Assemblyman Angelo Santabarbara presented a New York Assembly Citation and United States Flag to Iwo Jiwa Survivor, Corporal Ambrose “Cowboy” Anderson, Jr. on the occasion of his 97^th birthday today in Rotterdam.

In 1943, Corporal Anderson became one of the first Black members of the U.S. Marine Corps and was assigned to Camp Montford Point in Jacksonville, North Carolina, which was the segregated training facility for Black Marines.After completing training, he was deployed in the Pacific Theater of World War II with the 8th Ammunition Company, spending arduous weeks at Iwo Jima, where he and his fellow Montford Point Marines were integral in the Allied victory over imperial Japan.After the battle of Iwo Jima, Corporal Anderson was stationed in occupied Japan in the city of Sasebo and despite his heroic service, Corporal Anderson did not receive the recognition he deserved following his discharge in April 1946.