Secretary of Defense Medal for Valor

Office of the Secretary of Defense Medal for Valor
Medal of the Office of the Secretary of Defense Medal for Valor
Awarded by
Office of the Secretary of Defense
Country  United States
Type Civilian valor award
Eligibility Department of Defense civilian employees, and private individuals
Awarded for An act of heroism or sacrifice, with voluntary risk of personal safety in the face of danger either on or off the job.[1]
Status Currently awarded
Statistics
First awarded 15 July 2002[2]
Last awarded 14 August 2018
Total awarded 17[2][3][4][1]
Precedence
Equivalent Distinguished Service Cross[4]
Related Secretary of the Army Award for Valor

Ribbon bar of the medal

The Office of the Secretary of the Defense Medal for Valor is the highest civilian award for valor presented by the Department of Defense.[2] Created in the aftermath of the September 11 attacks, the medal recognizes government employees and private citizens who perform an act of heroism or sacrifice, with voluntary risk to their personal safety in the face of danger.[1]

Eligibility

The act of bravery is eligible for recognition if the act is:

  • Related to a Department of Defense employee or activity
  • The Department of Defense in some way benefits from the act
  • The employee is saved by an individual or the employee saves an individual from danger.[5]

Appearance

The medal of the award is gold in color and 35 mm in diameter. The obverse depicts a five pointed star on top of a laurel wreath. At the top of the medal is inscribed "VALOR". The reverse of the medal has a small laurel wreath under a rectangular plate for engraving the recipient's name. The words “AWARDED TO” are inscribed above and parallel to the name plate. Below the plate are the words “FOR EXHIBITING BRAVERY”. The medal is suspended from a ribbon 35 mm in width in ultramarine blue. On either side of the ribbon are two stripes of old glory red, inside the red are two thin stripes of white.

Recipients

  • Eric M. Jones, for actions at the Pentagon on 11 September 2001[2]
  • Steve A. DeChiaro, for actions at the Pentagon on 11 September 2001[2]
  • Dr Andrew Rathmell, for actions in Baquba, Iraq 21 January 2004[3]
  • Alan Johnston, for actions al-Kasik, Iraq 7 August 2004[4]
  • James M. Feltis III, for action on 11 January 2005 (armed suspect)[6]
  • John Kinnard, for actions on 11 January 2005 (armed suspect)[6]
  • David Queen, for actions on 11 January 2005 (armed suspect)[6]
  • William Caouette, for actions on 11 January 2005 (armed suspect)[6]
  • Jeffery Amos, for the actions during the 2010 Pentagon shooting 4 March 2010[1]
  • Marvin Carraway, Jr., for the actions during the 2010 Pentagon shooting 4 March 2010[1]
  • Dexter Jones, for the actions during the 2010 Pentagon shooting 4 March 2010[1]
  • Colin Richards, for the actions during the 2010 Pentagon shooting 4 March 2010[1]
  • David Jensen, for the actions on 10 September 2012 on Bagram Air Base, Afghanistan[7]
  • William "Tim" Nix, for his actions on 7 August 2015 defending against an insurgent attack against Camp Integrity, Afghanistan.[8]
  • Michael Dunne, for his actions on 7 August 2015 defending against an insurgent attack against Camp Integrity, Afghanistan.[8]
  • Brandon Seabolt, for his valor under enemy fire during combat operations on 17 December 2015, Helmand Afghanistan ..[8]
  • Anthony Sadler, for his actions on 21 August 2015 stopping a gunman during the 2015 Thalys train attack[9]

See also

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 "OSD Medal for Valor Presented to PFPA Officers" (PDF). Pentagon Force Protection Agency Office of Public Affairs. 25 June 2010. Retrieved 2011-07-18.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 "Sept. 11 Heroes to Receive Medal of Valor". Office of the Assistant Secretary of Defense (Public Affairs). US Department of Defense. 12 July 2002. Retrieved 2011-07-18.
  3. 1 2 "VALOR UNDER FIRE BRITISH CIVILIAN AWARDED US BRAVERY MEDAL". Coalition Provisional Authority. 29 April 2004. Retrieved 2011-07-18.
  4. 1 2 3 Cooper, Mechele (23 May 2010). "Mainer joins elite crew of Medal for Valor recipient". Kennebec Journal. Maine Today Media Inc. Retrieved 2011-07-18.
  5. ↑ "Office of the Secretary of Defense Honorary Awards Guide" (doc). Labor and Management Employee Relations Division Human Resources Directorate. October 2008. Retrieved 2011-07-18.
  6. 1 2 3 4 "Press Advisory: Pentagon Police Dedicate Roll Call Room To Fallen Officer". Defense.gov. Retrieved 2012-05-31.
  7. ↑ "WP Resident Receives Highest Civilian Award for Valor". ThePilot.com. Retrieved 2014-04-17.
  8. 1 2 3 "Civilian contractors, former Soldiers receive Medal of Valor for actions in Afghanistan". www.army.mil. Retrieved 2018-09-14.
  9. ↑ "Secretary Carter to Present Medals to French Train Attack Heroes". U.S. Department of Defense. 2015-09-17.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.