Stars of Silver...

The stern hand of fate has scourged us to an elevation where we can see the great everlasting things that matter for a nation; the great peaks of honour we had forgotten - duty and patriotism, clad in glittering white; the great pinnacle of sacrifice pointing like a rugged finger to heaven.
~~~~~David Lloyd George



Clicking through all the news and other items of interest, read a local headline that serves as a reminder of how 'Our Guys' think and feel about the job they have been given in the War on Terror. After reading the article, I thought the man who spoke the words was someone whom we all should know. Even better, he's a local Cincinnati man who served with the Ohio National Guard. Read on and see if you agree...


Someone had to do it, Silver Star winner says

[...]This explains why they hand out the Silver Star for bravery.

Bam! The Green Beret put his boot to the door in the pit of a U-shaped mud hut in Eastern Afghanistan. Four Taliban fighters were supposed to be inside.

Instead, there were 30; all were armed.

"That's when all hell broke loose," recalled Ohio National Guard Special Forces Medical Sgt. First Class Mark Wanner, 36. The North Dakota native and former University of Cincinnati College of Medicine researcher was right behind the Green Beret who kicked in the door. They were on a 2009 mission to hunt down a Taliban commander at the end of a warm afternoon on the last day of May.

The Taliban opened fire when the door opened.

"They were waiting for us," Wanner said. "They shot at us from the doors and the windows." He and his Green Beret teammates were caught in a potentially deadly crossfire.

The GI who gave the door the boot was hit four times. Bullets hit him in the wrist, head, chest and stomach. His helmet and chest armor deflected two shots. The other two bullets did extensive damage. His wrist bone was shattered. His insides were shredded.

The wounded soldier turned to Wanner.

Before collapsing, he said two words: "Save me."

And Wanner did.

He treated wounds. He used his body as a shield. He helped carry a man taller and heavier than his five-feet, nine-inches and 170 pounds to safety. He saved a life while bullets zinged around his head and danced at his feet.

For those actions under fire, Wanner will receive the Silver Star, America's third highest medal for valor.

During ceremonies Saturday in Columbus, Gov. Ted Strickland will present the medal. Wanner is the first Ohio National Guardsman to receive a Silver Star since the Korean War.

Wanner knows people will call him a hero during the ceremonies. He already has it worked out what he plans to tell them.

"I was just doing my job," he said. "Everyone on the team did his job. That's why everybody came out alive."

Then, he quietly added:

"I'd do it again today." [...]

There's one other quote SFC Wanner spoke at the end of the article that sums up what I feel so many of our men and women in the military are thinking. Click on the title link to find out what that quote is. I'd bet that a majority of y'all will agree that it's typical of 'Our Guys'.



And so it goes......