Sgt. Mike Strank flag raiser
Mike Strank was born in Jarabina,Czechoslovakia.He was one of the group of soldiers raising the American flag in the well known photograph by the Associated Press reporter Joe Rosenthal only six days before Mike's death. Mike died on March 1, 1945. He was hit by a mortar. Mike is buried in Arlington National Cemetery. Sergeant Strank was entitled to the following decorations and medals: Bronze Star, Purple Heart (awarded posthumously), Presidential Unit Citation with one star (for Iwo Jima), American Defense Service Medal with base clasp (for his service in Cuba before the war), American Campaign Medal, Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal with four stars (for Pavuvu, Bougainville, Consolidation of the Northern Solomons, and Iwo Jima), and the World War II Victory Medal.
This is a companion discussion topic for the original entry at https://ww2incolor.com/gallery/colorizations/37303/sgt.-mike-strank-flag-raiser