Ballad of Ira Hayes - Johnny Cash 1964

All the public adulation could not erase the horrible memories forever seared in Hayes’ mind. Rather than embrace his publicity tour as his golden ticket out of the war, Hayes longed to return to his comrades and battle. He never felt comfortable being called a hero, when, as he explained it, “only five men in my platoon of 45 survived, only 27 men in my company of 250 managed to escape death or injury.” He could never reconcile his celebrity status with the idea that so many of his friends still lay in the ground at Iwo Jima, stating, “They were better men than me and they’re not coming back, much less back to the White House, like me. ”Presidential Unit Citation with 5⁄16 in (7.9 mm) Silver Star Marine Corps Good Conduct Medal