MOUNT PLEASANT, S.C.— The Congressional Medal of Honor Society regretfully announces that Frank A. Herda, who received the Medal of Honor for valor during the Vietnam War, passed away Oct. 13, 2023, in Cleveland, Ohio, at 76 years old.
President Richard M. Nixon presented Herda with the Medal of Honor at the White House in Washington, D.C. on May 14, 1970, for his actions near Dak To, Quang Trang Province, Vietnam.
On June 29, 1968, then-Private-First-Class Herda was defending his position during a nighttime enemy assault. When a grenade landed in his foxhole, he threw himself down to smother the explosion. He was grievously wounded but his actions allowed the remaining two soldiers to survive without serious injury and stopped the enemy assault.
Herda was born on Sep. 13, 1947 in Cleveland, Ohio. After the war, he served 33 years as a systems analyst for the U.S Department of Defense. A lover of science fiction, he authored the book “The Cup of Death: Chronicles of the Dragons of the Magi” in 2007.
A private memorial will take place at a later date.
There are 65 Medal of Honor Recipients alive today.
About the Congressional Medal of Honor Society
The Congressional Medal of Honor Society, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, is dedicated to preserving the legacy of the Medal of Honor and its Recipients, inspiring Americans, and supporting the Recipients as they connect with communities across the country.
Chartered by Congress in 1958, its membership consists exclusively of those individuals who have received the Medal of Honor. There are 65 living Recipients.
The Society carries out its mission through outreach, education and preservation programs, including the Medal of Honor Museum, Medal of Honor Outreach Programs, the Medal of Honor Character Development Program, and the Medal of Honor Citizen Honors Awards for Valor and Service. The Society’s programs and operations are funded by donations.
As part of Public Law 106-83, the Medal of the Honor Memorial Act, the Medal of Honor Museum, which is co-located with the Congressional Medal of Honor Society’s headquarters on board the U.S.S. Yorktown at Patriots Point Naval & Maritime Museum in Mount Pleasant, South Carolina, was designated as one of three national Medal of Honor sites.
Learn more about the Medal of Honor and the Congressional Medal of Honor Society’s initiatives at cmohs.org.
