Private First Class Bird was a Heavy Weapons Infantryman with Company D, 1st Battalion, 35th Infantry Regiment, 25th Infantry Division. He was Killed in Action while fighting the enemy at the southwest corner of the Pusan Perimeter in South Korea on 19 September 1950.

For his leadership and valor, Private First Class Bird was awarded the Bronze Star Medal, the Purple Heart, the Combat Infantryman's Badge, the Korean Service Medal, the United Nations Service Medal, the National Defense Service Medal, the Korean Presidential Unit Citation and the Republic of Korea War Service Medal.