A Medal of Honor recipient, who was recognized for courageous actions during the Vietnam War, paid a visit and interacted with elementary school students in Tennessee.

Sammy Davis, 65, visited and took questions from students at the Sacred Heart Cathedral School in Knoxville, Tennessee. Davis was awarded the Medal of Honor for holding off a Viet Cong assault, as well as saving three wounded members of his Army artillery crew in Cai Lay, Vietnam, on November 18, 1967.

The visit was made in order to help promote the upcoming convention of the Medal of Honor Society, scheduled for October 2014 in Knoxville.

Unbeknownst to many, Davis had a stint in Hollywood; Tom Hanks’ image was substituted for his in order to recreate the fictional Medal of Honor ceremony in the movie Forrest Gump.

Davis had shared the following of children: “When you see the looks on their faces and hear the questions they ask, it’s very easy to open up your heart and let them look in… There have been over 2.5 million children hold this medal. I tell them, it’s theirs. I’m just the caretaker of it.”

Davis was welcomed by Knox County Mayor Tim Burchett and Knoxville Mayor Madeline Rogero. In addition to visiting the Sacred Heart Cathedral School, he also appeared at a luncheon at Cherokee Country Club, where he said: “As much as we would like to pay back to all those who have served in our nation’s history, we cannot… But we can pay it forward. We want to go talk to your children. We want to share what’s in our hearts with your youth.”