MSG Guy Woodhouse Honored With 13 Service Medals

I’ve had the pleasure of personally knowing most of this family for most of my life. They are wonderful, hard working people. I recently came to find out that their father, Guy Woodhouse, is the most decorated war hero in the history of Miami County.  They would never ask for accolades or public praise, but Mr. Woodhouse is so deserving of the recognition he is getting. Following is how this amazing honor came about:

Senator Joe Donnelly presenting medals to the late Master Sergeant Guy Edward Woodhouse’s daughter Valerie Johnston and son Larry Woodhouse. (Kokomo Herald photo / Shannon Crouch)

Tucked away in her mother’s suitcase in an attic were plenty of pictures of Valerie Johnston’s dad, Master Sergeant Guy Woodhouse. She didn’t find any service medals.

“I’d heard from my brothers, talking about he’d gotten the Silver Star and the Bronze Star but I didn’t know about all the other stuff,” said Johnston.

In September, she wrote a request to Senator Joe Donnelly (D – Indiana) asking him to help find her father’s distinctions that were either lost over time, or never rewarded.

“Guy Woodhouse received so many awards for his service to the United States that we had to build a special box to hold all of them,” said Donnelly.

Nearly 70 years after his service in World War II and Korea, Woodhouse’s family finally received the 13 decorations and service medals he had earned.

“A couple things I do know, but there are some things he wouldn’t tell me either,” said Larry Woodhouse, Guy Woodhouse’s son.

Woodhouse died in 1989, taking with him the many stories that had earned him a Bronze and Silver Star, the four injuries that got him a Purple Heart, and the stories about his time as a German POW.

“If you put a definition of a Hoosier that would be it,” said Donnelly.

“My dad wouldn’t want all this recognition. He was a very humble man. He never talked about it to me,” said Johnston.

Now, 70 years later, it’s official. Woodhouse is one of Indiana’s most highly-decorated war heroes.

The shadow box Sen. Donnelly presented to the Woodhouse family included the following replacement awards and decorations:
Silver Star Medal
Bronze Star Medal
Purple Heart (one bronze oak leaf cluster)
Good Conduct Medal
American Campaign Medal
European-African-Middle Eastern Campaign Medal (four bronze service stars)
World War II Victory Medal
National Defense Service Medal
Korean Service Medal (one silver service star)
United Nations Service Medal
Honorable Service Lapel Button
Expert Badge with Rifle Bar
Combat Infantryman Badge (second award)

Not only did Woodhouse enlist in both World War II and Korea, but he served in the National Guard twice. He’s also the most decorated war hero in the history of Miami County, where he lived for much of his life.

some information obtained from Senator Donnelly’s official website
Photo credit to Shannon Crouch of The Kokomo Herald
In depth article can be found at www.KokomoHerald.com

By Carrie Hair
Miami County resident
Proud daughter of a veteran