Jan 17 , 2026
Clifford C. Sims Medal of Honor Story at Pork Chop Hill
Clifford C. Sims bled through the mud, every breath a hammer. Wounded, outnumbered, and surrounded, he rose—not just to survive—but to save. His legs screamed betrayal, but his eyes locked forward. There was only one way out: forward.
The Formative Fires of Faith and Duty
Born into the quiet folds of rural Texas, Sims grew up where the Bible sat on the kitchen table, just like a shotgun hung by the door—ready for trouble or blessing. His faith was woven into the marrow of his bones before the rifle ever kissed his shoulder.
He learned young what it meant to stand tall—to hold the line against the darkness. “Greater love hath no man than this,” he often said quietly, echoing John 15:13, because love is sacrifice.
Before Korea, Sims was a no-nonsense soldier who believed that honor was something you carried in your heart—not pinned on your chest. He carried the silent prayers of his family with him in every march, every firefight.
The Battle That Defined Him: Pork Chop Hill, May 1953
Pork Chop Hill wasn’t just a piece of earth. It was hell carved out of frozen mud by a war hungry for blood and sacrifice.
May 18, 1953: Sims served as squad leader in Company E, 17th Infantry Regiment, 7th Infantry Division, locked in deadly combat against a fierce Chinese offensive.
During a critical counterattack, Sims’s platoon was caught in brutal crossfire. His left leg shattered by enemy mortar fire. Many men would have crumpled. Not Clifford Sims.
Despite the agony, Sims rose. Dragging himself forward, he led a charge that drove the enemy from a key trench—giving his unit time to regroup and hold their position.
He refused evacuation. “I’d never ask a man to do what I wouldn’t do myself,” he said years later.
His leadership wasn’t just brute courage; it was a battle hymn of selflessness. He inspired men under fire to keep moving, keep fighting.
Medal of Honor: For Valor That Tore Through Pain
On March 18, 1954, Clifford C. Sims received the Medal of Honor from President Eisenhower.
His citation reads:
"Despite serious wounds, Sims led his men in a counterattack, personally destroying enemy positions and saving his platoon from being overrun."
The medal was not just for the wound he bore—but the will he imposed on the chaos around him.
Fellow soldier Pfc. James E. Benton later recalled, “Sims didn’t just fight bullets; he fought fear. When he charged, it was like he carried the whole platoon in his hands.”
The Medal of Honor wasn’t just a pin. It was a testament to faith forged in fire—a reminder that leadership means standing when the world crumbles.
The Lessons Born from Broken Ground
Clifford Sims’s story is a testament to the raw grit and spirit etched into every combat veteran’s soul.
His scars are not just reminders of pain, but of purpose. Purpose that transcends wounds, time, and distant battlefields.
He stands as a bridge — from past sacrifices to present freedoms. A living scripture of courage in the crucible of war.
“Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go.” — Joshua 1:9
Sims embodied that command. His legacy speaks to every soldier, every citizen: Courage is not absence of fear, but faith in spite of it.
Knowing Clifford C. Sims is to know that heroism is often a quiet, bloody resolve.
The battlefield doesn’t care about pain or quit. Neither did he.
We carry his story to remind the world of what true sacrifice looks like—etched in blood, tempered in battle, and sealed by faith.
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