Category: Real Soldiers

The Olympian reports that the Army awarded Silver Stars to Sergeant First Class Andrew Busic and Chief Warrant Officer 3 Mark Colbert of the 1st Special Forces Group from Joint Base Lewis-McChord, for their actions on Forward Operating Base Ghazni back on August 28th when a massive attack struck the base with RPGs and suicide bombers. They stood in the breach until they could be reinforced.

Busic and two others jumped in a Toyota Tacoma pickup to join in the attack. They immediately took fire from two directions, and turned to follow Colbert in an all-terrain vehicle with two more operators toward the breach.

Busic’s team hit a “hail of gunfire.” The operators got out of the truck and into a shootout.

Colbert’s team encountered one group of insurgents and killed three. They turned a corner and found a group of six more.

One of his partners was shot in the leg and in the head, though a helmet stopped the bullet.

Colbert “instantly exposed himself into the direct line of fire to pull his fellow special operator behind cover, saving his life,” the Army’s narrative says. That’s when he was shot in the leg.

Busic’s team helped by placing the pickup between Colbert’s position and the enemy’s. Busic rushed the attackers to give cover to Colbert as he helped the wounded sailor.

More troops followed, and soldiers managed to secure the breach.

From the Army Times;

More than 20 troops stormed the area, including five Special Forces soldiers from 1st Group, Polish troops and Staff Sgt. Michael H. Ollis, from the 10th Mountain Division’s 1st Brigade Combat Team.

Ollis, who died shielding a Polish officer from a suicide bomber during the assault, was posthumously awarded the Silver Star. He was the sole American killed in the attack.

The Washington Times noticed that not everyone in the Metro DC area had a snow day;

With what’s being billed as the storm of the season dumping inches of snow on the Washington, D.C., region, leaving a cloud of closures in its wake — Capitol Hill, area schools, airports, Metro bus service and almost all government offices in Maryland, the capital city and Virginia — the stalwart sentries for some of America’s most revered military sites stand tall and fast.

Thanks to Wes for the link. And thanks to the Washington Times’ Cheryl Chumley for noticing.

Beretverde sends us a link to an article from the Waynesville, North Carolina Daily Guide about SGT Steven Lyzenga who began his military career in 1981 as a Marine, then transferred to the Air Force to be a pilot and now he’s in basic training at Fort Leonardwood as a soldier;

“I wanted to finish my term as a guardian of freedom. I am concerned with what is going on with terrorism. Before I got too old, I wanted to do my duty — and finish my 20,” Lyzenga said.

“Personally, doing this at 52, I’m raising all kinds of eyebrows. I don’t know if a fighter pilot, or a major for that matter, has ever gone through basic training. I’m still scratching my head a little bit — wondering why I am here,” he said.

His road to the Army began when somebody challenged him to finish his time in the military.

“I said, ‘No. I’m too old.’ Then, I ended up in the Air Force recruiter’s office where they told me I was too old to fly. I prayed about it. Then, the Army recruiter said I could go in as enlisted, but retire at my highest rank. So, the door was opened and we prayed about it some more. The answer was keep walking forward as long as the door stayed open. It was a year-long process for me. It wasn’t easy, but every door stayed open, so I kept walking through it,” Lyzenga said. “I’ve traded in my F-16 for an M16.”

But, even better than shooting a rifle has been the fellowship he has felt being back in the military.

“It’s been a good experience. I love the camaraderie. In my Christian humanitarian work with the church, and now I’m a Christian business owner, even in the midst of both of those, I missed the camaraderie that came from my military service. Even with these young adults,” Lyzenga said. “They are all here to grow up and become adults. I came here to stay young and feel like a kid again.”

Much luck, SGT.

Brian Cotts, a former Marine (if there is such a thing) saw an armed robbery happen near Andrews Air Force Base in Southeast DC yesterday, and decided that he needed to do something when he saw the thieves kidnap a woman;

“When I saw all that happening, all I wanted to do is stop that woman from being hurt. I did what I had to do to save her life,” Brian Cotts told News4’s Shomari Stone.

Cotts, along with a passenger, bravely followed the robbers. He knew exactly what to do.

“[I was thinking], I got to get that tag number,” Cotts said.

Things took a turn for the dangerous, and quickly. The suspects noticed Cotts was following them, and opened fire.

The bullets shattered the glass of his pickup truck, but Cotts was not seriously injured. Police eventually caught up with the robbers in Southeast D.C., recovering four guns and the stolen cash.

When asked why he would endanger his own life just to save a woman he didn’t know, Cotts replied “Who’s to say my life is any better than that lady’s life?”

Our buddy, Doug Sterner, sends us a copy of the narrative for Master Sergeant David R. Halbruner who was awarded a Distinguished Service Cross for his actions in the attack on the US consulate in Benghazi on September 11th, 2012. Included is another DSC for Staff Sergeant Eric B. Shaw, a squad leader in the 101st who earned his DSC in Afghanistan;

Doug says that he’s still trying to dig up the Navy Cross that was awarded for Benghazi.

Mary sends us a link to the Daytona News-Journal which reports that Donald A. Daigneault, a Korean War veteran who earned the Navy Cross is facing charges for “shooting” some sandhill cranes. 81-year-old Daigneault claims that he “shot” the cranes with a sling shot and some marbles to keep them from ruining his yard, but a neighbor claims to have heard gunfire;

Daigneault said the cranes were damaging his house, costing him about $200 to repair screens. He said his home’s windows have reflective film to protect against hurricanes. But he said the cranes see their reflections in the windows and start banging their beaks on the glass. It sounds like someone smacking the glass with a stick, he said.

“When they finished destroying my bird feeder, they would stand there and look at themselves and bang on my windows,” Daigneault said.

Yes, Daigneault is listed as a legitimate recipient of the medal;

Daigneault was a 19-year-old private first class in the Marine Corps on Sept. 12, 1951 with Company D, 2nd Battalion, 7th Marines and 1st Marine Division (Reinforced), according to the Military Times website. Daigneault’s squad was attacking an enemy-controlled hill when it found itself among mines and booby traps.

Daigneault, suffering from shrapnel wounds, saw enemy soldiers preparing to attack the wounded and vulnerable squad. Daigneault crawled to an exposed area and drew fire away from his comrades, then opened fire and killed four attackers, wounded another three and forced the others to retreat.

Daigneault was “responsible for saving the lives of his comrades and for the accomplishment of his unit’s mission,” according to the Military Times website.

He would say little on Thursday about the fight.

“My squad got wiped out. We were either killed or wounded,” Daigneault said. “I was one of the fortunate ones who made it back to the MASH because some South Korean guy carried me on his back.”

He said he was carrying a BAR, or Browning Automatic Rifle.

“I really don’t know how many I shot,” he said.