The Obama Diary

President Barack Obama awards US Army Sgt. First Class Leroy Arthur Petry, from Santa Fe, N.M., the Medal of Honor during a ceremony in the East Room of the White House.

ABC: At a White House ceremony today, Sgt. 1st Class Leroy Petry, an Army Ranger, will become only the second living recipient of the Medal of Honor for the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq. Petry lost his right hand while throwing a live grenade away from his fellow soldiers.

… on May 26, 2008, Petry and his fellow Rangers were conducting a rare daylight raid on a Taliban compound in eastern Afghanistan’s Paktia Province … after securing a building in the compound, Petry and Pfc. Lucas Robinson entered a courtyard to take on three enemy fighters readying to fire on soldiers at the other end of the courtyard.

They immediately came under fire and Petry was shot by a round that went through both of his legs. Although wounded, Petry led Robinson to take cover behind a chicken coop … but a short time later another grenade landed in their midst … It was at that moment that Petry, already wounded in the legs, lunged for the live grenade to throw it away from his fellow Rangers.

…. But just as he did so, the grenade exploded in his right hand… Remarkably, Petry placed a tourniquet on his right arm then reported by radio that he and the other two Rangers had been wounded and were still under enemy fire.

… Petry now wears a high-tech robotic artificial hand … He continues to serve on active duty as a liaison officer with wounded warriors and plans to remain a soldier. The married father of four recently re-enlisted for another eight years of Army service.

More here