The Patriot Post® · Profiles of Valor: LCpl Kyle Carpenter (USMC)

“William Kyle Carpenter, a Marine Corps veteran who was severely wounded during a November 2010 grenade attack in Afghanistan, [received] the nation’s highest combat valor award,” reports the Marine Corps Times. Carpenter is now medically retired as a corporal, having sustained horrific injuries as a result of his heroic actions.

While serving in the Marjah district of Afghanistan in 2010, Carpenter and his good friend, Lance Cpl. Nicholas Eufrazio, were standing guard on a rooftop when a grenade landed near them. What happened next isn’t entirely clear since there were no witnesses besides the two men, and Carpenter couldn’t remember what happened while Eufrazio sustained brain damage that until nearly two years later rendered him mute. However, the Times reports, “Hospitalman 3rd Class Christopher Frend, who triaged the injuries of Carpenter and Eufrazio, said the injuries Carpenter sustained, and the evidence at the scene indicated that he [Carpenter] had indeed covered the explosive. The blast seat of the grenade – the point of its detonation – was found under Carpenter’s torso.” Marine Staff Sgt. Michael Kroll, Carpenter’s platoon sergeant, said, “our feeling has always been that Kyle shielded Nick from that blast.”

Carpenter lost his right eye and most of his teeth, and the blast shattered his arm and his jaw. His scarred face will be a lasting reminder of the price he paid to save a friend. But he says, “I’m still here and kicking and, you know, I have all my limbs so you’ll never hear me complain.” He even ran the Marine Corps Marathon last year and posted a time of 4:28:42. Carpenter’s medal is the third awarded to a Marine for actions in Iraq or Afghanistan.

Carpenter received the Medal of Honor on June 19. His citation notes:

For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty while serving as an Automatic Rifleman with Company F, 2d Battalion, 9th Marines, Regimental Combat Team 1, 1st Marine Division (Forward), 1 Marine Expeditionary Force (Forward), in Helmand Province, Afghanistan in support of Operation Enduring Freedom on 21 November 2010. Lance Corporal Carpenter was a member of a platoon-sized coalition force, comprised of two reinforced Marine squads partnered with an Afghan National Army squad. The platoon had established Patrol Base Dakota two days earlier in a small village in the Marjah District in order to disrupt enemy activity and provide security for the local Afghan population. Lance Corporal Carpenter and a fellow Marine were manning a rooftop security position on the perimeter of Patrol Base Dakota when the enemy initiated a daylight attack with hand grenades, one of which landed inside their sandbagged position. Without hesitation, and with complete disregard for his own safety, Lance Corporal Carpenter moved toward the grenade in an attempt to shield his fellow Marine from the deadly blast. When the grenade detonated, his body absorbed the brunt of the blast, severely wounding him, but saving the life of his fellow Marine. By his undaunted courage, bold fighting spirit, and unwavering devotion to duty in the face of almost certain death, Lance Corporal Carpenter reflected great credit upon himself and upheld the highest traditions of the Marine Corps and the United States Naval Service.

At his award ceremony, Kyle said: “You always hear ‘band of brothers,’ and that’s exactly what we are. I’ll say I’m not surprised and no way patting myself on the back, because I know that if you put a thousand Marines in that situation, they would all do the same exact thing for me.”

“Greater love has no one than this, to lay down one’s life for his friends.” (John 15:13)

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