Michael A. Monsoor

Michael Anthony Monsoor (April 5, 1981September 29, 2006) was a United States Navy SEAL who was killed in Operation Iraqi Freedom during the Battle of Ramadi and posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor.

Monsoor was born April 5, 1981, in Long Beach, California, the third of four children of Sally Ann (Boyle) and George Paul Monsoor.

His father also served in the United States military as a Marine.

His father is of Lebanese and Irish descent, and his mother has Irish ancestry.

When he was a child, Monsoor was afflicted with asthma but strengthened his lungs by racing his siblings in the family's swimming pool.

He attended Dr. Walter C. Ralston Intermediate School and Garden Grove High School in Garden Grove, California and played tight-end on the school's football team, graduating in 1999.

He enlisted in the United States Navy in 2001 and graduated from Basic Underwater Demolition/SEAL Training BUD/S class 250 in 2004.

After further training he was assigned to Delta Platoon, SEAL Team 3.

Monsoor enlisted in the United States Navy on March 21, 2001, and attended Basic Training at Recruit Training Command Great Lakes, Illinois.

Upon graduation from basic training, he attended Master At Arms "A" School.

He volunteered for Basic Underwater Demolition/SEAL training (BUD/S) at Naval Amphibious Base Coronado.

During first phase of training for his class 238, Monsoon voluntarily withdrew from training.

Monsoor received assignment as Master-at-Arms at the Security Detachment in Sigonella, Sicily from January 2002 to January 2004 and volunteered again for BUD/S training.

Monsoor graduated from BUD/S class 250 on September 2, 2004, as one of the top performers in his class.

After BUD/S, he completed advanced SEAL training courses including parachute training at Basic Airborne School, cold weather combat training in Kodiak, Alaska, and six months of SEAL Qualification Training (SQT) in Coronado, California, graduating in March 2005.

Monsoor received the Navy Enlisted Classification (NEC) 5326 as a Combatant Swimmer (SEAL), entitled to wear the Special Warfare Insignia.

The following month, his rating changed from Quartermaster to Master-at-Arms, and he was assigned to Delta Platoon, SEAL Team 3.

Delta Platoon was sent to Iraq in April 2006 and assigned to train Iraqi Army soldiers in Ramadi.

Over the next five months, Monsoor and his platoon frequently engaged in combat with insurgent forces.

On September 29, 2006, an insurgent threw a grenade onto a rooftop where Monsoor and several other SEALs and Iraqi soldiers were positioned.

Monsoor quickly smothered the grenade with his body, absorbing the resulting explosion and saving his comrades from serious injury or death.

Monsoor died about 30 minutes later from wounds caused by the grenade explosion.

During the Battle of Ramadi, SEAL Team Three was sent to Ramadi, Iraq in April 2006 and assigned to train Iraqi Army soldiers.

As a communicator and machine-gunner on patrols, Monsoor carried 100 lb of gear in temperatures often exceeding 100 °F.

He took a lead position to protect the platoon from frontal assault and the team was frequently involved in engagements with insurgent fighters.

During the first five months of deployment, that platoon from Team 3 was assigned to Camp Corregidor on the east side of Ramadi, led by then-Lieutenant Seth Stone, who also earned the Silver Star for his own actions on the same September 29, 2006 operation.

During an engagement on May 9, 2006, Monsoor ran into a street while under continuous insurgent gunfire to rescue an injured comrade.

Monsoor was awarded the Silver Star for this action, and was also awarded the Bronze Star Medal for his service in Iraq.

On September 29, 2006, Monsoor's platoon engaged four insurgents in a firefight in Ramadi, killing one and injuring another.

Anticipating further attacks, Monsoor, three SEAL snipers and three Iraqi Army soldiers took up a rooftop position.

Civilians aiding the insurgents blocked off the streets, and a nearby mosque had broadcast a message for people to fight against the Americans and the Iraqi soldiers.

Monsoor was protecting other SEALs, two of whom were 15 feet away from him.

Monsoor's position made him the only SEAL on the rooftop with quick access to an escape route.

A grenade was thrown onto the rooftop by an insurgent on the street below.

The grenade hit Monsoor in the chest and fell onto the floor.

Immediately, Monsoor yelled "Grenade!"

and jumped onto the grenade, covering it with his body.

The grenade exploded seconds later, and Monsoor's body absorbed most of the force of the blast.

Monsoor was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor, which was presented by President George W. Bush to Monsoor's parents on April 8, 2008.

USS Michael Monsoor (DDG-1001), the second ship in the Zumwalt-class destroyer of guided missile destroyers, was also named in his honor.