Join the U.S. Army for a bloggers’ roundtable on Tuesday, Feb. 12 with four Soldiers who served alongside the Nation’s latest Medal of Honor nominee, former Staff Sgt. Clint Romesha, during the battle at Combat Outpost Keating Oct. 3, 2009. Capt. Stoney Portis, First Lt. Brad Larson, Staff Sgt. Armando Avalos, and Sgt. Thomas Rasmussen will be on hand to discuss their relationship with Romesha and their perspective of Romesha’s selfless actions that day.
Tuesday, February 12, 2013
2 p.m. ET
Capt. Stoney L. Portis is currently a graduate student at Dartmouth College and will be assigned as an instructor in the Department of English & Philosophy at the United States Military Academy. Capt. Portis has deployed to Iraq and Afghanistan and served as commander of B Troop, 3-61st Cavalry in Kunar and Nuristan, Afghanistan in 2009-10.
First Lt. Brad Larson served with Staff Sgt. Romesha in Iraq and Afghanistan. After leaving the Army on active duty, he joined the Nebraska National Guard and became a helicopter pilot. He is currently the platoon leader in the 2-135th General Support Aviation Battalion based out of Nebraska.
Staff Sgt. Armando Avalos is currently assigned to the 6th Recruiting Brigade, Olympia Company, with the duties of a United States Army recruiter. He has three combat tours; two to Iraq and one to Afghanistan. He also served in Cuba in support of Operation Enduring Freedom. At the time of the attack on Oct. 3, 2009 he served in Staff Sgt. Romesha’s platoon as a forward observer.
Sgt. Thomas C. Rasmussen is still currently serving in the U.S. Army at Fort Carson, CO. During the time of the attack, he served in B Troop, 3-61st Cavalry with Romesha during the time of the attack.
Interested bloggers should RSVP by emailing Master Sgt. Jason Shepherd (jason.p.shepherd3.mil [at] mail.mil) or Staff Sgt. Dale Sweetnam (dale.m.sweetnam.mil [at] mail.mil) no later than Monday, Feb. 11 at 2 p.m. Upon receipt of your RSVP, you will receive a dial-in number and passcode.
Visit www.army.mil/medalofhonor/romesha/ to find news stories, photos, and a detailed battlescape (a 3-D account of the mission) – all of which provide more information about Staff Sgt. Romesha’s actions which led to the Medal of Honor nomination.
