JOINT BASE ELMENDORF-RICHARDSON, Alaska — Amanda Marr, mother of MacAiden Gallegos, who is the son of former 4th Infantry Division Soldier Staff Sgt. Justin T. Gallegos, and Col. Dave Zinn, commander, 2nd Infantry Brigade Combat Team, 4th Inf. Div., stand at attention Dec. 15, 2018, during the reading of orders presenting Justin Gallegos posthumously with the Distinguished Service Cross, the Army’s second highest award for bravery during battle. Justin Gallegos was initially awarded the Silver Star for his actions during the Battle of Kamdesh, Oct. 3, 2009, at Combat Outpost Keating in Afghanistan’s Nuristan Province. Through efforts by his former command team and members of Congress, the Distinguished Service Cross was presented to Gallegos’ 14-year-old son, MacAiden, during the ceremony in the Frontier Theater on Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson. (Photo by John Pennell)
By Sgt. 1st Class Joel Gibson
U.S. Army Alaska
JOINT BASE ELMENDORF-RICHARDSON, Alaska — A 4th Infantry Division Soldier was posthumously awarded the Distinguished Service Cross, the second highest Army award for extreme gallantry and risk of life in actual combat with an armed enemy force, in a ceremony Dec. 15, 2018, for his actions during the battle of Kamdesh in Afghanistan Oct. 3, 2009.
Staff Sgt. Justin T. Gallegos, then 27, a team leader with Bravo Troop, 3rd Squadron, 61st Cavalry Regiment, 4th Brigade Combat Team, 4th Inf. Div., was originally awarded a Silver Star for his part in the battle that saw approximately 300 Taliban fighters attack fewer than 60 U.S. Soldiers.
Col. Dave Zinn, commander, 2nd Infantry Brigade Combat Team, presented the Distinguished Service Cross to Gallegos’ son MacAiden and Sen. Lisa Murkowski presented him a folded flag.
Although Gallegos never served with U.S. Army Alaska (USARAK), they hosted the ceremony because MacAiden and his mother, Amanda Marr are residents of Alaska.
JOINT BASE ELMENDORF-RICHARDSON, Alaska — Col. Dave Zinn, commander, 2nd Infantry Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division, presents Staff Sgt. Justin T. Gallegos’s son MacAiden with the Distinguished Service Cross during a ceremony at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson, Alaska, Dec. 15, 2018. Gallegos served as part of the 4th Infantry Division and was posthumously awarded the nation’s second highest honor for valor for actions during the battle of Kamdesh in Afghanistan Oct. 3, 2009. (Photo by Airman 1st Class Crystal A. Jenkins)
“As the battle kicked off on the early morning of Oct. 3, this group of men were outmanned and out gunned by an enemy force that numbered up to 300,” said Lt. Col. Michael Meyer, commander, 1st Battalion (Airborne), 501st Infantry Regiment, 4th Infantry Brigade Combat Team (Airborne), 25th Infantry Division and master of ceremonies, “The enemy had better positioning and surprise, hiding in the micro terrain and scrub trees of the mountains of Nuristan.”
The commander of Bravo Troop at the time of the battle, Maj. Stoney Portis said, “When I heard the news that Justin’s Distinguished Service Cross had finally been approved, I knew that one of the discrepancies in the narrative of the Battle of Combat Outpost (COP) Keating had finally been corrected.
“Justin Gallegos risked his life to save Stephan Mace. It was that one event, which we were not able to articulate in the narrative of Justin’s Silver Star, that called for an upgrade to the Distinguished Service Cross.”
Portis read from the Distinguished Service Cross narrative describing the actions of the event, which neither Gallegos nor Mace survived.
JOINT BASE ELMENDORF-RICHARDSON, Alaska — Sen. Lisa Murkowski presents Staff. Sgt. Justin T. Gallegos’s son, MacAiden and his mother, Amanda with a ceremonial flag during a Distinguished Service Cross ceremony at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson, Alaska, Dec. 15, 2018. Murkowski spoke during the ceremony and presented the flag following the posthumous awarding of the nation’s second highest honor for valor. During his military service, he served with the 4th Infantry Division. Gallegos joined the U.S. Army in May 2003, he served two deployments in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom; the first one was from November 2005 to November 2006 and a second from March 2007 through May 2008. At the time of his death, he was serving his third deployment, first to Afghanistan, in support of Operation Enduring Freedom. (Photo by Airman 1st Class Crystal A. Jenkins)
“We had always known that Justin is a hero, but within the context of his saving Stephan Mace, we are reminded that Justin is not only a great hero, but that he is also a good man,” said Portis. “Justin’s actions that day, as well as the actions of Josh Hardt, Josh Kirk, Stephan Mace, Michael Scusa, Chris Griffin, Kevin Thomson, and Vernon Martin, preserved the lives of so many others.”
The Battle of Kamdesh claimed eight American lives and resulted in the awarding of two Medals of Honor, 27 Purple Heart Medals, 37 Army Commendation Medals with “V” device for valor, 18 Bronze Stars with “V” device and nine Silver Stars.
“Medal upgrades aren’t unheard of, but in fairness they are rare, they are very rare,” Murkowski said. “It’s said they almost require an act of Congress, well, in this case, it did require an act of Congress.”
Medal of Honor recipients Staff Sgt. Clint Romesha and Staff Sgt. Ty Carter, veterans of the Battle of Kamdesh, attended the ceremony.
JOINT BASE ELMENDORF-RICHARDSON, Alaska — Distinguished guests and Family members of Staff Sgt. Justin T. Gallegos, former 4th Infantry Division Soldier, stand for the national anthem Dec. 15, 2018, during the ceremony to upgrade Gallegos’ posthumous Silver Star Medal to the Army’s second highest award for bravery during battle, the Distinguished Service Cross. Gallegos was initially awarded the Silver Star for his actions during the Battle of Kamdesh, Oct. 3, 2009, at Combat Outpost Keating in Afghanistan’s Nuristan Province. The Distinguished Service Cross was presented to his 14-year-old son, MacAiden, during the ceremony in the Frontier Theater on Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson. (Photo by John Pennell)