Medal of Honor Winner Jose M. Lopez Dies at 94

With other relatives dead or unable to support him, he made his way to Texas and settled in the Rio Grande Valley town of Mission. There, a family let him sleep in their shed and fed him.

His Medal of Honor citation lists Mission as his birthplace.

He spent time hooking rides on freight trains, and at 17 found himself in Atlanta. Standing 5 feet 5 inches and weighing 130 pounds, he nevertheless fought and pummeled a much bigger man.

A boxing manager who witnessed the beating trained the newly named "Kid Mendoza" and saw him through 52 victories and three losses.

Sgt. Lopez once said the greatest moment of his boxing career was meeting Babe Ruth, who attended one bout in Atlanta and shook hands with the contenders before the first bell.

In 1936, he joined the U.S. Merchant Marine and held other maritime jobs.

After his World War II service, he fought in Korea until a ranking officer heard that a Medal of Honor recipient was in battle. He was ordered to the rear and spent months picking up bodies and registering them for burial.

He later was a recruiter, mowed lawns and plowed snow. He was placed in charge of a motor pool and oversaw large crews of maintenance personnel. He retired in 1973.

To maintain his physique, Sgt. Lopez jogged until age 88. He also saw a trainer three times a week, a regimen that ended three month ago as his illness worsened.

His wife of 62 years, Emilia Herrera Lopez, died in February 2004.

Survivors include five children, Candida "Marie" Pieratti of Mahopac, N.Y., Virginia Rogers of Ogden, Utah, Beatrice Pedraza of Lima, Peru, and John Lopez and Maggie Wickwire, both of San Antonio; 19 grandchildren; and 10 great-grandchildren.