"They were more than just a number — they are Kelly, Martinez, Bianchi, Sadowski, Tominac, Baker, Wiedorfer, Fournier, Lopez, Thompson, Bjorkland and Smith. They are these United States," he said.
Mr. Wiedorfer was flown home and on June 11, 1945, was given a ticker-tape parade in Baltimore that began at the Washington Monument and ended at the War Memorial.
Some 35,000 jammed City Hall Plaza and witnessed Gen. George C. Marshall, Army chief of staff, warmly grasp the young hero's hand and say, "I am proud to take you by the hand," reported The Baltimore Sun.
"I had to give a little speech, and I had never given a speech in my life," Mr. Wiedorfer said in the 2008 interview. "I was so nervous that I called Mayor [Theodore R.] McKeldin 'Mayor McKinsey.' He thought it was awfully funny and told me so later in the day."
His other decorations included the Purple Heart and Bronze Star.
After being discharged from the Army in 1947, Mr. Wiedorfer returned to private life in Baltimore. He returned to his BGE job as a power station operator. He retired in 1981 from BGE, where he was supervisor of safety and training.
In an interview with The Baltimore Sun in 2006, Mr. Wiedorfer told a reporter, "Wouldn't it be wonderful if the Medal of Honor didn't exist because there were no wars and we could all live in peace? And that the only way to spell war was love? Wouldn't that be wonderful?"
His wife died in 2008, and he moved last year to the assisted-living facility.
Mr. Wiedorfer was a communicant of St. Thomas More Roman Catholic Church, 6806 McClean Blvd., where a Mass of Christian burial will be offered at 10 a.m. June 7.
Surviving are two sons, Gary Wiedorfer of Cocoa, Fla., and Paul J. Wiedorfer Jr. of Baltimore; a daughter, Randee Wiedorfer of Parkville; six grandchildren; and three great-grandchildren. Another daughter, Nancy Mazer, died last year.
Baltimore Sun researcher Paul McCardell contributed to this article.
Earlier versions of this article incorrectly reported that Paul J. Wiedorfer Jr. had died. The Sun regrets the error.
