PRESENTATION OUTLINE
YOUNG WAS ONE OUT OF 5 CHILDREN, FOUR BROTHERS AND ONE SISTER
Almost died while playing basketball from breathing complications
In 1938, at the age of 20, Young joined the Ohio National Guard. Seeking an opportunity to gain some extra income and believing that because of his medical issues he would not pass a medical for the Regular Army, he decided to join the National Guard instead
During a high school basketball game, Young received a serious head injury. After being fouled by an opponent, Young fell on the court and was knocked unconscious. The incident gradually led to significant hearing loss and damage to his eyesight. As a result, Young did not complete his schooling, dropping out of high school in his sophomore year when he could not hear the lessons in class or see the blackboard.
Young faked his hearing test to fight in WWII
At 5'2" tall and weighing 125 pounds, he was one of the smallest soldiers in the Army
He won a Posthumous Medal of Honor in the Soloman Islands
United States National Guard with the rank of sergeant. However, before going to war in World War II, he asked that his rank be reduced to private. He thought that as a sergeant, his deafness would cause him to be a liability
A United States Army soldier during World War II. An infantryman, he was killed on the island of New Georgia while helping his platoon withdraw under enemy fire. For his actions, he posthumously received the United States' highest military decoration, the Medal of Honor.
