Leroy Petry

Completing the Ranger Indoctrination Program, he was deployed several times to both Iraq and Afghanistan as a member of the 2nd Battalion, 75th Ranger Regiment.

Upon completion of his training, Petry was assigned to 2nd Battalion, 75th Ranger Regiment based at Joint Base Lewis-McChord, in Washington state.

Petry had a total of eight deployments: two supporting Operation Iraqi Freedom and six supporting Operation Enduring Freedom.

In all, Petry spent a total of 28 months deployed.

During his time in Iraq and Afghanistan, Petry served in a number of positions, including as a grenadier, squad automatic rifleman, fireteam leader, squad leader, operations sergeant, and a weapons squad leader.

He was assigned to D Company, 2nd Battalion, 75th Ranger Regiment, which was on a daylight raid to capture a high-value target from the Taliban.

Petry was to locate with the platoon headquarters in the target building once it was secured.

Once there, he was to serve as the senior non-commissioned officer at the site for the remainder of the operation.

The team of 7 Rangers encountered about 40 Taliban, 12 of them armed.

Almost immediately after getting out of the helicopters that delivered the unit to the attack site, the Rangers came under strong fire.

Petry provided additional supervision to an assaulting squad during the clearance of a building, and afterward he took Private First Class Lucas Robinson to clear an outer courtyard.

Three Taliban fighters were in the courtyard, which had a chicken coop within it.

The Taliban fired on Petry and Robinson; Petry was wounded by one round that went through both his legs, and Robinson was wounded, being hit on the armor plate protecting his side.

Petry led Robinson to the cover of the chicken coop, and reported the contact and their wounded condition.

Petry threw a thermobaric grenade from cover.

At the chicken coop, the two men were joined by Sergeant Daniel Higgins, who assessed the wounds of the two soldiers.

A Taliban fighter threw a grenade at their position which landed 10 meters from them; it detonated, and the blast knocked the three soldiers to the ground, wounding Higgins, and further wounding Robinson.

Leroy Arthur Petry (born July 29, 1979) is a retired United States Army soldier.

Leroy Petry was born on July 29, 1979, in Santa Fe, New Mexico, to Larry and Lorella (Tapia) Petry, of Mexican-American descent.

He is the third of five sons, with older brothers Larry Armando and Lloyd, and younger brothers Lyndon and Lincoln.

In his youth, he was described as very active and likable by his friends and family.

Petry attended Santa Fe High School but was a poor student; he repeated his freshman year.

As a sophomore, he transferred to St. Catherine Indian School, a private school in Santa Fe, where his academic performance substantially improved.

Growing up, Petry played football and basketball, and he also enjoyed fixing cars and cooking in his spare time.

He graduated in 1998; his was the last class to graduate from St. Catherine before it closed.

Petry spent the next year studying at New Mexico Highlands University in Las Vegas, New Mexico.

He also worked at the vehicle maintenance department of Pecos Public Transportation with his father and grandfather, and made signs at a local business, Al's Signs.

Influenced by a cousin who joined the United States Army Rangers, Petry enlisted in the Army in Santa Fe in September 1999.

He also became a Ranger.

He attended Basic Combat Training and Advanced Individual Training at Fort Benning, Georgia.

He received the U.S. military's highest decoration, the Medal of Honor, for his actions in Afghanistan in 2008 during Operation Enduring Freedom.

Born in Santa Fe, New Mexico, Petry had an active youth, and joined the Army after high school.

On May 26, 2008, during his seventh deployment, Petry was a member of a team on a mission to capture a Taliban target in Paktia Province.

Despite being wounded in both legs by gunfire, Petry continued to fight and give orders.

When a grenade landed between him and two other soldiers, Petry grabbed it and attempted to throw it away from them.

He saved the soldiers' lives but the grenade exploded, severing his right hand.

On May 26, 2008, Staff Sergeant Petry and his unit were on a mission in Paktia Province, Afghanistan.

Petry became the second recent living recipient of the medal for the war in Afghanistan in 2011 when he received the award from U.S. President Barack Obama.

At the time of the September 11th attacks, he was training to become a Ranger.

Opting to reenlist in spite of his injury, Petry remained on active duty in the U.S. Army until his retirement on July 29, 2014.