DOB/DOD: February 27, 1917 (Baton Rouge, LA) – April 22, 1974 (New Haven, CT); 57 years old
MARITAL STATUS: Married to Madolyn L. DiSesa (1913-2002) on August 11, 1945, in Stamford, Connecticut.
CHILDREN: One son, Jeffrey L. (1949-1990).
ENLISTMENT: September 10, 1941, at Jacksonville Army Air Field, Florida.
SERVICE NUMBER: 34150836.
RETIREMENT: Retired from the Army as a Master Sergeant in 1966.
FAMILY: Born to Edna P. Stephens Wise (1893-1942). His father is unknown. Three brothers, Edward (1922-1990), Leon (1926-2003), and Robert (1936-?). One sister, Gracie Wise Pipes (1930-2003).
OTHER: Member of the Connecticut Veterans Hall of Fame, Class of 2009.
Also the recipient of the Silver Star Medal, Bronze Star Medal with “V” device for valor, and three Purple Heart Medals.
MEDAL OF HONOR CITATION
AWARDED FOR ACTIONS DURING: World War II
BRANCH OF SERVICE: Army
UNIT: Company L, 142nd Infantry Regiment, 36th Infantry Division
GENERAL ORDERS: War Department, General Orders No. 90, December 8, 1944
AGE ON THE DAY OF THE EVENT: 27
CITATION:
The President of the United States of America, in the name of Congress, takes pleasure in presenting the Medal of Honor to Staff Sergeant Homer L. Wise, United States Army, for conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity in action above and beyond the call of duty on 14 June 1944, while serving with Company L, 142nd Infantry Regiment, 36th Infantry Division, in action at Magliano, Italy. While his platoon was pinned down by enemy small-arms fire from both flanks, Staff Sergeant Wise left his position of comparative safety and assisted in carrying one of his men, who had been seriously wounded and who lay in an exposed position, to a point where he could receive medical attention. The advance of the platoon was resumed but was again stopped by enemy frontal fire. A German officer and two enlisted men armed with automatic weapons threatened the right flank. Fearlessly exposing himself, he moved to a position from which he killed all three with his submachine gun. Returning to his squad, he obtained an M-1 rifle and several antitank grenades, then took up a position from which he delivered accurate fire on the enemy holding up the advance. As the battalion moved forward, it was again stopped by enemy frontal and flanking fire. He procured an automatic rifle and, advancing ahead of his men, neutralized an enemy machinegun with his fire. When the flanking fire became more intense, he ran to a nearby tank and, exposing himself on the turret, restored a jammed machinegun to operating efficiency and used it so effectively that the enemy fire from an adjacent ridge was materially reduced, thus permitting the battalion to occupy its objective.
Homer L. Wise Memorial Park, Chester and Bedford Streets, Stamford, Connecticut. Photo by Jeff DeWitt.
Rt 137 (Washington Boulevard) from Broad Street to High Ridge Road in Stamford, Connecticut, was renamed Homer Lee Wise Memorial Highway in 2014. Photo by Jeff DeWitt.
Statue of Homer L. Wise in Veterans Park, Stamford, Connecticut, was dedicated on May 26, 2013. Photos by Jeff DeWitt.
From The Redding Pilot (now defunct), June 17, 2010, by Janis Gibson
Redding artist and sculptor Janice Mauro has recently worked on a commissioned project that has a rare subject.
“During World War II, 16 million men and women served. Only 464 received the Medal of Honor, of whom 266 received it posthumously. That statistic alone compels us to honor this hero,” said James Vlasto of Stamford at the September 2008 launch of a $150,000 fund-raising drive to erect a bronze statue of Master Sergeant Homer L. Wise (1917-1974). Sergeant Wise, who was raised in Baton Rouge. La., but married Stamford native Madolyn DiSesa and settled in that city after the war, was awarded the Medal of Honor for heroism in Magliano, Italy, on June 14, 1944.
Ms. Mauro has been commissioned to create the statue, which will be erected in the Homer L. Wise Memorial Park at Bedford and Chester Streets in Stamford.
“I was very honored to be selected to create this statue of Homer,” said Ms. Mauro, “and even more so as I got to know more about the man.” One of the most decorated infantrymen of World War II, Sergeant Wise also received the Silver Star, Bronze Star, three Purple Hearts, and 11 other decorations.
Creating maquettes (small samples) made of wax, Ms. Mauro presented the committee with a choice of three poses for the statue: standing, seated on a bench, or portrait bust. The standing pose was selected. She then created a 30-inch-high version, which can be seen on the website homerlwisememorial.org [WEBMASTER NOTE: that website no longer exists as of late 2023], that gave detail to gesture and attitude. She is now completing the 6-foot, 5-inch version from which the bronze statue will be cast using the lost wax method.
Any sculpture in bronze is a complicated endeavor. “It takes an army of people to take a statue from concept to finished product,” she said. “My job is to design it to show Homer’s character, his inner strength, in his face, in his pose and gestures… he stands solidly, shoulders back, head to the side, his brows are knitted.
“If you look at Michelangelo’s David,” she continued, “he’s looking at Goliath and wondering if he would survive; Homer was faced with a huge thing, and he made it. In creating a war piece, you want to show concern in his face that we would learn something.
“The emotion in his face is a large part of the stature; all figurative sculpture must have that. His feet are firmly planted, his head turning. What is going to happen next? What is the future? I want to show that through his gestures and expression,” she said.
To help achieve the effect she was looking for, Ms. Mauro’s husband, local wine expert Francois Saudeau, posed for her, moving under her direction to get the stance, posture, head turn, and other gestures just right. A friend who’s a uniform collector loaned her a piece from his collection so she would be accurate in the details of Homer’s jacket.
She is creating the statue in her home studio, called Goodwood Studio, which was constructed from a falling-down porch with 12 broken windows that was converted into a two-story art space when she and her husband moved to Redding eight years ago. Upstairs is a cathedral-ceilinged display space for her finished work, while downstairs is the concrete-floored working studio.
In addition to her bronze work, Ms. Mauro is a sculptor in traditional materials, including clay, terra cotta, and wax, and enjoys carving but prefers wood to the physical demands of stone. She also draws and occasionally paints, but sculpture is her first love.
Ms. Mauro has modeled heads for Nickelodeon’s Rug Rats and has done puppet, hand, and mask modeling for productions by Julie Taymor, including The Lion King, Juan Darien, Fool’s Fire, and Transposed Heads. She has also modeled marionettes for Eva Le Gallienne’s Broadway production of Alice in Wonderland and served as studio adjunct for New York artist Richard McDermott Miller (1912-2004) for 30 years.
“I learned everything from Richard,” she said. “I was a bronze chaser, patina person — applying the color chemically — green, black, brown. Homer will be chestnut brown; color is important.”
She noted that there are many other people involved in a statue’s creation other than the sculptor. The foundry, which does the physical casting, “is crucial,” as is the work of the bronze chaser who removes the mold marks and makes sure the piece is as perfect as possible; she will be doing much of that work herself. The statue has to be mounted and installed on site, which is designed by a landscape architect. It should be ready in September (2010).
He received the high honor of being selected as one of six honorary pallbearers at the dedication of the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier at Arlington National Cemetery in 1958 under President Dwight D. Eisenhower. He retired from the U.S. Army in 1966 with the rank of master sergeant. He then worked in the Stamford area, where he was known locally for his humility regarding his heroic deeds and frequent individual kindness to neighbors and strangers.
From an unknown newspaper, likely in Louisiana. Found on Ancestry.com.
A sweet little lady 75 years old today can boast the distinction of being the grandmother of the first Baton Rouge serviceman to be awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor, the highest award given by the government to a member of the armed forces. The grandson is Staff Sergeant Homer L. Wise.
Mrs. Hattie Wise, who lives on RFD 4, a few miles from Camp Istrouma, was all aflutter Friday morning over her hero grandson’s accomplishment, although she did not know of the award until. Some of her neighbors, who read the AP press release, told her.
A Mighty Fine Thing
“It was a mighty fine thing he did,” Mrs. Wise said, and I am proud of my Homer.”
The War Department in Washington announced Thursday that Sergeant Wise had been awarded the Medal of Honor for singlehandedly opposing a German advance with a machine gun, rifle, and grenades, thereby enabling his battalion to overwhelm the enemy and take the objective.
Homer’s own parents are dead. His mother died since he entered the service in September 1941. The 27-year-old Baton Rougean has been overseas for two years.
Homer attended the Central school until the sixth grade when he had to go to work on the Wise’s 91-acre farm. “When there’s farming to be done, the children don’t get much time for school,” his grandmother said.
One of Mrs. Wise’s neighbors, Mrs. Owen Brannon, said that Homer is a tall, dark-haired, nice-looking boy and that the people in that section were proud one of their fellows is to be presented the medal. “I can imagine that Homer would be pretty brave,” Mrs. Brannon said. “He never got into any trouble when he was around here because the other kids just didn’t pick on him.”
Has Girl in Connecticut
It was suggested to Mrs. Wise that Homer might send his award back to her, but she said that he’d more likely send it to his girl. Homer met his “girl” when he was stationed in Connecticut, and her name is Miss Madolyn LeSesa, “He sends her his money,” said Mrs. Wise, “cause he knows I don’t need it, and they’re saving it to be married with.”
Homer has been stationed part of his time in Europe with his Uncle John, who is Mrs. Wise’s son. In addition to Homer and John, Mrs. Wise writes letters to Charles and Henry Walker, her grandsons, who are the sons of Mrs. Livella Walker of Baton Rouge, and to the sons of another daughter, Mrs. Tina Shaffett of Doyle–LeRoy, J.D., Gene, and James.
Homer’s brothers live with Mrs. Wise now and help her manage the small farm. Ed is 22, Leon just 18, and Robert is 8.
Mrs. Wise, her white hair rolled neatly into a bun, “was out taking care of the stock Friday morning when she heard about Homer’s award. “Ed does most of the work,” she confessed, “but I piddle around the place as best I can.”
Will Write to Homer
Mrs. Wise says that now she must sit right down and write Homer a long letter telling him how proud she is. She’s been worried about him anyway, for on October 22, he was wounded for the third time since shipping overseas. “It wasn’t really serious, though,” she added.
The action which heroized Homer occurred near Magliano, Italy, on June 14, 1944.
From The Town Talk (Alexandria, Louisiana) June 1, 1945
BATON ROUGE VET TOURING NATION WITH BOND SHOW
Jaycees to Sponsor “Here’s Your Infantry” June 16
One of the most decorated and outstanding of this war’s Doughboys, Technical Sergeant Homer Lee Wise of Baton Rouge, whose bride is the former Madolyn DiSesa of Stamford, Connecticut, appears in “Here’s Your Infantry” now touring the United States for the 7th War Loan. The show will be here on June 16 under the sponsorship of the Junior Chamber of Commerce.
Decorated with the Medal of Honor, the nation’s highest military award, for a series of conspicuously gallant acts in combat against the Germans in Italy on June 14, 1944, the big Louisiana infantryman takes part in a realistic battle demonstration that shows how your heroic Doughboys fight in Europe and the Pacific.
The thrice-wounded sergeant also won the Silver Star for gallantry, the Bronze Star Medal for heroism, and the Combat Infantryman Badge for exemplary conduct in action against the enemy. He wears the Purple Heart with two Oak Leaf Clusters for his three wounds, the Good Conduct Medal, the American Defense Ribbon, and the European Theater Ribbon with four battle stars.
His top-ranking ribbon, designating a holder of the Medal of Honor, has five white stars on a blue background.
Will Sell More Bonds
Commenting on the war bond tour of “Here’s Your Infantry,” battle-experienced Sergeant Wise says: “Sure, let’s show America how the infantry fights. “Here’s Your Infantry” will probably sell more war bonds than anything else could. This is the way we had to fight over there. And every real front-line infantryman is a hero, don’t forget, whether he was decorated or not.”
Composed of battle veterans from all our combat fronts, 25 “Here’s Your Infantry” teams are presented for the tour by Army Ground Forces and the Treasury
Department. The 25 teams stage the outdoor sham attack with flame-throwers, mortars, blanks-firing machine guns, rifles, bazookas, and explosives.
They trained at the Infantry School, Fort Benning, Georgia, where Sergeant Wise is permanently stationed.
The heroic Louisiana Infantryman used four Infantry weapons when he won the Medal of Honor. Leading his squad of riflemen in the attack against the Germans near Magliano, he dashed forward under fire and killed with his .45-caliber submachinegun three of the enemy trying to set up an automatic weapon to fire against his squad’s unprotected flank.
Again, he fired 15 rifle grenades from an exposed position against Germans concealed and firing in a gully. When the grenades were used up, and the enemy was dead or fleeing, he pursued them, shooting his submachinegun from the hip. Later, he stood up in a hail of enemy fire while firing an automatic rifle against enemy machine guns aiming at his squad, and knocked out the German gun.
Gave Enemy Hell
When his squad fought forward, it again was pinned down by German machinegun fire. Then Sergeant Wise leaped on an American tank that was under fire and sent 750 bullets from its machinegun against the German positions. His squad and company fought ahead and took their objective. That was part of one day’s fighting by the sergeant.
Regarding his combat in the 36th Infantry Division in Italy and France during his 22 months overseas, Sergeant Wise looked back on his intrepid fighting actions and smiled. He said: “I guess I just never slowed up. From the night we hit them at Salerno to the day I left combat near Strasbourg, I tried to give the enemy hell.”
Now 28 years old, the battle veteran was a service station manager in Louisiana and Texas for the De Luxe Oil Company before entering the Army in 1941. His grandmother is Mrs. Hattie Wise, Route 4, Baton Rouge. He was married in Stamford, where his wife lived at 19 First Street, last February 19 after returning to this country in January.
Sergeant Wise won the Silver Star in Italy on January 7, 1944, for a reconnaissance mission under fire on the icy slopes of a mountain. The day after the invasion of Southern France, he won the Bronze Star on August 16, 1944, for capturing with six other Doughboys, a German motor park, and 32 prisoners.
Last year was a busy one for Sergeant Wise. He not only earned his three decorations for heroism but also was wounded three times and fought in four campaigns.
Buried in Saint John’s Cemetery, 25 Camp Avenue, Darien, Connecticut; Zone 4, Lot 9, Grave 1. Photos by Jeff DeWitt.
END