Howard Lavy remembers the day in 1966 when waves of North Vietnamese army soldiers attacked his Hawaii-based Army company in Ho Bo Woods.

"If it hadn’t been for the aviation company (airlifting the soldiers out), we would have been overrun finally because we had run out of ammunition," said Lavy, a retired lieutenant colonel.

Nearly 45 years after that battle, Lavy and eight fellow soldiers returned to Schofield Barracks Friday to receive a Presidential Unit Citation for their actions that day.

The soldiers were members of Schofield’s A Company, 1st Battalion, 27th Infantry Regiment. A larger NVA force charged their position three times on July 19, 1966, pouring machine gun and mortar fire on the Americans during a 3-hour battle. A Company held them off, but at the cost of 24 killed and 54 wounded, Lavy said.

A recommendation for a Presidential Unit Citation was prepared in September 1966, but a platoon leader inadvertently packed it with his belongings and shipped it to his father in California, Lavy said. The paperwork was discovered in 2004 when a family member opened the long-forgotten box.

U.S. Sen. Daniel Inouye and Army officials helped Lavy reintroduce the citation recommendation. Army Secretary John McHugh approved the Presidential Unit Citation in September.

"We take great pride in seeing the final results of our efforts to recognize the valor and sacrifice made by our unit almost 45 years ago," said Lavy, 67, a tall Pearl City resident who said he still fits his Army uniform. "It’s a very emotional day for all of us.

"It’s an uplifting feeling to get some recognition. Some of the veterans are still having issues with PTSD (post-traumatic stress disorder) and some of their wounds, and so this award will motivate them," he said.

The nine A Company veterans at the ceremony came from Oahu, Hawaii island, Thailand and the mainland.