02-14-2011, 15:15
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#1
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Quiet Professional
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Petraeus pins Silver Star on Special Forces Soldier in Kandahar
2/14/2011 By CJSOTF-A Public Affairs
A member of 1st Battalion, 3rd Special Forces Group (Airborne), Fort Bragg, N.C., was awarded the nation’s third highest medal for valor by Gen. David H. Petraeus, commander, International Security Assistance Force and commander, U.S. Forces Afghanistan, during a ceremony at Kandahar Airfield, Afghanistan, Feb. 14.
Sgt. 1st Class Chad E. Lawson, a communications sergeant with Operational Detachment Alpha 3116 and deployed as part of Special Operations Task Force – South, was awarded the Silver Star for his heroics during combat operations Aug. 4, 2010, in southern Afghanistan.
“What you did, frankly, was extraordinarily heroic,” Petraeus said before pinning the medal on Lawson’s chest. “You’re team sergeant was down, others were down, and your instincts were to go and run through 500 meters of heavy machine-gun fire to the scene and rescue downed comrades.”
On that day, he and members of his team were caught in an ambush with approximately 45 insurgents attacking his unit. Lawson ran through a hail of enemy fire in order to rescue his downed team sergeant and organize forces for a medical evacuation.
“During his sprint, Sergeant Lawson was barely missed by [rocket-propelled grenade] and [heavy machine-gun] fire, with rounds chipping off the walls and ground all around him,” the narrative accompanying his award reads.
Lawson, a native of Cincinnati, called in a medical evacuation, and, “while still receiving heavy, direct and accurate deadly fire, for a second time he exposed himself” when he grabbed a fellow team member as well as Afghan Commandos on the mission, and led them in defense of a landing zone for the MEDEVAC helicopter.
Like his actions on that day, Lawson said his medal presentation was about his team.
“The nice thing about military honors is that rarely, if ever, is it solely your award,” Lawson said after receiving the Silver Star from Petraeus. “So I refuse to accept it on behalf of myself, but more for my team. Nothing anyone did out there was by themselves, on any operation, in particular that one. So for me to be recognized, by myself, is an honor for our team, our battalion and our group.”
Petraeus said Lawson exemplified what he called the “new greatest generation.”
“You did instinctively the right thing, which is the heroic thing,” Petraeus told Lawson. “It is really extraordinary to read in black and white what you did, and then to think about what that represented on that particular day, one in which you put it all on the line for your fellow members of the brotherhood of the close fight, and again, did something truly heroic.”
http://www.socom.mil/socomhome/newsp...ilverstar.aspx
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SouthernDZ is offline
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02-14-2011, 15:24
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#2
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Area Commander
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Quote:
Originally Posted by SouthernDZ
Like his actions on that day, Lawson said his medal presentation was about his team.
“The nice thing about military honors is that rarely, if ever, is it solely your award,” Lawson said after receiving the Silver Star from Petraeus. “So I refuse to accept it on behalf of myself, but more for my team. Nothing anyone did out there was by themselves, on any operation, in particular that one. So for me to be recognized, by myself, is an honor for our team, our battalion and our group.”
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That statement says it all. Congratulations SFC Lawson. You truly are an example of what it means to be a humble Warrior.
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Sohei is offline
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02-14-2011, 15:25
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#3
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Congratulations Sgt 1st Class Lawson....... You bring HONOR to the SF service.......
Big Teddy
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I believe that SF is a 'calling' - not too different from the calling missionaries I know received. I knew instantly that it was for me, and that I would do all I could to achieve it. Most others I know in SF experienced something similar. If, as you say, you HAVE searched and read, and you do not KNOW if this is the path for you --- it is not....
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SF is a calling and it requires commitment and dedication that the uninitiated will never understand......
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greenberetTFS is offline
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02-14-2011, 16:46
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#4
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Congratulations SFC Lawson!!!
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MtnGoat is offline
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02-14-2011, 17:35
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#5
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RIP Quiet Professional
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Does my heart good.
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Dusty is offline
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02-14-2011, 18:11
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#6
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Quote:
Originally Posted by The Sheepdog
That statement says it all. Congratulations SFC Lawson. You truly are an example of what it means to be a humble Warrior.
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Yup, nuthin like a good team.
Very honest and humble (as most of those warriors) are.
Good Job SFC Lawson.
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Out of all the places I've been, this is one of'em....
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glebo is offline
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02-14-2011, 18:13
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#7
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Gold Star Father
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Well Done, SFC Lawson! You have done yourself and OUR Spartan team proud!!! Thank you for your service, your sacrifice, your professionalism and your love of your teammates! I can't wait to see you soon to thank you in person!!!
With It or On It!!!
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Tatonka316 is offline
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02-14-2011, 19:36
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#8
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Good job SFC Lawson
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Jgood is offline
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02-14-2011, 19:46
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#9
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Outstanding!
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ZonieDiver is offline
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02-14-2011, 20:36
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#10
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Well done, Spartan!
TR
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"It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs, who comes short again and again, because there is no effort without error and shortcoming; but who does actually strive to do the deeds; who knows great enthusiasms, the great devotions; who spends himself in a worthy cause; who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who neither know victory nor defeat." - President Theodore Roosevelt, 1910
De Oppresso Liber 01/20/2025
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The Reaper is offline
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02-14-2011, 21:40
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#11
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Area Commander
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Well done SFC Lawson. You have made us proud and upheld the proud tradition of SF and third group. Well done General Petraeus. I am humbled by this Soldier's bravery.
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dennisw is offline
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02-15-2011, 03:52
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#12
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A well deserved award for a humble man and Warrior.
Chad is a great guy, and his actions are definitely a representation of his character and that of the men of his team.
That day in particular was a tense one, and as Chad states, everyone there contributed.
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jbour13 is offline
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02-15-2011, 04:21
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#13
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Congrads, a well deserved honor......
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SF_BHT is offline
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02-15-2011, 08:01
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#14
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Congratulations SFC Lawson.
Stay Safe..
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JJ_BPK is offline
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02-15-2011, 18:18
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#15
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Area Commander
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Congratulations SFC Lawson, well done!
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