Born during Oct, 1925, Major General James L. Day enlisted in the Marine Corps in 1943.  He saw combat action during World War II in the Marshall Islands, on Guam and on Okinawa.  During the Battle for Sugar Loaf Hill on Okinawa that, then Corporal Day received the nations highest honor for extraordinary heroism.  

General Day completed The Basic School in 1952 and was transferred to Korea where he served with Charlie Company 1st Bn, 7th Marines and 1st Reconnaissance Company.  

Following his service in Korea he served in a variety of billets including Commanding Officer of Company C, Marine Corps Test Unit One and Camp Pendleton, and Operations Officer of Recruit Training Command, MCRD San Diego.  In 1957 General Day was transferred to Okinawa and served as Commanding Officer, 4.2 Mortar Company and as a Battalion Operations Officer in 9th Marines.  In 1958 General Day was reassigned to the United States as a Tactics Group Instructor at the Basic School in Quantico, VA.

Major Day served his first tour in Vietnam as Commanding Officer, 1st Battalion, 9th Marines, 3rd Marine Division in 1966.  He returned to Camp Pendleton in 1967 as was assigned as Commanding Officer, 1st Battalion, 28th Marines, 5th Marine Division.  He was promoted to Lieutenant Colonel in 1967 and reassigned as Battalion Command, Infantry Training Regiment, Camp Pendelton in January of 1968.

Following graduation from the Army War College in 1972, Lieutenant Colonel Day served his second tour in Vietnam as Operations Officer, 9th Marine Amphibious Brigade, III Marine Amphibious Force. He was then reassigned as Commanding Officer, Camp Fiji, Japan in March 1973.

Promoted to Colonel in November 1973, General Day was assigned as Deputy Director and later Director, 4th Marine Corps District in Philadelphia.  He was promoted to Brigadier General in 1976 and assumed duty as Assistant Depot Commander, Marine Corps Recruit Depot, San Diego.  In 1977 he became the Commanding General, MCRD San Diego. In 1978 he was assigned duty as the Deputy Director of Operations, J-3, NMCC, Joint Chiefs of Staff, Washington, D.C.

During July 1979 General Day was assigned as the Assistant Division Commander, 1st Marine Division and Commanding General, 7th Marine Amphibious Brigade, FMF-PAC.  He was promoted to Major General on 1 August 1980 and assumed command of the 1st Marine Division and concurrently CG I MAF. In August of 1982 he was assigned as the Deputy Chief of Staff for Training, Headquarters Marine Corps.

In July of 1984 General Day reported to his final assignment as the Commanding General, Marine Corps Base, Camp S.D. Butler, Deputy Commander, Marine Corps Bases Okinawa, Japan.  He served in that capacity until his retirement on 1 December 1986.

Major General Day's personal decorations included the Medal of Honor, the Silver Star Medal with two gold stars in lieu of second and third awards; the Defense Superior Service Medal; Legion of Merit with combat "V;" the Bronze Star Medal with Combat "V;" the Navy Commendation Medal with Combat "V" and gold star in lieu of a second award; and six Purple Hearts.

Major General Day was presented the Medal of Honor on 20 January 1998, over a half a century after the World War II battle on Okinawa in which he distinguished himself. He died of a heart attack later that year on 28 October 1998 in Cathedral City, California. He was laid to rest in Fort Rosecrans National Cemetery, San Diego, California.

Medal of Honor citation, Major General James L. Day

The President of the United States in the name of the Congress takes pleasure in presenting the MEDAL OF HONOR to

CORPORAL JAMES L. DAY
UNITED STATES MARINE CORPS RESERVE
for service as set forth in the following CITATION:

For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty as a squad leader serving with the Second Battalion, Twenty-Second Marines, Sixth Marine Division, in sustained combat operations against Japanese forces on Okinawa, Ryukyu Islands from 14 to 17 May 1945. On the first day, Corporal Day rallied his squad and the remnants of another unit and led them to a critical position forward of the front lines of Sugar Loaf Hill. Soon thereafter, they came under an intense mortar and artillery barrage that was quickly followed by a fanatical ground attack of about forty Japanese soldiers. Despite the loss of one-half of his men, Corporal Day remained at the forefront, shouting encouragement, hurling hand grenades, and directing deadly fire thereby repelling the determined enemy. Reinforced by six men, he led his squad in repelling three fierce night attacks but suffered five additional Marines killed and one wounded whom he assisted to safety. Upon hearing nearby calls for corpsman assistance, Corporal Day braved heavy enemy fire to escort four seriously wounded Marines, one at a time, to safety. Corporal Day then manned a light machine gun assisted by a wounded Marine, and halted another frenzied night attack. In this ferocious action, his machine gun was destroyed, and he suffered multiple white phosphorus and fragmentation wounds. Assisted by only one partially effective man, he reorganized his defensive position in time to halt a fifth enemy attack with devastating small arms fire. On three separate occasions, Japanese soldiers closed to within a few feet of his foxhole, but were killed by Corporal Day. During the second day, the enemy conducted numerous unsuccessful swarming attacks against his exposed position. When the attacks momentarily subsided, over 70 enemy dead were counted around his position. On the third day, a wounded and exhausted Corporal Day repulsed the enemy's final attack and dispatched around 12 of the enemy at close range. Having yielded no ground and with more than 100 enemy dead around his position, Corporal Day preserved the lives of his fellow Marines and made a primal contribution to the success of the Okinawa campaign. By his extraordinary heroism, repeated acts of valor, and quintessential battlefield leadership, Corporal Day inspired the efforts of his outnumbered Marines to defeat a much larger enemy force, reflecting great credit upon himself and upholding the highest traditions of the Marine Corps and the United States Naval Service.