Perseverance: Keep on Keeping on

Today in class we talked about perseverance. And our assignment is to write a report about someone exemplifying this character trait. So I am going to tell you the story of Medal of Honor recipient Marine Sgt. Dakota Meyer.

Dakota Meyer was born in 1988 Columbia, Kentucky where he grew up and graduated from high school. After graduating he enlisted in the Marines in 2006. He was sent over to Iraq in 2007 and served in Fallujah.

His Medal of Honor was earned in action on September 8, 2009 in Kunar Province near the village of Ganjgal. Meyer, then a Corporal, and Staff Sgt.Juan Rodriguez-Chavez heard over their radios that a patrol of Afghan soldiers and their American trainers were being ambushed by about 50 Taliban fighters dug in on the slopes above the village. Meyer and the Staff Sergeant repeatedly radioed for permission to move forward to rescue their comrades, but the were denied permission every time. Finally they decided to disobey their superiors and advance into the valley under a hail of gunfire to rescue their trapped comrades and allies. With Staff Sgt. Rodriguez-Chavez driving the humvee, Corporal Meyer manned the gun turret, exposing himself to the enemy's fire. Twice they drove into the heart of the ambush and rescued pinned down and injured Afghan soldiers. After their second trip they had to switch humvees because the first one was too damaged by bullets and shrapnel. A third and fourth time they went in, sometimes fighting the Taliban ambushers right next to the humvee. Each time they came upon trapped or injured soldiers they would expose themselves further to gunfire in order to reach the trapped soldiers and get them back to the vehicle.

Five times they went into the ambushed area, each time with great risk to themselves. Corporal Meyer was injured in the arm by a piece of shrapnel on the third or fourth run through the valley. On the fifth trip Meyer searched the village house to house trying to find four US service men that had been trapped for the entirety of the 6 hour battle. Meyer and Rodriguez-Chavez found all four of the men, dead, and carried their bodies back to safety.

Throughout the whole battle Meyer exemplified perseverance by running through enemy gunfire to save his friends and comrades. Meyer said that the gunfire was so thick and heavy, "I didn't think I was going to die, I knew it." He knew he would die, but he kept going, kept pushing forward to rescue as many as possible. I think many of us as Christians could learn from his example, not only of perseverance, but also of courage and selflessness.