Chuck Simmins | July 2, 2009 |

Garrett spoke of the “warrior ethos” that guides soldiers: place the mission first, never accept defeat, never quit, and never leave a fallen comrade.

“These are just words to some people,” Garrett said. “But the warrior ethos is a way of life to Staff Sergeant Begaye. Amazing acts of bravery and valor were commonplace that grim day. But this morning, we recognize Staff Sergeant Begaye for his courage - and we are thankful for the opportunity to serve with such a man.”

Category: Afghanistan, Heroes, Military, WOT Heroes, War on Terror | 1 Comment »
Tags: 503rd Infantry Regiment, American Indian war hero, hero, Native American war hero, Navajo war hero, Nuristan province Afghanistan, purple heart, silver star, Staff Sgt. Conrad Begaye

Chuck Simmins | July 1, 2009 |

Even though he was awarded the Bronze Star for his actions, he still thinks about the Marines who were there with him that day.

“I don’t think I deserve a Bronze Star for my actions out there,” Cortes said. “I wasn’t the only person out there. There were the other Marines covering me when I went out to recover those guys.”

Category: Heroes, Marines, Military, WOT Heroes | No Comments »
Tags: 2nd Marine Division, Bronze Star with V, hero, Marine, Staff Sgt. Logan Cortes

Chuck Simmins | June 19, 2009 |

“He stepped up to the occasion, and exhibited some incredible bravery that day,” said Lt. Col. John John Orille, who worked with Crosby in Iraq. “He intuitively thinks on his feet and executes with confidence. His judgment is spot-on at the snap of a finger. No matter what you throw at him, he’s able to assess the situation and take action.”

Category: Heroes, Iraq, Marines, Military, WOT Heroes, War on Terror | No Comments »
Tags: 2nd Marine Division, Bodija Iraq, Bronze Star with V, hero, Marine hero, military hero, Staff Sgt. Philip Crosby

Chuck Simmins | June 2, 2009 |

Hutchinson’s actions were without a doubt the primary disruptor of the enemy actions that day. His actions contributed to the safety of 17 Soldiers and showed extraordinary courage, loyalty and selfless service under fire.

Category: Heroes, Military, WOT Heroes | No Comments »
Tags: 420th Engineer Brigade, Army Reserve soldier, hero, hero in Afghanistan, silver star, Specialist David Hutchinson

Chuck Simmins | June 1, 2009 |

“Sgt. Carter represents the very best of the 2nd Panther Team and the Army. He displayed selfless-service by entering the burning vehicle multiple times embodying the spirit of the Army Values,” said Lt. Col. Louis Zeisman, commander of the 2nd Bn., 505th Parachute Inf. Regt., of Fayetteville, N.C. “Sgt. Carter’s actions truly define the meaning of a hero.”

Category: Heroes, Military, WOT Heroes | No Comments »
Tags: 82nd airborne division, Bronze Star with V, combat medic, hero, samarra iraq, Sgt. James Carter

Chuck Simmins | May 20, 2009 |

It is the valor of these three Soldiers with their unparalleled courage under fire, decisive leadership, and tenacity in close combat that led to the successful elimination of a critical terrorist cell. Their quiet professionalism and modesty continues to radiate throughout the unit.

Category: Heroes, Military, Terrorist Death Watch, WOT Heroes | No Comments »
Tags: Capt. Matthew A. Chaney, distinguished service cross, Green Berets, Heroes, heroes in Iraq, iraqi national police, Islamic State of Iraq terrorist, Operational Detachment – Alpha 083, samarra iraq, Sgt. 1st Class Jarion Halbisengibbs, Sgt. 1st Class Michael D. Lindsay, silver star

Chuck Simmins | April 23, 2009 |

Gustafson is now looking to the future and says he is looking forward to a bright future outside of the Marine Corps.

“I took a lot of photos in Afghanistan,” said Gustafson. “I’m going to go to college in the fall and try and make a career out of it.”

Cpl. Brady Gustafson never faltered during the ambush and his heroism helped save the lives of all the Marines involved.

Category: Afghanistan, Heroes, Marines, Military, WOT Heroes, War on Terror | 3 Comments »
Tags: 7th Marine Regiment, hero, Lance Cpl. Brady Gustafson, Navy Cross, operation enduring freedom, purple heart, Shewan Afghanistan, united states marines

Chuck Simmins | April 13, 2009 |

“We got a call on the radio saying ‘we’re dying, we’re dying and I’m the last one left,’” said Jones, the 24 year-old native of San Angelo, Texas. “I figured we needed to do something about it.”

With bullets still flying, Jones again crossed 130 meters of fire-swept ground wielding a M-240B machine gun. Jones, with fire support from other members of the team, suppressed the attackers long enough to allow him to reach the wounded soldiers and provide life-saving aid.

Category: Afghanistan, Heroes, Marines, Military, WOT Heroes, War on Terror | 1 Comment »
Tags: 173rd Airborne, Afghanistan, Cpl. Jason Jones, hero, Marines, silver star

Chuck Simmins | April 1, 2009 |

The Silver Star was accepted by Ayers’ brother, Josh Ayers, in front of an audience of family members, friends and about 20 members of Ayers’ unit, stationed in Vicenza, Italy.

On March 30, Meyer and Spc. Michael T. Denton (members of Ayers’ unit) were also awarded Silver Stars for their actions during the battle at Wanat, while Sgt. 1st Class David L. Dzwik received a Bronze Star with a Valor device. Throughout Chosen Company’s 15-month deployment in Afghanistan, 16 Soldiers were killed in action and 50 were wounded.

Category: Afghanistan, Heroes, Military, WOT Heroes, War on Terror | No Comments »
Tags: 173rd airborne brigade, Afghanistan, Cpl. Jonathan Ayers, Patriot Guard Riders, purple heart, silver star, taliban, Wanat Afghanistan

Chuck Simmins | March 25, 2009 |

As a general rule, the Silver Star is faster and requires less paperwork to award. The Medal of Honor is often an upgraded award from the Silver Star. Keeping that in mind, here are a few Marine Corps Silver Star winners who might be the “Marine to be named later”.

Category: Heroes, Marines, Military, WOT Heroes, WOT Medal of Honor | No Comments »
Tags: hero, Heroes, marine corps, medal of honor, silver star

Chuck Simmins | March 19, 2009 |

Campbell also knew she had a second option: eject and allow the plane to crash.

But there were civilians down there, and there was no knowing who would be hit by the burning Warthog.

Moreover, “ejecting in itself over friendly territory is one thing. Now, ejecting over enemy territory and going down over Baghdad, where we were just delivering ordnance on Iraqi Republican Guard, is a totally different story.”

Category: Heroes, Military, Our Best: Military Women, WOT Heroes | No Comments »
Tags: 3d Infantry Division, A/OA-10 fighter pilot, air combat over Baghdad, Captain Kim N. Campbell, Distinguished Flying Cross, Iraq, liberation of Iraq, North Baghdad Bridge, surface-to-air missile, Yard 06

Chuck Simmins | March 19, 2009 |

The attendant announced that he wasn’t going to award drink coupons for that answer, telling the passengers that “naming an Idol winner was not worth a free drink,” Shelton recalled.

“He concluded his announcement with the question: ‘What’s wrong with our country when out of 150 passengers, only one can name a Medal of Honor recipient, but 43 can name an American Idol winner?’”

Category: Heroes, Military, WOT Heroes, WOT Medal of Honor | 1 Comment »
Tags: American heroes, Army Sgt. 1st Class Paul R. Smith, Army Spc. Ross McGinness, hero, Heroes, heroes of th War on Terror, Marine Cpl. Jason Dunham, medal of honor, Medal of Honor recipients, Navy Lt. Michael Murphy, Navy Petty Officer 2nd Class Michael Monsoor

Chuck Simmins | March 10, 2009 |

“If it wasn’t for Zach, I wouldn’t be here,” said Sergeant Gutierrez.
Air Force Cross, Purple Heart

Category: Afghanistan, Heroes, Military, Terrorist Death Watch, WOT Heroes, War on Terror | No Comments »
Tags: 21st Special Tactics Squadron, Air Force Cross, combat controller, hero, Shok Valley, special tactics combat controller, Staff Sgt. Zachary Rhyner, US Special Forces