Coronado Sailor Receives Silver Star for Heroic Actions

Last Friday at the Naval Amphibious Base in Coronado, the Navy awarded the Silver Star medal to Explosive Ordinance Disposal Chief Gerardo Sosa, 29, for his heroic actions during combat. The Silver Star is the U.S. Navy’s third-highest award for combat valor.

Ray Mabus, the secretary of the Navy, presented the medal to Sosa for his actions from Sept. 7-8, 2009. According to a U.S. Navy statement, Sosa was serving as an ECHO platoon explosive ordinance disposal technician and “providing watch for the clearance of the Malmand Bazaar, Kandahar Province, Afghanistan, when his element leader stepped on a pressure plate improvised explosive devise (IED), becoming mortally wounded.”

, but Sosa went down on his hands and knees and cleared a path to the wounded element leader so the medic could treat him.

All was not safe yet—Sosa discovered yet another IED next to the wounded sailor. He realized he and his team were stuck in an active minefield and without any sunlight.

Still on his hands and knees, Sosa “identified and rendered safe” additional IEDs. He cleared a 200-yard path out of this minefield and this allowed the team to carry the wounded sailor to safety.

According to the statement released by the U.S. Navy, “[Sosa’s] actions enabled [the team’s] safe extraction from the minefield and unquestionably saved the life of his wounded teammate.”

Though his actions clearly showed gallantry and deserved recognition, Sosa was quick to humbly deflect the attention onto his community, the EOD Group.

“It’s an honor to receive this award, but I look at like this: EOD techs are out there every day doing what I did. EOD are the unsung heroes of these wars,” he said. “We don’t do it for medals or for recognition, we do what we do to make sure soldiers and sailors get back to their families.”

Mabus took a moment to recognize and thank these families at the ceremony.

“Most Americans don't realize the OPTEMPO [Operational Tempo]; they don't realize how many times you deploy, and they don't realize that when you come home, you don't get to spend that whole time with your family," he said. "These [families] are the folks that make the biggest sacrifice right here. Thank you for your sacrifice."

We congratulate Sosa for earning the Silver Star medal and hope all other sailors safely return home to their families.