American Valor Quarterly Issue 5 - Winter 2008/09 | Page 33

The Medal of Honor Today:
A New Generation of Valor
Valor is a quality not only found among those who fought on the
beaches of Normandy and hills of Okinawa, the ice of Chosin
Reservoir, and the jungles of Vietnam – it exists today among
the men and women who are serving in Iraq and Afghanistan.
Yet despite countless stories of courage under fire, five men’s
stories stand alone among all others. These five men are the only
recipients of the Medal of Honor for heroism in Operation Iraqi
Freedom and Operation Enduring Freedom. Each of them was
killed during the actions for which they have been honored.
At the 11th Annual Conference, five men who served with these
fallen heroes gathered to share their memories of their comrades,
and to help ensure that their stories live on in our nation’s memory.
In this issue, we also hope to help make the public aware of five
men whose names should be known by all of us: Michael Murphy,
Paul Ray Smith, Jason Dunham, Ross McGinnis, and Michael
Monsoor.

commissioned an ensign in the Navy and began his Basic
Underwater Demolition/SEAL training, later graduating with
Class 236. He earned his SEAL Trident and joined SDV Team
ONE where he was the Alpha Platoon Assistant Officer in Charge.
In 2005, we deployed to Afghanistan and Iraq. It was on a mission
in Afghanistan on June 28, 2005 that he saw the action for which
he would later be awarded the Medal of Honor.
Konar Province, Afghanistan, the night of June 27. Just east of
the province capital of Asadabad, Lt. Murphy and his team
consisting of Marcus Luttrell, Matt Axelson and Danny Dietz are
inserted into the mountains to capture and/or kill high-value
Taliban leaders. The terrain was treacherous, and looked out over
a village. The next morning, while on a position on a ridgeline,
they encountered three goat herders. They debated what to do
about them, but ultimately decided to let the goat herders go.

After the goat herders moved on, they moved to a new position
on the ridge and set up a new observation point from which they
could watch the village down below. About 20-30 minutes later,
Michael Murphy
a large Taliban force appeared on the ridgeline – the goat herders
Special Warfare Operator 1st Class Cory Hull, USN: Michael had informed the Taliban of their presence. Numbers estimate
Murphy grew up in Patchogue, New York, where he graduated 50-100 Taliban against four SEALs.
high school before moving on to college at Penn State. He planned
on a career in law, but decided instead to attend officer candidate A firefight ensued as the Taliban engaged the team. Lt. Murphy
and the other men attempted to contact their base to
school. On December 13, 2000, he graduated from OCS, was
request support. Danny Dietz tried to radio back
to the attack operations center to call in a Quick
Reaction Force (QRF). However, he had the radio

The Medal of Honor awarded
posthumously to Michael A. Monsoor,
a U.S. Navy SEAL. Monsoor threw himself
upon a grenade to save the lives of his teammates
during a firefight against insurgents in Iraq.

U.S. Navy Photo

AMERICAN VALOR QUARTERLY - Winter 2008/09 - 33