I am the seventh son. Jack, the oldest, was one of those uncommon men whose life was elevated by events and conditions to manifest courage in its purest form. He was awarded the Medal of Honor, posthumously, near the end of World War II.

By 1940, a year when world war loomed, the future of this close-knit family had been forged. Without conscious intent, Roy and Martha Knight contributed their physical, mental and religious souls to the nation’s welfare and survival. Their union produced individuals who, through happenstance, politics, economics, and personal choice, would have the opportunity and will to perform uncommon feats of courage in the defense of their country. Their individual acts, taken together, create the heart of this story. Tales more incredible than fiction, because they are true, are all a part of family lore and we accept them as our history.

Why did Jack die a hero? Perhaps because within his large family personal sacrifice had always been a way of life. Part of it may have been the physical environment of his youth: a rough, infertile, dry, sometimes unyielding land that he helped conquer. Perhaps he absorbed the pioneer spirit that still lingered in that North Texas countryside. Perhaps it was the firm and loving parents who guided all of us to adulthood and passed to us their traits and values. Or could it be that Jack was one of those rare and special people touched by fate with an indomitable spirit? Whatever the reason, he was made a god of my youth and a lasting hero of my life.