JACKLYN "JACK" HAROLD LUCAS enlisted in the United States Marine Corps on August 6, 1942, at the age of fourteen. He was assigned to the 1st Battalion, 26th Marine Regiment, 5th Marine Division during the Battle of Iwo Jima. He received the Medal of Honor from President Harry S. Truman on October 5, 1945. After graduating from college, he enlisted in the United States Army in 1961 and served four years in the 82nd Airborne Division. He was married to Ruby Lucas and they lived in Hattiesburg, Mississippi. He passed away in 2008 at the age of 80.
Bob Dole served in the U.S. Senate for twenty-seven years and was the Republican Leader for twelve years. He was the Chairman of the Republican National Committee under the Presidency of Richard Nixon, the 1976 Republican nominee for Vice President with Gerald Ford, and the 1996 Republican nominee for President. He was also the Chairman of the National World War II Memorial.
"Jack Lucas exemplified with his own blood and grit the spirit of sacrifice that won the war in the Pacific. All Americans should know his story; our foes should contemplate it." -- Bob Dole
"Jack Lucas's story is beyond compare. ... Spendidly written." -- Leatherneck (The Magazine of the Marines)
"One of the most remarkable true stories one is ever likely to read." -- WWII History
"Worth reading ... The story of his recovery from his wounds and postwar life, including celebrity tours with his Medal of Honor, are told with painstaking detail, and are as fascinating as his heroic actions on Iwo Jima." -- Wall Street Journal