Lt. Col. Phil Appleton, the commander of the 3rd Battalion, 116th Cavalry Regiment, 77th Sustainment Brigade, 310th Expeditionary Sustainment Command, congratulates Spc. Christopher Soderholm, a mine resistant ambush protected vehicle driver for F Company, 3rd Battalion, and a native of Baker City, Ore., during a July 4 Bronze Star Medal ceremony at Joint Base Balad, Iraq. Photo by Staff Sgt. Patrick Caldwell

Indecision often haunts the heart of combat.

Inside the chaos of crisis, where the standard definitions of time distorts and overlaps, uncertainty rules and often a moment of hesitation translates into tragedy.

Yet for Spc. Christopher Soderholm, a mine resistant ambush protected vehicle driver for Foxtrot Company, 3rd Battalion, 116th Cavalry Regiment, 77th Sustainment Brigade, 310th Expeditionary Sustainment Command and a native of Baker City, Ore., his calm resolution proved to be the difference the night he saved his gunner in the wake of an improvised explosive device detonation.

What Soderholm did that night and how he did it was brought into sharp focus July 5 when he was awarded the Bronze Star Medal on Joint Base Balad, Iraq, for his actions when the MRAP he was driving hit an IED.

Even now, months later, Soderholm said he still struggles to accurately express what occurred during the incident.

“It is hard to describe,” he said.

The night of the IED strike, Soderholm said his crew was almost back to JBB on what he called a routine mission.

“It was just another mission,” he said. “I was thinking about getting back and getting maintenance done.”

In a burst of light Soderholm’s vehicle was hit by the blast of an IED.

As Soderholm brought the big MRAP to a stop he said muscle memory took over. Behind him, Spc. Maximillian Miller, an MRAP gunner for F Company and a native of Dundee, Ore., appeared to be injured. Soderholm acted quickly as he stopped the MRAP.

“I pulled Miller out before I opened the door,” Soderholm said.

Soderholm carried Miller out of the MRAP and away from the vehicle. He then turned around and ran back to the vehicle, grabbed a fire extinguisher and started to fight a fire that had broken out from the vehicle.

The action of carrying his gunner out of the MRAP after the IED explosion happened in a flash for Soderholm. He said there was little forethought involved in the action.

“When it is your buddy in there you don’t hesitate,” he said. “I pulled him out of that truck on instinct.”

Miller and Staff Sgt. Tony Cox, the MRAP truck commander and a native of Redmond, Ore., both returned to duty shortly after the incident.

Soderholm said the training he received before the battalion departed the United States was the primary factor in his actions.

“I used to get mad at Gowen Field, [Idaho] or Camp Shelby, [Mississippi] with some of the training. Then I got thrown into the real world, and all that training created muscle memory,” he said.

Soderholm also said he can now relate to the stories he’s read or heard regarding soldiers making the ultimate sacrifice to help a comrade.

“When something like that happens, you know, you jump on that grenade for your buddy. I understand [now] why people do that,” he said.

Maj. Jason Lambert, the executive officer for F Co. and a native of Hermiston, Ore., said Soderholm’s performance that night was outstanding.

“I think he captures the essence of what makes a great Cavalry trooper. A soldier who steps up like that has a huge impact on the entire unit through his example. It sets the tone,” said Lambert.

“I’m extremely proud of Chris Soderholm. He is a very brave kid,” said Capt. Max Arvidson, the commander of F Company and a native of Parma, Idaho.

A quiet, reserved soldier, Soderholm said he is pleased he was awarded the Bronze Star medal but added he was simply doing his duty.

“I was able to do what I was supposed to do when I needed to. I’m proud I was able to do my job,” he said.

DVIDS
Story by Staff Sgt. Patrick Caldwell

1st Lt. David A. Provencher, executive Officer for Bravo Company, 1-87 Infantry, is presented the Silver Star during a ceremony Jan. 26. Provencher was awarded the Silver Star for his valorous actions June 16, 2010 in Kunduz province, Afghanistan. Photo by Chief Petty Officer Michael Reinsch

Shots were fired from insurgents at United States Special Operations Forces and Afghan National Army Commandos in the village of Isa Kahn in Kunduz province, Afghanistan. They radioed for a quick reaction force to assist in the fight.

1st Lt. David A. Provencher, then 4th Platoon Leader, Charlie Company, 1-87 Infantry Regiment and his team answered the call. Upon arrival at the village he dismounted and joined the SOF and ANA service members in the fight. Insurgents detonated an improvised explosive device under one of the U.S. vehicles, and Provencher reacted.

Provencher was awarded the Silver Star Jan. 26 for his valorous actions on June 16, 2010. The Silver Star is the third highest military decoration that can be awarded to a service member from any branch of the United States military for valor in the face of the enemy.

“I’ve never had a better platoon leader in my career,” said Sgt. Daniel Stein, a squad leader with 4th platoon, Charlie Company, 1-87 Infantry, Regiment. “I am working on seven years. He’s a great guy and he knew his stuff, anyone in the whole unit would have done anything for him.”

Stein was with Provencher when the event occurred and assisted him when the IED was set off. He has been recommended for the Bronze Star with Valor device for his actions that day.

“Our mission was pretty simple. We did an ANA partner mission the night before and we were just QRF [Quick Reaction Force] for the ANA Commandos and Special Forces for the next day,” said Provencher, now Executive Officer for Bravo Company. “They came under fire and were running out of ammunition and a couple of their weapon systems were breaking down. We moved up to assist them with ammo and fire-power.”

“It’s during that time they continued to push up with the route clearance patrol platoon, and their vehicle was struck by an IED. I was about 50 meters to the north of their position in an open field when the IED struck. I saw there was someone lying on the ground, so I moved over to where they were,” said Provencher.

Provencher and Stein maneuvered under direct fire from the enemy to the disabled vehicle to discover that two soldiers had been killed and three more were wounded. He provided support for the three wounded soldiers until they found cover and for one of the deceased soldiers until his remains were removed from the vehicle.

The second fallen soldier was trapped under the vehicle, and even though he was told they should come back for the soldier, Provencher led a small two-man team to the destroyed vehicle, recovered the last soldier with the use of a recovery vehicle and brought the fallen soldier back.

U.S. Army 1st Lt. David Provencher, from Ellenville, N.Y., and an infantry platoon leader with 1st Battalion, 87th Infantry Regiment, from the 10th Mountain Division’s 1st Brigade Combat Team, receives the Silver Star Medal from Maj. Gen. James Terry, the division’s commander, during a ceremony at Forward Operating Base Kunduz, in northern Afghanistan. Provencher is credited with saving the lives of three wounded soldiers and refusing to leave two others that were mortally wounded. Photo by Sgt. 1st Class John Queen

“The only instinct I felt was, believe it or not, compassion,” Provencher said. “Historically people who were put in for Silver Stars were taking out bunkers and doing all sorts of heroic stuff. I just don’t class myself among previous valor reward recipients.

“It was never a question in my mind to leave a dead or wounded soldier. What went through my mind is ‘I wouldn’t want to be left out there’ and somebody’s parents are going to ask some difficult questions someday,” he said. “They should be afforded the right to be protected, whether they’re dead or alive.”

Provencher is due to redeploy back to his home station within the next couple of months. When he returns home he wants to attend the captains course and take charge of his own company.

DVIDS
Story by Sgt. Michael Reinsch

Captain Dale Goetz and his wife, Christina

Department of Defense

The Department of Defense announced today the deaths of five soldiers who were supporting Operation Enduring Freedom. They died Aug. 30 in the Arghandab River Valley, Afghanistan, of wounds suffered when insurgents attacked their unit with an improvised explosive device. All were based at Fort Carson, Colo.

Killed were:
Capt. Dale A Goetz, 43, of White, S.D. He was assigned to the 1st Battalion, 66th Armor Regiment, 1st Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division.

Staff Sgt. Jesse Infante, 30, of Cypress, Texas. He was assigned to the 4th Brigade Support Battalion, 1st Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division.

Staff Sgt. Kevin J. Kessler, 32, of Canton, Ohio. He was assigned to the 4th Brigade Support Battalion, 1st Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division.

Staff Sgt. Matthew J. West, 36, of Conover, Wis. He was assigned to the 71st Explosive Ordnance Disposal Group.

Pfc. Chad D. Clements, 26, of Huntington, Ind. He was assigned to the 4th Brigade Support Battalion, 1st Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division.

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AIP

The official message from the Chief of Chaplains, U.S. Army through the Chief of Chaplains, U.S. Navy:
It is with my deepest sympathy and utmost respect that I announce to our Chaplain Corps that Chaplain (CPT) Dale A. Goetz was killed in action in Afghanistan on August 30, 2010 while serving as the Battalion Chaplain for 1-66th Armor Battalion, 4th Infantry Division. Dale was one of five Soldiers killed by an Improvised Explosive Device while traveling in a convoy near Kandahar Province. Chaplain Goetz is survived by his wife, Christy, and by their three sons- Landon, Caleb and Joel.

Chaplain Goetz is the first military chaplain killed in action in Iraq or Afghanistan. Dale was a selfless servant of God, a devoted husband and father, a strong American patriot, and a compassionate spiritual leader whose love for Soldiers was only surpassed by his firm commitment to living his calling as a United States Army Chaplain.

Please join with me in prayer for Christy, Landon, Caleb and Joel as we mourn with them in the loss of Dale, our fellow Soldier and Unit Ministry Team member. Let us also strive to honor Dale’s sacrifice with a continuing bold commitment to ensure the finest religious support and pastoral care possible for our beloved Soldiers and their Families.

May God bless the Goetz Family and the Families of all our Fallen Soldiers; and, may God bless our Army and the United States of America.

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KDVR Fox 31

Vonnie Lucas, a member who sometimes baby-sat for Goetz and his wife, says news of his death is devastating. She says the 43-year-old Goetz had “a heart for people.”

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Argus Leader

“He was definitely very passionate about his job, and the reason he became a chaplain is because he wanted to see soldiers trust in Jesus Christ,” said the Rev. Jason Parker of High Country Baptist Church in Colorado Springs. “Even his death put the seal on his desire that men would see that Jesus Christ is the resurrection and the life.”

Goetz, his wife, Christy, and their sons, Landon, 10; Caleb, 8; and Joel, who will turn 1 this month; joined the church in July and were voted into membership Sunday, the day before he died. The family moved to Colorado Springs in January from Okinawa, Japan, where he previously was stationed. He was deployed July 25 to Afghanistan, according to military records.

Until joining the Colorado church, the family had remained members of First Baptist in White while Goetz was stationed at various places, said Vonnie Lucas, a member who sometimes babysat the couple’s two oldest boys. The church kept in contact with Goetz, who served the church from November 2000 to December 2003.

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Houston Chronicle

Goetz, who was in the Chaplain Corps., entered the Army in January 2000. He was deployed to Iraq from November 2004 to September 2005 and was in Afghanistan since July 25. He received the Meritorious Service Medal and Army Commendation Medal.

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Oregonian

Goetz grew up in Hood River, an athlete whose first job was at an old-fashioned dairy where he processed milk and sold ice cream at a drive-up window, Ashby said.

A year before he graduated in 1986, he prayed with his principal, Oscar Stenberg III, and another student to receive Jesus Christ.

“From that point, it was like a light was on in him,” Stenberg said.

Goetz enlisted in the Air Force, then went on to Maranatha Baptist Bible College in Watertown, Wis. He graduated in 1995 with a bachelor’s degree, according to the college website, and met his wife, Christina, there. He completed his Master of Divinity degree at Central Baptist Theological Seminary in Minneapolis in 2000. He was pastor of a church in White, S.D., until he joined the Army and began his work toward chaplaincy in 2000.

Staff Sgt. Xavier Bowie, 46th Engineer Combat Battalion (Heavy), 225th Engineer Brigade, from West Palm Beach, Fla., descends into a tunnel beneath a heavily traveled road in western Baghdad to shut off tunnel access to terrorists trying to emplace bombs. Photo by Stephen Clements

On a dark night, two terrorists discovered tunnels underneath a heavily traveled road in western Baghdad and used an improvised explosive device to blow a huge hole in the street to disrupt traffic.

To prevent this act of terrorism from happening again, the engineers from Headquarters and Support Company, 46th Engineer Combat Battalion (Heavy), 225th Engineer Brigade, were called in to repair the gaping hole in the road and seal access to the tunnels beneath the road.

“The crater was pretty dangerous and we ended up repairing two holes in that road,” stated Staff Sgt. Xavier Bowie, mission non-commissioned officer-in-charge, from West Palm Beach, Fla. “There’s an Iraqi army checkpoint nearby and the [Iraqi army troops] said it caused a lot of traffic when people would stop to avoid the holes. It was even worse when the drivers didn’t see the holes and would just drive into them and damage their cars.”

Moving by night, the engineer teams arrived on the damaged overpass. Once the explosives teams of the 731st Explosive Ordnance Detachment, 2nd Brigade, 1st Infantry Division cleared the area of any possible threats, the tunnel crew of engineers descended into the darkness to cut off terrorist access to the tunnels.

Spc. Stephen Green, of Pensacola, Fla., and Spc. Eduardo Bonilla, of Jacksonville, N.C., welded steel plates over all the points that led into the tunnel, while, simultaneously equipment platoon Soldiers, prepared the holes for repair. The Soldiers repaired the craters by chipping away the damaged asphalt and cleaning up the site.

Once the tunnel was sealed on one side of the overpass, the welding team moved to the other side of the road to seal off access on that side.

Spc. Eduardo Bonilla, from Jacksonville, N.C., and Spc. Stephen Green, from Pensacola, Fla., 46th Engineer Combat Battalion (Heavy), 225th Engineer Brigade, weld a drainage port shut on a heavily traveled route in western Baghdad. Photo by Stephen Clements

After three hours in the tunnels, and an additional two hours fixing the holes, Spc. Christopher Sallas, of Tulsa, Okla., used a forklift to place a very heavy steel plate into the large crater in the overpass. Next, the crater team led by Staff Sgt. Wesley Roach, of Rapid City, S.D., placed a rapid drying asphalt alternative over the plate. After smoothing out the mixture, the team placed road cones around the asphalt to allow it to dry without interruption by traffic.

A follow-up visit to the site a few days later revealed a situation that was not all that surprising given the situation that brought them out there in the first place; the asphalt and steel plate had been completely removed. The engineers then returned to the site with another solution to the problem.

“An attempt was made to reopen access to the tunnel,” stated Command Sgt. Maj. Francis Thibodeau, 46th ECB (H), a native of Detroit. “This is a busy road and someone was going to get hurt if we didn’t put a stop to this, so we sent the welders back in to make sure this doesn’t happen again.”

This time the engineers took measures one step further. With the help of large engineer equipment, they placed several heavy plates of over-sized steel deep into the hole. The welders then sprang into action sealing the plates into place to end access to the tunnels once and for all.

With repairs made to the holes, several massive steel plates welded firmly in place and all the tunnels sealed, the engineers were able to not only defeat IED-emplacing terrorists, but also improved the lives of the Iraqi people living in the area.

Sgt. Bryan Silver (kneeling), 46th Engineer Combat Battalion (Heavy), 225th Engineer Brigade, a native of Cerulean, Ky., and Spc. Paul Thrailkill (left standing), a native of Canoga, Calif., weld several over-sized pieces of steel into a gaping hole left by a bomb placed in the underground tunnels. Photo by Stephen Clements

“This is great that this hole is fixed,” exclaimed Hasan, an Iraqi soldier that helped to guard the site. “People have so many problems on this road; sewage trucks can’t get by, families driving get stuck if they don’t see it. Thank you!”

Reiterating the importance of their work and their contribution to the bigger fight, Thibodeau added, “The welders no doubt contributed to the counter-IED fight.”

DVIDS
Story by Stephen Clements

reprinted from May 16 2007

Ashely and Tasha’s mother sends the the following from May 10:

I am OK!

Just wanted everyone to hear my story before it gets blown way out of proportion.
Yes…I did get hit with a roadside bomb (IED)
Yes…I am ok. I only have a few little cuts and bruises
Yes…I do have some hearing loss in my right ear
No…I did not do combat rolls out of the truck while still moving
No…I did not hit it on purpose (i didn’t see it till last sec)
Yes…My truck did catch on fire immediately after the detonation

The IED was called a pressure plate…a thing where once there is weight put on it, it will cause it to detonate. My driver and I saw a little pot hole in the road at the last second. My driver swerved to the left to miss it and we both saw something black in it. I was about to call it up on the radio but my side front tire hit it. The IED went off under me, which is where the fuel tanks are.

The truck immediately caught on fire and we could not see through the windshield due to the flames and smoke. I told my driver to stop the vehicle. He was having a hard time to get it to stop…it is a very big truck and going 45 mph will take some time until a dead stop. I didn’t think the truck was gonna stop but as I was about to tell my driver to bail, he brought it to a stop.

I told him that there was no way I could get out on my side because my side was the side on fire. He jumped out and I was almost right behind him when I got caught on something in the truck. I tried to get my weapon but couldn’t tell where it was through all of the smoke. I continued to free myself from the cooler that was in the back seat. Just as I was about to climb to the front to get out, I got caught on my head set. I couldn’t find the cord to unplug it so I struggled with it to get it off.

This whole time my driver was yelling for me because he realized that I was not out of the truck. I finally got untangled and bailed out the driver door. As I jumped out I saw a post sticking up and I could have sworn I was gonna land on it. Thank God I didn’t.

I fell to the ground…it is a long drop. When I got up the truck totally burst into flames. I ran to the guntruck and got in. We then watched the truck burn for about twenty minutes before we left the scene. All of my stuff was in it. I have nothing. All I have is a couple of uniforms and some civilian clothes waiting for me back at base. I dont even have a weapon right now.

That all happened after 2 am. I got word around 7 am that the truck was still in flames. It will be on fire for a while. Eventually someone will pick it up and bring it back to base.

Everyone was ok and I am ready for another mission.
-tasha

More about Tasha and her twin sister, Ashley:
Our Best: Babe Edition TWINS!
Help Our Deployed Soldiers
Interview With Ashley and Tasha