Salvatore Giunta

For the footballer, see Salvatore Giunta (footballer).

Salvatore Augustine Giunta
Staff Sergeant Salvatore Giunta
Allegiance	United States
Service / branch	United States Army
Years of service	2003–present
Rank	Staff Sergeant
Unit	2nd Battalion, 503rd Infantry Regiment, 173rd Airborne Brigade Combat Team
Battles / wars	War in Afghanistan
Awards	Medal of Honor Bronze Star Purple Heart

Salvatore Augustine Giunta (born January 21, 1985) is a staff sergeant in the United States Army. He is the first living person to receive the United States military's highest decoration for valor, the Medal of Honor, for actions that ooccurred since the Vietnam War. Giunta was cited for saving members of his squad on October 25, 2007 during the War in Afghanistan.

Personal life

Born in Clinton, Iowa, on January 21, 1985, in a family of Italian descent, Giunta grew up in Cedar Rapids and Hiawatha. His parents, Steven, a medical equipment technician, and Rosemary, a preschool teacher, live in Hiawatha. He has two younger siblings, Mario and Katie. Giunta attended John F. Kennedy High School in Cedar Rapids. At age 17, while working in a Subway sandwich shop, he decided to enlist and joined the Army in November 2003. He married Jennifer Lynn Mueller, a native of Dubuque, in October 2009 after several years of dating.

Military career

Giunta attended basic training and infantry school at Fort Benning, Georgia. He was deployed to Afghanistan from March 2005 until March 2006 and again from May 2007 until July 2008. Promoted to staff sergeant in August 2009, Giunta is currently stationed at Caserma Ederle, the 173rd Airborne Brigade Combat Team's base near Vicenza, Italy. He serves in the 2nd Battalion, 503rd Infantry Regiment, 173rd Airborne, and works in a support role for members of his unit currently deployed in Afghanistan.

In 2007, Giunta was stationed at Firebase Vegas in the Korangal Valley, an area about 9.7 by 1.6 kilometres (6.03 mi × 0.99 mi) near the Afghanistan-Pakistan border, nicknamed by the soldiers as the Valley of Death. In late October, his company launched a six-day mission known as Rock Avalanche. On October 23, Taliban fighters killed respected Staff Sergeant Larry Rougle and wounded two other infantrymen when Rougle's position on "Honcho Hill" was overrun. On October 25, company commander Captain Dan Kearney sent 2nd and 3rd Platoon back to meet with the local village elders and to recover from them the U.S. equipment that the Taliban had captured when Rougle was killed. 1st Platoon was tasked with providing protective cover and interdicting enemy forces from a nearby ridge.

Medal of Honor action

Shortly after nightfall on October 25, 2007, rifle team leader Giunta and the rest of the seven troops of 1st Platoon had just finished a day-long overwatch of 2nd and 3rd Platoon in the valley below. Although dark, there was sufficient moonlight that night vision equipment was not needed. They were returning to Combat Outpost Vimoto and Korengal Outpost. They walked about 10 to 15 feet (3.0–4.6 m) apart through the thin holly forest, along the Gatigal Spur of Honcho Hill at about 2,438 metres (7,999 ft) elevation.

Within 50 to 100 metres (160–330 ft) of leaving their position, 10 to 15 insurgents ambushed the main body of the squad from cover and concealment only about 10 metres (33 ft) away, so near that the Apaches overhead could not provide close air support. The ambushing force was armed with AK-47 assault rifles, 10 Rocket-propelled grenade (RPG) launchers and three belt-fed PKM machine guns. They fired an unusually high proportion of tracer rounds. Giunta described it later:

There were more bullets in the air than stars in the sky. A wall of bullets at every one at the same time with one crack and then a million other cracks afterwards. They’re above you, in front of you, behind you, below you. They’re hitting in the dirt early. They’re going over your head. Just all over the place. They were close—as close as I’ve ever seen.

Ambush on October 25

The ambush was initiated with intense RPG and PKM fire

Giunta's squad used grenades to suppress enemy fire

Sergeant Joshua Brennan, leader of alpha team, was walking point. He was followed by SPC Frank Eckrode, squad leader Erick Gallardo, and then Giunta, who was then a specialist. PFC Kaleb Casey and Garret Clary followed Giunta. A Headquarters (HQ) unit led by Lt. Brad Winn, including a five-man gun team from weapons squad, along with a nurse who volunteered for the mission, followed immediately behind them. When the Taliban opened fire, Brennan was struck by at least six rounds and Eckrode was also immediately wounded. Gallardo attempted to sprint forward, but RPGs exploding among the thin trees and 18 inches (46 cm)-high bushes around him along with machine gun and small arms fire stopped him. Unable to advance, he fell back to join Giunta's bravo team. While backpedaling and firing at the same time, he fell and was in the same moment struck in the helmet by an AK-47 round. An RPG round struck very near Giunta, who was returning fire and directing bravo team from a small defilade. Giunta was puzzled that the lip of the small depression he lay in was not protecting him from rounds cracking by his head, that they appeared to be coming from the north as well as the west.

Giunta saw Gallardo take the bullet to his head and fall. Assuming he'd been shot, Giunta rose and ran through the intense wall of fire to Gallardo's side. As he helped the uninjured sergeant find cover, the ceramic plate in the front of Giunta's protective vest was struck by a bullet. Another round struck the SMAW-D slung over his back. Giunta recognized that the extremely heavy tracer fire was coming not just from his west but from the north as well, a classic L-shaped ambush that threatened to roll over the squad. He ordered Casey and Clary to pull back a few steps to prevent the Taliban from flanking them. Casey was firing his M249 Squad Automatic Weapon cyclic and Clary was firing his M203 grenade launcher as well.

The platoon commander in the HQ unit, Lieutenant Brad Winn, radioed Captain Kearney to advise him that their unit had five wounded men. The squad's medic, Specialist Hugo Mendoza, was among them. He had been shot through the femoral artery at the beginning of the ambush and died. Kearney ordered Second Platoon to assist Winn's platoon, but Second Platoon was in the valley below, some distance away, and had to first cross a river to reach them.

Giunta and Gallardo gathered Casey and Clary. They were pinned down by the concentrated small arms and cyclic machine gun fire from a number of Taliban positions at close range. Less than 15 seconds into the ambush, Giunta and his men acted to disrupt the attack. They alternated throwing volleys of fragmentation grenades towards the Taliban about 15 metres (49 ft) to their west and moving north. Firing Pfc. Casey’s M249, Clarey's M203, and their other weapons, they advanced until they reached Eckrode. Shot twice in one leg and with two other wounds, Eckrode was attempting to unjam his M249 SAW. Gallardo, who later received a Silver Star for his actions, dressed Eckrode's wounds and called for MEDEVAC.

Giunta, seeing that Eckrode was tended to, continued to advance over the exposed, open ground of the ridge in the dark, looking for Brennan. When he could not locate him where he expected to find him, he ran after the retreating Taliban. They covered their rear with effective small arms fire but Giunta ran after them, trying to overtake them. He saw three individuals and then recognized that two of them were Afghanis dragging Sgt. Brennan, one by the legs and one by his arms. Giunta pursued them, firing his M4 carbine as he ran, killing one (later identified as Mohammad Tali, considered a high-value target). Giunta wounded the second Afghani, who dropped Brennan and fled. A Spectre AC130 gunship shortly afterward spotted someone carrying Brennan's rucksack and killed him. Giunta said, "I ran through fire to see what was going on with [Brennan] and maybe we could hide behind the same rock and shoot together ... He was still conscious. He was breathing. He was asking for morphine. I said, 'You'll get out and tell your hero stories,' and he was like, 'I will, I will.'"

After reaching Brennan, Giunta pulled him back towards the rest of the squad and cover, comforted him, and examined him for wounds in the dark. Brennan was grievously hurt. The 2nd and 3rd Platoon arrived to reinforce their squad and render aid. Spc. Giunta continued to assist the medic and adjust security while they waited for evacuation.

The ambush had lasted three minutes. Later the next day, Brennan died while in surgery.

Medal of Honor award

Giunta learned two days later from Captain Kearney that the Captain was going to nominate him for the Medal of Honor. He was uncomfortable about being singled out for the honor. "I did what I did because in the scheme of painting the picture of that ambush, that was just my brush stroke. That’s not above and beyond. I didn’t take the biggest brush stroke, and it wasn’t the most important brush stroke. Hearing the Medal of Honor is like a slap in the face."

Giunta receiving the Medal of Honor from President Barack Obama on November 16, 2010

On September 10, 2010, the White House announced that Giunta would be awarded the United States' highest military decoration, the first awarded to a living recipient since the Vietnam War.

He received the medal from President Barack Obama during a ceremony at the White House on November 16, 2010. All of his surviving squad members also attended the ceremony.

Addressing the attention he has received due to the medal, he said:

"I'm not at peace with that at all," Giunta said. "In this job, I am only mediocre. I’m average....And coming and talking about it and people wanting to shake my hand because of it, it hurts me, because it's not what I want. And to be with so many people doing so much stuff and then to be singled out—and put forward. I mean, everyone did something."

Giunta is the fourth recipient from the War in Afghanistan, after Navy Lieutenant Michael P. Murphy, Army Sergeant First Class Jared C. Monti, and Army Staff Sergeant Robert James Miller.

Awards and decorations

Giunta's military decorations include:

					File:NATO SFOR Medal BAR.png
					File:Army Expert Shooting Badge.png

Right breast		Left breast
Italian Military Parachutist Badge		Combat Infantryman Badge
			Medal of Honor	Bronze Star
		Purple Heart	Army Commendation Medal w/ one oak leaf cluster	Army Achievement Medal
		Army Good Conduct Medal	National Defense Service Medal	Afghanistan Campaign Medal w/ one campaign star
		Global War on Terrorism Expeditionary Medal	Global War on Terrorism Service Medal	Army NCO Professional Development Ribbon
		Army Service Ribbon	Army Overseas Service Ribbon	NATO Service Medal (SFOR)
Army Presidential Unit Citation w/ two oak leaf clusters	Army Meritorious Unit Commendation w/ one oak leaf cluster	Basic Parachutist Insignia		Expert marksmanship badge for rifle

Medal of Honor Citation

For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty:

Specialist Salvatore A. Giunta distinguished himself conspicuously by gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty in action with an armed enemy in the Korengal Valley, Afghanistan, on October 25, 2007. While conducting a patrol as team leader with Company B, 2d Battalion (Airborne), 503d Infantry Regiment, Specialist Giunta and his team were navigating through harsh terrain when they were ambushed by a well-armed and well-coordinated insurgent force. While under heavy enemy fire, Specialist Giunta immediately sprinted towards cover and engaged the enemy. Seeing that his squad leader had fallen and believing that he had been injured, Specialist Giunta exposed himself to withering enemy fire and raced towards his squad leader, helped him to cover, and administered medical aid. While administering first aid, enemy fire struck Specialist Giunta’s body armor and his secondary weapon. Without regard to the ongoing fire, Specialist Giunta engaged the enemy before prepping and throwing grenades, using the explosions for cover in order to conceal his position. Attempting to reach additional wounded fellow soldiers who were separated from the squad, Specialist Giunta and his team encountered a barrage of enemy fire that forced them to the ground. The team continued forward and upon reaching the wounded soldiers, Specialist Giunta realized that another soldier was still separated from the element. Specialist Giunta then advanced forward on his own initiative. As he crested the top of a hill, he observed two insurgents carrying away an American soldier. He immediately engaged the enemy, killing one and wounding the other. Upon reaching the wounded soldier, he began to provide medical aid, as his squad caught up and provided security. Specialist Giunta’s unwavering courage, selflessness, and decisive leadership while under extreme enemy fire were integral to his platoon’s ability to defeat an enemy ambush and recover a fellow American soldier from the enemy. Specialist Salvatore A. Giunta’s extraordinary heroism and selflessness above and beyond the call of duty are in keeping with the highest traditions of military service and reflect great credit upon himself, Company B, 2d Battalion (Airborne), 503d Infantry Regiment, and the United States Army.

See also

• List of Medal of Honor recipients
• List of living Medal of Honor recipients

External links

• United States Army website for SSG Giunta and the MOH action. Retrieved November 16, 2010
• The Sal Giunta Story Giunta interviewed by the directors of Restrepo. Retrieved November 16, 2010
• Interview at the Pritzker Military Library. Retrieved December 14, 2010