Lt. Colonel ROBERT S. KESTLINGER, gained the Distinguished Service Cross for extraordinary heroism in Korea on the 1st and 2nd of June, 1952. The then Captain Kestlinger, in command of a 2-man patrol, landed on the eastern bank of a river in enemy-held territory to reconnoiter the area and investigate a reported radar station. During the early hours of the following day, the patrol sighted a Chinese soldier and, while effecting capture, an outcry from the prisoner alerted the foe who immediately opened fire. Securing the captive, Captain Kestlinger exposed himself to hostile fire to cover his patrol member who had rushed forward to silence the nearest position with grenades. Ordering his patrol to withdraw with the prisoner, Captain Kestlinger assaulted the other machine gun position, killing two of the manning crew with grenades and another with his trench knife. Despite vulnerability to rifle fire from high ground to the rear, he courageously seized a hostile submachine gun and intercepted and charged a squad of six enemy, killing all of them. Through his unflinching courage and intrepid actions, the lives of a fellow officer and an indigenous boatman were saved. Captain Kestlinger’s gallant leadership and exemplary devotion to duty reflect utmost credit upon himself and are in keeping with the esteemed traditions of the military service.

Colonel Kestlinger joined the Legion of Valor in 1963 and resided in New York.