Lippman, Gordon Joseph, LTC

Lt. Col. Gordon Lippman enlisted in the Army on 19 March 1943 at Los Angeles, California.  He served with the 517th Parachute Regiment in the ETO as Platoon Sgt. of the machine gun Platoon, 1st Brigade HHC  His unit served in Italy, Southern France, the Ardennes-Alsace, and in Germany. The 517th fought during the Battle of the Bulge at Soy and Hotten. During this service period he was awarded two Bronze Stars.
  After his his Honorable discharge as Platoon Sgt. May 13 1945 he received his battlefied commission to 2nd Lt. on the same date.

He served in Korea as Capt. of Company A  with the 24th Infantry Regiment and was wounded twice. During this time He received two Silver Stars one of which was upgraded to the DSC for his actions at the crossing of the Hant' an River, Korea.

On 16 September 1965, he was assigned to duty in Viet Nam where he served as the executive offier of the 3rd Brigade, 1st Infantry Division at Lai Khe, RVN.
During the night of 11 December 1965, several Viet Cong snipers infiltrated the perimeter of his camp. Lt. Col Lippman tried to personally locate the snipers, and while moving across an open area when he was shot and killed.

Distinguished Service Cross 
Awarded for actions during the Korean War

The President of the United States of America, under the provisions of the Act of Congress approved July 9, 1918, takes pleasure in presenting the Distinguished Service Cross to Captain (Infantry) Gordon J. Lippman, United States Army, for extraordinary heroism in connection with military operations against an armed enemy of the United Nations while serving as Commanding Officer of Company A, 1st Battalion, 24th Infantry Regiment, 25th Infantry Division.

Captain Lippman distinguished himself by extraordinary heroism in action against enemy aggressor forces in the vicinity of Do Chung, Korea, on 11 April 1951. Captain Lippman was leading his men across the Hantan River in the pre-dawn darkness in an attempt to secure the high ground on the opposite shore from a well-entrenched hostile force. When the friendly troops were in the middle of the river, an enemy outpost discovered the operation and directed machine-gun fire on the wading troops. Quickly deploying his men, Captain Lippman led a charge against the hostile emplacement, destroying it and enabling the company to finish the crossing with a minimum of casualties. He then reorganized the company and led his men across a flat, exposed area toward the objective. The enemy, placed in a strong perimeter defense on the crest of the hill, directed such a devastating volume of fire on the friendly troops that only a platoon of the company reached the base of the objective with Captain Lippman, the remainder being pinned down by the intense fire. He realized that he platoon would be forced to launch a frontal assault against the enemy positions, risking annihilation, unless some method was employed to divert the hostile fire from the attacking troops. He immediately moved up the slope and, armed with a pistol and grenades, attacked the enemy emplacements. For forty-five minutes he maneuvered to within a few yards of these positions, harassing the hostile troops and drawing their concentrated fire.

This courageous action enabled the platoon to work its way to a position from which an assault was launched that routed the enemy.

General Orders: Headquarters, Eighth U.S. Army, Korea: General Orders No. 784 (October 19, 1951)
Action Date: 11-Apr-51
Service: Army
Rank: Captain
Company: Company A
Battalion: 1st Battalion
Regiment: 24th Infantry Regiment
Division: 25th Infantry Division