Dorie Miller was born in Waco, Texas on October 12, 1919 and died in 1943. He was a cook and mass attendant on the USS West Virginia. On December 7, 1941, when the Japanese made their infamous surprise attack at Pearl Harbor, Dorie Miller took charge and shot down one of the Japanese plane. He then helped the captain of the ship. He received a medal for his bravery 6 months after the war was over. He was commended by the Secretary of the Navy Frank Knox on April 1, 1942, and on May 27, 1942 he received the Navy Cross, which Fleet Admiral, Chester W. Nimitz, the Commander in Chief, Pacific Fleet personally presented to Miller on board aircraft carrier USS Enterprise for his extraordinary courage in battle. Dorie Miller was one of the first African American to receive one of the second highest medals.
