Born on May 2, 1910, Alexander “Sandy” Bonnyman, Jr., was raised in Knoxville, Tennessee. When the United States entered World War II, Bonnyman enlisted in the Marine Corps, despite exemptions
for age and occupation.

In November 1943, First Lieutenant Bonnyman was assigned to Tarawa in the Gilbert Islands, where Japanese forces had entrenched themselves. Marine forces could not breach a line of Japanese pillboxes, so Bonnyman volunteered to organize and lead a demolition team. Bonnyman and his team took the top of the pillbox, directed grenades and flamethrowers into the air shafts, and drove out the Japanese soldiers. On November 23, 1943, Bonnyman was killed by the Japanese soldiers who had been driven out into the open.

In 1947, Bonnyman posthumously received the Medal of Honor for his actions on Tarawa. Secretary of the Navy James Forrestal presented the medal to Frances, Bonnyman’s oldest daughter. Bonnyman’s body was lost until 2015, when his grandson and the non-profit History Flight uncovered his remains, which were subsequently reinterred in Knoxville.