R. Deay

I went to Marine Corps Boot Camp at 25. I don’t know anybody that wants to go to Boot Camp at 42

You gotta treat yourself right sometimes. This is one of those times.

Leaders need to stop gate keeping awards. We should never be denying awards based on rank. Let me give you an example: Meet my one of oldest and closest friends James (Jimmy) Ruane. Son of the famous American Jockey John Ruane (a big name in the 1950s). He joined the Army as a cook in his 40s and was one of the smartest and most capable Soldiers I ever knew. He joined me in the famed 101st Airborne Division in 2010. When I was a pre-command captain working as the operations officer for 2-502 Infantry, we had a brand new blimp with a camera on it which we were going to use to hunt insurgents and kill them. They were crawling around Zhari, Afghanistan back then. We needed an operator for the blimp and somebody recommended Jimmy…. a cook. Once I met him, I understood why. This guy was SMART. Smarter than me. Hell, smarter than everyone in the battalion. He figured out how to hunt bad guys FAST. 18 hours a day for 15 months, this man found bad guys and we killed them with our symphony of assets. Our little HQ tent got mortared many times. Folks died right outside frequently. Our tent riddled with shrapnel holes. We had to jump the HQ often because the Taliban got good at dialing in their 82mm mortars. The COP also got attacked directly and Jimmy would have to toss on his gear and help the defense. This was not a normal “FOBBIT”. He was directly responsible for the death of over 800 insurgents (yes I said 800). So I put him in for a Bronze Star (Meritorious). I figured hey, if the officers who are literally pushing paper are getting one, why not him? It was denied because he was only an E4. Too low ranking to deserve it apparently. I got one though. He always joked for years after to me “How’s my bronze star you’re wearing!?”. He was always humorous, but you could tell it bothered him. And it f**king bothered me too. Fast forward 13 years, he died. Broke, alone, an alcoholic, depressed, and had PTSD. Fighting with the VA for benefits. It wasn’t a suicide, his heart just gave out. To this day I always think what one simple piece of cloth and metal would have done to change the outcome of his life. Maybe nothing. Maybe everything. Miss you brother.

The victim of the terrorist attack at Old Dominion has been identified as Lt. Col. Brandon Shah-- who was a Professor of Military Science and the leader of the university's ROTC program. He was a veteran of Operation Iraqi Freedom, Operation Enduring Freedom, and Atlantic Resolve. His awards included two Bronze Stars, Senior Army Aviator Badge, Combat Action Badge, Parachutist Badge, Air Assault Badge, Defense Meritorious Service Medal, Meritorious Service Medal, Air Medal with Valor, Joint Service Commendation Medal, Army Commendation Medal, and the Joint Service Achievement Medal. RIP. 🙏