeant, of the Third Battalion, Twenty-Third Marine Regiment, an element of the Fourth Marine Division Location: Western Pacific Theater of Operations. His division participated in the amphibious assault on the Volcanic Island of Iwo Jima and occupation (Battle Dates: February 19-March 26, 1945) Code Name: Operation Detachment. He was severely wounded, during a combat engagement with the Imperial Japanese forces on the battlefield, and buried at sea Monday, February 26, 1945. In remembrance of the brave, his name is permanently inscribed in the tablets of the missing, memorialized at Honolulu Memorial Location: Honolulu, Hawaii. In his Memory and Honor, a cenotaph memorial has been placed at the Corinth Baptist Church Cemetery Gaffney, South Carolina. This American Patriot received the following decorations posthumously: Bronze Star and the Purple Heart. The Bronze Star was awarded to the Sergeant for acts of heroism performed under fire, and the Purple Heart for his Heroism and ultimate sacrifice.