Salvatore Giunta facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Salvatore Giunta
|
|
|---|---|
Giunta in April 2010
|
|
| Born | January 21, 1985 Clinton, Iowa, U.S. |
| Allegiance | United States |
| Service/ |
United States Army |
| Years of service | 2003–2011 |
| Rank | Staff Sergeant |
| Unit | 2nd Battalion, 503rd Infantry Regiment, 173rd Airborne Brigade |
| Battles/wars | War in Afghanistan |
| Awards | Medal of Honor Bronze Star Medal Purple Heart |
| Relations | 1 daughter (born October 6, 2011) |
Salvatore Augustine Giunta (born January 21, 1985) is a former soldier in the United States Army. He is famous for being the first living person since the Vietnam War to receive the Medal of Honor. This is the highest award for bravery in the U.S. Armed Forces. Giunta earned this award for saving his squad members on October 25, 2007, during the War in Afghanistan. He left the Army in June 2011.
Contents
Salvatore Giunta's Early Life and Joining the Army
Giunta was born in Clinton, Iowa, on January 21, 1985. His family is Italian American. He grew up in Cedar Rapids and Hiawatha. His parents, Steven and Rosemary, still live in Hiawatha. He has two younger siblings, Mario and Katie.
Giunta went to John F. Kennedy High School. When he was 17, he decided to join the United States Army. This was in November 2003. He was the first in his close family to serve in the military since his grandparents came from Italy.
Giunta's Time in the Military
Giunta went through basic training and infantry school at Fort Benning, Georgia. He was sent to Afghanistan twice. First, from March 2005 to March 2006. Then again from May 2007 to July 2008. He became a staff sergeant in August 2009.
Giunta was last based in Italy at Caserma Ederle. This is the home of the 173rd Airborne Brigade Combat Team. He was part of the 2nd Battalion, 503rd Infantry Regiment, 173rd Airborne Brigade Combat Team. He helped support his unit members who were in Afghanistan.
In 2007, Giunta was at a military base called Firebase Vegas. This base was in the Korengal Valley, which soldiers called the "Valley of Death." In October, his company started a mission called Operation Rock Avalanche. On October 25, his company commander, Captain Dan Kearney, sent two platoons to meet village elders. They also aimed to get back U.S. equipment that the Taliban had captured. Giunta's platoon was there to provide cover and stop enemy forces.
The Brave Actions That Earned the Medal of Honor
On the night of October 25, 2007, Giunta and his team of seven soldiers had finished watching over other platoons. They were heading back to their outpost. They walked through a thin forest on a mountain ridge.
Suddenly, 10 to 15 enemy fighters attacked them from close by. The attackers used powerful weapons like AK-47 rifles, rocket-propelled grenades (RPGs), and machine guns. They fired many tracer rounds, which are bullets that glow so you can see their path.
Sergeant Joshua Brennan, a good friend of Giunta's, was leading the way. He was hit by many bullets. Another soldier, SPC Frank Eckrode, was also hit. Giunta, who was a specialist at the time, saw his squad leader, Erick Gallardo, get hit in the helmet by a bullet.
An RPG exploded very close to Giunta. He was firing back and directing his team from a small dip in the ground. Giunta realized that bullets were coming from different directions. This meant the enemy was trying to surround them. He remembered from his training that he had to move forward to survive such an attack. He told his teammates, Casey and Clary, to move back a bit to avoid being surrounded.
The platoon leader, Lieutenant Brad Winn, reported that five men were wounded. The squad's medic, Specialist Hugo Mendoza, was among them. He had been shot and sadly died.
Giunta and Gallardo gathered Casey and Clary. They were stuck because of the heavy enemy fire. Less than 15 seconds into the attack, Giunta and the others threw grenades at the enemy. They then moved forward, firing their weapons. They reached Eckrode, who was wounded and trying to fix his machine gun. Gallardo helped Eckrode and called for medical help.
Giunta then moved forward with PFC Clary, looking for Brennan. When they couldn't find him where they expected, Giunta ran even further. He saw two Afghans dragging Sgt. Brennan away. Giunta chased them, firing his M4 carbine rifle. He killed one of the attackers and wounded the other. The second Afghan dropped Brennan and ran away.
After reaching Brennan, Giunta pulled him back to safety with the rest of the squad. He comforted Brennan and checked his wounds. Brennan was very badly hurt. Other platoons arrived to help. Giunta kept helping the medic and making sure the area was safe while they waited for help to arrive.
The ambush lasted only three minutes. The next day, Brennan died during surgery. Gallardo later told Giunta, "What you did was pretty crazy. We were outnumbered. You stopped the fight. You stopped them from taking a soldier." Eckrode said that Giunta "shouldn't be alive" given how much fire was happening.
Receiving the Medal of Honor
Two days later, Giunta learned that his captain would recommend him for the Medal of Honor. He felt uncomfortable being called a hero. He said, "If I'm a hero, every man that stands around me, every woman in the military, everyone who goes into the unknown is a hero." He believes his actions were what any soldier in his unit would have done.
On September 10, 2010, the White House announced that Giunta would receive the Medal of Honor. He was the first living person to get this award since the Vietnam War. President Barack Obama gave him the medal at a ceremony on November 16, 2010. All of his surviving squad members were there too.
On July 5, 2017, Giunta gave his Medal of Honor to the 173rd Airborne Brigade. He wanted it to stay with the brigade in Italy. He said it was for "the men and women that earn this every single day through their selflessness and sacrifice."
Giunta is one of four Medal of Honor recipients from the War in Afghanistan. The others, Michael P. Murphy, Jared C. Monti, and Robert James Miller, received their medals after they had passed away. All four were honored for their brave actions in eastern Afghanistan.
Giunta's Life After the Army
Giunta decided not to stay in the Army and left in June 2011. He and his wife moved to Colorado. There, he studied at Colorado State University. Giunta also wrote a book about his life called Living with Honor.
Giunta married Jennifer Lynn Mueller in October 2009. They have a daughter who was born on October 6, 2011.
On December 31, 2010, Giunta was invited by New York City mayor Michael Bloomberg to the New Year's Eve celebrations in Times Square. He helped press the button to start the famous ball drop.
On February 6, 2011, Giunta was honored during the Super Bowl XLV football game. This was shown on TV around the world.
As of June 2014, Giunta lives in Fort Collins, Colorado.
Awards and Decorations
Giunta received many military awards. Here are some of them:
- Medal of Honor
- Bronze Star Medal
- Purple Heart
- Meritorious Service Medal
- Army Commendation Medal
- Army Achievement Medal
- Army Good Conduct Medal
- National Defense Service Medal
- Afghanistan Campaign Medal
- 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 Medal for Service in ex-Yugoslavia
- Combat Infantryman Badge
- Basic Parachutist Insignia
- Expert marksmanship badge for rifle
- Italian Military Parachutist Badge
- Army Presidential Unit Citation
- Army Meritorious Unit Commendation
- United Kingdom Parachutist Badge
- German Parachutist Badge in bronze
- 4 Overseas Service Bars
- 2 Service stripes
See also
- List of post-Vietnam War Medal of Honor recipients
