03-09-2008, 12:05
|
#1
|
Quiet Professional
Join Date: Apr 2006
Location: North Texas, I can see OK from here!
Posts: 2,077
|
This gal is HOT!
Female medic earns Silver Star in Afghan war
19-year-old only second woman to receive valor award since WWII
CAMP SALERNO, Afghanistan - A 19-year-old medic from Texas will become the first woman in Afghanistan and only the second woman since World War II to receive the Silver Star, the nation's third-highest medal for valor.
Army Spc. Monica Lin Brown saved the lives of fellow soldiers after a roadside bomb tore through a convoy of Humvees in the eastern Paktia province in April 2007, the military said.
After the explosion, which wounded five soldiers in her unit, Brown ran through insurgent gunfire and used her body to shield wounded comrades as mortars fell less than 100 yards away, the military said.
"I did not really think about anything except for getting the guys to a safer location and getting them taken care of and getting them out of there," Brown said Saturday at a U.S. base in the eastern province of Khost.
Brown, of Lake Jackson, Texas, is scheduled to receive the Silver Star later this month. She was part of a four-vehicle convoy patrolling near Jani Kheil in the eastern province of Paktia on April 25, 2007, when a bomb struck one of the Humvees.
Treating 'patients' under fire
"We stopped the convoy. I opened up my door and grabbed my aid bag," Brown said.
She started running toward the burning vehicle as insurgents opened fire. All five wounded soldiers had scrambled out.
"I assessed the patients to see how bad they were. We tried to move them to a safer location because we were still receiving incoming fire," Brown said.
Pentagon policy prohibits women from serving in frontline combat roles — in the infantry, armor or artillery, for example. But the nature of the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, with no real front lines, has seen women soldiers take part in close-quarters combat more than previous conflicts.
Four Army nurses in World War II were the first women to receive the Silver Star, though three nurses serving in World War I were awarded the medal posthumously last year, according to the Army's Web site.
Brown, of the 4th Squadron, 73rd Cavalry Regiment, 4th Brigade Combat Team, said ammunition going off inside the burning Humvee was sending shrapnel in all directions. She said they were sitting in a dangerous spot.
"So we dragged them for 100 or 200 meters, got them away from the Humvee a little bit," she said. "I was in a kind of a robot-mode, did not think about much but getting the guys taken care of."
No time to be scared
For Brown, who knew all five wounded soldiers, it became a race to get them all to a safer location. Eventually, they moved the wounded some 500 yards away, treated them on site before putting them on a helicopter for evacuation.
"I did not really have time to be scared," Brown said. "Running back to the vehicle, I was nervous (since) I did not know how badly the guys were injured. That was scary."
The military said Brown's "bravery, unselfish actions and medical aid rendered under fire saved the lives of her comrades and represents the finest traditions of heroism in combat."
Sgt. Leigh Ann Hester, of Nashville, Tenn., received the Silver Star in 2005 for gallantry during an insurgent ambush on a convoy in Iraq. Two men from her unit, the 617th Military Police Company of Richmond, Ky., also received the Silver Star for their roles in the same action.
|
SF18C is offline
|
|
03-09-2008, 13:56
|
#2
|
Area Commander
Join Date: Dec 2007
Location: UK
Posts: 2,952
|
Great story! Thanks.
RF 1
|
Red Flag 1 is offline
|
|
03-09-2008, 15:33
|
#3
|
Guerrilla Chief
Join Date: May 2006
Location: SW Virginia
Posts: 583
|
SF18C,
Thanks for posting this. Reading items like this helps me believe that there's hope for our younguns yet.
Kudos to SPC Brown. Great job, young soldier!
Bandy
|
bandycpa is offline
|
|
03-09-2008, 15:42
|
#4
|
Guerrilla
Join Date: Jan 2005
Location: Greater San Antonio, TX Area
Posts: 178
|
Outstanding!!
Great job, soldier!
Wishing you the best!
Mick
__________________
Woe be unto the day when the things of wonder and light become thought of as profane, and things profane are viewed as light and wondrous.
'The true soldier fights not because he hates what is in front of him, but because he loves what is behind him.' G. K. Chesterton
|
sofmed is offline
|
|
03-09-2008, 18:04
|
#5
|
Area Commander
Join Date: Jan 2005
Location: JBLM
Posts: 1,246
|
Great job young lady.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Team Sergeant
That soldiers is in need of some SERGEANT stripes!
Team Sergeant
|
+1
__________________
http://teamrwb.com/
"Let the blood of the infantry flow through your veins,or the blood of the infantry will be on your hands."
- GEN John A. Wickham, Jr. speaking on the responsibilities of MI soldiers.
Last edited by jbour13; 03-10-2008 at 10:12.
|
jbour13 is offline
|
|
03-09-2008, 18:14
|
#6
|
Area Commander
Join Date: Jan 2004
Location: Midwest
Posts: 7,107
|
Well done, Spc. Brown!
__________________
My Heroes wear camouflage.
|
Gypsy is offline
|
|
03-09-2008, 21:23
|
#7
|
Quiet Professional
Join Date: Jan 2004
Location: Phoenix, AZ
Posts: 20,929
|
That soldiers is in need of some SERGEANT stripes!
Well done Spc. Monica Lin Brown.
Team Sergeant
__________________
"The Spartans do not ask how many are the enemy, but where they are."
|
Team Sergeant is offline
|
|
03-10-2008, 07:01
|
#8
|
Guerrilla
Join Date: May 2007
Location: Italy
Posts: 152
|
One brave girl. Well done Specialist!
|
The antihero is offline
|
|
03-10-2008, 09:56
|
#9
|
Asset
Join Date: Oct 2006
Location: Des Moines, Iowa
Posts: 28
|
Outstanding!
__________________
"The power to wipe out a hundred men
should not replace your fear of one who fears you.
Watch when a cat is fighting for its life;
it plucks the tiger’s eyes out with its claws.
To stop the stone the shepherd might throw down
to crush its head, the viper bites, and lives.’” --from Saadi’s Gulistan
|
Cold Steel is offline
|
|
03-10-2008, 14:02
|
#10
|
Guerrilla
Join Date: Feb 2008
Location: PA
Posts: 419
|
Female Medic Silver Star
Female medic, 19, to receive Silver Star
By Fisnik Abrashi
Associated Press
Article Launched: 03/10/2008 12:01:00 AM CDT
CAMP SALERNO, Afghanistan — A 19-year-old medic from Texas will become the second female soldier since World War II to receive the Silver Star, the nation's third-highest medal for valor.
Army Spc. Monica Lin Brown saved the lives of fellow soldiers after a roadside bomb tore through a convoy of Humvees in Afghanistan's eastern Paktia province in April 2007, the military said.
After the explosion, which wounded five soldiers in her unit, Brown ran through insurgent gunfire and used her body to shield wounded comrades as mortars fell less than 100 yards away, the military said.
"I did not really think about anything except for getting the guys to a safer location and getting them taken care of and getting them out of there," Brown said Saturday at a U.S. base in the eastern province of Khost.
Brown, of Lake Jackson, Texas, is scheduled to receive the Silver Star later this month. She was part of a four-vehicle convoy patrolling near Jani Kheil on April 25 when a bomb struck one of the Humvees.
"We stopped the convoy. I opened up my door and grabbed my aid bag," Brown said.
She started running toward the burning vehicle as insurgents opened fire. All five wounded soldiers had scrambled out.
For Brown, it became a race to get them all to a safer location. Eventually, she and others moved the wounded some 500 yards and treated them before putting them on a helicopter for evacuation.
"I did not really have time to be scared," Brown said. "Running back to the vehicle, I was nervous (since) I did not know how badly the guys were injured. That was scary."
The military said Brown's "bravery, unselfish actions and medical aid rendered under fire saved the lives of her comrades and represents the finest traditions of heroism in combat."
Sgt. Leigh Ann Hester, of Nashville, Tenn., along with two men in her unit, received the Silver Star in 2005 for gallantry during an insurgent ambush on a convoy in Iraq.
__________________
Sometimes you must do dark things to get to the light. "unknown"
|
FMF DOC is offline
|
|
03-10-2008, 14:10
|
#11
|
Area Commander
Join Date: Aug 2004
Location: No. VA, USA
Posts: 1,095
|
Great job, SPC Brown!
|
vsvo is offline
|
|
03-10-2008, 17:37
|
#12
|
Quiet Professional
Join Date: Jun 2007
Location: Sneaking back and forth across the Border
Posts: 6,628
|
Great Job, Get the stripes out... You have earned them...
|
SF_BHT is offline
|
|
03-11-2008, 07:00
|
#13
|
Guerrilla
Join Date: Feb 2008
Location: PA
Posts: 419
|
Female medic earns Silver Star in Afghan war
Female medic earns Silver Star in Afghan war
19-year-old only second woman to receive valor award since WWII
CAMP SALERNO, Afghanistan - A 19-year-old medic from Texas will become the first woman in Afghanistan and only the second woman since World War II to receive the Silver Star, the nation's third-highest medal for valor.
Army Spc. Monica Lin Brown saved the lives of fellow soldiers after a roadside bomb tore through a convoy of Humvees in the eastern Paktia province in April 2007, the military said.
After the explosion, which wounded five soldiers in her unit, Brown ran through insurgent gunfire and used her body to shield wounded comrades as mortars fell less than 100 yards away, the military said.
"I did not really think about anything except for getting the guys to a safer location and getting them taken care of and getting them out of there," Brown said Saturday at a U.S. base in the eastern province of Khost.
Brown, of Lake Jackson, Texas, is scheduled to receive the Silver Star later this month. She was part of a four-vehicle convoy patrolling near Jani Kheil in the eastern province of Paktia on April 25, 2007, when a bomb struck one of the Humvees.
Treating 'patients' under fire
"We stopped the convoy. I opened up my door and grabbed my aid bag," Brown said.
She started running toward the burning vehicle as insurgents opened fire. All five wounded soldiers had scrambled out.
"I assessed the patients to see how bad they were. We tried to move them to a safer location because we were still receiving incoming fire," Brown said.
Pentagon policy prohibits women from serving in frontline combat roles — in the infantry, armor or artillery, for example. But the nature of the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, with no real front lines, has seen women soldiers take part in close-quarters combat more than previous conflicts.
Four Army nurses in World War II were the first women to receive the Silver Star, though three nurses serving in World War I were awarded the medal posthumously last year, according to the Army's Web site.
Brown, of the 4th Squadron, 73rd Cavalry Regiment, 4th Brigade Combat Team, said ammunition going off inside the burning Humvee was sending shrapnel in all directions. She said they were sitting in a dangerous spot.
"So we dragged them for 100 or 200 meters, got them away from the Humvee a little bit," she said. "I was in a kind of a robot-mode, did not think about much but getting the guys taken care of."
No time to be scared
For Brown, who knew all five wounded soldiers, it became a race to get them all to a safer location. Eventually, they moved the wounded some 500 yards away, treated them on site before putting them on a helicopter for evacuation.
"I did not really have time to be scared," Brown said. "Running back to the vehicle, I was nervous (since) I did not know how badly the guys were injured. That was scary."
The military said Brown's "bravery, unselfish actions and medical aid rendered under fire saved the lives of her comrades and represents the finest traditions of heroism in combat."
Sgt. Leigh Ann Hester, of Nashville, Tenn., received the Silver Star in 2005 for gallantry during an insurgent ambush on a convoy in Iraq. Two men from her unit, the 617th Military Police Company of Richmond, Ky., also received the Silver Star for their roles in the same action.
FMF DOC , This was posted a few days before you posted it again, read and use the search button. Team Sergeant
__________________
Sometimes you must do dark things to get to the light. "unknown"
|
FMF DOC is offline
|
|
03-11-2008, 07:11
|
#14
|
Quiet Professional
Join Date: Jan 2008
Location: Aberdeen, NC
Posts: 397
|
If what the story says is true, SPC Brown deserves it. I am glad to see a commander / chain of command took the time to recognize the valor of one of their soldiers. I wish every chain of command took the time to debrief and understand their soldiers actions. I think many more awards would be written. I and I am sure many on this forum know many men and women that deserve an award / recognition for going above and beyond as professional soldiers.
By always conducting debreifs of each patrol / action, the lessons learned prove invaluable. Awards are a great way to show your subordinatess you pay attention, care, and recognize their contributions.
|
mcarey is offline
|
|
03-11-2008, 12:14
|
#15
|
Area Commander
Join Date: Feb 2004
Location: OK. Thanking Our Brave Soldiers
Posts: 3,614
|
Good for her, and a job well done!
Holly
|
echoes is offline
|
|
Currently Active Users Viewing This Thread: 1 (0 members and 1 guests)
|
|
Posting Rules
|
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts
HTML code is Off
|
|
|
All times are GMT -6. The time now is 05:26.
|
|
|