TAGUM CITY (MindaNews / February 26) – Fifty World War II veterans from Mindanao, 48 of whom are already dead, were awarded Wednesday with the US Congressional Gold Medal during the award’s 45th edition to “recognize the Filipino veterans who stood shoulder to shoulder with American forces” during the global conflict.

Chargé d’Affaires Y. Robert Ewing of the United States Embassy in the Philippines emphasized during his speech at the ceremony at Big 8 Hotel, this city, that the award is a way to “honor lives defined by courage, sacrifice, and an unwavering devotion to (the) country.” 

“The Congressional Gold Medal ceremony is more than an award. It is a reminder that freedom is never free. It is earned by men and women who faced fear, loss, exhaustion, and separation from loved ones—often without recognition or expectation of reward,” he said.

The awarding ceremony was the second in Mindanao. The previous one was held in October 2019 at SMX in Lanang, Davao City, where 50 veterans were also awarded.

“Many were barely out of their youth, yet they faced unimaginable danger, uncertainty, and hardship. When their nation called, they answered,” Ewing added.

Of the 50 awardees, only Sgt. Alfredo De Leon Del Rosario, at 97 the elder of the only two living recipients, received the award in person.

Del Rosario served in the 15th Infantry, United States Army Forces in the Philippines-Northern Luzon.

“We are… very proud, his siblings, to have a father that served our country during the war,” Leanard del Rosario, son of the veteran, said in an interview.

The medals for the deceased veterans were received by their family members as posthumous awards.

Undersecretary Reynaldo B. Mapagu, the Philippine Veterans Affairs Office administrator, told MindaNews that 1,607 US Congressional Gold Medals have been awarded throughout the country. (Razl EJ Teman/MindaNews)