On March 3, 2008, following a long campaign by his family and the congressional delegations of both North and South Dakota, President George W. Bush posthumously awarded Keeble the Medal of Honor for his heroic actions on October 20, 1951, in the Korean War.

He was being recruited by the Chicago White Sox when his Army National Guard unit was called up to serve in World War II.

After initial training in Louisiana, the regiment carried out various orders in several West Coast locations before being deployed to Australia in preparation for operations in the Pacific Theater.

The 164th Infantry landed on Guadalcanal on October 13, 1942, to help the battered First Marine Division, which had suffered heavy losses while clearing the South Pacific island of Japanese.

Largely because of transport constraints, the Americal Division arrived on Guadalcanal piecemeal, and was fed into combat alongside the battle-hardened Marines.

In contrast to the way several U.S. Army divisions were deployed in the Pacific War, the soldiers of the 164th Infantry were able to learn the practical art of jungle warfare against the Japanese without suffering as many casualties as might otherwise have occurred.

James Fenelon (Standing Rock Sioux Tribe of North & South Dakota), who fought with Keeble on Guadalcanal, once remarked, "The safest place to be was right next to Woody.

"[4] Despite its ad hoc formation, the Americal Division fought well at Guadalcanal, the 164th Infantry taking on a key role in the defeat of a major Japanese offensive in October 1942.

After the battles on Guadalcanal, Keeble and the rest of the regiment participated in combat campaigns on the islands of Bougainville, Leyte, Cebu, and Mindanao.

Discussing the experience of being in combat for the first time, Keeble said, Before I experienced the horror of that attack, I was quick to call coward or yellow anyone who showed fear under any circumstances.

And when men are in that state when the fear impulse takes a hold... he loses all reason, sense of values, and is not liable, or at least should not be held accountable for acts perpetrated when thus possessed.Keeble continued: During the 13 months [in the] almost continual and sustained combat in which I have ever participated, there were moments, and rare ones, I am sure; but they lose none of their terror or horror for which fear laid a relentless and a powerful hold on me, that the pull of cowardice was almost more than I could ward off.

When Keeble's commanding officer, Lieutenant E. Duane Holly, had to select several sergeants for deployment to the front lines, he decided to have his men draw straws.

His combat experience and a genuine gift of leadership brought him a quick series of promotions to the level of master sergeant, leading the 1st Platoon.

Trenches were filled with enemy soldiers, and fortified by three pillboxes containing machine guns; additional Chinese surrounded the hill.

After returning to the point where 1st Platoon held the company's first line of defense, Keeble worked his way to the opposite side of the ridgeline, where he took out the right pillbox with grenades.

Senator Conrad and North Dakota Adjutant General Michael Haugen presented Keeble's family with a duplicate set of his military medals on May 30, 2006, at the Wahpeton Armory.

Moments before the event was to begin, word came that Secretary of the Army Francis Harvey was recommending that Keeble's Distinguished Service Cross be upgraded to the Medal of Honor.

In 2007, Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld notified the four Dakota senators that a statute of limitations would prevent the Medal of Honor from being granted.

In May 2007, the congressional funding bill for Iraq included language to grant a waiver of the statute of limitations to award a Medal of Honor to Woodrow W. Keeble.

Senator Thune issued a statement on June 2, 2007, that read, in part, Master Sergeant Woodrow W. Keeble served with bravery and dignity, going beyond the call of duty not for notoriety or recognition-but for the mission he believed in and the country he loved.

I began working with Master Sergeant Keeble's family and tribal officials on resolving this long overdue issue in the spring of 2002, and I will continue to work with Defense officials to ensure that this legendary soldier receives the final and most distinguished honor he deserves.Senator Johnson urged Secretary of Defense Robert M. Gates to act quickly on the recommendation. "

... it is my hope that both you and the President can move forward on Master Sergeant Keeble's case as expeditiously as possible," Johnson said in a letter to Gates quoted in the Argus Leader of Sioux Falls, South Dakota.

Despite failing health, Blossom Keeble was determined to live long enough to accept the Medal of Honor on her husband's behalf, but she died quite suddenly on June 3, 2007.

In February 2008, the White House announced that Keeble would be awarded the Medal of Honor posthumously in a ceremony scheduled for March 3, with his family to receive it.

"[5] The President of the United States of America, authorized by Act of Congress, March 3, 2008, has awarded in the name of Congress the Medal of Honor to: Master Sergeant Woodrow W. Keeble United States Army Citation: For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty: Master Sergeant Woodrow W. Keeble distinguished himself by acts of gallantry and intrepidity above and beyond the call of duty in action with an armed enemy near Sangsan-ni, Korea, on October 20, 1951.

With complete disregard for his personal safety, Master Sergeant Keeble dashed forward and joined the pinned-down platoon.

Ignoring the heavy fire that the crew trained on him, Master Sergeant Keeble activated a grenade and threw it with great accuracy, successfully destroying the position.

As his comrades moved forward to join him, Master Sergeant Keeble continued to direct accurate fire against nearby trenches, inflicting heavy casualties on the enemy.

On July 23, 2008, North Dakota Governor John Hoeven posthumously presented Keeble with the Theodore Roosevelt Rough Rider Award.