Who is Gunnery Sergeant Hank Boyes from With the Old Breed, at Peleliu and Okinawa and what is their importance?

Gunnery Sergeant Hank Boyes replaced Haney as K/3/5's gunnery sergeant after Peleliu. He was a former dairy farmer from Trinidad, California, and a combat veteran of Cape Gloucester and Peleliu. He was awarded the Silver Star on Peleliu, was promoted to platoon sergeant during the assault on Ngesebus, and was later wounded on Peleliu. He recovered from his wound and returned to combat duty. During an early attack on Okinawa, described in Chapter 10, Boyes led two platoons into a ravine where they encountered severe enemy fire and had to withdraw.