Background
LaPointe, known to his family as "Guy", was born and raised in Dayton, Ohio.
LaPointe, known to his family as "Guy", was born and raised in Dayton, Ohio.
After graduating from Northridge High School in 1966, he moved to nearby Clayton and worked as a mail carrier in Englewood. LaPointe was a nature lover and an avid hiker. LaPointe was drafted in 1968 and declared himself a conscientious objector.
He became a combat medic and sent to Vietnam in November 1968.
By June 2 of the next year, he was a Specialist Four serving with the 2nd Squadron, 17th Cavalry Regiment, 101st Airborne Division. On that day, he participated in a patrol on Hill 376 in Quảng Tín Province.
When his unit came under heavy fire from entrenched enemy forces and took several casualties, LaPointe ran through the automatic weapons fire to reach two wounded men at the head of the patrol. He treated the soldiers and shielded them with his body, even after being twice wounded, until an enemy grenade killed all three mentor
Hearing a call for aid from 1 of the wounded, In spite of his painful wounds, Several structures have been named in LaPointe"s honor, including a housing complex and medical complex in Fort Campbell, Kentucky, a medical heliport in Fort Benning, Georgia, and an Army Reserve Center in Riverside, Ohio.
A portion of Ohio State Route 49 in Montgomery County has been designated the "Joseph G. LaPointe Junior. Memorial Highway".
As members of his unit attempted to provide covering fire, he administered first aid to 1 man, shielding the other with his body.