Medal of Honor awarded posthumously to Hawai‘i soldier, Pvt. Bruno Orig

A Medal of Honor was awarded posthumously to Hawai’i native Private Bruno Raymond Abing Orig, US Army during a ceremony at the White House on Friday.

Private Orig was born in Hawai’i in 1930 to parents who immigrated from the Philippines and was raised in Damon Tract near Honolulu Airport. Following the examples of his father and stepfather, he enlisted in the Army in 1950 at the start of the Korean War.

The following from the Medal of Honor Citation describes the action for which Private Orig received the Medal of Honor “for conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty”:

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“Private Bruno R. Orig distinguished himself by acts of gallantry and intrepidity above and beyond the call of duty, while serving with Company G, 23rd infantry Regiment, 2nd Infantry Division in the vicinity of Chipyong-ni Korea, on February 15, 1951. While returning from a wire laying mission, Private Orig observed a number of his comrades who had been wounded in a fierce enemy attack that was still in progress. With complete disregard for his own safety, Private Orig went to the aid of these men and remained in an exposed position in order to administer first aid to them. With the assistance of several comrades from the company command post, Private Orig began removing the wounded to a place of safety. While returning from one of these trips, Private Orig noticed that all except one man of a machine gun crew had been wounded. Without hesitation, he volunteered to man the weapon. Remaining in this position, Private Orig placed such effective fire on the enemy that a withdrawing friendly platoon was able to move back without a single casualty. Private Orig continued to inflict heavy casualties on the enemy until the company positions were overrun. Later that day, when the lost ground was recaptured, Private Orig was found dead beside his weapon and the area in front of his gun was littered with enemy dead. Private Orig’s extraordinary heroism and selflessness above and beyond the call of duty were in keeping with the highest traditions of military service and reflect great credit upon himself, his unit, and the United States Army.”

Private Orig was initially awarded the Distinguished Service Cross, our nation’s second highest military award. In 2021, Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin directed a review of the actions of veterans of certain minorities including Asian and Pacific Islanders to determine if their actions warranted the Medal of Honor.

According to the Congressional Medal of Honor Society, of over 3,500 Medal of Honor recipients, only 94 African Americans, 59 Hispanic and 35 Asian or Pacific Islanders have received the award.

“I was deeply honored to join the President and the family of Private Orig in this long-deserved and long-overdue recognition of his truly extraordinary heroism,” said US Rep. Ed Case of Hawaiʻi was among those who attended the ceremony. “That this true son of Hawai‘i gave the ultimate measure of devotion to save the lives of his comrades, and that our country has the capacity to right wrongs of omission decades later, represents the very best of our military and of our nation.”

Private Orig’s sister, Loretta Orig of Kalihi, received the Medal of Honor from President Biden. Also attending were family members Charles Allen III, Elia Allen and Francis Kau.

Private Orig is buried at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific at Punchbowl.