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BAGRAM AIRFIELD, Afghanistan (March 21, 2008) - Heroes are made,
not born.
And a hero like Spc. Monica Brown, 19, a Lake Jackson, Texas,
native is no different. She is the second female Soldier since
World War II to be awarded a Silver Star for her gallant actions
during combat in Afghanistan in 2007.
She was presented her Silver Star by Vice President Dick Cheney
during a ceremony here March 20.
It was dusk April 25, 2007, when Brown, a medic from the 782nd
Brigade Support Battalion, 4th Brigade Combat Team, 82nd Airborne
Division, was on a routine security patrol along the rolling, rocky
plains of Paktika's isolated Jani Khail District when her convoy
was attacked by insurgents.
"We'd been out on the mission for a couple of days," said Brown,
who at the time was attached to the brigade's 4th Squadron, 73rd
Cavalry Regiment's Troop C. "We had just turned into a wadi (empty
river bed) when our gunner yelled at us that the vehicle behind us
had hit an (improvised-explosive device)."
They all looked out of their windows in time to see one of the
struck vehicle's tires flying through the field next to them. Brown
had just opened her door to see what was going on when the attack
began.
"I only saw the smoke from the vehicle when suddenly we started
taking small-arms fire from all around us," she said. "Our gunner
starting firing back and my platoon sergeant yelled, 'Doc! Let's
go.'"
Brown and her platoon sergeant, Staff Sgt. Jose Santos, exited
their vehicle, and while under fire, ran the few hundred meters to
the site of the downed Humvee.
"Everyone was already out of the burning vehicle," she said.
"But even before I got there, I could tell that two of them were
injured very seriously."
In fact, all five of the passengers who had stumbled out were
burned and cut.
Two Soldiers, Spc. Stanson Smith and Spc. Larry Spray, suffered
life-threatening injuries.
With help from two less-injured vehicle crewmen, Army Sgt.
Zachary Tellier and Spc. Jack Bodani, Brown moved the immobile
Soldiers to a relatively safe distance from the burning Humvee.
"There was pretty heavy incoming fire at this point," she
said.
"Rounds were literally missing her by inches," said Bodani, who
provided suppressive fire as Brown aided the casualties while
injured. "We needed to get away from there."
Attempting to provide proper medical care under the heavy fire
became impossible, especially when the attackers stepped up efforts
to kill the Soldiers.
"Another vehicle had just maneuvered to our position to shield
us from the rounds now exploding in the fire from the Humvee behind
us," Brown said. "Somewhere in the mix, we started taking mortar
rounds. It became a huge commotion, but all I could let myself
think about were my patients."
With the other vehicles spread out in a crescent formation,
Brown and her casualties were stuck with no-where to go. Suddenly,
Santos arrived with one of the unit's vehicles backed it up to
their position, and Brown began loading the wounded Soldiers
inside.
"We took off to a more secure location several hundred meters
away where we were able to call in the (medical evacuation
mission)," Brown said.
She then directed other combat-life-saver-qualified Soldiers to
help by holding intravenous bags and assisting her in prepping the
casualties for evacuation.
After what seemed like an eternity, the attackers finally began
retreating and Brown was able to perform more thorough aid
procedures before the MEDVAC helicopter finally arrived to
transport the casualties to safety, Brown said.
Two hours after the initial attack, everything was over.
In the darkness, Brown recalled standing in a field, knee-deep
in grass, her only source of light coming from her red head-light,
trying to piece together the events which had just taken place.
"Looking back, it was just a blur of noise and movement," she
said. "What just happened? Did I do everything right? It was a hard
thing to think about."
Before joining the Army at the age of 17, the bright-eyed young
woman said she never pictured herself being in a situation like
this.
Originally wanting to be an X-ray technician, she changed her
mind when she realized that by becoming a medic, she'd be in the
best place to help people. "At first, I didn't think I could do
it," she said. "I was actually afraid of blood. When I saw my first
airway-opening operation, I threw up."
She quickly adjusted to her job, and received additional
training both before and during her deployment to Afghanistan. "I
realized that everything I had done during the attack was just rote
memory," she said. "Kudos to my chain of command for that. I know
with training, like I was given, any medic would have done the same
in my position." "To say she handled herself well would be an
understatement," said Bodani, who quickly recovered from his
injuries and immediately returned to work. "It was amazing to see
her keep completely calm and take care of our guys with all that
going on around her. Of all the medics we've had with us throughout
the year, she was the one I trusted the most."
Earning trust with a combat unit is not something easily earned,
said Army Capt. Todd Book, Troop C's commander at the time of the
attack, but it was something Brown had taken upon herself to prove
long before the Jani Khail ambush. "Our regular medic was on leave
at the time," Book said. "We had other medics to choose from, but
Brown had shown us that she was more technically proficient than
any of her peers." Having people call her "Doc" means a lot to her
because of the trust it engenders. "When people I've treated come
back to me later and tell me the difference I was able to make in
their life is the best part of this job," Brown said.
During her rest and recuperation in May 2007, Brown visited
Spray in the hospital and met his mother. "I almost cried," Brown
said. "Spray's mother was so thankful and she hugged me. That was
the moment that made me feel the best about what I did."
Even though she felt proud when she was informed that she was
going to receive a Silver Star, she considers her actions to be the
result of effort put into her by everyone she's worked for. "While
I'm not scared to get my hands dirty, I have to say that I never
fully became a medic until I came over here and did it first-hand,"
she said. "I just reacted when the time came."
Due to her quick and selfless actions, both Smith and Spray
survived their injuries.
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