Salvatore Giunta

Salvatore Giunta's Army profile picture (americangreatness.org)

Civil Rights activist Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. once said, “The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort and convenience, but where he stands at times of challenge and controversy.” Truer words have rarely been spoken; and no man lives up to these words as much as Army Specialist Salvatore Giunta. He is a true American hero. His actions on the night of October 25, 2007 prove that he is not only worthy of the Medal of Honor he was awarded, but the love of his countrymen. Giunta was born on January 21, 1985 in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. His parents, Steven and Rosemary Giunta, were very supportive throughout his life. As a child, he was described as “willing to tempt the unknown,” “charismatic and outgoing,” and “challenging.” Salvatore “Sal” Giunta was known in his high school years as “brave” (U.S. Army) after his many antics that he would often pull at rival schools. When Giunta was 17, he was working a Friday night at a local Subway sandwich shop. There, he saw an ad for free t-shirts at the Army recruiter’s office. Being a sucker for giveaways, he hopped into his car and drove to the recruiter’s office to claim a shirt. At the recruiter’s office, Giunta found his calling and enlisted into the armed forces in November 2003. In his first four years, he quickly progressed through the ranks and was well respected among his peers. In May 2007, Giunta was deployed to Korengal Valley, Afghanistan. This area is commonly known among service members as the “Valley of Death” for the high amount of American casualties that occur there. Giunta’s platoon’s mission was to locate and destroy weapon caches in the high mountains of the valley, effectively stripping the power of the insurgents residing in the area. Over the next few months, the platoon faced firefights nearly daily and lost several men. Then came the night of October 25, 2007. The platoon had just finished up their nightly patrol when the sound of enemy fire broke the silence of night. The group was ambushed. Giunta later recalled, “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 himself was struck twice by enemy fire: once in the chest and in the back, but his armor stopped the bullets. The squad commander was struck in the helmet. Giunta brought him behind cover, out of the battle, and assumed his position. During the battle, he lost contact with friend Sergeant Joshua Brennan. He spotted two enemy soldiers carrying the wounded soldier away. Following his instinct, Giunta left his cover and ran into the wall of bullets. He fired his M4, killing one insurgent (later identified as a high value target) and wounding the other. He managed to grab Brennan and carry him back behind cover. Giunta attempted to stop the bleeding from Brennan’s eight wounds. A U.S. AC-130 gunship effectively ended the 3-minute battle. Brennan died later that night during surgery. Because of his shining qualities, Giunta is a real hero. He may think of himself as the average American, but his courage, devotion, and selflessness prove he is much more than that. He not only risks his life every day in order to rid the world of evil, but he also risked life to save a friend.

President Barack Obama awarding the Medal of Honor (samspadesf.com)

The courage that Giunta showed on that night was the greatest that any man can possibly show. He did many things that no ordinary man would even consider doing. “Giunta saw Gallardo take the bullet to his head and fall. Assuming Gallardo had been shot, Giunta rose and ran through the intense wall of fire to his side. As he helped the uninjured sergeant find cover, the ceramic plate in the front of Giunta's protective vest was struck by a bullet. Another round struck the SMAW-D weapon slung over his back” (Hiawatha Legion Post). Guinta assumed the position that Gallardo left and took control of the troops. At that moment, Giunta was responsible for the lives and well-being of all the men in his squad. A normal man in that situation would crumble under all the pressure on his shoulders. Giunta, on the other hand, kept his cool and did an outstanding job at keeping his comrades alive and keeping the enemy at bay. His strength kept him going through the battle.

Soon, though, he was faced with an even greater danger. As Giunta checked for all of his soldiers, he saw two enemy insurgents taking away a badly wounded Sergeant Brennan. “Without thinking, Giunta charged head-on into the Taliban guns. One of his soldiers was shot four times, but grabbed Giunta from the ground. ‘They have him!' he cried, meaning Brennan. Sprinting, Giunta rescued Brennan from the two Taliban. When Giunta got to Brennan, he was conscious, badly wounded in the lower jaw” (Wood). “After reaching Brennan, Giunta pulled him back towards the rest of the squad and cover, comforted him, and examined him for wounds in the dark” (Hiawatha Legion Post). The audacity that Giunta showed by rescuing his friend was amazing. He proved that he truly follows the rule by heart: “Never leave a man behind.” During the battle, Giunta showed outstanding courage when he risked his life in order to save the life of not only comrades, but friends.

By joining the armed forces, Giunta had already shown his love and devotion to keeping his country safe; but he did more than that. “In 2007, Giunta was stationed at Firebase Vegas in the Korengal Valley, an area about 9.7 by 1.6 kilometres (6.0 × 0.99 mi) near the Afghanistan-Pakistan border, nicknamed by the soldiers as the ‘Valley of Death.’ In late October, his company launched a six-day mission known as Operation Rock Avalanche” (Hiawatha Legion Post). Korengal Valley is called the “Valley of Death” because of the high mortality rate of US and Taliban soldiers in the area and “where American troops were regularly chewed up by Taliban insurgents.” In 3 years, 49 U.S. troops were killed in Korengal Valley. In fact, “Less than 36 months later, in the Spring of 2010, American commanders ordered the last U.S. troops out of Korengal Valley, declaring it not worth the cost to keep” (Wood). Giunta was not only fighting one of the deadliest warriors on the planet, but also in the most hostile environment. The normal man, soldier or not, would not last in a place like that. Giunta and his men not only kept their cool in this location, but transferred that over to how they handled themselves in the firefight. Giunta already loved his country, but what he experienced in Afghanistan made his love and dedication to keep it safe even stronger. Throughout the team’s tour, they encountered firefights almost daily (some deadlier than others) as they scoured the mountain ranges in search for hidden weapons caches. Giunta and his comrades faced death daily, but instead of requesting a transfer to another location, Giunta stayed with his friends and fought alongside them until they defeated the enemy insurgents. Only an man that posses utmost selflessness and would stay and fight enemy forces is definitely a man that deserves much respect. Giunta could have stayed home and lived the average American life, but he put our well-being in front of his when he decided to join the Army and headed to Afghanistan.

Salvatore Giunta at the 2011 Super Bowl (chronile.northcoastnow.com)

Army Specialist Salvatore Giunta is definitely a man of honor that deserves to be looked up to by all because of the courage and devotion that he shows. Salvatore Giunta had already proved that he was a man of courage and dedication when he joined the United States Army; however, his actions on the night of October 25, 2007 made him more than worthy of the Medal of Honor he received. Because of all the sacrifices he has made throughout his life, Giunta deserves much, much more than that; he deserves the love and respect from every person in this country and the world. Salvatore Giunta is my and many others’ hero because he did what most other men would not do: he took the responsibility to protect not only his comrades, but his countrymen as well. He went well above and beyond the call of duty when his comrades needed it most and saved several lives that night. In my eyes, Salvatore Giunta has the greatest courage and devotion that I have seen in anybody. He posses everything a true hero needs: courage, devotion, and selflessness. Giunta’s actions proved that he is truly a great American hero.