A Memorial Day ceremony at Fort Knox will honor a Daviess County native who received the military’s highest decoration—the Medal of Honor.
Monday’s ceremony at the Brooks Parade Field at Ft. Knox will honor U.S. military troops, both past and present, for their service. Part of the “past” will be a remembrance of P.F.C. David Paul Nash, a native of the Daviess County town of Whitesville.
As a member of the 9th Infantry Division, the 21-year-old Nash was serving in Dinh Tuong Province in Vietnam. According to his Medal of Honor citation, Nash and three fellow soldiers were on an overnight patrol December 29th, 1968. An enemy grenade exploded near them, wounding two of the soldiers.
Seconds later, a second grenade landed nearby. Nash shouted a warning to his comrades and threw himself on the grenade.
His citation says Nash “saved the lives of the three men in the area at the sacrifice of his life.”
Nash is buried at Saint Mary of the Woods Cemetary in Whitesville, and a section of Highway 54 that runs through the town is named “The David P. “Paulie” Nash Memorial Highway.”
