ELMER PENDELL, a Lieutenant of the 120th Infantry, attached to the 168th Aero Squadron as an observer, his extraordinary heroism brought him the Distinguished Service Cross when he flew an infantry contact mission over the line of the 7th Division. Because of exceedingly adverse weather conditions, he disregarded the danger of fire from the ground and crossed the lines at 1’000 feet altitude. While thus flying he was wounded in the shoulder by an explosive bullet fired from the ground. Disregarding his wound, he came down to an altitude as low as 500 feet. After securing the desired information, he wrote out his message with great effort and dropped it to the division.

Dr. Pendell joined the Legion of Valor in 1963 and resided in Alabama.