The men of the 1st Battalion, 9th Marines had encountered heavy resistance on the road north. Deafening artillery fire erupted from the Navy ships beyond the beaches, leaving plumes of smoke and displaced earth where Japanese defenses once stood. Episodic bursts of machine gun and small arms fire sounded out over the tropical terrain from both sides of the battle. The enemy lobbed mortar rounds in the direction of the advancing Americans, and the rattle of Japanese armor could be heard harassing Marines.
The Marines continued their slow progress toward the town of Finegayan on the Island of Guam. The village, which sat sandwiched between Tumon Bay to the west and Mount Barrigada to the east, had become a focal point for the seizure of the entire island by American forces on their way through the Pacific.
The taking of the Marianas Island chain would be a strategic power play, and it started with the recapture of the American military base on Guam that had been overrun by the Japanese shortly after the attack on Pearl Harbor.
Private First Class Frank Witek was a Browning automatic rifleman with the 3rd Marine Division during the invasion of Guam. While there, he served as a scout behind enemy lines in addition to carrying the 1918 BAR (Browning Automatic Rifle) for his platoon.
While advancing on Finegayan, PFC Witek and his platoon were surprised by a well-camouflaged enemy machine gun position. It was a deadly ambush that sent PFC Witek’s platoon scrambling for cover amidst an air of hot lead and temporary confusion.
Where most men would shrink away from the action, run for cover and live to fight another day- there was Frank Witek and his BAR. Witek was a veteran of at least three major battles while serving at
Bougainville, and was no stranger to the dangers of combat. He stood tall, fearlessly exposing his body to deadly enemy fire, and emptied a full magazine from his BAR into the enemy stronghold. While his BAR hammered out rounds, a platoon of his comrades rushed for cover.
The platoon began to regroup and consolidate lines while Witek covered the retreat of a severely wounded fellow soldier. While returning fire, PFC Witek killed eight Japanese.
Shortly after, when his platoon was again pinned down by enemy fire, it was PFC Witek that showed the courage to act boldly.
He advanced on the enemy position by his own initiative, past his own platoon and tank emplacements.
Alternately throwing hand grenades and firing his BAR, he came within ten yards of the enemy when he destroyed the machine gun position and killed an additional eight troops.
It was during this daring assault on the Japanese positions that PFC Witek was struck down by enemy rifle fire and killed.
His actions saved many American lives and depleted the enemy firepower enough for his platoon to take Finegayan and eventually seize control of the island.
On August 10, 1944, one week after the battle for Finegayan, General Roy S. Geiger declared that all organized resistance on Guam had ended. The American forces had liberated the Guamanian people and reclaimed the military base that had been taken over by the Japanese. The strategic hold on Guam would give American forces a presence in the Pacific that would enable them to take the fight to Japan.
For his bravery, initiative and selfless work, PFC Witek was posthumously awarded the Medal Of Honor.
On Sunday, May 20, 1945, Frank Witek was honored at Soldier Field in Chicago in front of a crowd of 50,000 people. His mother, as well as General Alexander A. Vandegrift, Commandant of the Marine Corps, were in attendance.
His body was initially buried in the military cemetery in Guam, but was later moved to Illinois to Rock Island Cemetery, where it rests today. Frank Witek was 23 years old.
Stories like that of PFC Frank Witek exemplify the best in the United States Armed Forces. Remarkable men performing courageous acts above and beyond the call of duty are one of the reasons that the BAR remains a sentimental favorite amongst collectors, veterans and enthusiasts.
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