FORT BENNING, Ga., (April 27, 2016) -- On a rainy Friday morning during a recent Ranger school graduation, Claude Boudreaux's four sons stood in a line, facing the audience. Col. David Fivecoat, commander of the Airborne and Ranger Training Brigade, stood across from the men. Leaning in, Fivecoat pinned a medal to the lapel of Merrill Boudreaux. The crowd applauded: Claude Boudreaux finally received his Bronze Star medal, 73 years after earning it.

Boudreaux, a member of the legendary 'Merrill's Marauders,' passed away in 1997 and never received the prestigious medal he had earned. As Boudreaux's children were sorting through his military documents and medals after his passing, they realized he had documentation awarding him a Bronze Star, but the medal was missing.

"We realized his Bronze Star was missing and he had never spoke of it, and so our brother did some research and found out that indeed he was entitled to it," said Merrill Boudreaux.

Boudreaux was one of 3,000 American Soldiers who volunteered for President Roosevelt's call for volunteers for a "dangerous and hazardous mission." The mission took Boudreaux to Bombay, India, in 1943 where he was assigned to the Red Team of the 5307th Composite Unit (Provisional), which later became known as "Merrill's Marauders" after Brig. Gen. Frank Merrill.

Boudreaux and the marauders marched over 800 miles up Ledo Road and the outlying ranges of the Himalayan Mountains, engaging with the enemy in five major battles with no tanks or heavy artillery to support them. The marauders are credited with disrupting the enemy supply and communication lines, resulting in the capture of the Japanese airbase at Myitkyina, according to marauder.org.

After the war, Boudreaux returned home and assumed a civilian life in Verdunville, Louisiana. Merrill's influence continued to inspire Boudreaux, and he named his first-born son Merrill, after Brig. Gen. Frank Merrill.

Even though Boudreaux never collected his medal, his sacrifice lives on through his children who worked hard to make sure that their father's notable honor was remembered.

"We're grateful to receive it on his behalf. (He was) a remarkable, remarkable fellow with extreme integrity and just a wonderful man," said Merrill Boudreaux. "His word was his bond, if he told you something, a handshake was adequate. He was wonderfully respected in the community because of that as well."

When asked what he could say to his father and the other marauders, Merrill Boudreaux paused for a moment, tears gathering in his eyes.

"I would just say thank you. There's a lot of gratitude for what they did, marauders especially, for what they did to help bring the war to a place where the ground combat could take charge. He inspired us to be the gentlemen we are."