More at the link:

Joe Gibson is an Army Ranger. That will not mean much to those who are not a part of the Army family so here is an explanation. Spc. Joe Gibson volunteered when he joined the United States Army. He then volunteered to become a Ranger. The Ranger school turns out some of the toughest warriors in the world, paratroopers and special operations soldiers. On D-Day in 1944, when there were seaside cliffs to climb to take out German artillery, the Rangers were sent.

That is the sort of outfit Joe Gibson joined. And, he has made them proud.

Chuck Simmins

More at the link:

A hero is a person who, despite their own fears, did the right thing in an emergency. There are no manuals about how to be a hero in an emergency situation. There are only the examples of those we recognize to be heroes.

Many of us have vivid memories of the events of September 11, 2001. The word “hero” has been used with respect to many people on that day.

Rick Rescorla ensured that 2,600 of his fellow employees did not die when the World Trade Center towers collapsed.

Chuck Simmins

On October 17, 2005, Sgt. 1st Class Alwyn C. Cashe, Al Cashe, was one of nine men in a Bradley Fighting Vehicle on patrol in Samarra, Iraq. The Bradley hit an IED and the contents of its fuel cell was splashed throughout the interior. Cashe’s clothing was soaked with it and the vehicle was on fire.

Cashe was able to extract the driver and put out the fire that was burning him. With the rear hatch jammed, the remaining six soldiers and a translator only had a small overhead hatch available to escape from. Cashe returned to the burning Bradley and began to pull the trapped men through the hatch. His clothing almost immediately caught fire.

Despite being on fire, Cashe pulled soldier after soldier free of the wreck and to safety. Altogether he rescued six men while being burned alive himself.

Maj. Mark Rasnake wrote the following about his encounter with Sgt, Cashe at the hospital:

I met a hero last night. I did not realize it at the time, but he is the closest thing to a hero that I likely will ever meet. This is a place where the word “hero” is tossed around day in and day out, so much so that you sometimes lose sight of its true meaning. His story reminded me of it.

He was commanding a Bradley fighting vehicle that was struck with a roadside bomb, catching fire. The loading ramp jammed, trapping eight inside. The crew was forced to escape through a much smaller hatch in the top of the vehicle. All but one made it out. The medic was left behind, apparently unable to get out. Without concern for his own life, my hero went back in to the burning vehicle to retrieve his friend.

Six of his buddies came to us with severe burns. He came to us with burns over most of his body, the most severely injured of the group.

The surgeons worked for hours on his wounds and we worked for hours in the intensive care unit to stabilize him for transport. In the end, damage to his lungs made him too sick to be safely transported by plane to our hospital in Germany and then on to a burn center in San Antonio.

The ventilators we use for transport simply could not deliver the amount of oxygen he needed. If he stayed here in Iraq he would have died of his wounds. We simply cannot care for such severe burns here. Only a handful of hospitals back in the U.S. can.

Knowing this, our air evac team loaded him into the plane for the six-hour flight to Germany. They had to deliver every breath to him during that flight by squeezing a small bag by hand. I do not know yet if he made it to Germany alive, or if he will be able to fly on to San Antonio.

Cashe made it to San Antonio but died of his wounds on November 8, 2005.

Cashe was married, with a family. He had served in Desert Storm and this was his second tour in Iraq. He was awarded the Silver Star and that citation reads:

The President of the United States takes pride in presenting the Silver Star Medal (Posthumously) to Alwyn C. Cashe, Sergeant First Class, U.S. Army, for conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity in action while serving with the 1st Battalion, 15th Infantry Regiment, 3d Infantry Division, in support of Operation IRAQI FREEDOM, on 17 October 2005. Sergeant First Class Cashe was drenched in fuel after an IED blast ignited the Bradley Fighting Vehicle’s fuel cell, during a patrol in Samarra, Iraq. After the vehicle came to a stop and erupted in flames, he helped the driver out of the hatch and extinguished his flames. In the back of the Bradley were six more soldiers and a translator. As flames engulfed the Bradley Fighting Vehicle, without regard for his personal safety, Sergeant First Class Cashe rushed to the back of the vehicle, reached into the hot flames and started pullout out his Soldiers. The flames spread to his fuel-soaked uniform and spread quickly over his body. Despite terrible pain, Sergeant First Class Cashe placed one injured soldier on the ground and returned to the burning vehicle to retrieve another burning soldiers, all the while, he was himself still on fire. Sergeant First Class Cashe is credited with saving the lives of six soldiers, evacuating them despite his own injuries and severe burns. He died of his wounds on November 8, 2006.

The Chicago Tribune:

“My brother told me an officer once asked him why when they were in a danger zone he was always out front,” his brother, Karlos Cashe, said during Saturday’s services. “He told me that he said, `I’m at peace with myself and God, and some of these other guys might not have reached that point yet.’ That was my brother.”

That message was repeated by family and friends who gathered at First Baptist Church to pay tribute to Cashe.

Tears and laughter punctuated the two-hour service, where dozens of people who had never met Cashe came to pay their respects.

Those closest to Cashe remembered him as a boy who loved to goof around with friends while growing up in the projects, a man who cherished his family — including his wife, Tamara, 12-year-old daughter, Alexis, 8-year-old son, Andrew, and a daughter, LaJada — and a soldier who took his job seriously.

The medic who treated him at the explosion site wrote this to his family:

My name is SSgt Alisha Turner and although I only met Sgt Cashe briefly he left an impact that will stay with me always. I am a medic currently deployed to Iraq. I treated Sgt Cashe and members of his unit moments after the accident. He was a brave man and a remarkable individual. His selfless actions took my breath away and the last statement I can recall him saying has left me in awe ” Take care of my troops.” He was more worried about his wounded troops and making sure they will be alright then himself. Those of us that took care of him paid our respects to him and his fellow soldiers as they left that night. He truly is a hero in our eyes. I only learned days ago about his death and I offer my sympathy to his family. He paid the ultimate price for his country…for his fellow man. He was one of the bravest men I have known.
With deepest regards,
SSgt Alisha Turner

This Memorial Day, and every day for the rest of your life, please thank your God for men like Al Cashe. Tell your children the story of his heroism.

Redemption, Courage, Sacrifice

Somewhere near here, Valhalla or Fiddler’s Green, a band of brothers is welcoming a new friend. Standing at attention are men like Alvin York, Audie Murphy and Douglas MacArthur. A new hero has come home.

It wasn’t a very long road for Ross McGinnis. He was just 19 when he became a legend. It had not been a long road but it had some twists and turns.

Ross McGinnis was not always hero material. He grew up in a small town in western Pennsylvania, the only boy in a family with two gifted girls. His father suggests Bart Simpson as a good image of this underachiever.

At fourteen he made several mistakes, bought some marijuana and talked about it at school. When school administrators looked further, they found a couple of knives in his locker.

Suspension and court followed.

Given time to think, Ross thought. At some point he talked with an Army recruiter. In his junior year he enlisted in the United States Army under the delayed enlistment program. Those who knew him saw the change. Despite academic struggles, he graduated from high school and joined the Army.

After basic and advanced infantry training, Ross came home on leave. He was a changed man. He was a soldier.

In Germany, training for deployment to Iraq, Ross made his mark with his fellow soldiers. He was the platoon funny man, able to make men laugh even after a long day. He was also recognized as a born leader, and excelled at the skills a combat soldier needs.

His unit was assigned to northeastern Baghdad, and violence was a daily happening. In late November his unit fought off a five hour attack in which dozens of the enemy were killed. McGinnis’s photo was on the cover of the Middle East edition of Stars & Stripes for November 30 as they covered that battle.

December 4, 2006 was like most days. The unit geared up for a patrol and the delivery of a generator. Six vehicles pulled out of Combat Outpost Apache. McGinnis was the .50 cal gunner on the rear vehicle, a position he was expert at.

The vehicles ahead heard an explosion and when they looked, found McGinnis’s vehicle severely damaged with all four of its doors blown off. Medics found four wounded soldiers and McGinnis. McGinnis was dead.

It all happened in a matter of seconds.

McGinnis saw an insurgent throw a grenade from a nearby rooftop. He tried to deflect it but it dropped through the hatch behind him. Training told him to holler “Grenade” and then jump clear. That is not what this hero did.

He saw the grenade lodged in some equipment below him. The doors were locked and the four soldiers in the truck had no chance to escape. McGinnis dropped down into the Humvee and pressed his back against the radio where the grenade had come to rest, covering the blast with his body.

Ross McGinnis, a little over six feet tall and a lanky 130 some pounds, took the force of the explosion. One of the other soldiers was seriously wounded, and the other three received less serious injuries. All of them lived because of Ross McGinnis.

On June 2, 2008 the President of the United States will present the Medal of Honor to the family of Ross McGinnis. He will speak about courage and sacrifice. His fellow heroes in Valhalla and Fiddler’s Green know all about that.

It may be the the President of the United States will also talk about redemption. Ross McGinnis was once a troubled youth on a clear path to nowhere. Then, he chose to become a soldier in the United States Army. He chose to become a warrior.

This young man, this ordinary young man, found a place that gave him a path, people who became comrades and friends, and he found a time that for all eternity became his time.

God bless you, Ross McGinnis.

Ross McGinnis MoH site
Army News story by Carrie McLeroy
Scripps Newspaper by Milan Simonich

Army Resources Command, Military Awards Branch

Navy Crosses or Medals of Honor??? UPDATE: Navy Crosses 2/20/2009

It was a typical quiet morning on April 22, with the temperature intensifying as a bright orange sun emerged high from the horizon.

However, this morning would be different. Quickly it would turn chaotic, then tragic. Two Marines would gallantly sacrifice their lives so others could live.

Lance Cpl. Jordan Haerter, a rifleman with 1st Battalion, 9th Marine Regiment, Regimental Combat Team 1, and Cpl. Jonathan T. Yale, a rifleman with 2nd Battalion, 8th Marine Regiment, RCT-1, were standing post, just as they’ve done numerous times before. It was during a standard length watch at a small checkpoint protected by concrete barriers where they overlooked a small gravel road lined with palm trees leading to their entry control point.

A truck packed with thousands of pounds of explosives entered the area where Haerter and Yale were standing guard. Realizing the vehicles intentions Haerter and Yale, without hesitation, stood their ground, drew their weapons and fired at the vehicle. The truck rolled to a stop and exploded, killing the two Marines.

“I was on post the morning of the attack,” said Lance Cpl. Benjamin Tupaj, a rifleman with 3rd Platoon, Police Transition Team 3, Weapons Company, 1st Battalion, 9th Marines. “I heard the (M-249 Squad Automatic Weapon) go off at a cyclic rate and then the detonation along with a flash. Then I heard a Marine start yelling, ‘we got hit, we got hit.’ It was hectic.”

In the face of a committed enemy, Haerter and Yale stood their ground, in turn saving the lives of numerous Marines, Sailors, Iraqi policemen, and civilians. Both Marines displayed heroic, self-sacrificing actions and truly lived up to the Corps’ values of honor, courage, and commitment.

“They saved all of our lives; if it wasn’t for them that gate probably wouldn’t have held,” Tupaj said. “The explosion blew out all of the windows over 150 meters from where the blast hit. If that truck had made it into the compound, there would’ve been a lot more casualties. They saved everyone’s life here.”

“They are heroes because thousands of pounds (of explosives) would’ve made its way through the gate and many more of us wouldn’t be here,” said Lance Cpl. Lawrence Tillery, a rifleman with 3rd Platoon. “I have a son back home, and I know if that truck would’ve made it to where it was going – I wouldn’t be here today. Because of Lance Cpl. Haerter and Cpl. Yale, I will be able to see my son again. They gave me that opportunity.”

A week after the attack, the Marines with 3rd platoon, remember their fallen brethren as good friends and Marines

“Cpl. Yale was a great guy, really friendly and kind of shy,” said Hospitalman Eric Schwartz, a corpsman with the platoon.

“Haerter was an amazing guy. I knew everything about him; he was my best friend,” said Lance Cpl. Cody Israel, a rifleman with 3rd platoon and Haerter’s roommate for more than a year and half.

Haerter and Yale were both posthumously awarded the Purple Heart Medal, Combat Action Ribbon and have been nominated for an award for their valor.

DVIDS
By Lance Cpl. Casey Jones
Regimental Combat Team 1

Distinguished Service Cross

FORT BRAGG, N.C. (Army News Service, May 1, 2008) – A 7th Special Forces Group (Airborne) Soldier was awarded the Distinguished Service Cross during a ceremony here Wednesday for valorous actions during Operation Enduring Freedom.

A 20-year veteran, Master Sgt. Brendan O’Connor, formerly a senior medic on a 2nd Battalion, 7th SFG (A) Operational Detachment Alpha, was presented the award while he stood before family, friends, and fellow Soldiers.

“For the men who were with him that day, Master Sergeant O’Connor is a savior,” said Adm. Eric T. Olson, commander of United States Special Operations Command, who presented the award to O’Connor.

“For all Americans, he is a hero, and for all members of special operations across the services, he is a source of enormous pride,” he said.

O’Connor was instrumental in keeping his team alive during an intense battle with more than 250 Taliban fighters in southern Afghanistan on June 22, 2006. While making a temporary stop during a patrol, his team and their attached Afghan National Army soldiers were attacked from all sides with small-arms fire, heavy machine guns, rocket-propelled grenades, recoilless rifles and mortars.

During the 17 1/2 hours of sustained combat that followed, O’Connor and his team fought off wave after wave of Taliban attackers from a group of small compounds, fighting for their lives against insurgents who were intent on killing or capturing the beleaguered defenders. Much of the combat was so close that the defenders of the compounds could hear cursing and taunting from the enemies who swarmed the perimeter.

After hearing two Soldiers were wounded at another location, O’Connor removed his body armor and low-crawled under heavy machine gun fire to treat and extract his wounded comrades. O’Connor then carried a wounded Soldier back to a safer area, again passing through intense fire. One teammate commented that as he was crawling, machine gun fire “mowed the grass” around him.

“I don’t think that what I did was particularly brave,” said O’Connor. “My friend needed help and I had the opportunity to help him, so I did. I think I’m lucky to get this sort of recognition; there are so many other Soldiers who do similarly brave things overseas and are happy with just a pat on the back when they get home.”

O’Connor is the second Soldier to be awarded the DSC for actions taken in Operation Enduring Freedom. The first was a 5th Special Forces Group Soldier, Maj. Mark Mitchell in 2003. Before Mitchell there had been none since the Vietnam War. The DSC is the second highest award for valor, surpassed only by the Medal of Honor.

“I’ve never been more honored, but this medal belongs to my whole team,” said O’Connor.

“Every member was watching out for the other, inspiring each other, and for some, sacrificing for each other. We all fought hard, and it could just as easily be any one of them standing up here getting it pinned on; every one of them is a hero,” he said.

United States Army
BY Sgt. Daniel Love

Master Sgt. Brendan O’Connor, right, 7th Special Forces Group (A) Operational Detachment Alpha, was awarded the Distinguished Service Cross by Adm. Eric T. Olson, commander of United States Special Operations Command, during a ceremony at Bank Hall, Fort Bragg, N.C., April 30 for heroic actions during Operation Enduring Freedom. Photo by Sgt. Daniel Love

Master Sergeant Brendan W. O’Connor was born the “Irish fifth” to a large family of six children at the United States Military Academy at West Point, New York. After his father’s service and death in combat in the Republic of Vietnam, his family settled in Moorestown, New Jersey.

MSG O’Connor enlisted in the United States Army Reserves (USAR) and enrolled in the Reserve Officer Training Corps at Valley Forge Military Junior College at Wayne, Pennsylvania in 1978. He joined the 11th Special Forces Group, USAR in September 1979 and was commissioned in 1980 into the USAR and served as the Executive Officer of Operational Detachment Alpha Team (ODA) 1132 until 1985. Between 1985 and 1987 he served as a Rifle Platoon Leader and Rifle Company Commander in the 3d Battalion, 18 th Infantry, 187 th Separate Infantry Brigade, USAR. In 1987 he returned to the 11th Special Forces Group and assumed command of ODA 1125.

In 1994 he resigned his commission and enlisted in the Active Army. In 1996 he was assigned to the 7th Special Forces Group and ODA 765 as a medical sergeant. In 2002 he was assigned to the Joint Special Operations Medical Training Battalion (JSOMTB), United States Army John F. Kennedy Special Warfare Center and School. In 2005 he returned to ODA 765 where he served as a medical sergeant and the Operations Sergeant until November 2007. Currently he is assigned to the 7th Group Surgeon’s Office as the Senior Enlisted Medical Advisor.

MSG O’Connor’s military and civilian education includes: 101st Air Assault Course, Army Airborne Course, Infantry Officer’s Basic Course, Pathfinder Course, Special Forces Detachment Officer Qualification Course, SERE High Risk, Ranger Course, Infantry Officer Advanced Course, Norwegian Winter Mountain Course, the 10th SF Group Command Language Program (Russian), Special Forces Medical Sergeant’s Course, Instructor Training Course, Small Group Instructor Course and the Static Line Jumpmaster Course. He graduated from Campbell University with a Bachelor of Science in Health Science and a concentration in History.

Awards include: Bronze Star Service Medal, Meritorious Service Medal, Army Commendation Medal and the Army Achievement Medal. His decorations and badges include: Special Forces Tab, Ranger Tab, Combat Infantryman’s Badge, Master Parachutist Badge, Air Assault Badge, Pathfinder Badge and Parachutist badges from Germany, El Salvador, Colombia, Venezuela and Ecuador. In 2004 he was recognized as the JSOMTB’s Special Operations Combat Medic Course Instructor of the Year. In 2006 he was recognized as the Special Operations Command’s Medic of the Year.

MSG O’Connor is married to the former Miss Margaret Elizabeth Garvey (Meg) of Chevy Chase, Maryland. Meg is a columnist writing for the Fayetteville News and Observer. Together they have been blessed by the gifts of children: Master Ryan Killian O’Connor, Master Colin Garvey O’Connor, Miss Darby Elizabeth O’Connor and Master Dillon Wright O’Connor. They reside in Fayetteville, North Carolina. He is preceded by his parents LTC Mortimer Lenane O’Connor of New York, New York and Elizabeth Celeste Wright O’Connor of Newton, New Jersey. He has brothers, Sean Lenane O’Connor of Westbury, New York, Brian Wright O’Connor of Cambridge, Massachusetts and Michael Wright O’Connor of Burlington, New Jersey. He also has sisters; Miss Siobhan Wright O’Connor of Montclair, New Jersey and the former Miss Elizabeth Wright O’Connor (Foglino) of New York, New York.

Special Operations Command-PDF file

Spc. Ross McGinnis, who was killed Dec. 4, 2006, in Iraq when he smothered a grenade with his body, will receive the Medal of Honor, sources told Army Times.

McGinnis, 19, is the second soldier to receive the nation’s highest valor award for actions while serving in Operation Iraqi Freedom. Sgt. 1st Class Paul Ray Smith, who was killed April 4, 2003, fighting off insurgents in a fierce firefight south of Baghdad, was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor two years after he died.

McGinnis, of 1st Platoon, C Company, 1st Battalion, 26th Infantry Regiment, 2nd Brigade, 1st Infantry Division, is credited with saving the lives of four fellow soldiers.

On Dec. 4, 2006, McGinnis was manning the turret in the last Humvee of a six-vehicle patrol in Adhamiyah in northeast Baghdad when an insurgent threw a grenade from the roof of a nearby building.

“Grenade!” yelled McGinnis, who was manning the vehicle’s M2 .50-caliber machine gun.

McGinnis, facing backwards because he was in the rear vehicle, tried to deflect the grenade but it fell into the Humvee and lodged between the radios.

As he stood up to get ready to jump out of the vehicle, as he had been trained to do, McGinnis realized the other four soldiers in the Humvee did not know where the grenade had landed and did not have enough time to escape.

McGinnis, a native of Knox, Pa., threw his back against the radio mount, where the grenade was lodged, and smothered the explosive with his body.

The grenade exploded, hitting McGinnis on his sides and lower back, under his vest. He was killed instantly. The other four men survived.

Army Times

A comment left on Blackfive’s story about McGinnis:

SPC McGinnis was a great soldier and I am alive due to his sacrifice. I was the driver of the vehicle the day we lost Ross to a cowardly enemy. I thank God everyday for blessing me with the opportunity to serve with such a brave man. For those of you that think the award process is moving to slow just know that it is seen and evaluated by many people in our chain of command. I as well would like to see it ASAP. The award requires alot of diagrams, witness statements from all who were there, and those that approve and later send to congress need to see what happened in detail otherwise they would be giving awards based on word of mouth.

I agree with SSG Troy Smith, it is carefully looked over so that no fraudelant cases arise. I have no doubt in my mind that he will receive the nation’s highest honor for his heroism. God bless his family and parents for raising such a wonderful person, soldier, friend, and brother!

Rest in Peace Ross. Gone, but never forgotten!

I love you little brother. Thank you for my continued life here on earth and I look forward to seeing you in heaven.
Posted by: SGT Lyle Buehler

Bronze Star with “V” device

A Bronze Star with “V” device for valor was awarded to Army Sgt. Ryan P. Inabnet, 173rd Airborne Brigade Combat Team, 1-91 Cavalry Squadron, at Fire Base Naray, Kunar province, April 24.

Brig. Gen. Mark Milley, CJTF-101 deputy commanding general for operations, awarded the medal to Inabnet and presented him with a coin for excellence.

Inabnet was recognized for his actions in combat July 27, 2007, when he saved more than a dozen Soldier’s lives during a combat operation in Kunar province. The Quick Reaction Team he was on was called out to re-enforce International Security Assistance Forces engaged in combat with insurgents.

“We first set out after receiving word that four casualties on the ground were injured and two of them were serious,” said Inabnet, a wheeled vehicle mechanic. “Once we arrived we got the four injured in the vehicles and dropped them off at the medevac site.”

Shortly afterward, Inabnet provided first aid to a wounded Soldier from his QRT.

“Once we had all the equipment and personnel, we started to head back,” said Inabnet. “That’s when we started taking [rocket propelled grenades] and small-arms fire.”

As the group tried to break contact, several Soldiers were wounded and put into Inabnet’s vehicle.

“My main goal was to get these guys back to the helicopter landing zone so they could survive,” said Inabnet. “I ended up staying up for hours until we got all our guys back inside the [forward operating base].”

“That day will be with me for a long time,” he said. “I would like to thank the Lord above and all my brothers who were in that fight with me.”

CJTF-101
Written by Army Pfc. Christina Sinders RC-East PAO

Silver Star

Though she won’t know it until she’s a bit older, Juliannah Roedema owes a lot to Lance Cpl. Moses Cardenas.

That’s because Cardenas, a scout with 1st Light Armored Reconnaissance Battalion, gave her the best birthday gift: her father’s life.

Cardenas was awarded the Silver Star medal during a ceremony March 29 at Camp Las Flores, pinned by LtCol. Scott D. Leonard, commanding officer of 1st LAR, and LtCol. Kelly P. Alexander, former 1st LAR commanding officer during the battalion’s most recent deployment.

“I’m honored. My lieutenant was just telling me about the magnitude of this award,” said Cardenas, 20, a Fullerton, Calif., native. “Not a lot of people get it, and a lot of people have died for it. So, I’m a pretty lucky man to be alive and receive it.”

Luck may have had some part. More likely, though, was the training instilled in Cardenas and the sense of brotherhood developed by the Marines in his fire team.

Cardenas and Sgt. Randy M. Roedema were on a routine early morning zone reconnaissance patrol with the quick reaction force last year in Western Anbar province in Iraq. They happened upon a vehicle which crossed their sector, so they moved in to check it out, according to Cardenas.

After repeated attempts to get the driver and passengers of the truck to submit to a search, three men burst from the top of the vehicle and opened fire. The Marines quickly attempted to bound back to their vehicles for cover, and to allow their turret gunners an open line-of-fire.

Three Marines were hit. Lance Cpl. Christian Vasquez was killed, and Cardenas was hit in the neck. After he hit the deck, he looked up and saw that Roedema was on the ground.

“I saw my sergeant laying down and I said, ‘Not today,’” Cardenas recounted after the ceremony.

Already injured, Cardenas began dragging Roedema to safety, but they had more than 50 meters to cover, so Cardenas alternated dragging Roedema with applying suppressive fire with his squad automatic weapon.

“’You’re going to see you’re daughter,’ that’s what he said when he was pulling me,” said Roedema, 25, from Denver, Colo. “He saved my life.”

Cardenas was again hit with a round from the insurgent’s weapons, but he continued pulling Roedema until they we both safely behind cover, and only later, after a corpsman arrived, did Cardenas receive attention for his wounds.

Asked why he risked his life for Roedema, Cardenas answers simply, “He’s my sergeant; he’s the chief scout; it really didn’t register how dangerous it was. After sleeping, eating, and laughing with my fire team everyday, you get really close, like brothers.”

Roedema was treated and taken to medical facilities. Even better than the diagnosis that he was going to recover from his wounds was the news that he had just become a father, after his wife, Sharla, gave birth to baby Juliannah.

“Without [Cardenas], I’d never be able to see my daughter,” Roedema said. “Words don’t explain what he means to me and my family.”

Cardenas’ family watched the young Marine receive his medal from the front row at the ceremony, and couldn’t be happier with their son.

“I’m very proud of him,” said Raymundo Cardenas, Moses’ father. “Since he was 15 or 16, he said he wanted to go to the Marines.

“It was a sad day when they left on their last deployment,” Raymundo continued. “We didn’t know if he’d come back or not. We won’t be as worried this time; he knows what he went through.”

Cardenas and 1st LAR are scheduled to deploy back to Iraq in the Fall. When he returns, he’ll have with him a token of the Roedema family’s gratitude: a dogtag and cross inscribed with protective scripture.

“He’s a role model for fighting men in all services around the world,” said Alexander, Cardenas’ former CO. “We all want to be that guy.”

Cardenas was meritoriously promoted to corporal Apr. 2 at Camp Las Flores.

Marine Corps
By Sgt. M. Trent Lowry, 1st Marine Division
Photos by Cpl. Chris Mann

Silver Star

Any Marine would brave enemy fire to rescue a wounded comrade when you have friends that “got your back.”

Cpl. Ian M. Dollard exemplified that sense of brotherhood when he risked his life to save a fellow Marine.

For his actions while deployed in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom, Dollard received the Silver Star — the nation’s third highest award for combat heroism.

His former company commander, Maj. George D. Hasseltine, pinned the award on Dollard during a ceremony on Lance Cpl. Torrey L. Gray Field here March 21.

The date was June 24, 2007. While checking a vehicle, Dollard and his men were attacked by automatic machine gun fire.

According to the award citation, Dollard promptly returned fire with his weapon so his Marines could come to the aid of a Marine who was wounded in the attack. Then Dollard and his men started receiving automatic machine gun fire from a second position, which inflicted two gunshot wounds to his platoon commander.

Dollard wasn’t going to let the enemy get away with that. He said adrenaline and suppressive fire from his Marines helped him run to the sound of the enemy’s gunfire.

Without regard for his personal well-being, Dollard narrowly avoided enemy bullets to reach his commander. He then shielded his commander from danger, only to get struck himself, taking two rounds his upper torso body armor.

He was dazed but still insisted to provide first aid to his commander. Then he dragged the lieutenant 25 meters and continued to provide first aid. Seconds later, Dollard was struck in the leg by small arms fire. He refused medical care, then directed his fire team to tend to his commander’s wounds.

Even after a vehicle arrived to the Marines’ rescue, Dollard still refused medical attention until his wounded Marines were treated first.

Dollard’s parents are extremely proud of their son’s accomplishments.

“Ever since he was born I knew he was going to be special,” said Judy Dollard, mother of Cpl. Dollard, of Pleasant, Calif. “It was something that I just felt. He always was that kind of guy that stood up for his friends.”

Cpl. Dollard’s father said he didn’t expect anything like this.

“I know he worked hard in Iraq,” said Todd Dollard, father of the Silver Star Medal recipient. “It’s nice to have something like this to focus it all. Everybody we’ve talked to about this [has] been supportive of this.”

Cpl. Dollard’s former company commander flew here from Arizona to be a part of ceremony.

“I wanted to recognize his achievement and the achievements of the company,” said Hasseltine, Company F’s commander during the time of Dollard’s heroic actions.

Dollard was grateful for the award, but humble.

“I don’t know what to say; it feels good,” he said. “It was a lot of adrenaline. I know I had machine guns doing their job, so I felt safer.”

Dollard currently works as a lifeguard at one of the recreational swimming facilities here and will do so until his Marine Corps contract expires in September.

Meanwhile, Dollard’s former unit will become the first battalion-sized Marine unit to support the Afghan National Police in Afghanistan when they deploy this spring.

Marine Corps News
By Cpl. Ray Lewis, 1st Marine Division

Bronze Star with V device

Pvt. Erick Rodriguez, a medic in Company B, 2nd Battalion, 502nd Infantry Regiment, attached to 4th Brigade Combat Team, 3rd Infantry Division, receives a Bronze Star with Valor, from Lt. Gen. Lloyd Austin, commander of Multi-National Corps – Iraq, March 20, on Forward Operating Base Kalsu, Iraq. Without regard for his own injuries or safety, Rodriguez provided medical care to injured Soldiers after an improvised explosive device hit his vehicle, Dec. 12. Photographer: Pfc. Amanda Mcbride, 4th Brigade Combat Team, 3rd Infantry Division Public Affairs

Here’s yet another story of a heroic medic. No medal in mentioned, but I’m sure one will be awarded.

DVIDS
Story by Sgt. Jim Wilt
CJTF-82 Public Affairs Office

In a hail of bullets and rocket-propelled grenades, many Soldiers would be hesitant to expose themselves despite advances in body armor and medicine. Not every Soldier would risk his life to help a soldier from a different army.

Throughout the history of war, men have risen to the occasion in the heat of battle to save the life of another.

Staff Sgt. Joesph Peer, a combat medic attached to the 82nd Airborne Division’s Long Range Surveillance Detachment, is one of those men.

On Aug. 21, 2007, Peer and Paratroopers from the 82nd LSRD, along with soldiers from the Afghan national army 2nd Kandak, 3rd Brigade, 201st Corps, were clearing the Askin Valley in Kapisa province of Taliban fighters when they were attacked.

During the ensuing battle, two ANA soldiers were wounded approximately 200-400 meters (660-1320 feet) from the then-23-year-old medic.

“Word came over the radio that there were wounded personnel among the dismounted coalition forces,” said Sgt. Trevor Oppenborn, an infantryman with the LRSD. “Sgt. Peer immediately asked if they had a U.S. medic and did they need further assistance.”

“The .50 cal gunner [in the vehicle] was returning fire when the call came over the net that we had casualties,” Peer, a native of Glendale, Ariz., said. “I asked where and if a medic was on scene.”

Peer said he was told over the radio they had someone treating the wounded soldiers but he continued to ask if his help was needed.

He received no response.

“I then asked to be allowed out of the truck and move to the casualties,” Peer said.

“Approximately two minutes later, the call came over the radio for Doc and myself to dismount and aid the wounded soldiers,” Oppenborn, a native of Houston, said.

Peer, accompanied by then-Spc. Oppenborn, moved to the casualties.

“I looked at the vehicle .50 Cal gunner (Sgt. Matthew C. Hinerman) and told him to keep me alive since we were still under fire,” Peer said.

“Needless to say, we immediately dismounted and took off up the high ground to aid the ANA on the other side,” Oppenborn said. “About a minute and 400 meters later we reached the wounded soldiers, both in bad shape, and only a [Navy] corpsman for the two of them.”

Peer said he was running through his mind every possible scenario he could face when he arrived at the casualties.

“I noticed a Navy corpsman was on scene and he was treating one of the casualties. I immediately went for the other one,” Peer said.

Both of the ANA soldiers had gunshot wounds to their lower body. The Casualty Collection Point they were located at was receiving indirect fire.

When Peer got to the scene and saw what he had, he said he was focused on treatment and getting them to a higher echelon of care.

“Doc jumped to work on the worse of the two, pulling him behind a boulder and starting to patch him up,” Oppenborn said. “I went to the aid of the Corpsman, he looked like he needed it.”

Peer said the Afghan soldier he treated had a gunshot wound to his left leg, which he used a pressure bandage on. The men realized they needed to move the wounded to a safer location for an aerial medical evacuation, once the Corpsman and Oppenborn finished treating the other wounded soldier.

“With the CCP still taking indirect fire there was no way a MEDEVAC was going to land there,” Peer said.

Peer said he asked a lieutenant at the point what vehicles he had to move the men. Shortly after, the wounded were loaded into two ANA trucks and driven to a helicopter landing zone where Peer re-evaluated the wounded men.

“When we got to the bottom of the hill, I unloaded my patient and set him to where I could perform a more extensive assessment,” Peer said. “I noticed that Sgt. Oppenborn and the corpsman were no longer with their patient. Once the patient had been moved off the truck, I began to assess him to discover his [gun shot wound] was actually in his groin and was a little more serious then I had been originally told.” Peer had been told earlier the second soldier was shot in the leg.

Peer continued to treat the wounded soldiers until the MEDEVAC helicopters arrived.

“When the birds arrived I explained the patients and each injury,” Peer said. “When they were loaded on the bird I grabbed my gear and headed back to my truck three kilometers (1.8 miles) away at the top of the hill.”

Peer said he would do it again if needed.

“Sgt. Peer’s actions show a man who didn’t care whether the soldiers were American or Afghan … [He is a] soldier who did what it took to save another human’s life,” Oppenborn said.

“His actions were in accordance with, at a minimum, three of the Army’s core values; Selfless Service, Duty, and above all, Personal Courage. The fact that he risked his life for soldiers that aren’t a part of our military reinforces his commitment to his profession and to the War on Terror,” Hinerman, an infantryman with the LSRD and the gunner on Peer’s vehicle, said.

What the fate of the wounded men would have been if Peer didn’t act is unknown. The troopers there with him that day believe it would not have been good.

“Where they were located on the battlefield, there would have been no way to retrieve them for several hours due to the volume of fire that the enemy was laying down,” Hinerman, a native of Kansas City, Mo. said. “In my opinion, they would have bled out long before the fire fight was over.

“Staff Sgt. Peer stepped up when he could and proved that he was willing to risk his life to save another person’s life, regardless of nationality. I’m not sure anyone could feel anything but the utmost respect for him,” he said.

Both of the wounded soldiers survived their injuries. Peer, Oppenborn and Hinerman have since remained in Kapisa province with the LSRD. They will be redeploying prior to the end of April.

My apologies for the odd formatting. I am unable to locate the problem at this time.

US Army

****It is fair to state that the actual number of individual decorations awarded under combat conditions cannot be stated with absolute certainty. Normally during these periods, award approval authority for most decorations is delegated to field commanders. That is, the system is decentralized to provide for more timely recognition of the combat soldier. The numbers for the individual decorations shown on these charts represent only those awards that were properly processed and reported to Headquarters, Department of the Army. These charts reflect the current statistics recorded by the Military Awards Branch.

Statistics provided by the U.S. Army Military Awards Branch, February 5 2008

Every now and then you read a plaintive cry in one media outlet or another about the lack of heroes in the War on Terror. The sad truth is that when a man or woman is a hero both the military and the media fail to cover the story. Many heroes’ stories are found only in the Military Times or the Times version for their branch of service. I’ve covered just over 300 stories here at America’s North Shore Journal and each and every one cries out for more recognition.

Here are the stories of ten American heroes whose stories, I believe, call for far greater recognition than they have received. Should each one of these brave men be a candidate for a future Medal of Honor? The MoH’s for this war have all been upgrades from the Silver Star, which is what each of these ten men have been given.

• Sgt. 1st Class Gary Villalobos – ambushed. Senior officer wounded. IA ran. He stood his ground and fought.
• Capt. Christopher P. Niedziocha – Marine. 23 Taliban killed, 3 Marines wounded.
• Master Sgt. Suran Sar – Special Forces. Known in the community as an outstanding warrior.
• Sgt. Joseph Proctor – prevented a VIED attack at the cost of his own life.
• PFC Ross A. McGinnis – MoH nomination said to be on a desk in the Pentagon. MoH June 2 2008
• Captain Brian G. Cillessen – Special Forces. Proudest of assisting in Afghan election.
• Staff Sgt. Brandon Zylstra – think a paratrooper Audi Murphy.
• Staff Sergeant Chad Malmberg – from the Red Bulls, Minnesota National Guard.
• Staff Sgt. Robert J. Miller – Special Forces. A story that has not yet been told.
• Corporal Sean Andrew Stokes – the Marine who redeemed himself.

There are dozens more that deserve upgrades, Bronze Stars to Silver Stars, to DSC’s or Navy Crosses, or to the Medal itself.

You will not have heard of any of these men, I expect. You owe them. We all owe them.

Click here to read the entire category WOT Heroes