Private First Class Bourg was a member of Company F, 2nd Battalion, 1st Marines, 1st Marine Division. He was serving as a lookout on Hill 849, Korea when he was struck by shrapnel from enemy artillery fire on 1 January 1952.

Bourg was awarded the Purple Heart with Oak Leaf Cluster, the Combat Action Ribbon, 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.