Purple Heart to be presented to Citadel friend
The Citadel is proud to present William Saunders of Johns Island with a Purple Heart, a combat medal to recognize members of the U.S. armed forces who are wounded at enemy hands in war.
leader in Charleston's African American community and a friend of The
Citadel, Saunders was a civil rights activist, former owner of Charleston
radio station WPAL and in 1994 was elected to the state's Public Service
Commission, where he served as chairman.
joined the Army in 1951 when he was 16. Eight months later he was wounded
in the Korean War when a booby trap shattered his M-1 rifle and broke
his right foot. Following his three-month hospital recovery Saunders returned
to the war front. He retired from military service in 1954 and received
the Purple Heart in December 2002.