Michael Paul Finley ★ Vietnam War Gold Star Veteran from Illinois
On May 8, 1967 Lance Corporal Finley was declared a casualty of the Vietnam War. ★ He served with honor in the United States Marine Corps. ★ He is remembered by the people of Illinois. ★ May his positive example inspire us. Working together towards peace, mutual respect, and equality for all.
We all benefit when we work together to honor fallen American service members. The Honor States archive is a grassroots initiative. Of the people, by the people, for the people.
Click to Submit Update Request for this Fallen Service Member▼ Content Integrity Note
Our displayed data concerning the life and military history of Michael Paul Finley is a work in progress. We've assembled a list of elements we are in the process of researching and reviewing. This profile has not been edited recently and is overdue for our attention.
Missing : Core Data
· Date of tour or service· Burial or memorial location
· Expanded biographical or service details
Missing : Supplemental Data
· Birth + childhood location· Educational background
· Marriage history
· Parents, family history
· Expanded references and citations
Service Details
| This Profile ID | 272395 |
| Service ID | 2204950 |
| Name | Michael Paul Finley |
| From | Big Rock, Kane County, Illinois |
| Birth Date | October 8, 1946 |
| Casualty Date | May 8, 1967 |
| War | Vietnam War |
| Service Branch | Marine Corps |
| Rank | Lance Corporal |
| Specialty | Rifleman |
| Unit/Group | 3rd Marine Division, 1st Battalion, 4th Marines, A Company |
| Casualty Type | Died through hostile action .. small arms fire |
| Location | Attack on Usmc Positions at Con Thien, South Vietnam, Quang Tri province |
| Notable Awards |
★ Purple Heart |
| Remembered |  Michael is honored on the Vietnam Veteran's Memorial in Washington DC. Name inscribed at VVM Wall, Panel 19e, Line 58. |
Additional Details
▼ Auto-Generated Profile Synopsis: Michael Paul Finley was serving his country during the Vietnam War when he gave his all in the line of duty. He had enlisted in the United States Marine Corps. Entered the service via Regular Military. Finley had the rank of Lance Corporal. His military occupation or specialty was Rifleman. Service number assignment was 2204950. Attached to 3rd Marine Division, 1st Battalion, 4th Marines, A Company.
He was born on October 8, 1946. According to our records Illinois was his home or enlistment state and Kane county has been included within the archival record. We have Big Rock listed as his city. During his service in the Vietnam War, Marine Corps Lance Corporal Finley experienced a traumatic event which ultimately resulted in loss of life on May 8, 1967. Recorded circumstances attributed to: Died through hostile action .. small arms fire. Incident location: Attack on Usmc Positions at Con Thien, South Vietnam, Quang Tri province. |
Commendations + Awards
Please note this might not be a complete or completely accurate accounting. For some awards we use probability factors based on known service details. Thanks for your understanding.
★ Purple Heart
★ Combat Action Ribbon
★ Marksmanship Badge
★ National Defense Service Medal
★ Vietnam Campaign Medal
★ Vietnam Service Medal
★ Marine Corps Presidential Unit Citation
★ Vietnam Gallantry Cross
Notable Reference Sources
These are typically links to pages on external sites that have provided specific nodes of information. In most cases the information has some assurance of being crowd-sourced and vetted by a community of users.Illinois Gold Star Veterans Gallery
Honoring the men and women of Illinois who gave their all for their country. May their example of courage and sacrifice be our guide. To be strong and responsible in our lives as citizens of the world. Through honest daily actions, we honor them.
▼ Illinois was home to over 28,676 American Gold Star veterans from 4 wars of the 20th Century. Some significant statistics:
• 4,575 World War I
• 19,313 World War II
• 1,845 Korean War
• 2,943 Vietnam War
• 393 Prisoners of war
• 4,734 Missing in action
• 124 Pearl Harbor casualties
• 217 D-Day Normandy casualties
• 29 Medal of Honor recipients
• 19,313 World War II
• 1,845 Korean War
• 2,943 Vietnam War
• 393 Prisoners of war
• 4,734 Missing in action
• 124 Pearl Harbor casualties
• 217 D-Day Normandy casualties
• 29 Medal of Honor recipients
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Honor States Admin
Roy "Joker"
Sarah Jo "Lady Chaos"
▼ Primary Sources - These are repositories for artifacts, documents, diaries, manuscripts, and other information that serve as original and authoritative sources of information.
National Archives (NARA)
Library of Congress (LOC)
Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency (DPAA)
Findagrave.com
Ancestry.com
Honoring our fallen. Together. Uniting us in meaningful common cause. When we work together to honor our Gold Star veterans, we heal our nation together. It's a team effort. Everyone's invited to join as a Citizen Historian and Guardian of Honor. - learn more
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National Memorial Day Parade with Spirit of 45
On May 27, 2019 the Honor States group was proud to be a part of our premier Memorial Day parade hosted by the District of Columbia and sponsored by the American Veteran Center. Together with Spirit of 45 and dozens of enthusiastic kids, the float and banner in tribute to the fallen at Normandy proved memorable and moving.
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