Who:

Medal of Honor Recipient Tibor Rubin and Family
U.S. Congressman Alan Lowenthal, 47th District
California Senator Lou Correa, 34th District
Garden Grove Mayor Bruce Broadwater
Garden Grove Post Office Officer-in-Charge Daisy Ocegueda

What:

Special dedication ceremony for the Medal of Honor: Korean War stamps and recognition of local recipient Tibor Rubin.

When:

12:00 p.m. PT
Friday, Aug. 8, 2014

Where:

Garden Grove Community Center
11300 Stanford Avenue
Garden Grove CA 92840

Background:

Of the 6.8 million Americans who served in the U.S. Armed Forces during the Korean War, only 145 received the Medal of Honor. More than two-thirds of the recipients were killed in action. Only nine are alive today, including Tibor Rubin of Garden Grove, CA. 

On July 26, 2014, in Washington, D.C., the U.S. Postal Service issued the stamps depicting the Medals of Honor with photographs of the 13 living recipients at the time of design on the stamp sheet as a fitting way to recognize the living while still paying respect to all 145 recipients whose names are included in the Medal of Honor: Korean War Forever Stamps Prestige Folio. Sadly, four of the pictured recipients passed away before the stamps were issued.

One of the nine living Korean War Medal of Honor recipients, former U.S. Army Corporal Tibor Rubin will be honored at this California stamp unveiling and dedication ceremony. His Medal of Honor citation recognizes extraordinary heroism in Korea when he was assigned to stay behind to keep open a vital road link used by his withdrawing unit. During a personal 24-hour battle, he single-handedly slowed the enemy advance, allowing his regiment to complete its withdrawal successfully. Corporal Rubin was later severely wounded and captured by the Chinese. Despite offers from the Chinese to return him to his native Hungary, Rubin disregarded his own personal safety and chose to stay with his fellow soldiers in the POW camp. He began sneaking out of the camp at night in search of food for his comrades, risking certain torture or death if caught. Rubin provided not only food to the starving soldiers, but also desperately needed medical care and moral support for the sick and wounded. His brave, selfless efforts were directly attributed to saving the lives of as many as 40 of his fellow prisoners.