Salvatore Giunta

On 5 July 2017, during a dedication ceremony for the Medal of Honor Walkway, located outside of the 173rd Airborne Brigade Headquarters building in Vicenza, Italy, Salvatore Giunta chose to give his Medal of Honor to the brigade. He stated "I want this to stay here in Vicenza, Italy with the 173rd to the men and women that earn this every single day through their selflessness and sacrifice."

There were more bullets in the air than stars in the sky. A wall of bullets at every one at the same time with one crack and then a million other cracks afterwards. They're above you, in front of you, behind you, below you. They're hitting in the dirt early. They're going over your head. Just all over the place. They were close—as close as I've ever seen.

Giunta learned two days later from Kearney that the latter was going to recommend him for the Medal of Honor. He was uncomfortable about being singled out and labeled a hero. "If I'm a hero, every man that stands around me, every woman in the military, everyone who goes into the unknown is a hero," he says. "So if you think that's a hero—as long as you include everyone with me." Giunta insists that his actions were those of any man in his unit. "In this job, I am only mediocre. I'm average." "I did what I did because in the scheme of painting the picture of that ambush, that was just my brush stroke. That's not above and beyond. I didn't take the biggest brush stroke, and it wasn't the most important brush stroke. Wearing the Medal of Honor is like a slap in the face."

I'm not at peace with that at all," Giunta said. "And coming and talking about it and people wanting to shake my hand because of it, it hurts me, because it's not what I want. And to be with so many people doing so much stuff and then to be singled out—and put forward. I mean, everyone did something.

As of June 2014, Giunta lives in Fort Collins, Colorado.

Within 50 to 100 meters (160–330 ft) of leaving their position, 10 to 15 insurgents ambushed the main body of the squad from cover and concealment only about 10 meters (33 ft) away, so near that the Apaches overhead could not provide close air support. The ambushing force was armed with AK-47 assault rifles, 10 rocket-propelled grenade (RPG) launchers and four belt-fed PKM machine guns. They fired an unusually high proportion of tracer rounds. Giunta described it later:

Giunta chose not to re-enlist and left the Army in June 2011. Giunta and his wife moved to Colorado where he studied at Colorado State University. Giunta has also written an autobiography titled Living with Honor, published by Simon & Schuster.

Giunta and Jennifer Lynn Mueller, a native of Dubuque, were married in October 2009 after dating for several years. The couple are parents of a daughter born on 6 October 2011.

On 6 February 2011, Giunta was honored on the field and via international television broadcast at the beginning of the second half of Super Bowl XLV, which the Green Bay Packers eventually won over the Pittsburgh Steelers.

On 10 September 2010, the White House announced that Giunta would be awarded the United States' highest military decoration, the first awarded to a living recipient since the Vietnam War. He received the medal from President Barack Obama during a ceremony at the White House on 16 November 2010. All of his surviving squad members also attended the ceremony.

On 31 December 2010, Giunta was invited by New York City mayor Michael Bloomberg to attend the New Year's Eve celebrations in Times Square. There, he pressed a button upon the start of a sixty-second countdown to initiate the ball drop.

In 2007, Giunta was stationed at Firebase Vegas in the Korengal Valley--an area about 9.7 by 1.6 kilometers (6.03 mi × 0.99 mi) near the Afghanistan-Pakistan border--which the soldiers had nicknamed the Valley of Death. In late October, his company launched a six-day mission known as Operation Rock Avalanche. On 23 October, Taliban fighters killed Staff Sergeant Larry Rougle and wounded two other infantrymen when Rougle's position on "Honcho Hill" was overrun. On 25 October, company commander Captain Dan Kearney sent 2nd and 3rd Platoon back to meet with the local village elders and to recover from them the U.S. equipment that the Taliban had captured when Rougle was killed. 1st Platoon was tasked with providing protective cover and interdicting enemy forces from a nearby ridge.

Shortly after nightfall on 25 October 2007, rifle team leader Giunta and the rest of the seven troops of 1st Platoon had just finished a day-long overwatch of 2nd and 3rd Platoon in the valley below. Although dark, there was sufficient moonlight that night vision equipment was not needed. They were returning to Combat Outpost Vimoto and Korengal Outpost. They walked about 10 to 15 feet (3.0–4.6 m) apart through the thin holly forest, along the Gatigal Spur of Honcho Hill at about 2,438 meters (7,999 ft) elevation.

For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty: Specialist Salvatore A. Giunta distinguished himself conspicuously by gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty in action with an armed enemy in the Korengal Valley, Afghanistan, on October 25, 2007. While conducting a patrol as team leader with Company B, 2d Battalion (Airborne), 503d Infantry Regiment, Specialist Giunta and his team were navigating through harsh terrain when they were ambushed by a well-armed and well-coordinated insurgent force. While under heavy enemy fire, Specialist Giunta immediately sprinted towards cover and engaged the enemy. Seeing that his squad leader had fallen and believing that he had been injured, Specialist Giunta exposed himself to withering enemy fire and raced towards his squad leader, helped him to cover, and administered medical aid. While administering first aid, enemy fire struck Specialist Giunta's body armor and his secondary weapon. Without regard to the ongoing fire, Specialist Giunta engaged the enemy before prepping and throwing grenades, using the explosions for cover in order to conceal his position. Attempting to reach additional wounded fellow soldiers who were separated from the squad, Specialist Giunta and his team encountered a barrage of enemy fire that forced them to the ground. The team continued forward and upon reaching the wounded soldiers, Specialist Giunta realized that another soldier was still separated from the element. Specialist Giunta then advanced forward on his own initiative. As he crested the top of a hill, he observed two insurgents carrying away an American soldier. He immediately engaged the enemy, killing one and wounding the other. Upon reaching the wounded soldier, he began to provide medical aid, as his squad caught up and provided security. Specialist Giunta's unwavering courage, selflessness, and decisive leadership while under extreme enemy fire were integral to his platoon's ability to defeat an enemy ambush and recover a fellow American soldier from the enemy. Specialist Salvatore A. Giunta's extraordinary heroism and selflessness above and beyond the call of duty are in keeping with the highest traditions of military service and reflect great credit upon himself, Company B, 2d Battalion (Airborne), 503d Infantry Regiment, and the United States Army.

Giunta attended basic training and infantry school at Fort Benning, Georgia. He was deployed to Afghanistan from March 2005 until March 2006 and again from May 2007 until July 2008. He was promoted to staff sergeant in August 2009. Giunta was last stationed at Caserma Ederle, the 173rd Airborne Brigade Combat Team's base near Vicenza, Italy. He served in the 2nd Battalion, 503rd Infantry Regiment, 173rd Airborne Brigade Combat Team, and worked in a support role for members of his unit then deployed in Afghanistan.

Salvatore Augustine Giunta (/ˌ s æ l v ə ˈ t ɔːr eɪ ˈ dʒ ʊ n t ə / ; born 21 January 1985) is a former United States Army soldier and the first living person since the Vietnam War to receive the U.S. military's highest decoration for valor, the Medal of Honor. Giunta was cited for saving the lives of members of his squad on 25 October 2007 during the War in Afghanistan. He left the U.S. Army in June 2011.

Giunta was born in Clinton, Iowa, on 21 January 1985, to an Italian American family. Giunta grew up in Cedar Rapids and Hiawatha. His parents, Steven, a medical equipment technician, and Rosemary, a preschool teacher, live in Hiawatha. He has two younger siblings, Mario and Katie. Giunta attended John F. Kennedy High School in Cedar Rapids. At age 17, while working in a Subway, he decided to enlist and joined the Army in November 2003. He was the first in his immediate family to serve in the armed forces since his grandparents emigrated from Italy.

The President of the United States of America, authorized by an Act of Congress, 3 March 1863, has awarded, in the name of Congress, the Medal of Honor to